(INDIANAPOLIS) – The 44th-annual Bands of America Grand National Championships, presented by Yamaha, culminates the 2019 Bands of America season that begin in September with a total of 23 championships from coast-to-coast featuring more than 130,000 teen student performers.
Outstanding high school marching bands from 20 states will compete in the nation’s most prominent marching band championship, Music for All’s Bands of America Grand National Championships, presented by Yamaha, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis Nov. 14-16.
Bands of America is a program of Music for All, headquartered in Indianapolis. The national championship event will feature 90 high school marching bands in two days of preliminary competition. Thirty bands from Thursday and Friday’s preliminary competition will advance to Saturday’s Semi-Finals. The top 12 scoring bands on Saturday will move on to the evening Finals competition, where the Grand National Champion will be named.
Fifteen Indiana bands will compete in the Grand National Championships, visit https://marching.musicforall.org/event/grandnationals19/ for the full list of bands.
The Grand National Championships preliminary competition begins on Thursday, Nov. 14 at 9:15 a.m. and will conclude at 10 p.m.
The preliminary competition resumes on Friday, Nov. 15 at 8 a.m., and concludes at 8 p.m., with an exhibition performance by the Spartan Marching Band of Michigan State University, followed by the awards ceremony.
Gates will open for the Semi-Finals competition on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 6:30 a.m., with performances beginning at approximately 7 a.m., and will conclude at 5:30 p.m.
Gates open for the Finals competition on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 6:30 p.m., with performances beginning at 8 p.m.
All times are tentative pending the final schedule of performing bands. Current times will be listed at marching.musicforall.org.
Tickets are available for the Grand National Championships at Ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster by phone and at the Lucas Oil Stadium ticket office. Tickets for the four days of events range from $15 to $135. See all ticket pricing/details at marching.musicforall.org.
Music for All is about building leaders and celebrating teachers. Foremost, Grand Nationals is an educational performance experience. A panel of nationally-recognized music educators and marching arts experts will evaluate the performing bands, offering recorded comments to help the music educators continue to improve their ensembles, in addition to the ranking and rating on a national level.
With more than 1.5 million music students impacted by Music for All’s programs since 1975, Bands of America Championships are a celebration of music education at its finest, showcasing excellence, teamwork, and leadership. In addition to the performances, Grand Nationals includes an Expo, a student leadership workshop, and special events, like the Future Music Educators Experience. Tens of thousands of participants and spectators are expected to attend, with thousands more watching the event’s live stream on FloMarching.com.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
Bands of America Championships are entertaining, family-friendly events featuring live music, choreography, and competition. Students, parents, teachers, and everyone who loves live music and the marching arts is welcome.
UNIQUE ANGLES:
- IPS high school students will perform in a “mass band” performance Friday, Nov. 15 at 11 a.m. as part of the Bands of America Grand National Championships. Ms. Johnson has been invited to use that stage as a “backdrop” for expression of commitment to the preservation and prioritization of arts education in IPS during this transitional and transformative period for the District.
- United Sound students are performing with the Jacksonville State University Marching Band Friday, Nov. 15 at 8:15 p.m. United Sound is and organization that provides musical performance experiences for students with special needs through peer mentorship.
- A new award will be presented at Grand Nationals this year: the President’s Awards. The presentation will be Friday evening, Nov. 15, on the field as part of the end-of-prelims Awards Ceremony. Music for All’s President’s Award celebrates the service and contributions to Music for All, its mission, vision, and programs. The award is being presented for the first time here at the 2019 Grand National Championships, to three individuals whose support of Music for All and our programs will leave a lasting legacy. The 2019 recipients are:
- Michael Fox, executive director of the Hoosier Dome/RCA Dome & Lucas Oil Stadium, facilitated the design for LOS to specifically work for marching band/arts performances, went on to NCAA and the Speedway.
- Matthew Carter, vice president of Destination Development for Indianapolis, executive director of Music Crossroads, and former chairman of the board of Music for All.
- Barney Levengood, recently retired executive director of the Indiana Convention Center and the Capital Improvement Board.
About Music for All
Since 1975, Music for All has been a destination and set the standard for scholastic music ensemble performance and music education advocacy. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization, Music for All’s mission is to create, provide, and expand positively life-changing experiences through music for all. Music for All’s vision is to be a catalyst to ensure that every child in America has access and opportunity for active music making in his or her scholastic environment. Music for All’s advocacy efforts inspire and develop models and strategies for successful music programs, through programs like its Advocacy in Action Awards, the I-65 Corridor Project, and support of Indianapolis Public Schools, the Central Indiana Track Show Association, and Indiana State Fair Band Day, and programs like United Sound and Be Part of the Music. Music for All’s programs include more than 45 annual events, including the Bands of America Grand National Championships and Regional Championships for marching bands; the Music for All Summer Symposium camp for students and teachers; the Music for All National Festival for bands, orchestras, choirs, percussion and chamber ensembles; Affiliate Regional Music Festivals held across America; and national student honor ensembles including the Bands of America Honor Band that will march for the fifth time in the Rose Parade® in 2021.
Sponsor Information
Music for All efforts are supported through sponsorships, including current partnerships with National Presenting Sponsor: Yamaha Corporation of America; Official Uniform Sponsor: Fred J. Miller, Inc.; Official Student Travel Partner: Music Travel Consultants; Official Spirit Wear Sponsor: PepWear; Official Performance Equipment Sponsor: Wenger Corporation; Corporate Sponsors: Ball State University, Visit Indy and the City of Indianapolis, and Strategic Advocacy Partner: NAMM; Associate Sponsors: BAND the mobile app, DANSR, Director’s Showcase International, FloMarching, REMO, ScholarshipAuditions.com, Woodwind & Brasswind. Music for All is also supported by the Indiana Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; the Arts Council of Indianapolis and the City of Indianapolis; Ball Brothers Foundation; Lilly Endowment Inc.; George and Frances Ball Foundation; Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, Inc.; CMA Foundation; Central Indiana Community Foundation, Nicholas H. Noyes, Jr., Memorial Foundation, Inc.; and Arthur Jordan Foundation.
