NORTH READING — For the fifth year, on the Arthur J. Kenney Athletic Field, the North Reading High School Marching Hornets will host a marching band competition this Saturday, October 4 at 5 p.m. to which the public is invited to attend.
Adjudicated by the New England Scholastic Band Association (NESBA), eight local high school marching bands, including our own Hornets, will compete, capped off by two exhibition performances by the spectacular WPI and Boston University Marching Bands.
Competing in Division IV due to its increased size, North Reading High School is scheduled to perform at 7:30 p.m. They finished fourth in their division last weekend at their first NESBA competition of the season in Melrose.
The NRHS set explores the statement: “Time Is…” in three movements: time is fixed, time is flexible, and time is fleeting. Tunes featured include “Chaconne” by Gustav Holst, “Clocks” by Coldplay, “Time” by Jennifer Lucy Cook, and “Time In a Bottle” by Jim Croce.
Band Director Ben Owens beams as he describes the enthusiasm of the ensemble. “These kids put in so much heart and hard work! You will see why getting to go to band each day and practice in the evenings is their favorite part of the day—music makes everything better!”
Owens is in his eighth year leading the Marching Hornets, which has grown from about two dozen students to now over 70 students under his direction. He is joined by Assistant Director Dan Muse along with Colorguard Co-Directors Alexis Rowbotham and Sami Linscott as well as Drum Majors Calvin Fisher, Teagan Jones and Maria Karafalidis.
Section leaders are Nalo Benedict, Matt Capalbo, Alexis Coste, Michael Ciulla, Sabrina Etringer Da Silva, Ethan Quan, Sam Radzikowski, Jack Sarno, Alexina Sepke, Ceci Thomson and Bianca Villasanti.
The other high school bands slated to perform at NRHS are: Reading, Melrose, Danvers, Everett, Salem, Andover and Wakefield followed by the exhibitions of the WPI and BU marching bands. The NESBA competition will conclude with an awards presentation at 8:25 p.m.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for student/seniors. They are available at the gate or online at https://nrmb.square.site/product/nesba-2025-competition-tickets/29