At ValleyFest, a large marching band event, Valley High School MarchMasters drumline instructor Travis Newman has the determination to help students become skillful musicians.

Newman, sophomore in pre-business, follows the battery percussion section during rehearsals, helping the students understand and fine-tune their marching routines — or drills — and music.

Travis started drumming when was in seventh grade and practiced a mixture of drumming styles.

“My seventh-grade year I started playing drum set,” he said. “I started playing marching band-style freshman year of high school,” he said.

Since middle school, Newman has submerged himself in the art of drumming.

“I mostly play the snare drum in marching band,” he said, “but I also have played some concert percussion that I started in high school and the drum set for jazz bands.”

Since then, Newman has played in all sorts of different camps and venues, including the Dubuque-based Colts Drum and Bugle Corps, which is a member of the Drum Corps International.

Once Colts members pass the audition process, they must attend monthly rehearsals, starting in December and continuing through May. In early May, they actually begin rehearsing the show for the season.

“The rehearsals that start in May are the real rehearsals, where we practice all day, everyday,” he said.

In late June, the Colts go on the road to perform competitively. This past summer, they performed at stadiums such as Mile High Stadium, the AlamoDome and Lucas Oil Stadium. On average, they perform 20 – 30 shows during the summer tour.

When not performing across the country, Newman plays the snare drum in the ISU marching band.

“We play throughout the whole game and at halftime perform a halftime show, then play for the rest of the game,” he said.

Newman maintains a tight schedule, and most of his free time is spent polishing the following week’s show or working on mastering his craft.

“I’m in Music Hall every day,” he said, “Sometimes only for 20 – 30 minutes when I have some free time, but other times when I need to practice for a show I’ll spend two to three hours there per day,” he said. “It’s just something I’ve done for so long that now I can just sit and kill time and enjoy playing new music.”