Festival of Bands USA
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
10/05/2019
Sioux Falls, SD (September 23, 2019) — Sioux Falls will strike up the bands Saturday, October 5, 2019 as host of the 32nd Annual Festival of Bands, USA — one of the nation’s largest marching band events. Considered one of the premier band festivals in the Midwest, this year’s Festival of Bands will feature over 40 bands with 4,000 students participating in parade and/or field competition. This event draws as many as 20,000 visitors from South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa to Sioux Falls to enjoy a full day of marching activities. Hosted by the Sioux Falls High School bands, all net proceeds from this great event are equally distributed to the four band departments.
“The Festival of Bands committee and Sioux Falls area high schools are excited to once again share their city for this great day,” commented Alexandra Dunbar, Festival of Bands Manager. “Every year, the support from the community is outstanding. We are looking forward to the parade, field shows and music, and we welcome all ages to join the fun!”
The Parade competition always kicks off the big day at 8:00 a.m. with over 40 bands. The 2019 Festival of Bands parade will be held adjacent to Covell Lake, one of the City of Sioux Falls’ most scenic areas and close in proximity to the field competition at Howard Wood Field. The Parade will start on W. Madison and turn onto N. Lake Avenue in Sioux Falls adjacent to Covell Lake and the baseball fields. The Parade judging platform will be located on N. Lake Avenue behind the Boy Scouts Headquarters. The parade will end at the corner of N. Lake Avenue and West Avenue.
While the Festival of Band Parade was held in downtown Sioux Falls for 30 years, the parade location changed in 2018 in response to economic development, street closures and construction in downtown Sioux Falls. The current parade route offers wider streets for marching; shorter time and distance between the event parade and field competitions; and the glorious sounds, sites and colors of the fall season.
The Preliminary Field competition will begin at 9:45 a.m. at Howard Wood Field, with over 20 bands competing to advance to the Finals competition that evening at 6:00 p.m. Gates will open at 8:30 a.m.
At the Parade and Preliminary Field events, bands compete in four classes for ratings and rankings, with nationally recognized judges offering evaluation and commentary to the competitors. At the evening Finals, the 10 highest scoring bands compete in one class with trophies going to the top five places.
The line-up schedules for participating bands can be found at http://www.marching.com and https://www.midwestmarching.com.
We wish to thank our GOLD SPONSORS: Lewis Drug, Popplers Music Inc. and VanBuskirk Companies; our SILVER SPONSORS: Sanford Health and Avera Health; and our BRONZE SPONSORS: Groove, Inc., Augustana University and Schmitt Music for their support.
Admission to the Field competitions is by wristband only. Admission fees are $15 for adults, $5 for students, and children age 5 and under are free. Wristbands can be purchased in advance at all Lewis Drug locations in Sioux Falls and Brandon. On the day of the Festival, wristbands can be purchased from volunteers at the Parade and Howard Wood Field. Programs will also be available for purchase onsite for $5. Credit cards are accepted at the gate at Howard Wood Field.
Festival of Bands, USA is dedicated to providing a safe and healthy event for all participants and therefore has announced this will be a smoke-free event.
For more information about the 32nd Annual Festival of Bands event, follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Festival-of-Bands-USA-635126786527387/.
Adults - $15
Students - $5
Julie Hadley
Andrew Gekoskie
Ward Miller
Ron Hardin
Andy Schmidt
Phil Snyder
Joey Babay
Tony Garmoe
Todd Blaser
Chris Church
Paul Rennick
Aaron Musser
Bill Bachman
PARADE - 8:00 AM
1. 8:00 Washington H.S. - Host
2. 8:05 Roosevelt H.S. - Host
3. 8:10 Beresford H.S. - A
4. 8:15 Tri-Valley H.S. - A
5. 8:20 Adrian H.S. - A
6. 8:25 George Little Rock H.S. - A
7. 8:30 Chamberlain H.S. - A
8. 8:35 Murray County Central H.S. - A
9. 8:40 Tracy Area H.S. - A
10. 8:45 Tea Area H.S. - AA
11. 8:50 Pipestone Area H.S. - AA
12. 8:55 Luverne H.S. - AA
13. 9:00 Sheldon H.S. - AA
14. 9:05 Boyden-Hull H.S. - AA
15. 9:10 Sioux Falls Christian H.S. - AA
16. 9:15 West Central H.S. - AA
17. 9:20 Memorial Middle School - NC
18. 9:25 Brandon Valley Middle School - NC
19. 9:30 Patrick Henry Middle School - NC
20. 9:35 Waverly H.S. - AAA
21. 9:40 Waseca H.S. - AAA
22. 9:45 Harrisburg H.S. - AAAA
23. 9:50 Lincoln H.S. - Host
24. 9:55 O'Gorman H.S. - Host
FIELD PRELIMS - 9:45 AM
9:45 Sioux Center H.S. - AA
10:00 Madison H.S. - AA
10:15 Sibley-Ocheyedan H.S. - AA
10:30 Lennox H.S. - AA
10:45 Luverne H.S. - AA
11:00 Pipestone Area H.S. - AA
11:15 Sheldon H.S. - AA
11:30 MOC-Floyd Valley H.S. - AA
11:45 BREAK
12:00 West Central H.S. - AA
12:15 West Lyon H.S. - AA
12:30 Rochester Lourdes H.S. - AA
12:45 Crofton H.S. - A
1:00 Chamberlain H.S. - A
1:15 McCook H.S. - A
1:30 BREAK
1:45 AWARDS - A/AA
2:00 Waverly H.S. - AAA
2:15 Huron H.S. - AAA
2:30 Brookings H.S. - AAA
2:45 Waseca H.S. - AAA
3:00 Brandon Valley H.S. - AAA
3:15 BREAK
3:30 Blaine H.S. - AAAA
3:45 Andover H.S. - AAAA
4:00 Harrisburg H.S. - AAAA
4:15 Sioux City East H.S. - AAAA
4:30 Sioux City North H.S. - AAAA
4:45 Norfolk H.S. - AAAA
5:00 Marshall H.S. - AAAA
5:15 BREAK
5:30 AWARDS - AAA, AAAA & FINALS ANNOUNCEMENTS
FIELD FINALS - 6:00 PM
6:10 National Anthem
6:15 1A Exhibition
6:30 Washington H.S. - Host Exhibition
6:45 Lincoln H.S. - Host Exhibition
7:00 Band 1
7:15 Band 2
7:30 Band 3
7:45 Band 4
8:00 Band 5
8:15 Band 6
8:30 Band 7
8:45 Band 8
9:00 Band 9
9:15 Band 10
9:30 O'Gorman H.S. - Host Exhibition
9:45 Roosevelt H.S. - Host Exhibition
10:00 Awards
CONTACT INFORMATION
Ali Dunbar
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