West Milford’s Highlander Marching Band has made a favorable name for itself throughout the years. The group has proved its competence among many others in such competitive events as the Yamaha Cup at Metlife Stadium and various regional competitions hosted by USBands.  Most notably, the Highlander Band was crowned the USBands III/A Class national champions just last November. All of the group’s accomplishments are too numerous to list; from our own home turf, to New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, to Disney World’s Main Street, the band has marched the planet. Now that the Highlander Band has continued its reign of dominance, it has been bestowed a new honor; for the first time, West Milford High School is hosting its first ever USBands marching band competition, entitled “The Highlander Marching Classic”. 

Five New Jersey high schools will be hosted at the Classic: Vernon, Lenape Valley Regional, Bayonne, Ramsey, and Morristown. As the last performance before the announcement of awards, West Milford’s Highlander Band will be performing an exhibition of their 2022 show, “When Darkness Falls”, in front of an audience for the first time. The group has been working diligently since the beginning of August to put the show together and make it something truly special, hoping to top last year’s show, “Ring of Fire” which earned them both state and national titles.

The event will take place on Saturday, September 17th, at the turf. Gates open at 11:00 AM, and the listed bands will be performing until 2:15 PM, when awards will be announced. Admission to the event is $10 for adults, $5 for students and seniors, and free for children five years and under.