Newtown's Winter Percussion and Winter Guard won at South West Conference championship events last weekend.For more information about the NHS Band and Guard, including these winter season groups, visit newtownbandandguard.weebly.com.

Newtown Winter Percussion took first place at the USBands competition on March 24, at Bunnell High School in Stratford with a score of 90.5. The victory also earned the group the SWC Championship title in its division.

The group then won first place at a Musical Arts Conference (MAC) competition later that night at Norwalk High School with a score of 82.55.

The percussion group's string of wins is based on many hours of practice and dedication. Visual director Ricky Grasso has been working with Newtown's Winter Percussion program since 2014, and has built a rehearsal structure that includes warm-ups to music to help participants learn to move to the music and how to represent sound visually. Body control, balance, movement across the floor, and basic marching techniques are also taught.

On the same day, Newtown Winter Guard members performed the Varsity show "Stormy Weather" and Junior Varsity performed "Mining for Gold" at Norwalk High School. Both programs featured strong additions to the overall effect in show design, choreography, music, expression, and body movement. The Varsity team scored 79.88 and the Junior Varsity scored 72.42.

In the evening the two Winter Guard teams competed at Bunnell High School where Varsity earned first place in Scholastic Open and its division of the South West Conference Championship. The Junior Varsity team of fifth to seventh grade students competed against East Haven High School students and also won the title of SWC Champions in its division. The Varsity team scored 74.78 and the Junior Varsity scored 74.29. For the 25 members of the Winter Guard program, the wins were results of dedicated effort throughout the season. The program focuses on team building, friendship, and fun while competitions also showcase musical, artistic, and athletic talent.

Newtown Winter Percussion, as well as Newtown Varsity and Junior Varsity Winter Guards, will perform in a MAC competition Saturday, March 31, at Jonathan Law High School in Milford.