Students in band are going through the final stages of their audition this week for next year’s Band Leadership Team, with prospective drum majors auditioning Friday after school.

With the drum majors from the past marching season serving as mentors to candidates, their role is pivotal in preparing students for the audition.

“My role is mainly to give tips and provide the applicants with experiences that will be similar to the real audition and on the leadership team,” senior Patrick Lin said. “We want to see how well applicants can combine multiple mental elements with physical performance, how well they perform and execute a performance with little guidance, and their teaching abilities under more realistic conditions.”

Though this year’s audition has been more complex than those in years past, students hope that it will give them more versatility in the coming marching season, especially to those who ultimately receive a position on the leadership team.

“This year, there’s some choreography that we had to learn how to do before the audition,” sophomore Connie Yang said. “That’s never really been a part of the process before, so [people auditioning] had to get a little out of their comfort zones.”

While the application process first started back in January, certain aspects are still ongoing through this month and after the actual audition.

“Even after this week, we have to give a speech to our band class about why we would be a good addition to the leadership team,” Yang said. “It’s a lot, but I think it’s really going to help the directors choose the right people for next year.”