Published: October 27, 2008 11:44 pm      

3 area bands march on

LOUISVILLE — Eighty Kentucky high school bands, including three from northeastern Kentucky, advanced last weekend from the quarterfinals of the Kentucky Music Education Association State March Band Championship to the semifinal round.



The semifinals will be Saturday at venues in and around Louisville.

Russell, Rowan County and Ashland Paul Blazer are area high schools that will be competing.

Russell will be the second band to compete at Pleasure Ridge Park on Saturday, at around 11:15 a.m., in Class AA division.

Rowan County and Ashland compete in Class AAAA at Oldham County High School. Rowan competes about 11:15 a.m. and Ashland around 1 p.m.

Of the 80 bands advancing to the semifinal round, the four top-scoring bands from each class — for a total of 20 — advance to the finals, starting at 6 p.m. at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. The top band in each class will be awarded the Governor’s Cup.

Sixteen bands compete in each semifinal round.

Rowan County finished third last year while Ashland was 12th in Class AAAA. Russell finished 16th in Class AA.

The overall 2007 winners were Williamstown (Class A), Muhlenberg South (Class AA), Adair County (Class AAA), Madisonville-North Hopkins (Class AAAA) and Paul L. Dunbar (Class AAAAA).

For more information and to buy tickets, call (859) 626-5635 or visit www.kmea.org. Tickets for semifinals are $10; finals are $12 and $20.