Observation #1- The Festival of Bands presented by Verona Music
Sunday October 5th, 2014-12 PM
During this competition I was able to observe the Passaic Valley, Glen Ridge,
and Verona high school marching bands. Passaic Valley performed a show titled
“Once Upon a Time”, themed after fairytales and fables. They incorporated a
wardrobe prop and a young female performer into the show in order to better tell
the story. They had the female performer enter the fairytale world through the
wardrobe, portal, and run around the band, as if she were lost in an alternate reality,
while they played. The costuming and props were very colorful and of high quality.
The music sounded like movie soundtracks, I could not pick out any recognizable
themes or melodies. The band is listed as a group A.
The Glen Ridge band performed a show titled “This Is The End”. The show
featured finales from powerful classical pieces like New World Symphony,
Beethoven’s 9th, the Firebird…etc. The band did not incorporate any props into the
show. The Color guard used the same flags, colors of the school, the entire
performance. Overall the theme of the show was dictated by the music. This band
was listed as a Group A as well.
The last band, Verona, performed a show titled “Clockworks”. The band
incorporated large wooden gear prop and stand-up Roman numeral numbers, to
represent a clock, during the show. The theme was obviously inspired by a clocks
and the manipulation of time. The Color guard also used a multitude of different
flags. Some with metallic fabrics and some with clock graphics on them. The music
was intricately written and contained no recognizable themes or motives. This band
was the largest and was listed as a group AAA.
If I were a judge I would put Passaic Valley in third, Glen Ridge in second, and
Verona in first place. Passaic Valley had an original theme, utilized props, and
performers but, the music was not prepared very well and the marching lacked
precision. Although Glen Ridge didn’t use props, their show was very energetic and
the music was very well prepared. You could tell the audience was really enjoying
the show when they cheered in between each section or after each solo. Verona used
props to really emphasize the theme of the show. The marching and music was of
top quality. I really didn’t notice any major mistakes musically or on the field. The
audience support also confirmed the quality of the show.
The parent support at the competition was overwhelming! The parents of the
Verona band ran four different tents that dealt with admission, food, merchandise,
and fundraising. The parents also helped move all the instruments for the bands
from the parking lot where the busses parked, down to the field. Also parents from
all the bands showed support in the stands by cheering during the shows. It was
extremely overwhelming and surprising to see the evident parent support at the
event.