Information on the 17 bands competing at the Mt. Pleasant Marching Band Invitational Saturday night, September 17 at Mapleleaf Athletic Complex. (courtesy of Dave Schneider)
Highland High School Marching Highlanders from Lewistown, MO
61 members……The band in recent years has won numerous awards and has marched in the McDonalds Thanksgiving Day Parade in Chicago, performed at the halftime show at the 2008 Liberty Bowl in Memphis, TN, represented Missouri at the 2010 National Independence Day Parade in Washington D.C., performed at halftime of the 2012 Gator Bowl in Florida, and last year performed at halftime of the Holiday Bowl and a nationally televised parade in San Diego.
Highland High School “The Sound of Highland” from Riverside
30 members……The show that will be performed at Mt. Pleasant is titled “Surf’s Up” and will feature Beach Boys hits “I Get Around” and “Fun, Fun, Fun” plus “Wipe Out” and “Theme from Hawaii Five-O”.
Central Lee Marching Hawks
36 members…..The band received a top Division 1 rating at last year’s State Marching Band Festival.
Wapello High School Indian Marching Band
62 members……They are directed by Mt. Pleasant native Micah Peck and have received a Division 1 rating the past five years at the State Marching Band Festival.
Mediapolis Marching Bulldogs
51 members…….The band took part in the University of Northern Iowa Band Day last weekend in Cedar Falls.
West Liberty Comet Marching Band
69 members….The band earned a Division 1 rating at State Marching Band Festival the past three years.
Davis County Marching Mustangs
55 members…..For the past seven years the band has received a Division 1 rating at State Marching Band Festival and was selected to participate in the 2016 Memorial Day Parade in Washington D.C.
Washington High School Marching Demon Nation
105 members……Their show’s name is “Age of Iron – Thermopylae and the 300 Spartans”. They placed second in class 3A at the 2015 Mt. Pleasant Invitational.
Benton Community High School Marching Bobcats
94 members…….They have earned nine consecutive Division 1 ratings at State Marching Band Festival and the past two years were awarded Grand Champions of the Muscatine Invitational. This past year the band traveled to Toronto, Canada and next summer will travel to New York City and Washington D.C.
Solon Marching Spartans
70 members…..Their show includes “James Bond Theme”, “For Your Eyes Only”, “Skyfall” and “Live and Let Die”. This will be their first appearance at the Mt. Pleasant Invitational.
Mount Vernon Marching Mustangs
100 members…….This band is on the rise as their size has doubled in the past two years, and last year received their first Division 1 rating at State Marching Band Festival in over 20 years. They will be one of the bands from Eastern Iowa representing Iowa in the McDonalds Thanksgiving Day Parade in Chicago.
Marion Scarlet Spectrum
121 members…….At last year’s Mt. Pleasant Invitational, this band placed first in class 3A and garnered caption awards for best drum major, drumline and horn line.
Ft. Madison Marching Bloodhounds
138 members……This coming December the band will travel to Hawaii to represent Iowa at the 75th Anniversary Pearl Harbor Memorial Band Festival. In recent years they have marched in the New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade, traveled to Ireland, and performed at the Liberty Bowl Parade and Halftime Show.
Muscatine Muskie Marching Band
94 members…….The group has made appearances in San Antonio, New Orleans, and the New York St. Patrick’s Day Parade. They are a voluntary ensemble of the high school band program.
Francis Howell North Knightpride Marching Band
85 members……..The school, with an enrollment of 1,876, is located in the St. Louis suburb of St. Charles. Last weekend they placed fourth in their division at a competition in O’Fallon, IL.
Cedar Rapids Jefferson Band of Blue
160 members…….The Band of Blue has earned national recognition through performances in the 1995 and 2001 Orange Bowl Parade, the 1998 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA, the 1999 Fiesta Bowl Parade, the 2004 Pan-Pacific Parade in Hawaii, 2006 Citrus Bowl Parade, 2010 Holiday Bowl Parade and Halftime performance in San Diego, and two additional Hawaii appearances in 2008 and 2015. They have earned numerous awards including 37 consecutive Division 1 ratings at the State Marching Band Festival.
Davenport Central Marching Blue Devils
135 members…….They are consistent participants in Bands of America Regionals and Grand National Championships. In 2015 the Marching Blue Devils were State of Iowa’s representatives in the National Independence Day Parade in Washington D.C. The Davenport Central instrumental program dates back to 1885, making them one of the oldest bands west of the Mississippi River and Iowa. At last year’s Mt. Pleasant Invitational, Davenport Central placed first in class 4A and had the highest score overall for all classes. They won caption awards for best drumline and drum major.