Sun Devil Stadium will be invaded this weekend by 30 high school marching bands from across the Southwest for the 68th annual ASU Band Day.
They will compete Saturday for a variety of awards, including the Dr. Robert “Coach” Fleming outstanding band award, named for the 11th Sun Devil marching band director (1974 to 2001).
The ASU Band Day provides high school bands the opportunity to play in one of the best stadium performance venues in Arizona. They will be judged by a blue-ribbon panel of judges, and ASU band director James Hudson will be greeting each band and their directors as they enter the stadium to perform.
Video: A time-lapse of the 2015 performance of Chandler High, winner of the Coach Fleming award
After the competition, the Sun Devil marching band will perform its show “Piano Men,” which combines the music of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and Debussy with modern piano artists Billy Joel, Elton John, Scott Joplin, Chick Corea and Vince Guaraldi.
“This is an excellent opportunity for the Sun Devil marching band to perform in front of these students, who would possibly never see our band perform unless they come to a Sun Devil football game,” said Hudson. “This gets them on our campus and is a great recruiter for our program.”
Band Day is open to the public. Performances begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, and admission is $10 for adults, $5 for students with a student ID. This event is managed by the Kappa Kappa Psi honorary band fraternity and coordinated by Brandy Dubose.
Drum majors and guard leaders from each band line up on the field for the awards ceremony at the 2015 ASU Band Day. Photos by Ken Fagan/ASU Now
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