Council Rock South Marches Home With U.S. Bands Open Championship

NORTHAMPTON TOWNSHIP, PA — The Council Rock High School South Marching Band has won the 2023 U.S. Bands Group III Open National Championship.

Council Rock South performed in competition on Saturday, Nov. 5 at MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Jets and the New York Giants. More than 50 of the best bands in the U.S. Bands circuit competed for top honors in their division, including groups from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.

With a score of 93.75 South won the Group III-Open Class while also winning caption awards for Best Music, Best Visual and Best Overall Effect.

Council Rock South's 2022 field production, "A World of Our Own," featured "What a Wonderful World," "Mad World," "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," "It's the End of the World as we know it," and "New World Symphony" by Antonin Dvorak.

On the field, South utilized a vinyl tarp with the image of an altered planet Earth, the embodiment of the World of our Own creation. The field was also lined with 24 miniature planets. Flags utilized by the colorguard featured different variations of that planetary image.

The U.S. Bands marching band circuit is comprised of bands who compete in either the "A Class" (Beginning/Intermediate) or "Open Class" (Intermediate/Advanced). In 2021 South was promoted to the Open Class division of competition, and this win marks South's first Open Class Championship. Council Rock South also won the Group III Open PA State Championships held in Downingtown on October 22nd. While competing in the A Class division, CR South won the 2019 and 2016 Group IV-A Class Championships.

The Council Rock South Marching Band performs at all Golden Hawks football games, and they plan to appear in the Newtown Holiday Parade on Sunday, December 4.