I have always wondered why the Death March is named the “Death March”. When I was younger and went to the games for mini cheer night or mini majorette night, we would almost always meet the band at the post office, where they performed and would have walked the rest of the way with them. I always thought that it was kind of a silly name, “The Death March.” It never seemed that far to me. Even as a band aide in 8th grade, it didn’t seem that far. As an actual band member, I still don’t understand it; it is only a mile and a quarter. So I decided to ask some of my other freshman peers who have different instruments than me to answer a simple question. I thought it was unfair to have my whole article centered around the way it feels to me when I have the lightest instrument and the easiest part to do. The question I asked was: “Would you recommend renaming the Death March?”
Max Cooley, a freshman trumpet player, said, “No, I think the Death March is a good name, plus it has been called that for a long time, and the band honors tradition.”
Next, I asked Trace Miller, a freshman in the quint section, who said, “My answer is idk. The march is hard with the heaviest instrument and having to play during the whole march.”
I also asked freshman sousaphone player Brayden Kiser his opinion he said, “To answer your question, no I would not recommend changing the name of the death march and that’s for two reasons, one, It’s tradition and has been part of the band since before the 60’s and has been called the “Death March” since the confirmed early 90’s, and two, the name isn’t far off. I mean, personally, my experience being a Sousaphone (Tuba) it’s hard and wears you out, but the pain is worth it just to be a part of the band.”
Freshman trombone player Violet Wagner said, “No, the death march is an iconic name that most people know, and it is easy to determine when someone is talking about it because of the name. I get how you think renaming it would be a good idea since it’s not as bad as it sounds, but it is harder for some others since you only play the piccolo. As someone who plays trombone, it’s not that bad (unless it’s a lick), but that is not hard every time. Death March should be the name since the Dover band has been doing the Death March for a while, and it is easily recognizable.”
I then asked mellophone freshman player Maycie Hickman, and she said this: “I wouldn’t rename the Death March because of how long it’s been called that, so what’s the point in switching it up now?”
I asked freshman saxophone player Delany Nottingham her opinion. She said, “I would not rename the Death March because the name is generational and has traditional value. An alumnus could come back to Dover after many years and still know what the Death March is.”
I finally asked snare drum freshman player Elyse Zeedyk and she said, “I do think that renaming the Death March may put a more positive thought on it and might make upcoming freshmen not be scared of it. At the same time, the name Death March has been around for a while, and keeping up traditions is also important to the Dover band. I would hope that upperclassmen help clarify to freshmen that the Death March isn’t completely terrible despite its name. I think it should stay to keep tradition.”
Everyone I asked seemed to say that they wanted to keep the Death March as named because of the history, tradition, and how hard it is to play certain instruments. I guess looking at it from different views, like quints or sousaphones, it would be much harder. For me personally, it isn’t that bad, just very hot. So I would say that yes, we should keep it because of the tradition behind it and how hard it is for other band members playing larger instruments.
