Falcon Corps and Color Guard return
By Ashley Shah
The Scripps Ranch High School (SRHS) Falcon Corps and Color Guard began the season with their first competition on Oct. 17 at Valhalla High School.
Next on the schedule is the Falcon Invitational which will take place on Oct. 24.
“The Falcon Invitational is when we host 14 other bands in our circuit to come and perform their shows,” SRHS music director Russell Shedd said. “The Falcon Invitational is a huge event for Scripps Ranch. The invitational is the largest event we host at Scripps, outside of graduation.”
The invitational requires months of planning.
“We start planning the event in spring. This is my 23rd year at Scripps, so we kind of have this down. Intense planning, where we start talking about details and having weekly meetings, starts about two months before the invitational,” Shedd said.
The invitational would not be possible without volunteers.
“We could always use more volunteers. We can always have people manning the gates, in the parking lot, concessions and more,” he said.
The invitational raises about $5,000 to $20,000, depending on the year.
“Last year, we raised $10,000, all of which goes back to our music program,” Shedd said.
Following the Falcon Invitational, the group’s third competition will take place on Nov. 7 at Great Oaks High School in Temecula.
Division finals take place on Nov. 14, location to be decided.
“Everyone goes to division finals. To advance to state finals, you usually need to be one of the top 16 bands at division finals,” Shedd said. “Last year, we missed state finals by a tenth of a point.”
State finals will take place on Nov. 21, location to be decided.
The SRHS Falcon Corps and Color Guard has 80 students, similar to last year.
“We are in the 4A division, which includes bands of 70 to 100 students. There are about 50 to 60 other bands in our division,” Shedd said.
For Shedd, the goal of the season is not to win, but to see these young musicians grow.
“Every year, I just want to put on a good show. I want the students to have a good experience, and be happy about what they are doing,” he said.
Outside of the SRHS Falcon Corps and Color Guard, the music program includes Winter Guard & Drumline, concert band, and orchestra.
The music program costs about $200,000 to run.
“A concern is always to make sure we have enough money to run our program. Our programs are very successful, but it costs money to bring in coaching, repair instruments, buy music and much more,” Shedd said. “We are constantly fundraising. Our concerts are a fundraiser. We have dinner nights, shoe drives, community garage sales, selling iced tea after school when we can, and more.”
Shedd reports that Prop 28 has been helpful for their program.
“Prop 28 allows me to get equipment I could not get, hire people I wouldn’t have been able to and more. We get about $100,000 from this prop,” Shedd said.
The community has been a great support to the music program.
“We are always grateful to have such strong community support. We have had some very generous donations from members of our community,” Shedd said.
For more information about the program, visit srhsmusic.com.