The North Forsyth marching band has participated in two competitions this season and scored relatively well in both. The first competition was in Hartwell, Georgia where the entire band, guard, percussion and drum major all scored superiors, whereas the following competition as Collins Hill placed the percussion in superior, and the band and guard in the excellent ranking. Being a participant in the event, there were many bands/guards that did very well, given the temperature, work/choreography and drill spacing. As a member of the guard, the wind was especially difficult to work with due to the abrupt change in direction and speed. Overall, everyone did well at the competition, and they should all be proud of the scores they received because the judges were anything but lenient or sympathetic.

During an interview with the main band director Raymond W. Thomas stated, “I feel very good about their performance. We have improved a lot this year, the show was well done, and it met our expectations”. In response to being asked about the following year and what goals are in store, he responded, “Every year we look at things we can do to improve, and we try to adjust our expectations to improve the band for next year”.

Upon interviewing Marissa Dintino on the same matters, she stated, “I think we did better than normal, and I think it is always a goal to get grand champion; although I highly doubt it will happen”. In terms of her wishes to improve the band, Dintino responds, “Officer positions, in general, are something I want to do”. Officer positions include: Librarian (helps out the band moms, Thomas, and keeps the band together under stressful situations such as game days), Section Leader (in charge of helping out a specific group within the band {EX: Flutes, Clarinets, Low Reeds/Brass, etc.} improve their individual sound which contributes to correcting the overall sound of the band), and other important roles such as Drum Major (essentially the conductor during games, and in charge when Thomas or the other staff is absent.

In conclusion, the whole group had a wonderful season. The guard had wonderful uniforms/flags, challenging work and strong leadership within the staff. Of course, there were rifts here and there, but eventually we were able to put aside out differences for one day and scored well in the process. The band had a more unified sound, visuals that were simplistic in theory, yet highly involved in the acting department, and strong leadership to hold them together when times became stressful. Overall, we had a delightful season, and we are looking forward to close the year by attending two more games and performing one last time.