<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1BUifb_0wKcZIPu00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1BUifb_0wKcZIPu00" width="1080" height="395" ><figcaption>The BHS marching band will compete at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday in Wakefield and in the NESBA finals at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 3 at Lawrence Veterans Memorial Stadium. Photo by Kristin and Greg Mattson</figcaption></figure>The Bedford High School marching band made history on Saturday. And the band is just getting started.Bedford High placed first in Division 1 at the New England Scholastic Band Association (NESBA) Fall Event at Reading Memorial High School.This is the first time the marching band has earned first place over multiple ensembles in a NESBA competition since Jim Felker took over as director in 2000. Bedford won its division in 2016 when it was the only unit performing.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1DrVBy_0wKcZIPu00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1DrVBy_0wKcZIPu00" width="720" height="651" ><figcaption>Student leaders of the Bedford High School marching band include, from left to right, Diya Singh, Amelie Kelly, Shreyes Shivappa, and Richard Zaloom. Photo by Kristin and Greg Mattson</figcaption></figure>“This is the first time the band has won an outright first place in competition in my 25-year career in Bedford,” said Director Jim Felker. “I hope this is the starting point of something special.” There have been one or two other first-place finishes in the past, he said, but they were by default, as Bedford was the only band competing in its division.Bedford’s 77.66 points on Saturday squeezed past Maine’s Biddeford High School, which finished with 77.15. Fitchburg High School took third place.Bedford also won the Division 1 category of “best music.” The musicians credited assistant band director James Ham, who wrote the pieces. This year’s band includes four eighth graders and two seventh graders from the John Glenn Middle School, Felker said.“As a non-curricular group that only rehearses two nights per week for three hours, it’s a tremendous achievement that we can compete with bands that in many cases meet several times per week [during] the school day as well as their after-school and evening rehearsals.”<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1DljbD_0wKcZIPu00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1DljbD_0wKcZIPu00" width="1008" height="571" ><figcaption>The Bedford High School marching band finished first the Division 1 New England Scholastic Band Association (NESBA) Fall Event at Reading Memorial High School last weekend. Photo by Kristin and Greg Mattson</figcaption></figure>The marching band will compete at 3:30 p.m. next Saturday in Wakefield and in the NESBA finals at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 3 at Lawrence Veterans Memorial Stadium.“We hope that we can gather an even bigger Bedford cheering section at the next two events,” Felker said. The band is also expected to present its halftime shows at football games on Oct. 25 and Nov. 1 and Nov. 28.“It’s going to be a busy two weeks in the band room,” Felker said. The musicians practice several evenings a week under the lights on the Field E outfield.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3bJ5kP_0wKcZIPu00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3bJ5kP_0wKcZIPu00" width="1008" height="520" ><figcaption>Saturday marked the first time the BHS marching band has earned first place over multiple ensembles in a NESBA competition since Jim Felker took over as director in 2000. Photo by Kristin and Greg Mattson</figcaption></figure>“This show has been musically challenging and everyone has worked very hard to put it together,” said senior Shreyes Shivappa, who shares drum major responsibilities with Amelie Kelly. “We have much more to go. It’s going to be amazing to see where we can build upon what we have.” He thanked “the staff and all of our supporters, parents, and friends.”The other student leaders are Drum Captain Richie Zaloom and Color Guard Captain Diya Singh.“I’m incredibly proud of this group because they learn their material, work as a team, have no ‘drama,’ and come to get the work done,” Felker said. And “we’re having a lot of fun.”</div></body>

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BHS Marching Band Finishes First in New England Fall Event

The Bedford High School marching band made history on Saturday. And the band is just getting started. Bedford High placed first in Division 1 at the New England Scholastic Band Association (NESBA) Fall Event at Reading Memorial High School. This is the first time the marching band has earned first...

BHS Marching Band Finishes First in New England Fall Event

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