Using music to drown
out some of life’s hardships is very common and Webster Marching Band drum
major Katie Hackett is no different.
Hackett is a senior at Webster Schroeder High School in
Webster, NY who participates in multiple musical groups both inside and outside
of the school’s day programs. Aside from being the drum major for the district’s
marching band, she plays for the Wind Ensemble (the elite band in the day
program)
For eight years, Hackett has been dedicated to her
musical success and has done everything she can to become the advanced
clarinetist that she is today. But the instrument did not come easy at first.
“For about a month, when I first started playing, I was
not even able to get a sound out of the clarinet. That was frustrating. But I
knew that with time and practice, I would learn how to play it,” said Hackett.
Her mother provided her with the motivation for choosing
to play the clarinet out of all of the instruments she had to choose from
because she had played it in high school and encouraged Katie to do the same.
“Playing
cool music and being able to play in high school motivated me to continue to
play even though I was really bad when I started” said Hackett.
Hackett’s
life has been transformed not only by her playing an instrument but by music in
general. In middle school, she was the victim of bullying when a few boys would
constantly make fun of her because her family was slightly different than most.
Hackett
grew up in a household with two mothers and was adopted from China when she was
an infant. She also has a younger sister who was adopted from Cambodia.
Sometimes, the bullying made Hackett questioned herself and if she was normal.
She found it hard to cope with being different and turned to music to drown out
the negative comments that people would make.
Having band during the school day and spending her free
time after school in marching band with her who accepted her differences was what
really helped Hackett get through the hardships that she faced.
The
marching band program and the day program that kept Hackett so busy throughout
her middle school and high school career have many differences, but those differences
complement each other.
“The school program helps more with technique and the
music is way more challenging than the marching band music, which helps with
some aspects of skill.” said Hackett. “But marching band helps with keeping my
muscles strong, memorizing the music, and keeping the tempo in the music.”
“Working
with Katie has been very beneficial,” Said co-drum major Emily Dorsey. “I’ve
learned from her and she has learned from me. We each have our strengths and weaknesses
and we balance each other out.”
Hackett
and fellow classmate and Dorsey have both been playing the clarinet for the
same amount of time. Dorsey joined Hackett on the podium her senior year of high
school as drum major for the marching band. The drum major of a marching band is
the person in front of the band who conducts and keeps the group together and
on the same beat and tempo. Dorsey also plays in Wind Ensemble with Hackett.
Both
girls agreed that being drum major has made them more confident in themselves
on the field marching and has translated to when they play in school.
Music has played a major role in Hackett’s life for so
long. As she prepares to go off to college there are still many decisions
Hackett has to make including where she is going, what she is going to study,
and if playing an instrument will continue to be a part of her life. Hackett is
not sure if she will still be playing next fall. Some of the schools she is
looking at such as St. Lawrence and Oswego have music programs but she does not
plan on studying music so any playing she does will be purely recreational. No
matter what happens after high school, though, Hackett will look back at her
experiences with music and always remember how it has helped transform her and
get her through some of the toughest times in her life.
