Highlander Band takes second place at state championships

The West Milford Township High School’s Highlander Marching Band won second place in the USBands State Championship Competition on Oct 31.

Their 2020 Field Show, “Bushido - Way of the Warrior,” has received rave reviews.

The Highlander Band has been competing in the Fall 2020 USBands Virtual Competition Circuit (v-USBands) this year due to statewide youth participation and gathering limits implemented for the coronavirus pandemic.

Music programs during a pandemic

USBands Marching is the largest competitive marching band circuit in the nation. Each fall more than 600 schools participate in more than 120 USBands local, regional, state and national marching band competitions.

USBands was excited to offer v-USBands this year as a virtual option for scholastic bands of all sizes “who desire a safe, meaningful option to traditional marching band”.

According to USBands:

“Given the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, each state and each school may have different guidelines to follow regarding marching band participation this fall and many schools are prohibited from travel, participating in mass gatherings or have been affected by budgetary or other restrictions imposed upon scholastic music programs. USBands has developed a creative and structured alternative to present an accredited solution to the participatory challenges music programs are facing.

“In response to these requests for safe and meaningful options and opportunities for the traditional high school marching band activities in the upcoming 2020 fall season, USBands announces the launch of v-USBands, an alternative digital competition platform for students to remain engaged with their music programs and providing those programs the structure and accountability needed from school administrations for ongoing assessment and continuity.

“The v-USBands platform is a virtual option for individuals, ensembles and bands of all sizes and skill sets to experience meaningful musical participation throughout the fall.”

“Participants upload a video of their performance for evaluation and scoring for the competitions held each week.

“Performances for all marching bands must be “a single unedited video, shot focused on the performers – simply recorded and not enhanced.”

All v-USBands performances and competition results are then featured weekly on Saturday at FloMarching.com.

Overcoming obstacles

With rehearsals and non-playing time spent in masks, and a routine spaced out for social distancing, the West Milford Highlander Marching Band has been working hard to achieve the personal and group levels of excellence they are historically known for, despite the limitations and complications that 2020 has thrown their way.

The band has limited access to the busy turf field for rehearsals and recording performances, so they record their performances on Wednesday evenings, a full week in advance of the competition submission due date each week, in order to meet the competition deadlines. Yet, despite having one less week of rehearsals than most of their fellow high school marching band competitors, the Highlanders have consistently been able to place within the top three finalists in their division for nearly all of this season’s virtual competitions; most recently winning second place in the State Championship Competition with their highest score so far this season: 91.33.

But for the Highlander Band, it’s not all about winning ... it’s about learning to do their best in everything they do, building strong moral character, improving self esteem, and being the best they can be - striving for excellence both on and off the field.

They eminate the “Seven Virtues of Bushido:” Integrity, Respect, Heroic Courage, Honor, Compassion, Honesty/Sincerity and Duty/Loyalty.

Although reminders of the 2020 realities are still prominent throughout the band program, the high school student performers and their directors are able to shift their focus on something they can all enjoy, even if only for a few hours per week: the beauty and power of music, daily and weekly personal gains, and working together as a group to create something amazing to see and hear.