The Harrison High School Marching Band will compete in the upcoming Bands of America Alabama Regional event to be held in Jacksonville, AL, on Oct. 29.
Harrison placed second overall in their most recent Bands of America competition, held Oct. 15 at Wake Forest University. The band tied for first overall in music performance.
Harrison is one of 11 Georgia high school bands traveling to Alabama for this regional competition. Other Georgia high schools scheduled to participate include Hillgrove, Kennesaw Mountain, Lakeside, Lambert, McEachern, Mill Creek, Pope, River Ridge, Walton, and Wesleyan.
Approximately 30 bands from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina are scheduled to perform at this event, one of 15 regional competitions hosted by Bands of America during the month of October. The event will be hosted at the 24,000-seat Burgess-Snow Field on the campus of Jacksonville State University and is expected to draw a huge crowd of parents, families, performers, and marching band fans. More than 3,000 high school performers will compete in the music event.
Harrison Bands and all other entered high school bands will perform during a day-long preliminary competition. The top 12 bands as selected by a panel of certified judges will return for a finals event in the evening.
Judges evaluate performances on music, visual and general effect categories. Under Band of America guidelines, the musical component of the show receives 60 percent of the judging value, with visual and general components accounting for the remainder.
Band shows also are subject to tightly controlled timelines. Bands have only four minutes to enter the field and complete set-up that includes marchers, pit instruments, sound equipment and all props. Then the bands perform their creative musical and choreographed performances, ranging from six to 11 minutes. Bands are allowed just two minutes upon completion to clear props and all marchers from the competition field. Points are deducted for any time violations.
Harrison’s marching band is nationally acclaimed for its competitive performance success. At previous Bands of America events, Harrison Bands has achieved two BOA Grand National Class Championships, earned finalist positions at three BOA Grand National events, captured four first-place finishes at BOA Super Regional Class Championships, and are eight-time BOA Regional Champions.