Castaic High School isn’t complete without its marching band. And the marching isn’t complete without its drum majors. Castaic’s very own drum majors are junior Liam Lafferty and senior Damian Silvera, leading and conducting our marching band through competitions and halftime shows. I interviewed them to get a sense of what it takes to earn and hold the honor of being drum majors.
Drum majors, in a simple sense, are the assistants to the band director, which is Eugene Kim, Castaic’s band and choir teacher. They help lead rehearsals, especially when Kim isn’t there, and Lafferty often runs the metronome, a device used to ensure tempo and precision, on the field. Their leadership puts them in the position of being role models to the rest of band.
“To listen to the needs of the people that are under so that you serve what’s best for the whole team,” said Silvera when asked what it takes to be a good leader in band. “You have to lead by example. You have to be inspiring to those under you. And that’s how people follow you.”
Lafferty emphasized the patience it takes to coordinate and see everything come together, even when things go wrong, like waiting through bad rehearsals.
“But when it comes together, it’s like an awesome feeling,” he said.
He described the feeling as satisfying, the awe moment in which everyone, especially the drum majors, work hard for.
Silvera, who serves as the primary drum major, first got into playing music when he joined Castaic Middle School’s band after getting rejected from the school’s ASB.
“I always wanted to play an instrument and I chose the clarinet because I like the tone,” he said.
From there, his love for playing instruments and performing music bloomed into all that he does today. On top of being a drum major for our marching band, he performs in our Wind Ensemble and Jazz Band, and is apart of a non-school affiliated orchestra groups called the Kadmina Senior Philharmonic and the Kadmina Conservatory Philharmonic– being the principal clarinet for both, and takes private lessons to even further improve his craft. Additionally, he earned the role of primary clarinet last year for band, as well as making it to the All-State Wind Symphony in Sacramento, which is the highest competitive level for concert band.
When Silveria is playing clarinet during band’s winter season, he says “I feel it in everything, the music, the focus. I just feel happy when I play because I’m sharing my art with other people.”
But for conducting, he has to feel a deeper level of focus.
“I just try to lock in and make sure everyone is on time and watching,” he described.
Lafferty began his journey in music even earlier in his life, joining an after-school program in 6th grade.
“I just picked an instrument. It was the trumpet. And from then on I fell in love with it.”.
Continuing on, he joined band class in middle school and joined marching band upon entering high school, being the obvious choice considering his love for the art. He was almost immediately interested in the role of drum major and it became a goal for him.
The process of becoming a drum major at Castaic is filling out an application and getting approved and selected by Kim. Lafferty mentioned he was nervous, but his talent and hard work got him the role– an impressive feat for a junior as the position is usually filled by seniors. This past summer, he participated in drum corps, hosted by the non-profit, Drum Corps International.
“In the moment, I hated it. Because it was so stressful when I had to take things more into my own hands. But when it was over, I realized I enjoyed that hard work,” said Lafferty, reflecting on how the experience was both strenuous and rewarding
Both Lafferty and Silveria work hard to keep the marching band in order and refine their skills– spending more than ten hours a week on their music-related pursuits between school and private practice. This paid off in 2022 when they won second place in Championships, just missing 1st by a minor penalty.
Advice for those wanting to become future drum majors:
Silveria said: “Just be yourself in your leadership. Just let your leadership qualities shine in whatever that is. Get advice from previous leaders, in person especially. And then listen to feedback from the director of your group.”
“Learning to work with yourself, like primarily learning to understand you; Everything about how you work makes it a million times easier,” said Lafferty.
In terms of the future, Silveria strives to make music a career.
“I think in the future, I want to major in music performance in college. I’m trying to shoot for UCLA or USC and focus on developing my musicianship. And then maybe after that, either pursuing it professionally or as a hobby, if I do another job.”
All in all, Lafferty and Silveria both show artistic excellence in the work they do for our school’s marching and performing band, making our football halftime performances entertaining and leading the Coyotes’ legacy in music.
