COLUMBUS — Rain and wind blew through Columbus on Saturday, but 13 bands — including Pendleton Heights’ — were unfazed when the Mid-States Marching Band Invitational at Columbus North High School moved indoors.
With unrelenting rain all day, the host Sound of North Marching Band had no choice but to abandon plans to hold the competition outdoors on Max Andress Field.
The competition moved to the North gymnasium, where an estimated crowd of 2,000 could enjoy the music without getting wet — but without the usual marching and choreography.
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Pendleton Heights placed first in Class AAAA, competing with groups of 71 to 100 members.
Sixteen high schools from Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky were scheduled to perform, but three — Columbus East, Pleasure Ridge Park in Louisville and Scottsburg — canceled due to the weather, said Bill Stultz, Columbus North director of bands.
Marching band directors who attended Saturday’s invitational said while their students are used to performing their shows on football fields outdoors, being inside was a different experience due to space constraints, acoustics and other factors.
“When we’re outside, the sound is everywhere,” said Paige Hewitt, band director at Tri-West High School in Lizton. “(Being inside), it definitely does present a challenge.”
Judges evaluating each performance also had to adapt to being indoors, said Joe Poio, who has been judging band contests for 13 years.
There is only so much judges can evaluate inside a gymnasium compared to being outside, Poio said.
“You try to judge consistently,” he said.
Poio said he specifically looks at criteria such as the range of dynamics, sound, wind articulation and percussion dexterity in each performance, but acknowledged that was somewhat difficult indoors.
Visitors such as Jackie Davis, whose daughter is a junior and a color guard member at Pendleton Heights, said she was enjoying being able to watch everyone perform. She was among at least 30 band parents from Pendleton who traveled to Columbus North for the invitational.
Davis said being indoors offered a different experience since Pendleton’s show, “Spintronics,” involves a band member being spun in a steel wheel across the football field while playing an instrument.
That element wasn’t included in the school’s performance Saturday due to space constraints, said Davis, who noted that students are required to be flexible.
“We would rather see them march and see the choreography and the formation,” Davis said. “It’s a different performance, but they’re prepared for it.”
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Class A: Up to 35 members
Shawe Memorial High School, first
Madison High School, second
Tri-West High School, third
Class AA: 36 to 50 members
Monrovia High School, first
Rising Sun High School, second
Connersville High School, third
Class AAA: 51 to 70 members
John Hardin High School, first
Class AAAA: 71 to 100 members
Pendleton Heights High School, first
Louisville Male High School, second
Open Class: 101 or more members
Floyd Central High School, first
Bloomington South High School, second
People’s Choice
Louisville Male High School
Sweepstakes
Floyd Central High School
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Columbus North marching band invitational
2,000: Estimated attendance
50: Number of parent volunteers from Columbus North who assisted
13: Number of bands competing
3: Number of bands that canceled because of the weather
7: Number of judges
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