BHS Grads Alisha Pinti, Madewa Adeniyi to Serve as Drumline Captain, Cymbal Captain for WVU Marching Band
By Julie Perine on July 29, 2021 via Connect-Bridgeport.com
In May of 2018 – the same month they graduated from Bridgeport High School – Alisha Pinti and Madewa Adeniyi shared their enthusiasm about their upcoming debut with the West Virginia University Marching Band.
Now, Pinti is about to assume the role as Captain of the WVU “Pride of West Virginia” Marching Band Drumline and Adeniyi will serve as section leader, namely Cymbal Captain.
“I’ll basically be teaching (the cymbal players) how to play everything and making sure they’re doing it right. I’ll be in the center, too, pretty much guiding them 
and making decisions on how we all move and sound, making sure we are all together,” Adeniyi said.
and making decisions on how we all move and sound, making sure we are all together,” Adeniyi said.
An engineering major with a possible career in NASA in the horizon, Pinti will assume similar responsibilities with the entire 34-member drumline.
Adeniyi set her sights on become a member of the WVU Marching Band when she a little girl, watching via TV as the group marched in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. She especially took notice of the drumline, the grand finale of any marching band unit.
When she started with band in elementary school, she knew she would play percussion.
“I played the snare drum and bass drum and also the glockenspiel – which is kind of like anxylophone – I played the same instruments up through middle school, including xylophone and other auxiliary stuff like triangle and wood blocks,” she said. “In freshman band, I crashed cymbals for the marching band and I was in the pit for field shows and games, playing the xylophone or marimba during games.”
Her sophomore through senior years, she played bass and liked all the other percussion instruments, she loved it. She is glad she went with cymbals for her college music career. The whole experience has been second to none.
“It’s really been fun – a great experience. Being on Mountaineer Field is probably an experience which isn’t comparable to anything else,” she said. “That very first time on the field, I was really nervous, but once we played all the cadences and got into pre-game and the whole stadium was saying the same chants and during the alma mater when everyone said ‘Hail,’ it was a really powerful moment. I was really blown away.”
Joining the drumline has enabled her to become more open to people, as well as open to learning new things.
“I feel like I’ve made a lot of friends during the three years I’ve done it so far,” she said.
A biomedical engineering major, she said it’s taking some planning and good time management to work band into her college education. It’s been worth all the effort.
A bass drummer for WVU, Pinti is excited about her role as drumline captain, a leadership position for which she was handpicked.
“The drum staff took a vote amongst themselves and took their recommendation to the band director, who reached out to me and I asked if I wanted to accept the position,” Pinti said.
She said she gave the decision the consideration it deserved, as she wanted to be able to give the position adequate time and energy, plus continue to focus on studies for her dual degree: Mechanical engineering and aerospace engineering.
As drumline caption, Pinti will keep drumline members motivated, energized and engaged, making sure they learn their parts. She will also be a model figure for band rookies to look up to and learn from, not only from a band perspective, but also in navigating college while devoting time to the marching band.
It’s an all-inclusive role and Pinti remembers how the drumline captain was helpful to her when she was a freshman. She said back then she was very nervous, but also excited about her debut on Mountaineer Field.
Truth be told, she said she is just as nervous going into her senior year with the band.
“Now, I have a couple of extra responsibilities as drum captain in terms of pre-game,” she said. “The drumline comes out first, marching out from the team tunnels as we play our first cadence. But before the second cadence – when the whole band runs onto the field – I step out in front of the drumline, calling everyone to attention and tapping off that cadence, setting the tempo for it. There are 60,000 people – all yelling for us and the team.”
So far, the WVU Marching Band has been an amazing experience and Pinti said she looks forward to this final year and her new responsibilities.
Catch the WVU Marching Band Drumline in action about an hour before home game kickoffs, at the top of Law School Hill.
“You can watch us up close and personal and see what we do,” Pinti said.
Pinti also serves as drummer for “The Porch Geese,” an Indie folk band that made its debut last month at 123 Pleasants Street.
The WVU Marching Band makes its season debut 3:30 p.m. Sept. 4 as the Mountaineers host Maryland. See a full game schedule HERE.
Bridgeport High School’s Emily Ogden was also a three-year member of the WVU Marching Band, playing the clarinet. She graduated in May of 2021 and will now attend WVU College of Law.
Editor's Note: Pictured from top are Alisha Pinti (two pictures) and Madewa Adeniyi (two pictures).
