Alita Miller | All-American Marching Band

About Alita Miller

Alita Miller is a junior in the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, a researcher in Dr. Sarah Calve's lab, a Weldon School ambassador and a percussionist in the Purdue All-American Marching Band (AAMB). She's been drumming since the age of 5, but didn't start playing other percussion instruments until she was in 8^th grade.  After graduating, she plans to do the Weldon School's 5^th-year master’s program and then go to medical school.

What's it like being in the AAMB?

It is a lot of fun to be able to perform in front of large crowds. My favorite experiences are marching down the street during rehearsal times and football games. As a member of drumline, we are encouraged to interact with the crowd and hand out drum sticks. I always enjoy picking out the kids in the crowd with huge smiles on their faces and giving them my sticks.

So far, my favorite memory is traveling to San Francisco, CA, for the bowl game over this past winter break. We got to stay in a hotel right in the middle of downtown so there was a lot of different shops to go look around in and explore. I also got to go to the Golden Gate bridge which was really cool.

How did you prepare to march with the AAMB in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Ireland in 2018?

Drum line has been keeping up on our physical workouts. As you can imagine, it would be difficult to march while carrying a drum after not doing it for months.