The Bakersfield College music program has began a marching band with a small number of students but hopes to recruit many more student musicians as time progresses.

Tim Heasley, an adjunct music professor at BC and teacher at West High School, began teaching concert band in the spring of 2008.

“I have been surrounded by music my whole life, and I was bound to gravitate toward it,” said Heasley.

The BC drum line was the steppingstone toward Heasley’s vision of bringing back the marching band. “I have support from the music and athletics departments,” said Heasley, “and I was told a week before school started this semester that we had the go ahead permission to begin the program.”

Because he was told on such short notice, the marching band does not consist of a large number of students.

“I informed my concert band students on the first day of the great news and told them they were more than welcome in signing up for the marching band if they chose to,” said Heasley.

Stephani Alvarado, 18, is an environmental engineering major and both concert and marching band member, said, “I was in marching band in high school, and I love the opportunity to keep doing it here at BC because of the adrenaline and feeling I get when I perform in front of a crowd.”

The Renegade Band rehearses on the field on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

“During practices we work with our sections, work on music and set drill,” said Alvarado. The band performs during the halftime show on football nights to entertain the crowd and display their band field show.

Next summer, the plans are to have band camp with a full group of students and begin taking part in band competitions. “I’m beginning to build the program again, so for now, we aren’t ready to compete quite yet,” said Heasley.