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Kentucky marching bands will compete this week

Online Niel November 14, 2024

Two Louisville-area high school marching bands will compete against other groups from around the country this weekend at the America’s Grand National Band Championships in Indianapolis.

South Oldham High School and Louisville Christian Academy students will perform in the preliminaries at Lucas Oil Stadium, and several other marching bands from the Bluegrass State are also headed to Indy.

Here’s a look at what’s going on.

The Grand Nationals competition takes place November 14-16 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Find out when your group play on the organization’s website.

Tickets can be purchased at the Lucas Oil Stadium Southeast Ticket Office Thursday-Saturday of the Grand Nationals. The ticket office has no cash.

Tickets can also be purchased through Ticketmaster at the links below:

Yes; Lucas Oil Stadium is a cashless venue, so if you want to buy anything at concessions or buy tickets at the gate, you’ll need to have a credit or debit card.

Per Lucas Oil Stadium policy, only clear bags no larger than 12″ x 6″ x 12″ are permitted. Small clutch bags no larger than 4.5″ x 6″ are also permitted. 5″.

Regular purses, backpacks or other bags are not permitted.

To view the Loose Bag Policy at Lucas Oil Stadium, visit their website.

A limited amount of spectator parking is available Lot A North of the stadium and the south lot of Lucas Oil Stadium. The cost for each of these lots is $20 per vehicle, excluding entry/exit privileges, according to the event website.

According to the event website, accessible parking is located in the south lot of the stadium through the Missouri Street Gate 3 parking lot entrance. The cost for this lot is also $20 per vehicle, with no entry privileges/ exit. Parking spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

A drop off/pick up location is available along Capitol Ave. outside the Colts Team Store.

BOA recommends arriving early to allow time to park, purchase tickets and enter the stadium before the shows.

You can also visit downtownindy.org/explore/parking to view available parking in the city center by date, time, location and price. You can also pre-purchase parking ahead of the competition.

Which Kentucky Marching Bands Will Compete in the BOA Grand Nationals Preliminaries?

According to the competition’s website, Kentucky bands scheduled to perform Thursday and Friday, Nov. 14 and 15 at Lucas Oil Stadium include:

Anderson County High School
Bourbon County High School
Boyle County High School
Campbell County High School
Louisville Christian Academy
Dixie Heights High School
Garrard County High School
John Hardin High School
Meade County High School
Murray High School
Nicolae County High School
Owen County High School
Pulaski County High School
Simon Kenton High School
South Oldham High School
Valley High School

Which bands from other states will participate in the BOA Grand Nationals?

As of October 12, the following bands were listed for the preliminary competition:

Alabama: Bob Jones High School.
Florida: Newberry High School, Stoneman Douglas High School and Tarpon Springs High School.
Georgia: Cambridge High School and Cass High School.
Illinois: Herscher High School, Lincoln Way Community High School, Marian Catholic High School, Monticello High School and O’Fallon Township High School.
Indiana: Avon High School, Batesville High School, Ben Davis High School, Brownsburg High School, Carmel High School, Castle High School, Center Grove High School, Columbus High School, Fishers High School, Floyd Central High School, Goshen High School, Greenfield Central High School, Homestead High School, Lawrence Township, Monrovia High School, Noblesville High School, Shawe Memorial High School and South Dearborn High School.
Michigan: DeWitt High School, Huron Valley High School, Jenison High School, Plymouth-Canton Education Park, Reeths-Puffer High School, Rockford High School and Walled Lake High School.
Minnesota: Rosemount High School.
Mississippi: DeSoto Central High School and South Jones High School.
Missouri: Camdenton High School, Hollister High School, Kickapoo High School and Nixa High School.
North Carolina: Cary High School, Green Level High School and Panther Creek High School.
Ohio: Archbishop Alter High School, Avon High School, Bellbrook High School, Carlisle High School, Centerville High School, Central Crossing High School, Clinton Massie High School, Colerain High School, East Clinton High School, Finneytown High School, Hamilton High School, Kalida High School, Lakota East High School, Lebanon High School, Marion High School Local, Miamisburg High School, Milford High School, Norton High School, Norwood High School, South Point High School, Springboro High School, Tippecanoe High School, Walter E. Stebbins High School, Warren Local High School, West Carrollton High School, William Mason High School and Worthington Kilbourne High School.
Oklahoma: Broken Arrow High School, Deer Creek High School, Jenks High School, Mustang High School and Union High School.
Pennsylvania: Norwin High School.
South Carolina: Catawba Ridge High School and Clover High School
Tennessee: Bartlett High School, Dobyns-Bennett High School, Clarksville High School, Franklin High School, Hardin Valley Academy and Summit High School.
Texas: Argyle High School, Bridgeland High School, Cedar Park High School, Friendswood High School, Leander High School and Prosper High School.
Utah: American Fork High School and Westlake High School.
Washington: Cheney High School.
Wisconsin: Greendale High School.

Also on display are the Missouri State University, Ohio State University and University of Michigan marching bands; and the Missouri State University Drum Line.

Full BOA Grand Nationals 2024 schedule

Here is the full schedule from Thursday to Saturday. Click here to find performance times for all bands. Please note that start times for Saturday’s events are subject to change and times will be set on Friday evening after the semi-finals have been awarded.

Thursday, November 14: Prelims

6:00 a.m.: The ticket office opens
6:30 am: East gate opens; the exhibition opens
23:00: Conclusion

Friday, November 15: Prelims

6:00 a.m.: The ticket office opens
6:30 am: East gate opens; the exhibition opens
20:45 The preliminary contest ends; exhibition performance of Missouri State University Pride Marching Band
9:00 p.m.: Special presentations and preliminary awards

Saturday, November 16: Semi-finals and finals

6:30: The ticket office opens
7:00 a.m.: Semi-final performances begin
3:00 p.m.: Exhibition show by The Ohio State University Marching Band
16:30: Semi-final competition ends; Exhibition performance of University of Michigan Marching Band
16:45: Prize ceremony of the semi-finals; the announcement of the finalist bands
6.30pm: North and East gates open
19:00: Opening ceremony of the final
20:00: First performance of the final
23:30: Grand finale and awards

Who won the final BOA Grand National Championships in 2023?

The Avon Marching Black & Gold (but in purple) from Avon, Indiana, took first place last year at nationals after winning and Indiana State School Music Association Finals. They won the state championship again in 2024.