The Shippensburg University Marching Band (SUMB) debuted a virtual rendition of the university fight song last week, generating a social media wave of school spirit. Members performed the “The Horse” from home to create an exceptional performance.
Junior communication/journalism major and SUMB president, Matthew Zemba, played a key role in coordinating and editing the video. Though, he emphasized “this was a project that involved everyone for sure.”
Producing a distance-performance requires precision, so Zemba had to prepare the band. “We sent out a recording of ‘The Horse’ from our 2018 professional recording day because we do not have access to our documents on campus. I added a metronome on top to help keep tempo, and we sent the track to everyone. We had members record themselves individually along with the audio track, and they wore headphones so we just heard their instrument. We also included our non-instrumental sections with color guard dances, majorette routines, and the spelling of “RAIDERS” with our pit percussion.”
Zemba had to overcome a few challenges in the editing. The big video files slowed his computer down and he ran out of system storage. He lined up all individual parts and fit the videos perfectly on the widescreen ratio, and in the end “I was very happy about the final product,” Zemba said.
Matthew and the band hope the video brings joy and a sense of togetherness to the Ship community. “We wanted to show that nothing can keep the SUMB ‘Family’ apart, and that we are all here for each other during this time.”
Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the SUMB PR crew has worked to keep spirits high sharing testimonials and pictures on social media, and Zemba suggests there is more to come.
“Because the band has such strong bonds, we can rely on each other during times like this. Our leadership is working hard to make sure that this year will be just as great as any other year!”
