Marching Band Takes Second at States, Prepares for Nationals

The  Marching band finished second in the U.S. Scholastic Band Association Group IV Open Class State Championships Saturday in Old Bridge.

While Absegami High School in Galloway Township won the overall Group IV Open Class ahead of the Cutters, Fair Lawn took home caption awards for Best Visual Performance, Best Overall Effect and Best Percussion.

Now the band will rehearse all week for its final event of the competitive season -- the USSBA National Championship Open Class in Annapolis, Md on Saturday, Nov. 12.

The Nationals will pit the Cutters marching band against 42 other marching bands from across the country, including three others from New Jersey (Absegami HS, West Windsor-Plainsboro HS and Edison HS). Fair Lawn will once again this year be the only Bergen County school represented.

Since the USSBA National Championships format was introduced in 2006, Fair Lawn has been the only school to represent Bergen County as an Open Class band.

The Cutters band finished their regular season with four first place finishes, including a sweep at the ; five all-classes caption awards for best music and percussion; and all Group IV caption awards in four of its six events. The Cutters' percussion took best overall in two competitions, including the , which featured 20 ensembles.

Over the past decade, the FLHS Marching Band and Color Guard have achieved 10 consecutive national top 13 finishes, and have earned six straight invitations to the United States National Marching Band Championships.

Last year, the band ranked eighth overall nationally in the USSBA circuit and was the Group IV Open class national champion in percussion.