Southern California Marching Bands Sound Off

Promise Yee

OCEANSIDE, CA -- Southern California marching bands took to the field at El Camino High School on November 11 to compete in the Marching Band Spectacular with themes that ranged from Star Wars music and glowing lightsaber props to country music and cowboy hats and boots.

Seventeen bands that ranged in size from 40 to over 200 band members were judged on musicianship, marching and artistry.

“They’re looking for the musicianship from the students,” Donna Clark, Southwest High School band director, said. “How well they produce the sound, project the sound, balance and blend the sound. The complete quality of the music.”

Band sound is critical. “Its kind of a play on words, but I think it should be ‘band marching,’ because music is more important than the marching,” Brett Voght, drum major of Capistrano Valley High School Black and Gold Brigade, said. “Our director emphasizes that the music is more important. We’ll do sectionals on music for two hours.”

“They’re also looking for the marching,” Clark said. “Are they spaced evenly, are they on the right foot? From the auxiliary they are looking for the artistry. Are they actually telling the story of the music through the body movement using flags and props?”

Color guards bring the auxiliary interpretation to the field. “The color guards, well they bring the color to the performance,” Barbie Anthony, color guard instructor of West Hills High School, in Santee, and Valhalla High School, in Rancho San Diego, said.

For some bands competition is about going out and doing their best, others are signed up for Southern California School Band and Orchestra Association, or SCORA, championships. Bands competing in SCORA championships have their top three competition scores from the season tallied to determine if they qualify to compete in December against the best bands in Southern California. Competitions are held throughout Southern California ever weekend leading up to the championships.