At the UIL 6A State Competition on Nov. 9, the band placed 24th after advancing from area.

“At the end of our performance, I felt a rush of relief that the show was over,” junior Wendy Song said. “It also felt bittersweet when I was reminded that [was] our last performance. I remembered that our parents were going all out on the stands.”

This marching season, the band performed in five competitions. Senior drum major Min Hwang said the show, “A Beautiful Tomorrow” focused on the iconic 50’s, when everyone feared the Cold War. Depicting this era, the show illustrated the range of destructive power to the glory of victory.

“When I found out that we couldn’t perform anymore, I was very disappointed. I was pretty sad that I couldn’t stand in front of an audience for this year anymore,” Song said.

However, though the result was dissatisfying, Song claimed that she was ok with it.

“In previous years, we were very competitive on what we do. We would always aim for success,” Song said. “But now, the band is happy if we have managed to show everyone the best we could have done. The results don’t really matter; It’s the performance that we present as the Vista Ridge band.”

“My heart was pounding while we waited for our results, but after the announcer called out the 12 states who would be advancing, I was dismayed.” Hwang said. “However, we’ve done the best we could, and that’s all that mattered. We can improve and come back as a better band.”