On the Brink of History...
The Marching Black and Gold of Avon High School are looking to do something never before done.
Yet another Bands of America Grand National Championships has arrived. On the heels of one of the most historic (and surprising) seasons yet, the 41st BOA Grand Nationals will see over one hundred groups take the field between two days of prelims, vying for a chance to compete once or twice more. However, for some of BOA’s most accomplished, consistent finalists, the real competition won’t even begin until Saturday evening. Particularly poised is the Avon Marching Black and Gold from Avon, IN, coming off a recent BOA Indianapolis win and many, many years on the podium at Grand Nationals (including wins in 2008, 2009, and 2010).
While Bands of America has undoubtedly dominated the marching arts world for the past few months, it’s not the only circuit where you’ll find a similar level of competitive artistry surrounding the pageantry arts; the names of various drum corps are sure to be found on the backs of jackets worn by techs and other assistants and namedropped in the biographies of band staff members, and many of the highest awarded ensembles within BOA also maintain a presence within WGI Scholastic division sheets. Avon’s indoor ensembles recently made history as the gold medalists in all three WGI Scholastic World Class activities; they are the only institution to do so ever (as well as the only school to have even won PSW and CGSW in the same year). Where do you even go from there? There’s one more trophy within reach of the Marching Black and Gold this year -- and it’s shaped like a giant eagle (affectionately nicknamed Kevin).
Avon’s show, entitled Bloodlines, blends original music composed by Vince Oliver and Lee Allman with selections of Rachmaninoff (if the presence of Matt Harloff on Avon’s instructional team didn’t already give that Carolina Crown vibe). There are no stage-setting props, only thick swathes of red fabric held by each band member that acts as an extension of their body as they dance across the field, creating the illusion that the already-huge ensemble is even larger. The Scholastic World champion guard displays their mind-boggling skill set, performing in perfect harmony alongside a similarly awarded hornline and percussion section. No one section overpowers or stands out from the others - the band is entirely united in delivering their product.
I got the chance to see it live twice at the Indianapolis Super Regional this year, where it almost cleanly swept captions in finals (tying with Carmel (IN) for the General Effect caption) after a three-way caption split in prelims, taking the Outstanding General Effect caption, but giving up Outstanding Music Performance to Carmel and Outstanding Visual Performance to William Mason (OH) in Class AAAA. More recently, the group lost to fellow Indianapolis band Carmel for the ISSMA Class A State title - undoubtedly lighting a fire underneath them as both head into Grand Nationals this week.
With an incredibly fair shot at a potential 4th Grand National title, the band is in a unique position. Avon has already made history this year by just coming close to being both the undisputed all-around champions of WGI and a possible Grand National Champion in one season. They’ll meet up with former Kevin-holders Broken Arrow (OK) and Tarpon Springs (FL) for the first time of the season this weekend and rematch against Carmel and William Mason, as well as Fishers (IN), all favored by fans to find spots among the top half of finals. Anyone who has followed the BOA scene this season will tell you with confidence that there is none to be had in predicting contest outcomes, so I won’t try. However, none save for Avon are competing for the chance for what many have described as the first-ever marching arts EGOT: gold medals in each WGI category plus the Grand National Title. This is a shot at an incredibly impressive claim that may never be repeated (most of these bands don’t even have ensembles in all three SW categories). It speaks volumes about the program's quality that four gold medals in one year might even be possible, and this weekend we’re looking right in the face of that possibility.
Few bands have ever come close to this momentous achievement. Two of the only programs to come close to achieving anything like this are the aforementioned Carmel and Tarpon Springs, who both won WGI Scholastic World titles in the same calendar year as their Grand National Championships, Tarpon Springs in 2014, and Carmel having the unique distinction of winning Grand Nationals in 2016 and 2017, with their WGI Color Guard Championship coming in 2017.
These opportunities are very few and far between for a variety of factors, and one is the absolute dominance shown by many of the top groups in the Color Guard World. There have been only three champions since the 2013 season and only five overall since 1998. Beyond the two Indiana powerhouses and Tarpon Springs, the other champions since that time include Flanagan (FL) (2008, 2012), and James Logan (CA) (1998-2007, 2010), both excellent bands in their own rights, but not ones that have made the trip to Indianapolis for Grand Nationals. Additionally, the only programs other than Avon, Carmel, and Tarpon Springs to win both a Grand National Championship and a Color Guard Scholastic World Gold are Center Grove (IN), with their WGI Championships coming in 1986 and 1990 and the BOA title in 1995, as well as J.M. Tate (FL), winners of the first Fall Grand Nationals title in 1980, and WGI Champions in 1989.
Another factor is how the Percussion Scholastic World competition has been dominated in recent years by the fantastic programs in the Northeast and California. Avon is the first champion not from one of these areas since 2006, and the champion at that time was Center Grove. The only other program to have won a Grand National title and a WGI Percussion title is Centerville (OH), with their lone Percussion championship coming in 2004 and the Grand National championship coming 12 years prior in 1992.
Moving on to the newest aspect of this band EGOT, Avon has dominated Winds Scholastic World, winning half of the titles available since WGI introduced this activity in 2015. Flanagan won in 2018 to go along with their Color Guard championships; however, Father Ryan (TN) and Cleveland (NC), the only other schools to win in this class, have not advanced beyond Semifinals in their trips to Grand Nationals.
Regardless of the outcome on Saturday night, the journey so far for the Avon Band, and every band performing at Lucas Oil Stadium over the next three days, has been nothing short of inspiring. I encourage you from the bottom of my heart to stick around for each and every band, whether that manifests as waking up at ungodly hours to watch the first band in semifinals in person or leaving the BOX5-TV stream on throughout the day. No achievement, historical or otherwise, is earned without the support of the audience, family, and fans. GEM will cover the entire weekend inside and out - we hope to see you there!
Hattie Bartlett is an experienced marching arts content creator making her writing debut with GEM. As a former member of the color guard, she has traveled across the country covering events with WGI and Box5, as well as informally commentating via HornRank. Hattie is currently on staff at the University of Missouri as a field photographer and communications intern. She can be found on Twitter, Instagram, and Tiktok as @ilikeguard.
Matthew Carstensen is currently GEM’s Managing Editor. He has been involved in the Pageantry Arts for over a decade, as a performer at the highest level, an instructor, and a fan. You can find him on Twitter at @SatNightLites. He currently lives in Florida with his partner and their two dogs.