FESTIVAL OF BANDS, U S A

September 25, 2014 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Joyce Vos, Manager (605) 331-2043

Sioux Falls Hosts the 27th

Annual Festival of Bands

Sioux Falls, SD – Sioux Falls will strike up the bands Saturday, October 4th, 2014 as the 27th Annual Festival of Bands, USA – one of the nation’s largest marching band events – gets underway.

Considered one of the premier band festivals in the Midwest, this year’s Festival of Bands will feature 39 bands with almost 3,500 students participating in parade and/or field competition. This event draws as many as 10,000 visitors from South Dakota, Minnesota, and Iowa to Sioux Falls to enjoy a full day of marching activities. Hosted by the Sioux Falls High School bands, all net proceeds from this great event are equally distributed to the four band departments.

Highlights this year include performances by the SDSU Pride of the Dakotas and the Marine Corps Band New Orleans at both the Parade and Field. It is an especially distinct honor to host the Marine Corps Band, originally established in 1978 and comprised of active duty Marines. They entertain hundreds of thousands of spectators yearly. When called, the Band can provide security both domestically and overseas by order of the Commander of Marine Forces Reserve.

The Parade competition always kicks off the big day. This year’s competition begins at 8:30 a.m. with 31 bands marching on Main Avenue from 14th to 6th Street.

The Preliminary Field competition gets underway at 11:00 a.m. at Howard Wood Field, with 20 bands competing to advance to the Finals competition that evening at 6:00 p.m. Gates will open at 10a.m. At the Parade and Preliminary Field events, bands compete in four classes for ratings and rankings, with nationally recognized judges offering evaluation and commentary to the competitors. At the evening Finals, the 10 highest scoring bands compete in one class with trophies going to the top five places.

The line-up schedules for participating bands can be found at www.marching.com and www.midwestmarching.com.

We wish to thank our GOLD SPONSORS – Lewis Drug, Augustana College, and University of Sioux Falls, and our SILVER SPONSORS – Carnaval Brazilian Grill and Groove, Inc., for their support.

Admission to the Field competitions is by wristband only. Admission fees are $10 for adults, $5 for students, Seniors and children age 5 and under are free. Wristbands can be purchased in advance at all Lewis Drug locations in Sioux Falls and Brandon. On the day of the Festival, wristbands can be purchased from volunteers at the Parade and Howard Wood Field. Credit cards are accepted at the gate at Howard Wood Field.

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