10 schools compete in indoor percussion contest
WEST MILFORD. The Highlander Indoor Percussion squad earns a top score of 73.75 in the Scholastic Marching A field.
| 06 Mar 2025 | 09:39
The Highlander Indoor Percussion squad performs ‘Mutiny’ in the 2025 Highlander Indoor Percussion Competition on Feb. 22 at West Milford High School. (Photos by Rich Adamonis)
The Highlander Indoor Percussion squad performs ‘Mutiny’ in the 2025 Highlander Indoor Percussion Competition on Feb. 22 at West Milford High School.
The Highlander Indoor Percussion squad performs ‘Mutiny,’ with a pirate theme.
A West Milford drummer.
Fair Lawn High School students perform.
Pompton Lakes High School students compete.
New Providence High School students perform.
A John F. Kennedy Memorial High School student on guitar.
Bergenfield High School students play while wearing masks.
A guitar player from Wayne Hills High School.
Drummers from Mahwah High School.
A Bergenfield High School student.
Fair Lawn High School students perform.
Woodbridge High School musicians perform.
New Providence High School students.
Mahwah High School.
John F. Kennedy Memorial High School students.
Indoor percussion players from Hackettstown High School.
Wayne Hills High School students.
Pompton Lakes High School students.
The Highlander Indoor Percussion squad.
The 2025 USBands Indoor Percussion New Jersey scholastic circuit season opened in West Milford, where 10 high schools performed before several hundred spectators Feb. 22.
Weekly competitions will follow in other indoor venues, finishing at the USBands Championships at South Brunswick High School on April 22.
Along with the Highlander Indoor Percussion squad, participating high school ensembles were from Bergenfield, Fair Lawn, Hackettstown, John F. Kennedy Memorial, Mahwah, New Providence, Pompton Lakes, Wayne Hills and Woodbridge.
The Highlander Band Parents Association organized the event.
Aaron Tornow, the association member in charge of the 2025 Highlander Indoor Percussion Competition, pointed out that the West Milford competition has been growing in both performing groups and spectators in the past few years.
“We’re very pleased with this year’s event and participating high schools,” he said. “Great thanks go to our band parents as well as USBands, which provides judges and staff. We have all ranges of talent from standstill to marching groups, which put together entertaining shows based on a theme or musical scores.”
The USBands kickoff event also featured a performance by the Highlander Marching Band Pipes and Drums.
The West Milford percussion team, composed of members of the Highlander Marching Band, performed its “Mutiny” theme. The group earned a top score of 73.750 in the Scholastic Marching A field.
Fair Lawn earned a 78.550 score as the sole entry in Scholastic Marching World, the highest level.
Bergenfield scored a 73.550, behind West Milford, in Scholastic Marching A.
In Scholastic Regional Marching A, Woodbridge scored a 68.950, topping Mahwah and John F. Kennedy with grades of 68 and 66.950, respectively.
New Providence scored a 69.5 in Scholastic Standstill A.
In Scholastic Standstill Regional A, Wayne Hills topped the group with a score of 64.9, followed by Pompton Lakes at 64.4 and Hackettstown at 63.5.
Mike Monacelli, director of percussion for the Highlander band, said the event is amazing and would not be possible without the Band Parents Association.
“It’s our biggest percussion event and fundraiser of the year,” he said. “Our kids are talented, amazing and are working hard toward a successful season. We are proud of our percussion band and staff and grateful to our parent association and supporters.
“This show is our first step this season, and we’re preparing to go out to world championships in Dayton, Ohio, this upcoming April.”
West Milford High School participated in the world championships in 2019 and 2023.
An indoor percussion ensemble, or indoor drumline, consists of marching percussion (snare drum, quads, bass drum, cymbals) and front ensemble (mallets, drum set, synthesizer, guitars, concert percussion) sections of a marching band.