The Westwood Warrior Marching Band performed this year’s marching show, Birds on a Wire, at a Bands of America (BOA) regional competition on Saturday, Sep. 23. The band placed eighth in finals and received a combined score of 78.50 out of 100 points in three categories: general effect, music and ensemble performance, and visual performance. This score is the highest the band has ever received at the Austin regional.
“I think the first competition of the season went well,” Nghii Ngyuen ’26 said. “I was glad to see the work that we put in pay off, and it was a real joy to see the excitement of the band throughout [the performance].”
Since the beginning of band camp in July, the band has been relentlessly rehearsing for both the Austin regional and the competitions.
“Out of our two performances, we did our best on our prelims performance because we wanted to show everyone what [Westwood] was made of,” Naomi Hanson ‘27 said. “There was a lot of good energy, and we sounded great.”
During the warmup for their performance in finals, the directors and students were unsure of how things were going to play out due to a lack of focus among the band members.
“Though [warmup] started kind of rough, we were able to focus and dial it in,” Samuel Fowler ’25 said. “I thought about everybody, the seniors that are leaving, the freshmen that are joining, and that inspired me to perform the best I could.”
Everyone was emotional after the performance, especially the senior class, as this competition marked the start of their final year in high school marching band.
“Getting into the competition portion of my last marching season was bittersweet,” Joseph Clements ‘24 said. “I’m super proud of my band family’s growth through my time at Westwood and can’t wait to see how far we can go.”
This year, students and directors are confident that this season will be the most rewarding one the band has had, considering their score in finals.
“I think this is the strongest Westwood [Band] I’ve ever seen within my years of teaching,” Ms. Dacy. said. “[This band] has the brightest future.”
The band will perform their show next on Oct. 2 at the Festival of Bands.
