Photo from MRHS Band

At first glance, all there is to being in a marching band is playing an instrument and walking around a field in a costume. However, the dedication and talent of the students in the Mountain Ridge “Pride of the West” marching band should not be overlooked. On September 27, the Mountain Ridge High School Marching Band performed their 2025 show, “The Summit,” at the Bands of America Regional Band Competition (BOA) in Flagstaff, Arizona, held at Northern Arizona University (NAU). The band placed 3rd overall, with a score of 75.6 out of 100.

The band’s show is called the Summit because it is about climbing the mountain, facing challenges, and emerging from the shadows. The music of the show includes “Mishima” by Philip Glass, “Liquid” by Jay Bocook, “Truman Sleeps” by Philip Glass, “As the World Caves In” by Matt Maltese, and “Nitro” by Frank Ticheli. 

Twenty-two bands participated in the competition, including many from high schools all over Arizona, such as Sandra Day O’Connor and Desert Vista High School. The day was filled with excitement and nerves as it was the band’s first performance of the season. The day was also long and exhausting; the band was at the school from 5:00 AM to 12:30 AM the next day. A lot was going on, including getting uniforms on in buses, warming up with instruments, and dealing with rain and thunderstorm delays. Despite this, Ridge band director Mr. Malone said, “I thought it was a great first performance. It’s always really fascinating to kind of see how everybody handles the nerves and that first performance, and seeing especially all the freshmen get on the uniform for the first time.” 

Mr.Malone was asked what his overall impression was of the show, and he said, “I think overall, just how everybody handled the day, like being a long day and being stuck with all the weather too. I thought everybody dealt with that really well.” Amid the swirling flags and blaring brass, Mountain Ridge described the sense of teamwork that defines their season. “In the show, I was really impressed by some of the full ensemble moments and the sounds that the ensemble was making. Felt like a lot of the stuff that we were working on and focusing on over rehearsal the last couple of weeks.” 

The Mountain Ridge Pride of the West marching band has three state championships under its belt. It is currently the #1 band in Arizona. The Mountain Ridge marching band has been working tirelessly to improve. Mr. Malone discussed what they have been working on during practices and what that has transferred into the show. “I think visually, there’s just been a lot of improvements over the last couple of weeks in terms of the forms and our cover downs, and the foot timing is getting better.”

There are almost 200 students in the band, including Battery (drums), Pit ( percussion), guard, and the general band. The band puts in hours and hours of practice every week to showcase their performance to its fullest potential, with about eight hours of rehearsal on a normal week, excluding all-day competitions. The band’s performance and show have a lot of emotion and heart that is put into it, especially part three (Truman Sleeps, as the world caves in by Philip Glass). It’s an emotional piece about tragedy and pain, but also rising from the pain and coming back stronger. Mr. Malone says, “I think part three was kind of that sort of experience, everyone is great at marching and playing, but kind of the emotional connection and the performance aspect of things in part three, I think, is like a more challenging thing than it appears. And I think that’s a moment that has shown a lot of growth for the ensemble and a lot of improvement and just maturity overall.” 

Even as the band fought the cold, rainy weather, being put on a 2-hour rain and thunder delay, they still kept their heads held high, setting an example for the other bands. The band has—and still does—face numerous challenges as an ensemble and as a larger group with many new freshmen. Mr. Malone explains, “For BOA, obviously, some of the hardest stuff is the logistics of that site, figuring out how we’re going to push all of our big giant props up the big hill to get into the stadium, how we’re going to manage playing in a dome for the first and only time this year. So some of those logistics are challenging at that site, especially when it’s the only time we’ve played a venue like that throughout the year.”

The Mountain Ridge High School marching band is a Division 1 band, with its hard work and amazing performances contributing to its highest classification in the state. They are committed to continual improvement and excellence. The band is now participating in state competitions and is nearing the end of its season. They will be attending the Aboda State semi-finals on November 1 at Desert Vista High School, the Azmba state championship on November 8th at Hamilton High School, and the Aboda State championships on November 15th at Glendale Community collage. The band hopes to see many friendly faces in the stands, cheering them on and helping them finish strong with another victory at state.