The senior members of the 2021 Saucon Valley High School Marching Band (Contributed photo)
The Saucon Valley High School Marching Band was welcomed back to Hellertown last weekend after earning second place at the Cavalcade of Bands Championships held at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey on Saturday, Nov. 13.
The championships featured 85 competing marching bands from throughout Delaware, New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania.
Saucon Valley placed 2nd out of 12 bands in the American division, A-class competition.
The Panther marching band’s impressive placement in the “sweetest place on Earth” came after their recent first-place victory in competition at Nazareth Area High School, taking second place in competition at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School in Plymouth Meeting and earning a “superior” rating at Easton Area High School.
In the Cavalcade of Bands, Saucon’s 50-student ensemble performed their crowd-pleasing show “A Pirate’s Adventure” by composer Randall Standridge.
In addition to competitions this season, the marching band also performed at all Saucon Valley Varsity football games, the Saucon Valley Spirit Parade, the high school’s annual Homecoming Pep Rally and Bonfire, a groundbreaking ceremony for the new public works building for the Borough of Hellertown and the memorial service for Chip Bachman, the band’s percussion instructor since 1994. Despite their busy schedule, and thanks to following safety guidelines, no students in the marching band have tested positive for COVID-19 all season, band director Michael Marini said.
To view the marching band’s award-winning performance at Hershey, click here: https://youtu.be/32fxdBMTmNc.
Saucon Valley High School Marching Band members participated in the Saucon Valley Spirit Parade in Hellertown on Oct. 24. (Contributed photo)
Members of the Saucon Valley High School Marching Band pay their last respects to Edwin J. “Chip” Bachman III, who passed away Oct. 26. Bachman was the band’s percussion instructor and a highly-regarded mentor to many of its members over a period of many years. (Contributed photo)
The Saucon Valley High School Marching Band competes in the Cavalcade of Bands at Hersheypark Stadium. The band finished second place in the Nov. 13 competition. (Contributed photo)
The Saucon Valley High School Marching Band competes in the Cavalcade of Bands at Hersheypark Stadium. The band finished second place in the Nov. 13 competition. (Contributed photo)
Saucon Valley band members proudly display the plaque they earned for their second-place finish in the Cavalcade of Bands in Hershey Nov. 13. (Contributed photo)
Spectators watch as Saucon’s 50-student ensemble performs their crowd-pleasing show “A Pirate’s Adventure” by composer Randall Standridge during the Cavalacade of Bands competition in Hershey. (Contributed photo)
The band marches in the Saucon Valley Spirit Parade in Hellertown, which was held on Sunday, Oct. 24. (Contributed photo)
Band members smile and pose for a photo on the bus ride to Hershey, where they competed in the Cavalcade of Bands competition. (Contributed photo)
