Wisconsin School Music Association

Growing the future of music education

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About Marching Band

The Wisconsin competitive fall marching band season begins mid-September and runs until mid-October with a number of independent marching band shows held around Wisconsin. The season concludes with the WSMA State Marching Band Championships, held each year in October at Perkins Field on the UW-Whitewater campus. More than 30 of Wisconsin’s finest marching bands annually participate in this culminating event that brings all participating bands together in one day to perform and compete on the same field renowned for its marching history for a large and appreciative audience where more than 10,000 people attend each year.

Band Classification

Based on school size, bands are assigned by WSMA and participate competitively in Class A, Class Double A, Class Triple A or Class Quad A. Bands can also participate in the Wisconsin marching activity in the Festival Class designed for bands that wish to participate but not in the competitive classes, or the Novice Class for bands participating as a competitive band for the first time.

Independent Shows

Independent shows provide marching bands the opportunity to perform for an audience as well as a panel of adjudicators who give feedback and ideas for improvement as the season progresses. Marching bands will travel to several of these independent shows in preparation for the WSMA State Marching Band Championships. These marching band shows are sponsored and managed by the host school while utilizing WSMA adjudication sheets, rules and procedures of the Championships.

State Marching Band Championships

The WSMA State Marching Band Championships is a one-day event that brings families and communities together to support the musicianship, art, dedication and creativity of participating students, directors and schools in the final performances of the Wisconsin marching activity. Adjudicators are selected from around the nation to view these performances, provide feedback and determine rankings resulting in an awards ceremony recognizing each bands achievement with Division Awards, top-performing groups in each class as well as Caption Awards for music, visual, percussion and color guard.

The thematic, programmatic and musical content of all marching band performances represent the decision made by each individual school and do not constitute or imply the endorsement of Wisconsin School Music Association.

For students in grades: 9-12
Timeline: March-October

 

Marching Band

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    Marching Band Resources

Questions?

Contact Erica:  Send a message
800-589-9762, 608-850-3566 (Madison area)

Suggestion Box

Have a suggestion for a new program or how to enhance an existing one? Submit here

New Edition Available Now!

January 2023
“The Joy of Teaching”

Music educators often deem the “joy of teaching” as their number one reason for entering the profession. From sharing meaningful new ways of connecting with students to celebrating overall successes in and outside the classroom, this issue is all about ways of finding joy (again) as a music educator.

Read the full January edition online edition »

 

 

An educational collaboration by WSMA and PBS Wisconsin Education

Re/sound: Songs of Wisconsin
In a state-wide survey and listening sessions with music educators, we learned about the need for current, authentic, culturally diverse resources, as well as support in teaching with and about music from different cultures. This multimedia collection for general music programs serving grades 4-8 includes video interviews with Wisconsin musicians, performances, audio files, and educator engagement guides designed to help activate the media with learners.
Learn More »

Thank you to…

This organization is supported with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and granted through the Wisconsin Arts Board.

Contact Us

Wisconsin School Music Association 1005 Quinn Drive
Waunakee, WI 53597
608.850.3566
800.589.9762

Business Hours:
M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm

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partner organizations

  • Wisconsin Music Educators Association
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