As the fall season comes to a close, we celebrate the successful programs and athletic teams here at Air Academy. Traditions and hard work are fundamental to a triumphant season. When the championship season came around these last few weeks, band buckled down in order to perform at the highest level necessary and keep the tradition rolling.

Band came into the weekend of October 24th with five consecutive state championships under their belt, but with a specific goal in mind: one more state title to add to their already infamous streak. The show, BEYOND, is space-themed and the music played, Unidentified, includes intense instrumentals and dubstep. The drum majors, Nate Bennet and Hannah Peters, led the Air Academy band and color guard to an intense semi-final victory, over Liberty High School, by just over .10 of a point; this semi-final was in fact nerve-racking due to a malfunction in which the dubstep music didn’t play. The finals, however, were a different story as the Kadets won by over a point in the 4A Category, solidifying their six-year streak and reputation on top. During the finals, Yale Russo-Way hit her upper eye with a rifle during the fourth movement of the finals, but she finished the rest of the show strong even though blood was dripping down her clothes. After the show, a Kadet accidentally hit his instrument against the valve of the nitrogen tank and the stadium needed to evacuate due to explosions hazards. Needless to say, the Kadets had a very eventful, successful weekend up in Fort Collins at the Colorado Band State Championships.

Earlier in the season, on October 16th and 17th, the Kadet marching band traveled to Saint Louis, Missouri in order to perform BEYOND in a national competition. The competition, Bands of America, proved difficult, yet Air Academy emerged as the Regional AA Grand Champion. In the final, the band scored 76.55 points to come in ninth against the best bands from around the region. The Kadets had the highest outstanding music performance, outstanding visual performance and outstanding general effect coming out of the regional AA prelims. Overall, the weekend in Saint Louis proved vital for the group’s growth and development necessary to claim the 4A state title in the coming weeks.

Congrats to the band for all the hard work, extra hours, and dedication put in to make this show and year beyond anyone’s expectations. Way to go Band!