Mauldin High band wins

By Cindy Landrum  

JANUARY 6, 2011 11:53 a.m. (2)

One South Carolina school brought home a championship trophy from a football bowl game this season.

The Mauldin High Marching Band beat 19 other high school bands to win the grand champion trophy at the Sugar Bowl Marching Band Competition this week.

Mauldin band director Adam Scheuch said the competition is the biggest marching band competition ever won by the school.

“Our kids had a great time out there,” Scheuch said. “And even though it was not our best performance of the year, our kids played well and they were just smiling and having a great time. They should be very proud of themselves for the hard work this year that paid off on a national stage.”

The 113-member band performed its competition show, “Pursuit.”

“Pursuit” is an eight-minute show of original music about being pursued, trapped and chased. Michael Brown, a Furman University graduate and well-known composer of marching band music, composed the music.

Mauldin performed the show during pre-game activities in addition to having its members perform with members of other bands at half time.

Winning the competition wasn’t the only way the band brought music to New Orleans.

Band members collected 38 used instruments and donated them to the Roots of Music Foundation, a program which serves disadvantaged middle school students by providing them transportation, food, academic tutoring and musical training.

Scheuch said many schools eliminated their music programs after Hurricane Katrina.

The Mauldin band also contributed $445 to the foundation.