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FHCS band trip
to London set — for 2005
2004 graduates
will be eligible to go
By J. FRANK LYNCH
jflynch@theCitizenNews.com
Seniors in the Fayette County
High band program who graduate next May have received permission to return
in December 2004, when the Marching Tigers take off to England to appear
in the 2005 New Year’s Day Parade through the streets of London.
The Board of Education recently signed off on the big trip, but conditions
will apply to the graduates, who must return to all the rules and regulations
of high school after having completed their first semester in college,
in most cases.
Eighth-grade band students at Fayette Middle School this year will also
be eligible to go, since they’ll be freshmen in the Tiger Band next
fall.
The Class of 2004 participants will be required to sign a waiver pledging
to abide by all school district rules and regulations while on the trip.
Failing to do so will result in the musicians being sent back home immediately
at their own expense, FCHS Band Boosters say.
But it seems unlikely any of the Marching Tigers, freshmen or graduates
alike, would risk missing the chance to march through some of London’s
most famous streets and squares, including Trafalger, Picadilly and Westminster.
More than 1 million Londoners line the streets for the 2.2-mile long American-style
parade, started in 1987 in an attempt to chase away the post-holiday blahs
and now billed as Great Britain’s largest annual event, according
to the parade Web site.
Band director Kenny Beard said the details are still to be worked out,
but that the band would tenatively fly via Delta to London a couple of
days after Christmas next year, seeing the sights and performing concerts
at several venues in England in addition to marching in the Jan. 1 parade.
The students would return by Jan. 3, 2005, and the start of spring semester.
It was unclear how many students will make the trip. The marching band
has about 225 members this year. About 300 FCHS students are enrolled
in band, according information on the band Web site.
All students will be required to pass a music and parade marching audition
to go to London, Beard said.
Total cost per student is estimated at around $1,800, according to trip
organizers, and the first installment will be due in November. The FCHS
Band Boosters organization will help offset the cost through fund raisers,
like last weekend’s LaFayette Classic marching contest, and the annual
Miss Pride of Fayette County pageant.
Still, $1,800 is a far cry cheaper than the $3,000 required to send each
student on the last overseas trip made by the Fayette County Band, to
perform in the opening ceremony of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
The band made front-page headlines on both continents in the months leading
up to the 17-day journey that September, when Sydney Olympic officials
rescinded their original offer, bowing to criticism from Australians that
the ceremonies were too Americanized.
Diplomacy eventually ruled, however, and more than 300 students and chaperones
made the trip when a second invitation was extended.
The FCHS Color Guard and majorettes will be included in the London excursion;
auxillary units weren’t part of the Olympics ceremony performance.
The Marching Tigers are not the first area high school band to take part
in the London parade; the Sandy Creek Marching Patriots accepted an invitation
to England in the mid-’90s, and the Robert W. Woodruff Marching Band
of Woodward Academy in College Park, named for the famous alumnus and
Coca-Cola Company founder, is a participant this year.
As always, contributions to the London Parade trip fund are being accepted.
Contact the band at 770-719-2112 or at www.fchsband.org.
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