With six months to go, much work remains to host world band competition in Buckhannon

The theme of this year’s competition is “Uniting the World Through Music.” The theme rings true by having nearly all corners of the world united in one place for a week-long extravaganza.

WAMSB is composed of members from 32 nations representing 24 band associations, their bands and visitors. Members hail from six continents and will have a perfect opportunity to explore and enjoy the arts and performance culture of West Virginia, in addition to the ever-present scenic beauty and kindness of its people, officials said.

Randy Sanders, city recorder, is leading Buckhannon’s effort to host the global competition as the Planning Committee chair.

“To compete or exhibit, we’re looking at over 3,000 musicians coming to Buckhannon. There will be 2,400 competing in elements and also have 600 people from West Virginia marching bands like Bridgeport and East Fairmont High Schools and Marshall University,” Sanders said.

Twenty-three bands will take part in the competition and five bands will be featured as entertainment exhibition bands, Sanders said.

The competing bands are: Canada’s Calgary Round-Up Band, Calgary Stetson Show Band and Calgary Stampede Showband; Colombia’s Gran Formation Drum & Bugle Corps; Costa Rica’s Banda Municipal de Pococi; Czech Republic’s ‘Mêstský Dechový Orchestr Cheb; El Salvador’s ‘Boinas Verdes Music Band and ‘Malissori Marching Band; Germany’s ‘Spielmannszug Hattstedt e.V; Honduras’ ‘Chorotegas Latin Band, ‘Banda Juvenil Filarmonía, ‘Lobos Music Band and ‘Bethel Marching Band; Nigeria’s ‘Oluwaseyi Stars International Band; Poland’s ‘Orkiestra Grandioso Radom and ‘Wood and Brass Marching Band; Switzerland’s ‘Showband Les Armourins and ‘Showband.ch; Taiwan’s ‘Chien Kuo High School Marching Band; Rogues Hollow Regiment Drum & Bugle Corps, ‘Green Beret Marching Band and ‘Coachella Valley Mighty Arabs from the United States; and Venezuela’s Banda Show Francisco de Miranda.

The exhibition bands are Africa’s African Marching Band; Chile’s Husares de la Muerte; Hong Kong’s ‘the twistmen.winds; Ireland’s ‘Crumlin Community Band and Sweden’s ‘Engelholm Marching Band.

Sanders said the city started the application process in late 2020.

“We established a 501©3 organization on a fast track and then submitted a 48-page application. WAMSB reached out to us, and we gave a Zoom presentation over the internet. They then reached out to us to tell us we’d be hosting the international competition in 2023,” Sanders said.

“We are so proud to be hosting this prestigious event, and we’d love for as many people as possible to volunteer for the event that lasts a week.”

Housing for marching band members will be available at West Virginia Wesleyan College and potentially at Davis & Elkins and Alderson Broaddus. Sanders is working with county and state officials to determine the potential economic impact for Buckhannon and the region during the week-long event.

“We’d like to show everyone what kind of impact will be made from our hosting WAMSB so we can put a potential dollar amount out to the public and everyone who is partnering with us in this event,” Sanders said.

“I’m looking at it bringing in millions of dollars,” Sanders said. “When we fill up hotels and restaurants (even to the extended area of Clarksburg and Bridgeport), it is going to be a huge economic boom to the area.”

The WAMSB event was canceled in 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic. It was held last year in Bangkok, and in 2024 it will be hosted in Rastede, Germany.

The first sanctioned World Championship for Marching Show Bands was held in Canada in July 1996. Since then, sanctions have been granted to host the championship in Australia, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, USA, Taiwan and Canada.

Requests to apply for sanction have come from several other nations of the world, with Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, Poland and Austria currently vying to host future championships.

The WAMSB 2023 Buckhannon Host Committee is in need of volunteers to help make next year’s competition a success, officials said.

Volunteer opportunities include being a band ambassador, runner, security and information techs. Each position requires the volunteer to be at least 18 years of age and pass a background check.

Here’s a breakdown of some of the volunteer positions available:

— Band ambassadors will be assigned to work directly with a specific band attending the WAMSB World Championships 2023, starting even before they arrive in Buckhannon. In the days/weeks leading up to the competition, ambassadors will get acquainted with their assigned band and begin by directing last-minute information and questions to the proper channels.

Once the band arrives, volunteers in this position will be tasked with making sure their band stays accounted for, informed and on schedule throughout the week, and that all their questions/concerns reach the proper contact in an efficient manner.

— Information techs will work in shifts at key locations to assist guests in navigating both the event and the City of Buckhannon. You will need to be knowledgeable about the city streets and landmarks and be willing to learn all about the event schedule. Training will be provided for information techs as they will be the face of the event while having the opportunity to meet a diverse group of individuals visiting Buckhannon and West Virginia.

— Runners will provide assistance with transporting documents, water and other items during the days of the competition. This position will require the ability to stand and walk for extended periods of time.

— Security volunteers will be trained to assist local First Responders and Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) with traffic control and event security for events during the World Association of Marching Show Band competition.

A detailed schedule of activities for WAMSB will be announced at least one month in advance of the event. Activities will be staged on Main Street, East Main Street and Jawbone Park, which are within walking distance from the campus of West Virginia Wesleyan.

The bands will compete in jazz, concert, street parade, field parade and field competitions.

There are three categories for the classification process. Junior is for bands in which all the participating band members are under 16 years of age; senior is for bands that do not qualify for the junior category and whose participating band members are all under 23 years of age; and open is for bands in which any of the participating band members are over the age of 22.