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Marching Bands 2010

Marching Festivals

picture from iStockPhoto of school buses parked at a festival

Full recaps from many of this fall's great performances by Illinois bands.

 

High School Bands

picture from iStockPhoto of flutists in a marching band

Individual band pages, reader comments, great performances.

From the BOA Grand Nationals in Indy

4 Illinois marching bands reach semifinals at Grand Nationals

Avon (Ind.) Band 3-peats as Grand National Champion

Morton High School performed in the semifinals for the first time in the school's history at Grand Nationals, and three other bands from Illinois—Lincoln-Way East, Marian Catholic, and Lake Park—also performed in the semifinals this year. What a great year for Illinois marching bands! Avon High School was named grand national champion Saturday night, equaling the 3-peat by Marian Catholic in 1987-89.

A Look Forward

Seeking Excellence in Marching Band Coverage

Our Self-Evaluation and Response to Your Surveys

The Voxitatis team tried some new things this year, and we give ourselves a "D" for our marching band coverage. Most people who took our coverage survey gave us a "B," but they were being kind, I think. Look for more improvements next year.

A Look Back

Oct. 23 — Illinois State University Marching Festival Photoessays ... (Scores—Full Recap)

Class 1A Bands: A Brief Pause in the Rain
Class 2A Bands: Rain Picks Up Again
Class 3A Bands: Thunder, Delay, then Sunshine
Class 4A Bands: A Long, Rainy Day Resumes
Class 5A Bands: Playing Through Strong Rain
Class 6A Bands: Prelims Conclude — 2½ hours late

A Marching Band Legend Dies After Performance

Obituary: George N Parks, 57, UMass band leader

The band director of the University of Massachusetts Minutemen, the author of a renowned book about drum majors, and the music educator who inspired several thousand high school students every year at a leadership academy for drum majors, died after his Marching Minutemen performed at an Ohio high school.

Bands in the U.S. Armed Forces

Military Bands, Singing a New Tune, Continue to Serve

The Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines maintain several active-duty bands, and since they could be sent on a moment's notice anywhere around the world, they travel light and pack a variety of musical styles. Meet the contemporary bands of the American Military.

Pre-Season "Trailers"

Comedy in Marching Shows, Used Effectively

Naperville North Band to Present 'Coulrophobia'

The title for Naperville North's field show this year isn't a real word, but don't let the name fool you. Everything these 130 students do on the field is very real.

A Cross-Curricular Unit on the Holocaust

Morton Band to Tell a Holocaust Tale

Band director Jeff Neavor and his fellow educators at Morton High School near Peoria are starting to get the hang of cross-curricular units, in which teachers from different school subjects cooperate in order to engage students more completely. It seems to me, in a world where fine arts programs are being cut due to budget shortfalls, appealing to a diverse group of students is the best hope for music advocacy anyone has developed yet.

The Inner Meaning of a Marching Show

Eureka Band Sets a Healing Journey in Motion

The story for this year's field show by Eureka High School—entitled "... in motion ..."—really began on a June day in 2009, the day band member Alyssa Burns was ejected and killed in an SUV rollover accident.