Every four years the CHS marching band has the opportunity to travel beyond this school and neighboring schools in order to compete with other bands from across the nation. On Tuesday, the marching band departed for this year’s trip to Long Beach, California. For the Bands of America Long Beach Regional.

The band program will be scheduled to take over 300 students on the trip and will return on Sunday.

“We have a lot of trade events with high schools where we will rehearse at their school and then have dinner with other band programs,” Chris Kreke, director of CHS marching band, said.

Sophomore Dannika Beck plays the mellophone in the marching band, and she said she is excited and nervous for the opportunity. “Meeting bands in California will be a really big learning step for the entire band because we are not used to the bands there. It will be a really good experience for us,”  she said. “We rehearse for a lot of it, but there are still scary parts of it. I am already thinking of everything I have to do and pack.”

Not only do marching band members compete, but they have the opportunity to go to Disneyland, Universal Studios and Santa Monica.

“A lot of my best friends are in marching band, so we already have a plan for the heat and the trip. The biggest concern is that nobody will get lost,” Beck said.

For the competitions in the next three days, the marching band will be exposed to new types of shows as they compete against schools from other regions of the country.

“Our directors like to get us out of our own comfort zone; seeing the schools other than Avon and Lawrence Central will be a good learning experience,” Beck said.

Mitchell Urban, band member and sophomore, as also scheduled to attend.

“As costly as it is, I am expecting to get more prepared for Nationals. This year we have been pushed harder by our directors so we could get our show ready faster,” Urban said.

Beck said the show this year is equally as good as the Grand National show from the previous year.

“Preparations are very extensive. We have been planning this for over a year now, the travel part alone is a massive undertaking with all the chaperones and 300 kids,” Kreke said. The trip is considered to be very large-scale, specifically because of the travel aspect and the amount of students going.

For Beck, this is her first trip as a band member.

“It’s the first time I will be going out of state without my family, but the band is practically a large family so it really is a family trip,” Beck said. “The directors are like our parents and really push us to our limits so we are prepared.”

Throughout the course of the trip, Kreke said he hopes there is exposure to new experiences in California that students are not able to be experienced in Indiana.

“There are many unique opportunities. It’s all about the experience. Hopefully there are bonding things that happen for band members competitively,” Kreke said.

Overall, the marching band will perform a total of four or five times, one of which being it’s most major performance. Both Urban and Beck said they believe there will be a positive outcome, despite the nerves that come beforehand.

“As a band, we are working on playing our music to the best of our ability. Personally, I am practicing every other night so we perform well in California,” Urban said. “I am both nervous and excited; it will be a lot of pressure but it is expected to be very exciting.”