SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – In a time where the COVID-19 pandemic is silencing live performances, a local drum line is refusing to stay silent. While they weren’t able to have a traditional season, that didn’t stop SuFuDu from trying to drum up some optimism.
Every year, the SuFuDu Drumline looks forward to playing through their summer season.
“That’s the thing that brings us all together. And while we’re playing drums we’re hanging out and building a culture together that’s really encouraging and supportive,” Artistic Director Devon Melillo said.
Before they could kick off this year’s season, the COVID-19 pandemic forced them to keep quiet.
“That was kind of the first initial gut punch of the season, and… yeah it was just kind of tough,” Snare Drummer Hein said.
Hein and the rest of the board members decided to cancel all shows for the rest of the year. But, for Melillo, he saw it as an opportunity to drum up something new.
“We will snatch victory from the jaws of defeat,” Melillo said.
They use an app called ‘Flip Grid’ to record themselves playing individually and send them in to get feedback from fellow peers. They also had Zoom meetings on Wednesday nights where they were joined by special guests.
“These were guest speakers from all around the country: College professors that taught percussion at different universities, or… we had world class percussionists that marched in drum corps,” Melillo said.
“I thought that was probably the greatest alternative because I’m always one that loves to see… get kind of a behind the scenes look at stuff,” Hein said.
Recently, they were able to play in person at the Lennox High School parking lot.
“We made sure to be socially distanced, which is a lot easier with a drum line because you just set the stands farther away,” Hein said.
While their season might be over, Hein and Melillo are determined to start next year off with a bang.
“And give the new players that got kind of a little bit of an odd introduction to SuFuDu, we really want to show them that, you know, that was a good introduction but this is what SuFuDu is,” Hein said.
“Even throughout this summer, despite the pandemic, we were reached out too many times for different parades in the area. I can’t imagine what the demand will be next summer,” Melillo said.
To see a recap of the most recent SuFuDu season check out their Facebook page.