Evie Beale
Staff Writer

R.J. Reynolds High School’s (RJR) marching band won first place at the Battle of the Bands competition on September 21 in Asheboro, North Carolina. The marching band originated in the late fifties and was one of the best bands in Winston-Salem. The win at Battle of the Bands continues that legacy.

Getting ready for the Battle of the Bands was a challenge. The band had to overcome mental setbacks, as well as fix things that were vital for them to be able to get the win.

“The most challenging thing about getting the band ready for this competition was getting all of the students in the mindset of competing against other bands,” band teacher Daniel Campbell said. “For so long, the band has not competed in competitions. Doing a competition required that we all be on the same page as far as marching, creating our pictures on the field, and staying disciplined.”

The marching band hadn’t competed in a competition since 2009. The students wanted to compete and do well, so they practiced hard to reach a point where they could perform to the best of their abilities.        

“The students wanted to be a part of a competition,” Campbell said. “For years, we have gotten positive feedback on how well the band sounds and looks. The students wanted to see how they would perform against other bands.”

They practiced nine times leading up to the competition, with practices scheduled Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 4 PM to 7:30 PM and one Saturday from 4 PM to 9 PM. 

While practicing, the marching band had to work hard to fix the small things. They found it extremely important to use repetition to ensure they were doing everything correctly. Competition day was stressful, but because of their effort, the marching band was prepared to deal with any issues thrown their way.

“In practices, we went on the field, we kept practicing our field show over and over,” a member of RJR’s marching band, Rowan Minich said. “We fixed old habits, and we made ourselves overall better so that we could be ready for competition day.” 

The win at Battle of the Bands was priceless to the band. This huge accomplishment helped them become more unified as a team and improved their overall morale.

“I think it just boosted our confidence because we’ve never done [a] competition before; we’ve only done minimalistic things,” Minich said. “The fact that we won [Battle of the Bands] boosted everyone’s confidence that yes, I can do this, I can win this, I can try my hardest, and I can succeed if I try hard enough.”

Marching band offers a unique opportunity to students: they can play music, be physically active, and work as a team to create a complex product. As a team, they are able to create wonderful relationships with each other that will hopefully last beyond high school. 

“My favorite part of marching band is seeing the students create bonds with other students that last all four years of high school,” Campbell said. “Some of the students have best friends only because of the marching band.”

RJR’s marching band worked very hard for this competition. They spent hours working to fix small things and ensure they were prepared for the Battle of the Bands. Overall, the marching band did a fantastic job preparing and won the competition. This win has had a big impact on the marching band, and they hope to be able to compete in more competitions in the future!