It’s the most wonderful time of the year!
Tomorrow morning, at 11:30 AM Central Time, the first Bands of America Super Regional of 2022 will kick off, hosting 62 bands from 10 states. This is the smallest Super Regional of the season, but don’t be fooled - this competition is fierce (like the Shakespeare quote!).
This event is no regular regional – packed with two full days of incredible action – including multiple Grand National finalist and semifinalist bands across both days. So whether this article hits you over your first cup of coffee or the first class period of your day, we’re coming at you with all the juiciest details and most anticipated moments to watch out for this weekend.
Before we dive into the details of every band you’ll want to catch this weekend, let’s look over the schedule stretched across both Friday and Saturday. In my humble opinion, every band here is a band to watch, and I’m not just saying that as a face-saving brand representative. I’m a Missourian, and this is a competition stocked with MO bands. I want you to watch them. But I understand that for those in attendance in person, there will be moments when bathroom and concession breaks are necessary. (Life hack: if you’re starving during prelims, look up what bands are considered finals locks on your favorite marching band forum and grab a hotdog during those. You’ll see them again.)
FRIDAY
Panel 2
11:30 - Wentzville-Liberty (MO)
11:45 - East Peoria Community (IL)
12:00 pm - Wright City (MO)
12:15 - Windsor (MO)
12:30 - Belleville East (IL)*
12:45 - Danville (IL)
1:00 - Collinsville (IL)*
1:15 - Yukon (OK)
1:30 - David H. Hickman (MO)*
1:45 - Fort Zumwalt West (MO)*
2:00 - Cape Girardeau Central (MO)
2:15 - Granite City (IL)
BREAK
Panel 1
3:00 - Francis Howell North (MO)*
3:15 - Francis Howell Central (MO)*
3:30 - Marquette (MO)*
3:45 - Wentzville Holt (MO)*
4:00 - Parkway South (MO)*
4:15 - Monticello (IL)
4:30 - Lindbergh (MO)*
4:45 - Timberland (MO)*
5:00 - Normal (IL)*
5:15 - Parkway Central (MO)*
5:30 - Fort Zumwalt North (MO)*
5:45 - Southmoore (OK)
6:00 - #25 O'Fallon Township (IL)**
BREAK
Panel 2
6:45 - Mascoutah (IL)*
7:00 - Edwardsville (IL)
7:15 - Oakville (MO)*
7:30 - #17 Blue Springs (MO)**
7:45 - Millard West (NE)
8:00 - Sullivan (MO)*
8:15 - Herscher (IL)
8:30 - Lafayette (MO)*
8:45 - Blue Springs South (MO)**
9:00 - Lake Travis (TX)
9:15 - Rockwood Summit (MO)
9:30 - Hernando (MS)
SATURDAY
Panel 1
8:00 - L.D. Bell (TX)
8:15 - Bentonville West (AR)*
8:30 - Washington (MO)*
8:45 - Lakota West (OH)
9:00 - Fayetteville (AR)*
9:15 - Lincoln (SD)**
9:30 - Berryhill (OK)
BREAK
Panel 2
10:15 - Francis Howell (MO)*
10:30 - Hollister (MO)*
10:45 - Willard (MO)*
11:00 - Millard North (NE)
11:15 - Huntley (IL)
11:30 - Russell County (KY)
11:45 - Bentonville (AR)**
BREAK
Panel 1
12:30 - Papillion-La Vista South (NE)
12:45 - Bryant (AR)
1:00 - Lake Park (IL)
1:15 - Limestone Community (IL)
1:30 - Mustang (OK)**
1:45 - Germantown (MS)
2:00 - Nixa (MO)*
2:15 - Prospect (IL)
2:30 - Plainfield North (IL)
2:45 - Grain Valley (MO)**
3:00 - #2 Broken Arrow (OK)**
3:15 - Ex. Univ. of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
All times CT.
*Denotes returning group
**Denotes returning finalist
Now, before you add that comment asking me, “Hattie, what is this panel nonsense? I’ve never seen this before, and I’ve faithfully followed all of your BOA previews!” It’s okay. I’ve got you. In fact, I have a whole article on it right here.
The TL;DR of this panel nonsense is that when there are a ton of bands all at the same contest, it just isn’t humane to request that one group of judges watch and adjudicate them all. To save them from fatigue and the scores suffering because of it, Music For All decided that not one, but TWO groups of judges would sit to assess the competing bands and that they would alternate every block (which is the block-shaped chunk between each break). These judges then form a pool from which the lineup of judges for finals is selected. It makes things easier on everyone. Instead of advancing just purely on score (because judges’ incredibly well-experienced opinions may vary between panels), the bands are really only competing within their panel. The top 5 bands from each panel will be the bands in finals, plus 4 more bands from either panel that attain the next 4 highest scores overall. This is only necessary for Super Regionals and Grand Nationals due to their significantly higher enrollments compared to regular BOA Regionals, which is why it may be a new concept to those new to the BOA world. For the vets, let’s get into what’s about to go down between these bands.
Friday morning (ish) begins with Panel 2, kicking off with St. Louis native Wentzville-Liberty (MO). Following in the block will be returning attendees Belleville East (IL) and Collinsville (IL), as well as notable newcomer Yukon (OK), who will be making their Bands of America debut. David H. Hickman (MO) temporarily leaves behind the other Columbia area bands, as usual, electing to attend St. Louis on Friday and then compete in the much-closer Champion of Champions festival on Saturday. Finally, the block ends with Granite City (IL), closing out the first third of Panel 2. Panel 1 is packed with high-power returning groups. I highly recommend seeing them all, but I’ll pull out my top 6 must-catches: Lindbergh (MO), Timberland (MO), Normal (IL), Fort Zumwalt North (MO), Southmoore (OK), and #25 O’Fallon Township (IL). Lindbergh, Timberland, and Fort Zumwalt North are recognizable names to any Missouri band fan, with all three being powerful forces within the state. Normal is a band on the precipice of finals, placing 17th in 2021. Southmoore will be attending hot off a 2nd place finish at this year’s Broken Arrow Invitational, having taken the Outstanding Music Performance caption with them. O’Fallon, of course, is a recent Grand National Finalist and a consistent top-half finisher at St. Louis. Friday performances finish with the second round of Panel 2, containing consistent medalist and Grand National Finalist #17 Blue Springs (MO), as well as last year’s defending Class A champion Sullivan (MO). Also performing in the final block of the day will be Herscher (IL), a band that competed in finals at the inaugural Grand National Championships way back in 1976.
Saturday morning will come with an early wake-up time for the bands starting off the second block of Panel 1: L.D. Bell (TX) takes the field at 8:00 AM, returning to St. Louis after earning the bronze medal in 2019. However, they aren’t the only prospective finalist of the block: Lakota West (OH) and Lincoln (SD) follow shortly after. Class A medalist Hollister (MO) goes on in the next block, aiming for the medal once again, followed shortly by Bentonville (AR), one of the consistent finalists of this Super Regional. The final block of the day begins just after noon with newcomer Papillion-La Vista South (NE), an up-and-coming powerhouse out of the northern Midwest. A stacked block follows, including returning finalist Mustang (OK). Joining them will be finalist hopefuls Nixa (MO) and Prospect (IL), as well as returning top-half finisher and Class AA champion Grain Valley (MO). Oh, and of course, your defending 2021 Grand National Champion and almost-too-consistent St. Louis Super Regional Champion, #2 Broken Arrow (OK) will take the field, the final band to perform in prelims at 3:00 PM.
That’s a lot of bands! If you’re still with me here, we’ve just gone over two days of Super Regionals in only a few short paragraphs. Buckle up. Indianapolis and San Antonio have about 20 more bands. That’s approximately 160 more minutes of awesomeness! It’s also a few more hours of sleep that I’ll get to clock this weekend as opposed to the next. But passion never sleeps, right?
The Bands of America St. Louis Super Regional will be live on BOX5-TV on October 14th and 15th, 2022. To all of the returning band members, staff, alums, and family members who have made this event an annual tradition as my family has, it’s going to be great to have you back for yet another incredible weekend of band. For those visiting for the first time- welcome to the Show Me State! It would be remiss of me as a Missourian not to encourage you to experience the beauty and history of the city of St. Louis while you’re here - as you do, though, please remember to look both ways when you cross the street.
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.
Great job explaining the panels Hattie!