Republic High School’s marching band placed in the top two-thirds at the Bands of America Super Regional in St. Louis, competing against 68 top-level bands from states that included Texas, Mississippi, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Missouri.
Band director Jared Brown watched his students compete against top-tier programs. “Some of our kids’ eyes were pretty wide when they were watching Broken Arrow (Okla.) perform, and watching Blue Springs and some of these other schools that are just powerhouse programs,” he said.
The event dwarfed typical festivals that include 16-20 bands. It was Republic’s first trip to the competition, which raises the standards of judging compared to other contests. Those standards extend down even to how everyone is dressed.
“It’s really strict… Everybody has to be in the exact same uniform. Even our eighth graders helping us had to be in uniform or we lose points off of that,” Brown said.
The band used judges’ feedback throughout the competition season to measure progress. Brown focused on musical strengths and marching fundamentals, and said the band improved in key areas throughout the year.
“For every festival we go to, we get judges’ comments,” he said. “Our strength tends to be the music side of things, and what they call ensemble marching. We’ve been working to improve individual performance.”
Republic finished in the middle tier of the strong slate of competitors, and the band improved its standing relative to some of the other schools it has seen at previous contests this fall.
“What judges are looking for is things like consistency,” Brown said. “Is there a consistent style and everything throughout our marching band? The more we achieve that, then the higher our score goes.”
Individual improvement drives ensemble success. “As those individuals improve, just like in sports, when individuals improve, then the ensemble improves,” Brown said. “And then you’re able to step it up that way.”
The St. Louis competition was the last one of the season, and Brown said one of the highlights was seeing how excited band members were when their performance ended. “That’s a really good feeling coming off the field and knowing, ‘Hey, that was really good.’ And so we were really excited about that. I think they would agree, it was definitely our best festival performance,” Brown said. “They felt really good about it.”
The Tiger Pride Band now turns its attention to parade season.
