Local school wins big at prestigious marching band tournament
Last month, the school's band was one of two from the state and one of 13 nationwide invited to perform at the National Fiesta Bowl Band Championship and Fort McDowell/Yavapai Nation Fiesta Bowl Parade at the University of Phoenix Stadium.
"It's a neat place for kids from all over the country to go do a field show ... in a stadium that seats 100,000 people," said Band Director Brad Pollock.
Eight bands competed in the 10-minute Field Show and 13 bands competed in the Parade.
The 120-member Nogales Regiment took first place in the parade and fifth in the field show, while the Nogales Color Guard swept the entire event.
"The band won first place in the parade, which was unexpected because we don't consider ourselves a parade band," he said. "We worked as hard... showing the kids how to love music and working hard toward something."
This was the Noble Regiment's third appearance at the Phoenix event.
"It's half competition and half, almost like a fun winter trip for the kids," Pollock said. "The whole idea was to go on a trip to have some fun and give the kids an experience like no other."
The competition was held during the last two days of 2010, when a panel of judges critiqued the bands on
"I only asked the kids to leave it all on the field and if they get off the field saying they gave it their best, that they did everything they could to succeed and perform together, that's all I ever ask," Pollock said.
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