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We have a freshman this year that we actually built up like "OMIGOSH, he can march and he can play like GOD, you're a freaking beast" and then his head got big. Now it's just "Shut up Tyler, we know."

Just don't do this. I don't care how awesome your freshman his, don't build up a kid like this. His/her ego will go sky high and you'll never be able to bring him/her down. He was small and cute (hasn't hit puberty yet) and I admit, has some mad skills, but his head could use some deflating. And that's partly our fault.

Anyway, I was never a freshman like this. But I know a fair few people who are and they make themselves look ridiculous.

Edit: I know he's better at playing than I am. (I'm a Junior) He has two director parents and he's been around music his entire life. I'm happy to give up a few solos for him, but I don't need the bragging.

Well lets get this part over with. I am not a nice person. Plain and simple. You tick me off, well, paybacks a b***h. We have a freshman trumpet who recently got a 1990s Bach Stradivarius 72 (I played it before he did, its beautiful, bandgeekus shorticus wants it.....), and ever since that kid has been cockier then my rival in the section. At least she knows how to play. This kid has been a total a** to the rest of the section in concert band. I never realized it until we had combined rehearsal (I'm in wind ensemble/honors band). Well this kid was sitting there showing off and being nasty to the other freshman (who I adore) in front of me. I have no tolerance for that crap, so I sat RIGHT next to him, and blatantly handed him 3rd trumpet instead of the 2nd he was expecting. Just me sitting next to him was enough to scare him. I am nice to my section, but I command respect, and they give it to me. 40 minutes later, he was whipped into shape. He will turn out to be a good player, but he needs to realize that he is a freshman, and that in marching band especially you go up the ranks when you are respectful and have the skill level to match.

Thats just my little cocky underclassman story. My rival is cocky too, but I beat her in every single audition this year (Wind Ensemble, Jazz Ensemble, and County Band mwahahaha twisted ). Anyway I say teach the kids a lesson. Show them whose boss, and that in order to "become boss", they need to be respectful, knowledgeable (remind them that this only comes with time in the organization), and humble. I play trumpet, its the section with the biggest ego next to the snare line. If I can get the cocky kids to realize there proper place, you can too. If you need any help, gimme a call ill get them lol.

I love it when that happens! As a sophomore, two girls in my section tried to teach me how to play (even though I knew how) and treated me like a four-year-old. The looks on their faces when I blew them out of the water that year at chair placement auditions? Priceless.

We have some really annoying freshman this year.

We have a bunch of echo cheers at football games where a small group of 2-6 people will call out something, and the band echoes something. ("When I sy green, you say gold", "Where my diamonds at? (right here right here!)", etc)
Well, these cheers are strictly(well, more of traditionally) started by seniors and the occasional junior.
These two freshman would start them about 5 times a game. And nobody could do anyhtign about it, ebcause we have a rule that if one person cheers, we all cheer.

Better yet, one of those two freshman was an alternate clarinet player who I shared a spot with(we gained a lot of members after the drill ws written, so we didnt have enough spots for everone and just had those new members "shadow" another member, so they had the chance to march. Usually, they are supposed to swicth off every game and festival, but she didnt know it so I always got to march) First off; she was a shadow, which kinda puts you a bit lower, especially if you had never marched a show before. Why did she not know the spot? She would show up to 1 or 2 of our 4 or 5 rehearsals a week, and/or would sit out saying she was 'sick' or 'injured'. Also, when she would show up and actually march, she would be telling me, a senior, and even oru sl what to do.
If you aren't going to show up tto rehearsals, you are a freshman, and you are going to boss people around, you don't deserve to be in the place of seniors. For our band, going up and doing those cheers is an honor reserved for upperclassman. We had to wait until now tot do them, and her and the other freshman kept doing it.
After she became ineligible(nobody is upset about her ineligibility, at least not in the claris) she would sneak over to the band space, because ineligibles are only allowed to go to the games if they pay and they cant sit with the band, and she would do the cheers anyway.

We also used to have an order tog ettign on the bus. We would go seniors, juniors, sophomores then freshman, so that seniors could get the best seats. Well, that kinda ended when we got a new bd. She doesnt do that anymore. Well, the back of the bus was also the senior section. Now, its the annoying freshman section, because they all push tot he front of the group and charge back there, only to yell and scream as loud as they can. (I nearly killed a pair last night for annoying the bus driver to change the radio station, when the radio wsnt even on. Plus i ahd a splitting headache.)

This happens in our school ALL the time. Literally, in every band, in every choir, in every orchestra, every musical group, there's always egos and underclassmen and upperclassmen fighting for spots and first chairs and crap.
Now, as a freshman, I beat out a junior for first chair. It was just the two of us, so it wasn't a big deal. We play bass clarinet, it makes no difference who sits first or second. But in some other sections, there were issues. My friend, who plays clarinet, got second chair over four or five seniors and a few juniors. The senior first chair was soooo rude to her, refused to give her any of the solos and basically made her his b***h. It was horrible to watch. I wanted to punch him in the face. I got that he was a senior, but he shouldn't have been so rude. Also, my friend who plays french horn got first as a freshman, and the sophmore who got second was so infuriated with her, but he really isn't that great... ><
Now, again, my sophmore year I beat out two seniors. Again, no big deal. But the situation with the french horns continued, and the band director kept giving the solos to the second chair, even though my friend is so much better than him (she's been asked to play in numerous orchestras and chamber groups, even though we're only 16). She would get so upset, and it sucked. In marching band last year, there was an eighth grader in my section who absolutely sucked. But he would boss everyone around and it drove me insane. Lisa, the section leader, put him in his place though.
Now this year, nothing has really happened. There hasn't been much ego (which is weird) and it's odd. But I'm cool with that! :] In my school, the ego and seniority go both ways. And it sucks. It tears sections apart and makes them worse. I wish it would stop... xP

GAH.

The senior rookie member who thinks even though he just joined the band for this ONE YEAR thinks he can play center snare when there's 12 others waiting for a spot just to play the darn thing.

But four years ago I was that freshman who beat out the other 12 flutes for first chair. I've been on the receiving end of those nasty looks. I turned down picc though.

Even as a senior, that thing is the devil.