Commercial Music makes a rumble through festival

joanne lee photo editor

After the first two bands, I felt the mood settle in, and people filled in the grass of the amphitheater.”

evelyn nakaishi asst. sports editor

As the timer ticked closer to zero, the Diamond Bar High School Esports team competed on April 23 at UCLA’s Westwood Showdown Grand Championships to secure second place.

The team’s roster included five students: sophomores Martin Teng, Samuel Hwang, Codie Kwok and juniors Franco Zhou, Alec Teng and Bert Nam.

The team played in the Local Area Network (LAN) tournament held at UCLA’s Ackerman building. “I think this team will go a long way, and with more practice, I am sure we will be victorious during our [upcoming] tournaments,” sophomore Martin Teng said via Instagram.

As the team prepared to advance through the tournament, they spent countless hours working to refine their skills. The team quickly discovered that operating together would lead to their successful victories.

“The preparation for the tournament was smooth,” freshman Isaac Kim said via Instagram. “We were coming into the matches with a good mindset and trying to win as cleanly as possible.” all performance allowed them to make it to finals, where they fell 14-12 and 13-5 points short against Ar cadia High School.

None theless, the team earned second place out of the seven teams in the region during UCLA’s Westwood Showdown Grand Championships.

“The overall goal for the team is to win as many matches as we can in the HSEL [High School Esports League] and possibly come out as the winner in the west division,” sophomore Codie Kwok said via Instagram.

However, the team encountered several challenges leading up to the tournament, including not staying focused and allowing their losses to interfere with their preparation for the games ahead. The team also faced other major issues, such as managing time between school work, extracurriculars and making time to improve their gaming leading up to the tournament.

“The team overcame these hurdles by having a good leader and trying to be mentally ready for every round,” Kim said. This overall experience provided both a learning experience and a way for players to bond and spend time with one another during the preparation and tournament itself. This opened a new perspective to Kim with his own future goals.

“We had a lot of fun with each game, and the team bonded really well,” Kim said. “In the future I hope to become the best version of be, and pursue ‘Valorant’ scholastically or professionally.”

Strumming into Brahmapalooza, Diamond Bar High School’s Commercial music bands rock out at their annual music festival.

On May 6, bands Brown Eyes, The Crazy Diamonds, 1/5, Tropical Apes, Supernova, ¿When Did This Happen?, Lunchboxers, Psychedelia, Jaywalkers, Mr. Weathermen, and The Bellies showcased their musical talents in the DBHS amphitheater.

In previous years, Brahmapalooza was similar to Commercial Music’s lunch performances.

This year the DBHS Commercial Music Band decided to take a different approach.

The participating bands split the event into different committees, including event management, tickets, advertising, outreach and tech.

“The festival turned out much better than any of us had anticipated. We started the process very ambitious, wanting to make it better than what it was in previous years,” sophomore Zayd Meneses said.

“I was happy to see the turnout and the clubs that came to hold booths. We also had two stages this year for ease of switching bands.

Their tech team worked to put in the extra effort to make the festival more entertaining.

The Brahmapalooza tech committee and DBHS Stageworks brought out effects for the band, as a part of the tech team.

“Some highlights of the festival was how the staging worked out.

I also really like how our tech team brought out bubble and steam machines,” sophomore Livia Tan said.

Multiple clubs, such as the Comics for Causes and Leo Club, brought their services to add to the events. Leo Club sold flowers—roses and baby’s breath—and Comics for Causes offered portraits and paintings.

“I was also really happy with the clubs we were able to bring to the event,” Tan said.

“Overall, I was really proud with how the event turned out because it was entirely organized by us as the students.”

The band members had to balance numerous rehearsals while maintaining their academic performances. Running on a tight schedule, the musicians pulled through for the event. “We had to balance event planning and rehearsals all within class periods,” Meneses said, “I’m running back and forth from Commercial Music and wind ensemble, especially with ‘Frozen’ in the middle of it, as I had to also play guitar for ‘Frozen’ at the same time.

Since some bands are scattered between periods, I have to be flexible when needed to rehearse in any of those morning periods.”

Ryan Jarvis, the Commercial Music advisor, supported his group’s members in their music and worked with them to bring Brahmapalooza to life, inspiring many to share their passion for music.

“I was inspired to join Commercial Music since freshman year by my brother,” Meneses said.

“He’s graduated, but many alumni from the program still come to our shows and are amazed with what the program has become.

I’d like to think this is thanks to our wonderful new teacher Mr. Jarvis and also in part to the students helping push the program.”

Jarvis oversaw the production and advised the numerous bands. He provided guidance to them and made sure their vision was achieved. “Brahmapalooza marked the culmination of my first year teaching commercial music at Diamond Bar High School, and it played a crucial role in shaping the program’s future,” Jarvis said.

“While we encountered some challenges along the way, the first iteration of the new Brahmapalooza exceeded my expectations, and I am confident that it will serve as a solid foundation for the growth of our music festival in the years to come.”

The Brahmapalooza bands accomplished the goal of finishing the year off strong, making the seniors of Commercial Music have a memorial last year and exceeding everyone’s expectations.

“Overall, I think Brahmapalooza was a success,” Meneses said. “It was a great experience, and I’m so glad to have had played my part.”