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OSWEGO, NY – The Oswego High School Marching Buccaneers will join bands from Virginia, Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana at the Bands of America Regional Championships (sponsored by Yamaha) this Saturday in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Band members will depart Oswego this (Friday) morning bound for Eastern Michigan University, just west of Detroit.
The Marching Bucs “Asian Dances†performance will be displayed to the judges at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday with the goal of being a participant in the finals later that night. Oswego will be the lone representative from the Empire State.
Band Director Stephen Defren is excited about the trip. He noted, “The BOA program provides an opportunity to display our talent to a new audience while at the same time having the opportunity to witness and view what other bands around the nation are doing. There are numerous styles and performances and this is a great chance for our students to be involved is something a little different than our weekly shows.â€ÂÂ
Continuing he said, “This will be a highly competitive show and every band comes with the hope of making the finals.â€ÂÂ
Included in the talented field is Chantilly High School from Virginia. Michigan will be represented by Jenison High School, Milford High School, Lakeland High School, Farmington Harrison High School, Reeths-Puffer High School, Lake Orion High School and Plymouth-Central Educational Park.
Ohio bands include William Mason High School, Central Crossing High School, Norton High School, Brunswick High School, Sycamore High School, Northmont High School, Springboro High School and Dublin Coffman High School.
Coming from Indiana are Pike High School, Dekalb High School and NorthWood High School.
Competition commences at 9:45 a.m. on Saturday on the Eastern Michigan Field and the host school Eastern Michigan University Band will culminate the preliminaries with a 4:15 performance.
Oswego competes on a weekly basis in the National Division of the New York State Field Band Conference and there are only nine bands statewide who vie at that level.
The Marching Bucs will depart from Oswego early Friday morning and travel to the Detroit area where they will rehearse later in the day. Saturday will be spent at the Eastern Michigan University competition site and the Bucs will head home on Sunday. However, before they arrive home they will have had the time to unwind and enjoy the roller capital of the world at Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, Ohio.
“The Pride of Oswego†is looking forward to this weekend’s trip, but when they return there won’t be any time to rest as the New York State Championship is only a short time away on Oct. 26 in the Carrier Dome.
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