By Christine Garcia
The Fountain Valley High School Royal Regiment (FVRR) won second place in the 3A Division of the California State Band Championship at Bolsa Grande High School on Nov. 23, marking the end of the 2024 fall band season.
The FVRR started the 2024-2025 marching season with six first place finishes, including their most recent win at the Southern California Division 3A finals — FVRR’s first division title in 10 years. They have received countless awards for their high music, general effect and auxiliary.
The Royal Regiment started off strong in the South Coast Invitational, with a score of 77.4001 out of 100, beating Whittier High School’s Cardinal Brigade. After their first win, they continued their reign to the top, placing first at the University High School Field Tournament, Capistrano Valley Field Show, Edison High School Field Tournament and San Clemente Field Tournament. Then, their historic division title qualified them for the State Championships. The Barons fought hard and ultimately placed second in the state competition at Bolsa Grande High School.
“We haven’t lost a single [competition] this year, [compared] to last year. Like, [during] my freshman year, we never got first place in any of our comps. And then, it’s just like a major change of everything,” sophomore Haruka Koyama said.
The FVRR’s signature performance of this season is called “Apassionata,” involving the drumline, also known as “battery,” to keep the tempo of the band with the help of the sectional leaders; the Front Ensemble, which includes the percussion and electronic instruments; and the marching woodwinds and brass players.
While the color guard, in their all-pink and sparkly attire, interprets the music of the instruments through the spinning mock rifles and flags.
“The show was supposed to be about fire, but one of our Color Guard instructors brought a few colors in [and] we just tried to build off of it, [coming up with] ‘Appassionata’,” band teacher Jackson Lai said.
The fiery and passionate performance featured energetic movement from the color guard, paired with the powerful sounds coming from the band. Towards the end, members of the band flipped and peeled back the backdrops revealing a bright pink color.
However, FVRR’s success didn’t happen overnight. The Royal Regiment has been dedicated to practicing the “Appassionata” routine and refining the performance since the beginning of summer.
“Before every comp, we have a three hour rehearsal, and then we help load [the truck to travel for competitions]. Once we travel to the [competition], we have another rehearsal and practice. This [is] on top of having over 10 hours of practice every week since the beginning of [the] school [year], and having three weeks of practice, which was ten hours long over summer,” senior Ethan Terry said.
After the last marching season, the outcomes of major improvements in the leadership and the dedication of many members in the band are shown in their scores. In particular, last year, the FVRR placed fifth in the Southern California Division Four championship.
“We changed it around a lot of processes, like how to be captain and the entire process of applying for leadership because until last year it was [given] to whoever is oldest, but this year due to a lack of seniors we had to change the process,” junior and percussion sectional leader Ema Terada said.
Junior Thomas Hartman reflected back on the experience of performing as a drum major for the first time. He recalled the experience as one of the most memorable while feeling the pride of leading his section through the performance.
“[It’s] my first year as drum major, and I feel like I get less of the experience of marching. But there’s still that same excitement. I can hear the whole band, and the music sounds amazing. It’s just a pleasure leading everybody,” Hartman added.
Despite the pressure to represent Fountain Valley, Lai hopes that his students enjoy the art of marching while disciplining themselves to do better at their competitions. As for the future, there’s no doubt that FVRR will do their best to perform.
“As long as the kids play well, that’s the main goal … and we complete our responsibilities … [it] usually leads to the competitive success that we have,” Lai said.
