Marching Band Earns School’s 10th Straight Superior Rating, 11th Consecutive Superior Overall

Yesterday, the Blue Coat Regiment Marching Band performed at the Florida Bandmasters Association District 7 Marching Music Performance Assessment (MPA) at Gaither High School for their annual evaluation. Marching MPA differs from other performances the Blue Coats give each fall because a score is not given—all bands participate for a rating from a panel of judges in the categories of music (with two judges), marching and maneuvering, general effect, color guard and percussion. Every band receives a rating of either Superior, Excellent, Good, Fair or Poor.

After their earlier rehearsal and short warm-up, the Blue Coats took to the field with their program, “When the Forest Calls.” Almost immediately upon the conclusion of the show, a light mist of rain began to fall onto the field. Feeling great about their performance, the band marched back to the lot through the rain. No sooner did the band arrive at the buses and trailers did the sky open and a sudden downpour fell over the school.

After a near hour-long delay, the rest of the event was cancelled which resulted in no formal awards ceremony and senior retreat being held.

Back at Riverview, the band was informed of their rating by Director Mr. Davis: For the 11th year in a row the band earned a Superior overall rating and its 10th Straight Superior, meaning every judge rated the band Superior in their category.

This Straight Superior rating is the Riverview marching band’s 19th in its 24-year history and marks the Blue Radiance Color Guard’s 15th consecutive Superior as a section. The band will perform one final time for the 2022 season at the Florida Marching Band Championships regional competition hosted at North Marion High School, the Kingdom of the Sun Marching Band Festival.