Empowering students to think critically and creatively since 1913
VOLUME 110 ISSUE 4 JANUARY 18, 2024
IN THE NEWS
SOUTH PASADENA HIGH SCHOOL 1401 FREMONT AVE, SOUTH PASADENA, CA 91030
COUNSELOR PROGRAMMING
MIDDLE SCHOOL NIGHT
WINTER FORMAL
SPHS counselors began class programing for underclassmen on Tuesday, Jan. 16 and will go to February.
SPHS will host parents of SPMS students for programming options on Thursday, Jan. 25.
The annual dance will be held at the Museum of Latin American Art on Saturday, Feb. 3.
SPHS student Isabelle Whiting makes PCC Honor Band
STORY & PHOTO ZOE CHEN
T
he Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade has been held annually since 1890, cascading 5.5 miles down Colorado Blvd. and garnering 700,000 live spectators and more than 50 million through broadcast each year. Marching bands are a long-standing tradition of the parade, and qualifying to march the historic route is a well established honor for any musician. The parade featured a total of 20 marching bands, including out-of-state and international groups. Notably, the Pasadena City College (PCC) Tournament of Roses Honor Band features exceptional Southern Californian high school musicians. Students are selected for limited spots in the band through highly competitive auditions each year. Prospective participants are given two weeks to learn and memorize the required solo excerpt for the audition, as well as prepare other scales and pieces. Over 500 students from the greater Southern California area auditioned for Honor Band slots in early October. Only one SPHS student was accepted. Isabelle “Belle” Whiting, an SPHS freshman, picked up the flute in fourth grade and has kept up her studies for five years since. As a member of the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra for four years, Whiting has extensive experience playing in formal concert venues. However, the unique marching experience of the Honor Band posed as a unique opportunity for Whiting, and she ultimately decided to sign up to audition. “I was like, ‘[they] get to go to Disneyland. And they get to do the parade, that sounds so fun,’” Whiting said. “If I did this, it would help with a lot of things including my musical talent, my physical ability to march…of course I want to do that.” POLITICAL HOMOGENEITY
Two weeks of preparation were ultimately channeled into a six minute audition. One day after auditions were conducted, a PDF with the qualifying students’ names was posted online. Whiting’s name made the list; she was the only student from SPHS to be accepted, and one of three freshmen in the band. Lengthy practices were held at a variety of locations, including Dodger Stadium and the Santa Anita race track. As Jan. 1 approached, practices intensified in preparation for the big day. A performance at Disneyland preceded the last of the band’s rehearsals, and at 3 a.m. on New Year’s Day, Honor Band students arrived at PCC for pre-parade setup. Floats, bands, equestrian units, and everything in between awaited them on the parade route. Whiting recalls her fingers turning blue in the cold of the morning as the Honor Band waited to begin their march. Despite nerve wracking anticipation, the band’s rigorously rehearsed steps allowed for “smooth parade route sailing.” “[The Honor Band] sounds very much like a very very painful process…but it’s actually really fun,” Whiting concluded. “It’s always going to be worth it because…it’s playing music in the Rose Parade with a bunch of people watching you and cheering you on. It just, it feels amazing.” Whiting has her mind set on auditioning for the Honor Band again next year. Although unsure whether she will pursue a profession in music, Whiting believes that she will never be able to forget music entirely and hopes that, wherever she may end up, she is able to continue to play her flute. RICE PURITY TEST
Tiger analyzes the steep price of political homogeneity in classroom environments and how the exclusive South Pas bubble stifles student curiosity.
The widely recognized self-assessment known as the Rice Purity Test is examined through the critical lenses of an outdated concept of purity, emphasizing the double standard norms.
Page 7
Page 10 TIGERNEWSPAPER.COM
THE PHENOMENON OF MOMENTUM Players and teams play well when they have been playing well; only the best can look past their previous failures and overcome the other team’s momentum to win. Page 16