3/13/21 NOTE: This page was originally written pre-COVID. Contents here will be updated as more details about the 2021 season become available. In the meantime, please consider this to be true in spirit more than to the letter.
The Mansfield High School Marching Band is a gold medal winning ensemble of percussion, woodwind and brass musicians supported by the Color Guard. Comprising Honors Band students, the ensemble competes in NESBA and US Bands competitions, as well as performing in parades in town and at the Big E, and supporting the Mansfield High School football team during home games.
If you are considering joining the Marching Band for the first time, you might want to review our FAQ to better understand the experience.
While the parade and football events showcase traditional repertoire, the competition performances are a much more elaborate affair, with choreographed movement and props accompanying a specially arranged composition. 2019’s show – For The Crown – tells the story of a king returning home only to be murdered and replaced by an interloper, who is unable to keep power for long and ends up losing the crown to a new queen. Dramatic stuff, and all to an arrangement of music ranging from Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet to Hans Zimmer’s Gladiator score.
After competing in the local NESBA finals, the highlight of the season is always the weekend trip away to New Jersey in November for the US Bands finals competition. Competing under the lights of MetLife Stadium, band members get to perform on a massive stage and rub shoulders with other excellent bands. The weekend is capped off with a trip to Times Square and a Broadway matinee before returning home, exhausted, and ready to dive into the Winter ensembles.
