Page 10 — Thursday, September 30, 2021 — The Hastings Banner
Hastings Marching Band Invitational returns for 30th year
Delton, Lakewood
among 28 bands
performing
Benjamin Simon
Staff Writer
After 30 years, one might think the
Hastings Marching Band Invitational could
run itself. But that is far from the case for one
of the largest high school band competitions
in the state of Michigan.
Hastings High School co-band directors
Spencer White and Jen Ewers each spend
about 100 hours a year preparing for the invi-
tational. Saturday, their work will come to
fruition when Hastings hosts its 30th annual
marching band invitational.
Twenty-eight schools and 2,200 marchers
from Bridgman to Brooklyn to Tawas will
travel to Hastings this weekend to perform
their halftime shows on Johnson Field at
Baum Stadium. Thirty bands had originally
signed up for the 30th annual event, but two
had to back out.
“That’s OK, though,” Ewers said; “
bands is still a huge number of bands! We are
the largest scholastic marching band compe-
tition in the state of Michigan and have held
that title pretty regularly throughout the
event’s existence.
“Even last year, in a pandemic year, we
were still able to host a show with 12 bands
signing up,” she said. “As soon as registration
opened for our show for this year, the regis-
trations came in quickly.”
Senior drum major Zach Franklin said he’s
looking forward to the invitational returning
full force after the pandemic limited the event
last year. Only two spectators per band mem-
ber were allowed to attend in 2020, and then
after each performance, the band and specta-
tors had to leave.
Despite the pandemic, Franklin said last
year’s invitational didn’t feel much different.
The audience was much smaller and wait times
longer, but neither got in the way of the music.
“That’s a great thing about band and about
music, in general, it just breaks free of any
social or societal stuff going on... and allows
for a sense of hope and release and even, like,
fun,” he said.
This year, bands will compete in six differ-
ent categories based on school enrollment
size. Performances will be judged by a panel
of band directors, professional instrumental-
ists and college professors.
Bands will compete against others in their
class, vying for the highest score, as well as
special caption awards, including best field
commanders, percussion section, color guard,
music, and marching. As host, Hastings will
not be competing, but will give an exhibition
performance.
At the end of the night, the top overallscorer, regardless of classification, will be
deemed grand champion.
“I always love seeing all the bands come
in,” director White said. “It’s always great to
connect with the directors that are visiting
and just see what all of these educators are
doing around the state. It’s inspiring, it’s
encouraging, it’s fun??.”
The invitational is open to anyone. Tickets
are $6 for adults, $5 for students and seniors,
and free for children under 5. The audience is
asked to remain seated and quiet during each
performance.
The event will begin at 11 a.m. with the
national anthem and will continue throughout
the day. Hastings will be the final band to
perform at 8:30 p.m. with its show “Villain,”
which includes “Paint it, Black” by the
Rolling Stones, “The Imperial March” from
the “Stars Wars” movies, “Bad” by Michael
Jackson, “Send in the Clowns” by composer
Stephen Sondheim and music from “The
Phantom of the Opera.”
Last weekend, Hastings placed first in
Class B at the Otsego invitational, taking cap-
tion awards for visual presentation and per-
cussion. The Saxons were just 1.2 points
behind grand champion Mattawan and had the
second highest score at the event, Ewers said.
The Lakewood High School band took first
place in Class C at Otsego, taking caption
awards in percussion, color guard and visual
presentation. Delton Kellogg, less that 3 points
behind Lakewood, placed third in the same
division. All three schools, along with nearby
Caledonia, Wayland, Hopkins and Ionia will
be among the bands performing Saturday.The invitational serves as a major fundrais-
er for the Hastings band program and pro-
vides a chance for local and regional bands to
compete.
“It’s a great opportunity to just see the
band perform for an attentive audience,”
White said. “Sometimes at football games, it
can be a little distracting because there’s a lot
of things going on at halftime. And while a lot
of people do watch the shows there, it has a
whole different vibe when you’re at a perfor-
mance that is specifically designed to show-
case these bands.”
For Franklin, the sheer size and range of
schools make the event unique. When he’s
not volunteering with concessions or parking,
he plans to talk with other band members,
watch their performances and maybe even
garner a few ideas for new props.
“It’s this huge melting pot of so many dif-
ferent bands,” Franklin said. “... Not all com-
petitions have such a large number of bands,
such a large variety of music. You really get
to see so much stuff at this invitational.”
Both White and Ewers like to use statistics
to illustrate the size of the show, which will
take about 10 hours from playing of the
national anthem to the final results:- 28 high school bands
- 58 buses
- 37 equipment trailers
- 2 semi-trailers
- 2,200 student marchers
- 110 adult volunteers
- 40 student volunteers
The return of the invitational, especially
after the past 18 months, provides a greater
sense of excitement.
“We’re happy to see a year of performanc-
es for all marching bands, and we’re glad to
be a part of that,” Ewers said. “It’s also great
for our students to get a chance to see what 27
other bands shows are and what they’re per-
forming this 2021 season.”
After the national anthem at 11 a.m.,
Saturday’s schedule includes the following
bands and their halftime shows:
Class D
11:15 a.m. – Eau Claire, “The Legend
of the Headless Horseman.”
11:30 a.m. – Hartford, “Songs from the Heart.”
11:45 a.m. – Bridgman, “In a Dream.”
Noon – Gobles, “Emerald Isle.”
12:15 p.m. – Bangor,” Queen.”
Class C
12:45 p.m. – Hopkins, “The Beach Boys:
Celebrating 60 Years.”
1 p.m. – Tawas, “Superheroes.”
1:15 p.m. – Columbia Central, “Things
Are Looking Up!”
1:30 p.m. – Schoolcraft, “Resurgence.”
1:45 p.m. – Delton Kellogg, “Remember.”
Class CC
2:15 p.m. – Dowagiac, “Divided.”
2:30 p.m. – Lakewood, “A Galactic Adventure.”
2:45 p.m. – Parchment, “Motown Magic.”
3 p.m. – Fennville, “Estancia.”
3:15 p.m. – Grand Rapids Catholic Central,
“British Invasion.”
Break for Class C, CC and D awards
5 p.m. – Marcellus (Class C, exhibition),
“Go West.”
Class B
5:15 p.m. – Wayland, “Go West.”
5:30 p.m. – Ionia, “Flight.”
5:45 p.m. – Otsego, “Plan B.”
Class A
6:15 p.m. – Holland, “Dreamscapes.”
6:30 p.m. – Kalamazoo Central, “Magic of
Mangione.”
6:45 p.m. – Caledonia, “The Musiquarium.”
7 p.m. – Battle Creek Lakeview,
“One Small Step.”
7:15 p.m. – Wyoming, “Inside the Web.”
7:30 p.m. – Mattawan, “Save Me.”
Class AA
8 p.m. – East Kentwood, “Endure the
Unknown.”
8:15 p.m. – Grand Ledge, “America the
Beautiful.”
8:30 p.m. Hastings (exhibition), “Villain.”
Hastings has a long tradition of supporting the school band program. As recently as
2018, the Bowling for Bands fundraiser brought in more than $15,000, allowing for the
purchase of three new brass sousaphones, or marching tubas. Kyle Morgan (center)
wasn’t even in middle school at the time, but is now a part of the band that benefits
from the community’s support. (Photo by Bob Gaskill)
Senior drum major Zach Franklin, lead-
ing the Saxons in their presentation of
“Villain,” said he’s looking forward to
Saturday’s event. (Photo by Bob Gaskill)Like clockwork, one band exits and another one prepares to take the field during the 2019 invitational, which drew 20 bands.
This year’s event, Saturday, Oct. 2, will include 28 bands with about 2,200 students, plus their parents or other spectators. About
150 volunteers will aid the clockwork, guiding buses, bands and attendees to keep the show moving according to the schedule.
(File photo).