On October 15th 2022, Redwood Marching Band and Color guard competed at home in the Visalia Band Invitational, winning seven trophies based on overall performance in the field, music, parade, percussion and also grand sweepstakes where something that never before has happened in the history of the Redwood Marching band.
Trumpet player Gavin Stoll ‘25 express his excitement regarding this win and the improvement the marching has band made from last year to now; “last year we never got first place in any competition and the grand sweepstakes trophy had never been won in Redwood history”.
Bass Clarinet player Raul Arredondo ‘23 says “It is amazing; for the first time Redwood is taking the marching band scene and its showing” .
Since returning to a regular routine in practices, competitions as well as other performances, the Redwood Band and Color guard have begun being viewed as the new “Big Bang” in Visalia.
Emma Buckley ‘25 says “I think “Big Bang” is a perfect way to describe our band because despite being from a small town… we make a name for ourselves when we step out on the field” Buckley says.
” I do believe that we are the big band in Visalia, you can just look at the stats to figure that out” freshman Joseph Abbott ‘26 says, who is the third Abbott brother to be in the program since Mr. Rays tenure began.
After their win marching band now reflects on their past experiences as well as what they look to do through the remainder of the season.
From the perspective of a returning upperclassmen Arredondo says, “my freshman year we got a score of 75 as our final competition…now it’s a 73(at the first competition).
” we have done so much…and now it’s paying off”. Arredondo says
Arredondo ‘23 says one of the challenges faced every year is preparing new marching students and getting them to understand what is being asked of them.
“We needed them to make sure that they understand the marching aspect so they excel further in the competitions” .Arredondo says
“Everyone wants to keep winning …we don’t use a trophy as a excuse to slow down but as motivation to get better” Stoll says.
Buckley says, “We put in hours of mental and physical hard work to prepare for this competition, and it really paid off…to compete and win a trophy on the same field we practice on all the time”.
While Music goes into it, that is not all that goes into receiving a score. Arredondo says “Mr. Ray tells us we cannot march music but present a show”.
Buckley ‘25 adds “This win is going to carry as motivation for our band when we go down to LA next month…we have the skill to do this well, so all we can do from here on out is get better”.
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