ROCKFORD, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Bad weather and a cancelled flight didn’t stop the Rockford High School Marching Band from reaching California so they can perform in the 134th Annual Rose Parade in Pasadena.
They were scheduled to be on three separate flights, two of them with Southwest Airlines, when they ran into trouble. After a cancelled flight, they secured chartered planes and departed on Thursday morning. The Facebook page for the band said, “All is good to go and adjusted, and the band is ready to depart Michigan on Thursday.”
The band will be performing at the “Bandfest” on Saturday, Dec. 31st at 1 pm EST where they will be showcasing their musicianship and unique talents. You can watch that live here.
Then they will be performing in the parade which starts at 11 am EST on Monday, January 2nd. The parade will be on NBC-TV, ABC-TV and live-streaming on Peacock. This year’s theme is “Turning the Corner” celebrating the unlimited potential that each new year brings.
The band is 28th in the parade roster and will appear in front of crowd of more than 700,000 spectators in the crowd and about 37 million people watching on their TVs and on the internet. There will be thousands and thousands of Michiganders cheering them on from home, especially in the Rockford community, home of the Rams.
The band will be performing a march from “Captain America” along with “I Want You Back” by the Jackson Five and Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the USA.”
Band director Brian Phillips told MLive, “We wanted to do something big and bold and grab everyone’s attention, and then we had to represent Michigan with some Motown.”
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Top marching bands all over the country are invited to the parade and the Rockford band secured their spot after a lengthy application process was started in 2021 where they had to submit videos of other performances, letters of recommendation, a resume, and information about the school and the Rockford community.
According to the band’s bio on the parade’s website, the Rockford Marching Band is the largest competitive band in Michigan, with nearly 275 students performing. More than 40% of the band’s students are also athletes, which is rare for a school of its size and population. Instead of making students choose between athletics and marching band, they limit their extra-curricular rehearsals so they can successfully participate in both.
The band is no stranger to the big stage either. They appeared at Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2017 and also performed in the Rose parade in 1986.
In preparation for the big day, the band practiced inside of the Grand Valley State’s University’s field house last week according to Wood-TV8. The Rose parade route, through the streets of Southern California, is about 5-1/2 miles, and students have been preparing for a while for the grueling day with workouts and yoga after their band director and co-director presented them with a fitness guide.
Phillips told School News Network, “Not only are you marching a long ways, you’re blowing into an instrument the whole way too, which is exhausting. It’s a really fully cardiovascular activity.”
They’ll also be getting up early to start prepping for the big day – about 4 am.
The band and the Rockford community learned that they were going to be going to the Rose parade during their end of the year performance. The band director had an announcement put on the Jumbotron at the south end zone after the game which said, “Rockford High School Marching Band: Official 2023 Rose Parade Participant.” You can see the surprise announcement here.
For those of you interested in the actual game, it’s going to be played at 4 pm EST between Penn State and Utah.
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