Milford Students Band Together at Championship
This past weekend, many area high school marching bands went to Music for All's Bands of America (BOA) Grand National Championships in Indianapolis, but Milford High School made history! For the first time in BOA history, Milford took along their football team, members of the student cheering section (called the Flock) and yearbook staff. This is unusual since typically bands travel to the Championships alone. The students were eager to attend to support the band and enjoyed cheering their hearts out while they performed.
Milford High School's Principal Josh Kauffman and Director of Fine Arts & Extra-Curriculars Dan Yeager came up with the idea and pitched it to BOA officials earlier this year. They loved it and welcomed the football team and students to the event, and even gave them special treatment: while the band was warming up, the football team and Flock took a tour of the stadium, including the Colts locker room, and they were invited to the suites to talk with BOA leaders.
The Milford Marching Band did very well in the competition - placing third nationwide in their class in the semifinals - the highest place they've ever received. Previously the band placed as high as 6th place in the semifinals competition. The last time the band qualified for the semifinals was in 2015 (they also qualified in 2014, 2011, 2006, 2004, 1999, and 1996.) This year Milford was one of three high schools from Ohio to place - Miamisburg High School placed in their class in the semifinals and Mason High School placed 7th overall in the finals.
The Grand National Championship is an educational performance opportunity open to all high school bands, on a first-come, first-served basis. Grand Nationals is also a spectacular music and pageantry event, one that band fans from across the nation and around the world travel to for the exciting and creative performances. The Grand National Championships is a three-day, Preliminary, Semi-Finals and Finals event, held in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, one of the world’s premier indoor venues. Bands receive recorded evaluation from panels of leading educators and marching experts, along with written scoresheets. Forty-five bands perform in each of the two separate Prelims contests, balanced with like numbers of bands from each class. Thirty bands then advance to Semifinals with a formula that ensures inclusion of representatives of each of the four classes and the top scoring bands from the two separate Prelims contests and the overall event. The top 12 scoring bands from Semifinals, regardless of class, advance to Saturday evening’s finals.
