The sky’s the limit for the Norwin High School Marching Band
The Norwin High School Marching Band competed in the PIMBA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Marching Band Association) Championships and the Bands of America (BOA) Regional Championship.
After months of preparation and anticipation, the Norwin High School Marching Band competed in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Marching Band Association (PIMBA) Championships on Saturday, Oct. 22, and The Bands of America (BOA) Regional Championships on Saturday Oct. 29, taking second overall in both competitions.
The PIMBA Championships were held at the Norwin High School with gates opening at 3:15 pm. The evening was kicked off with the performance of the National Anthem at 4:15 pm.
“I think my biggest challenge will be going into the performance with a stable mind,” said Angelo Buffalini, secretary of the band. “The main problem is not how well I know my material in the show, but rather my mental state and ability to perform all of it.”
Following the performance of 17 bands from across the state, with Norwin’s show entitled “Upward Trajectory,” the Norwin Marching Band performed at 8:45 pm. Their show tells the story of fighter jets ascending into the sky before crashing.
I know that I shall meet my fate, somewhere among the clouds above. Those that I fight I do not hate, those that I guard I do most love. The sky was serene beyond miss chance. Now with the sky, my final dance.
— Narration from the “Upward Trajectory”
“In movement one, we take off. And we’re in the sky, then at the end, the plane crashes,” said sophomore Enzo Washowich. “The pilot wakes up and finds the co-pilot missing. So movement 2 is about being re-joined with those we lost. And movement three… I think the pilot dies because the vocal says, ‘in the sky my final dance.’”
Succeeding Norwin’s performance, the University of Pittsburgh’s Varsity Marching Band performed in exhibition at 9:15 pm. To finish off the night the scores were announced for each band. The Class A champions was the Southmoreland High School Marching Band with a score of 85.675. The Class AA champions was the Mars Area High School Marching Band with a score of 89.675. The Class AAA champions was the Moon Area High School Marching Band with a score of 91.575.
The Norwin High School Marching took second place in Class AAAA with a score of 94.10. And, the Class AAAA champions with a score of 94.90 with outstanding music performance, outstanding visual performance and outstanding general effect, the Kiki Area Marching Band.
“The PIMBA Championships that took place last weekend was a ginormous success and an overall awesome time!” said Alex Fry, band president. “Seventeen bands from across the state come to perform on the Norwin field, and the night ended with a fabulous performance from the University of Pittsburgh Varsity Marching Band! The day wouldn’t have been possible without the hardworking students, of course, and also the hands and time of our many generous Band Aides and community volunteers and sponsors! It was a great way to bring like-minded, hard-working people together for a whole day of performance!”
“Norwin had a very strong performance on Saturday,” said Mr. Daniels, Norwin High School Band Director. “Two things I use to judge the quality of the performance is how the students feel as they come off of the field and did the work we put in at rehearsal come through in the performance. The students all seemed excited with their performance, and the majority of what we had worked on came through strongly. So that is a win in my book. I am extremely proud of the work the band has put in this year!”
The Norwin High School Marching Band also competed in the Bands of America (BOA) Regional Championship on Saturday, Oct. 29 at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. With a total score of 83.250, Norwin took second in their class and overall. Dartmouth High School Marching Band from Dartmouth, Massachusetts, took first place in their class and overall with a total score of 83.600.
Mia Pierce is a sophomore at Norwin High School and a first year writer for the Knight Krier. In addition to writing for the newspaper, Mia is a leader...
