U.S. Bands Competition

The Marching Band season is now in full swing! Each year, the members work with dedicated mentors in the marching profession and showcase their skills at prestigious national events. On Saturday October 31, the 96 members of the Ridgewood High School Marching Band, led by Drum Major Brooke Maskin and Field Captain Teddy Trent, will attend the U.S. Bands New Jersey State Championships held at the High Point Solutions Stadium at Rutgers University. The band is also looking forward to competing in the U.S. Bands National Championship competition just one week later.

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IMG_1144The students began working on their colorful and exciting show titled “An
American in Paris” during the summer. The ambitious unit attended band camp at Timber Lake Camp in New York and multiple rehearsals each week throughout the beginning of school to learn the intricate moves of the show. “Band camp is one of the best parts of the season. Being able to get away from Ridgewood for a week and spend that time working on our show with all our friends is incredibly rewarding. ” said the Band President, a junior.

“We’ve worked hard so far this year and continue to improve each and every week. We look to have a strong end to our competitive season at National Championships in November” said Band Director John Luckenbill. “It’s incredible to watch the band perform this year’s show, which includes our Eiffel Tower prop. If you haven’t seen the show, I highly recommend coming to a competition!”

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He also credits the dedicated team of instructors including Will Ebbels, Henry Heyzer, and James Garde, who are integral in creating and implementing the design of the show, Color Guard instructors Neil and Jessica, Percussion instructor Joe Bergen, Gary Fink and additional band staff members with helping the students polish their skills.

What participants are saying:

“We always face obstacles in our way, but I think our band is preparing a great performance for the upcoming competition. Please come out to support us! You don’t want to miss the Eiffel Tower.” (freshman)

“This year’s show is a lot of fun and it has a lot of really cool parts to it. I can’t wait for our huge competition next week. Everyone is working really hard, so I can’t wait to see where the season takes us.”  (junior)

“It’s awesome – performing before all those people – I’m excited to showcase our all of our hard work.” (junior)

“These competitions combine the skills of the state’s best marching students with the excitement of performing in front of thousands of people. It’s really unbelievable.” (senior)

The RHS Marching Band is working towards another successful season.

Visit the website http://www.rhsbands.org/  to keep up with the RHS bands.

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Hyo Yi Joo
staff writer

Pictures courtesy of the Ridgewood High School Marching Band

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