Newtown Percussion competed at the WGI Trumbull Regional at Trumbull High School on February 29 and earned bronze.

Groups from Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts competed during the event.

Newtown Percussion rehearsed their show “bloom…” throughout the morning, then traveled to Trumbull to compete in preliminaries, earning third place with a score of 80.3.

The ensemble then returned to Newtown High School for more practice before heading back to Trumbull for finals. The group’s score increased to 83.6, making the NHS group the WGI Trumbull Regional bronze winners.

“Sincerely grateful…[to the] members for your dedication to this program; parents for your support in every sense of the word; staff for the talent you bring to our kids,” said Director Ricky Grasso. “A 3.3 point jump in finals, moving the gap from your next competition from 2.05 to just 0.4? I hope you now realize you have something special.”

On Saturday, March 7, Newtown Percussion will compete again at Trumbull High School, this time in a Musical Arts Conference (MAC) competition.

Meanwhile, Newtown Varsity and JV Color Guard competed in a MAC event at Bunnell High School in Stratford on February 29. The varsity team competed with its show “Ollie Ollie Oxen Free,” receiving a score of 73.79 for first place and earning the South-West Conference Champion title. Newtown JV color guard came in third place with a score of 71.96 with their performance of “Apollo 11.”

Upcoming Events

In April 2020, both Newtown Varsity Color Guard and Newtown Percussion will be competing at the WGI World Championships in Dayton, Ohio. It will be the second year for Newtown percussion, and the first in a number of years for Newtown color guard. Various fundraising events will be held around town over the next few weeks.

Any individual or business interested in making a donation toward travel expenses for either color guard or percussion may contact the NHS Band Parents Corporation via e-mail at info@nhsbandguard.com or by mail to NHSBPC, Box 3333, Newtown CT 06470.

Newtown High School Band & Guard has begun planning for its annual Mattress Sale fundraiser to be held at Newtown High School, 12 Berkshire Road, May 30, 9 am to 5 pm.

Newtown Varsity Guard will hold a fundraiser on Sunday, March 15, 3 to 6 pm, at Reverie Brewing Company, 57B Church Hill Road. There will be a chili and cornbread cook-off, basket raffles, and live music. Proceeds will be put toward expenses for the varsity guard to attend WGI Worlds Championships in Dayton, Ohio.