Thomas County Central High School Bands, The Best of the Nest, swept trophies and awards during Festival Disney.
The festival was held at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., the last weekend in April and was a national competition. TCCHS Bands earned a total of eight awards, including three superiors and one excellent.
“Everyone was very excited and the staff and parents were, of course, really proud of the bands’ performances,” director Michael Thomas said.
The festival included bands and choruses from around the country, including New Hampshire, Virginia, Texas, Ohio, and many more. The scores that Thomas County Central received: Marching Band, Superior; Blue Band, Excellent; Gold Band, Superior; and, Jazz Band, Superior.
TCCHS Bands began preparations in August 2015. Staff members, students, and parents made a commitment to bring their best to the festival. The areas for competition were: marching band, marching visuals, concert band and jazz band.
“Preparation to reach an event of national recognition encompasses exhaustive steps related to the study of our Georgia Fine Arts Standards,” Thomas said. “Our band strives very hard to use talent and knowledge within our musical presentations by all ensembles and we committed to the full event with confidence.”
Band members left for Orlando Friday, April 29. When they arrived at the hotel they began their final rehearsals and dressed in their recently redesigned uniforms. After that the band headed to Epcot for the parade competition, where the marching band played “Hooray for Hollywood” supported by the majorette/dazzlers’ visual performance.
On Saturday, band members immediately headed to the Ballroom of the Americas for formal presentations by the Blue and Gold concert bands and the Jazz band.
“I was able to see firsthand how far the entire band had come since the first rehearsal,” senior Isabel Medellin said. “And I think each band brought all their effort to the music.”
Senior Cooper Angela said it was an honor to be critiqued “by directors known around the country.”
“Listening to their comments helped me improve in some of my weaker areas,” he said.
An awards ceremony, followed by a DJ dance party, was held at Typhoon Lagoon Saturday evening. There were further awards as Thomas County Central took the highest-score Gold Mickey Awards for Marching Band, Visual Marching (dazzlers & majorette), Gold Concert Band and Jazz Band.
“What an honor for our students,” Thomas said.
Thomas thanked parents, chaperones, businesses and supporters who played a role in making Festival Disney 2016 a success.
After the competition the band got to spend time at Hollywood Studios and the Magic Kingdom celebrating their achievements.
“Being able to have one last ‘hoorah’ with your friends not just as a band but as a family is what makes the Disney trip the most fun,” senior Jaiquez Duncan said. “Being able to set the music aside, enjoy a few rides, and just socialize and enjoy each other’s company is what makes Disney most enjoyable.”