Gov. Livingston Marching Band Wins NJ State Championship

The Governor Livingston Highlander Marching Band won the first annual NJ State Championship in Sayreville on Saturday, October 22. 

Marching in Group 1 Open Class, they captured the distinction of High Music, High Visual and Best Auxiliary with a score of 93.4. Second place went to Pitman, with a score of 88.5. 

The Highlander performance, which features a traditional bagpipe introduction, is titled Scheherazade based on the music by Rimsky-Korsakov from the symphonic suite with the same name.

The band then performed later on Sunday, October 23 at the Tournament of Bands (TOB) Chapter 10 Championship at West Essex, with a venue of 13 bands.  The Highlanders stepped up their performance, beating four other Group 1 Open Class bands with a 94.2, their highest score to date. The band was also recognized for Best Auxiliary and Best Percussion.

Next in their sights is the TOB Atlantic Coast Championships at Hershey, PA scheduled for October 30.  The TOB is one of the largest competitive band organizations in the United States, with over 430 member bands, encompassing 13 Chapters across 9 states. 

The Highlanders will compete with the top 32 bands in their class from schools as far away as New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia.  Band Director Nicholas O’Sullivan commented, “The students are working very hard and I’m very proud of what they have accomplished thus far.  I am looking forward to their performance at the Atlantic Coast Championships next week in Hershey, PA.”

Come and see this award winning band perform locally at the Governor Livingston High School during their home football half time shows on November 5 (2 p.m. game time), and on Thanksgiving Day, November 24 (10:30 a.m. game time).  For more information, log on to www.highlanderband.org.