The East Northport family has deep roots in marching band

As the soulful sounds of an Earth, Wind & Fire song echoed through Laurel Hill Road on a sunny Saturday afternoon, the Becker family cheered on the Northport High School marching band and Aidan Giangiulio – a third-generation member of the family to participate in a legendary tradition.

“My dad played drums, I knew he was in marching band,” said Lisa Becker, 45, Aidan’s mother and a member of the Northport High School Class of 1997, as she watched. “But it wasn’t until I, as the oldest, came here that it really took off from there.”

Becker, who played the cymbals and lives in East Northport, led a second generation of marching band members, including her siblings: Denise Zagari, also of East Northport, who graduated in the Northport High School Class of 2000; Diana Rose Becker-Gorkin, of Atlanta, member of the Northport High Class of 2003; and Matthew Becker, of East Northport, in Northport High’s Class of 2007.

“We’ve really become a big part of the band,” Lisa said. “We had been here for a long time.”

Now Aidan continues the family legacy. He plays bells on the drum line and participated in the school homecoming parade. It is among a series of events in which the marching band participates – a busy list that includes the Northport Memorial Day Parade, home football games and high-profile appearances such as an upcoming visit to Washington, D.C., for the National Memorial Day Parade.

“There’s a lot of expectations attached to it, but it’s been pretty good so far,” said Aidan, in Northport High’s Class of 2028. “It’s a lot of time and work, but I’ve enjoyed it.”

He is the first of the youngest members of the family to have a role in the band.

Lily Zagari, an eighth grader, stands at the stairs playing the clarinet. Grace Zagari, a fifth grader, plays drums. They are next in line to carry that torch, their family said.

Christopher Powell, a third grader in the family, is taking drum lessons and plans to join the band later. And then there’s Michael Zagari, who is in kindergarten; William Becker, who is in pre-K; and Amelia Becker, who is 1, who are the next potential band members.

Denise Zagari, 42, said she cherished the camaraderie all the time she played bells in the drum line and was a member of the school’s kick line.

“The friendships, being part of something at school, going to band camp, was fun,” she said. “It’s exciting that we’re all a part of this. It’s exciting for me to see my kids want to do something that we all did.”

Bill Becker, 70, of East Northport, who attended the parade, said he never imagined his time in the Plainview High School marching band in the late 1960s and early 1970s would start a family tradition.

“They all look back on it with fond memories,” he said of his family. “Especially in Northport, it’s become such a tradition.”

That tradition comes with a level of dedication, from a summer band camp to the Newsday Marching Band Festival, which is in its 60th year Tuesday through Thursday at the Mitchel Field Athletic Complex in Uniondale.

“It’s a challenge, it’s not easy,” Bill said. But that time and effort is rewarded.

“It teaches them how to be a team,” he said.