Marching band sets their sights on FMBC Finals

Robinson’s marching band prepares for the upcoming FMBC semifinals this weekend.

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Photo Anna Woodward

Anders Johnson (’19) practices on the trombone for the upcoming competition season.

Jules Whitaker, Feature Editor

Florida Marching Band Competition is less than a day away and Robinson’s band has been working tirelessly for weeks to create a starry night on and off the football field. Now they will be traveling to their version of an away game in hopes of returning with a championship trophy.

After a successful performance at their Music Performance Assessment on Oct. 27 at Gaither High School, Robinson’s marching band followed it with another competition on Nov. 10 at Riverview High School. The band received an 83.9, the highest score in its performance history.  Now they have shifted their sights to the FMBC semifinals at Tropicana Field.

The Marching Knights are seeded 12 out of the 15 class 4A bands performing on Saturday. The band performs at 8:28 a.m. This performance is the culmination of their season and the band has been working on their show, Starry Night, since the summer.

“We have prepared the best we can,” band director Christopher Revett said. “The band has work hard this season to create the highest quality show possible. We are hoping to have a performance that we are proud of tomorrow morning.”

The halftime show is over eight minutes long and includes a medley of songs that are centered around the famous Vincent Van Gogh painting. Check out our story about the marching band show here.

This performance is the semifinals, and the top five schools will continue on to perform again at Tropicana Field at 8 p.m. that evening for the final competition.

“The score and placement is secondary for us as a band,” Revett said. “It is all about being a Knight and not what scores the other bands earn.”

In preparation for this competition, each member of the band has committed hours to learning their part in and out of practice, as they work towards their ultimate goal of FMBC finals.

Band member Anders Johnson (’19) shares Revett’s enthusiasm for both the band’s success at their previous MPA and their future performance at FMBC.

“It went pretty well… and I hope we’ll be even better then,” Johnson said.