On October 1, 2011, Centennial’s Marching Eagles received the award for the Best Overall Band in their division at the US Scholastic Band Association Westminster Competition, under the direction of David Matchim. The Marching Eagles also received the awards for best musical performance, best percussion, best color guard/drill team, and best overall effect.

Matchim attributes the band’s success to plenty of practice. He explained, “The band started rehearsing two weeks before the school year began and continues to rehearse on Wednesday nights.  Individual sections of the marching band such as drum line, pit percussion, color guard, and drill team have additional rehearsals during the week.”

The Centennial marching band swept its category at the competition. However, due to the persistent rain this school year, the Marching Eagles have not had many opportunities to hold outdoor practices, affecting their marching.

Matchim commented, “We are stronger musicians than marchers, so we need to work hard to refine our marching technique and overall visual effect. That’s not to say we can’t improve our musical performance, as well.  We perform at a high level because we have talented musicians, but our sum needs to be greater than its parts.  If we can learn to unify our sound, then the sky’s the limit for our success on and off the field.”
Congratulations to the Marching Eagles on their successful competition debut for the 2011-2012 school year.