HHS Students Busy with Music and Sports
Welcome back to news of Holliston High School! This month’s article contains our rather brief December and an interview with Danny Marczewski, one of the lead guitarists for the Jam Band at Holliston High School. After venturing to see them play, I thought it proper to share who they are.
Tell me about yourself.
My name is Danny Marczewski, I’m a senior at Holliston High School, and I play bass guitar for the jam band. I’m taking a break from sports to give myself more time for music and allowing myself to experiment and see what areas of music I might want to go into. I’m self-taught on bass, as well as guitar, and have a classical background with piano.
What does the club do?
There are two different areas to the jam band, one of them being much more a club than the other. Neither would be possible without the hell of Mr. Calais. There is the DSB [Directed Study Block] jam band and the after-school jam band. During DSB, the jam band is very much like a club. With DSB, there’s always music being played. Anyone can jump up on an instrument and play. Sometimes it’s rehearsed songs, sometimes it’s improvised on the spot but either way we have musicians playing and practicing. We have Mr. Calais help us learn songs and encourages singers to try singing new songs.
After school we have the seniors. We have Josiah Keys on drums, Brendon Park on Rhythm guitar, Jack Whittaker on lead guitar and myself on bass. Jack and Josiah are in the school band so we can’t practice during DSB. After school, we have a much more serious band. We learn covers and make up original songs, and have practiced together for a few years now. We know each other so well, it feels much more rehearsed and prepared than playing during DSB. We are trying to figure out what direction we want to take this group and what we want to do together.
Why do you feel the club is important?
I can only talk for my own experiences here. I feel this club is important because of what it gives to everyone involved. I started to work with Mr. Calais during Junior year. Since then i feel high school has changed for me. It’s given me a place to better myself as a musician, work and watch other musicians grow and most importantly find something I love. I don’t think I would want to pursue music like I do now without the jam band, nor would I know my closest friends as well. The room gives me a place to express myself through music and find more of myself. I know that everyone in the room has a different experience with it and that makes it special. The jam band brings a lot of joy and creativity to Holliston.
What exciting goings-on are happening in the club?
Speaking for the group of seniors, we are looking to branch out and try new things. Things ranging from writing and composing new original songs, looking to actually record our songs, to maybe doing more performances. We’re looking to experiment and find new things.
How’d you get involved with the Jam Band?
I got involved in the jam band through the compost club—of all things. When talking to Mr. Calais about something for the compost club, I told him I always admired the jam band that was here my Freshman year and would love to work and be in that years jam band if he was still running it. After my best friends got involved, he started opening the room and letting us play during DSB or after school. With his help we took it from there and created what we have now.
What can the community do to be more involved with the club?
Stopping by the room during DSB is the best way. There’s always chairs, a couch and sometimes Mr. Calais will serve tea in the room. If you would like to sing a song, talk to Mr. Calais about it and he will bring it to the band, and next thing you know you’ll be up there singing with us during DSB.
What is in the club’s future?
The club’s future is up to the younger members. Once the seniors graduate, what they do is up to them. We showed them what we do, and they have control to steer the jam band where they want to. People like Charlie Bellerose, Robert Nystrom and Alex Chechkovsky are the people to watch for the future of the jam band.
News Around HHS
Not too much to report – students were racing through December for the holiday break. December 13th marked the annual winter concert, and The National Honor Society held our gift-wrapping event on the 15th. Although it wasn’t our busiest, members were more than happy with the gifts we wrapped. We raised $400 over the course of the night. Junior members handed out baked goods on the 19th while Seniors distributed cards to faculty. On the final day before break, teachers wore ugly sweaters in theme with the holidays.
Administration
No major announcements from Admin; I assume they were racing for the break as well.
Sports Updates
Winter sports are well underway. To date, the Holliston teams are finding their way with a mixed performance. I went to a wrestling match against Hopkinton High School; the matches were hard fought but the team came up short 11 points. There is clearly a lot of talent and still many good matches to look forward to in the coming month.
Sports team Standings as of 1/11/2023:
- Girls Varsity Basketball
- Going 4 wins to 4 losses
- Next game: January 12 at HHS
- Boys Varsity Basketball
- Going 1 win to 8 losses
- Next game: January 13 at HHS
- Boys Varsity Ice Hockey
- Going 2 wins to 7 losses
- Next game: January 13 at New England Sports Center Rink
- Girls Varsity Swimming
- Going 1 win to 5 losses
- Next meet: January 13 at Dedham Town Pool
- Boys Varsity Swimming
- Going 3 wins to 2 losses
- Next meet: January 13 at Dedham Town Pool
- Boys Varsity Indoor Track
- Going 3 wins to 1 loss
- Next meet: January 27 at Reggie Lewis Center
- Girls Varsity Indoor Track
- Going 2 wins to 1 loss
- Next meet: January 18 at Wheaton College
- Boys Varsity Wrestling
- Going 1 win to 4 losses
- Next quad: January 14 at HHS
Hopefully the new year will provide more to report. Happy New Year and Good Luck with your Resolutions!
