Anyone traveling near Missouri State University’s Plaster Sports Complex will hear beating drums, clanging cymbals and brassy trombones Saturday.
The 52nd annual Ozarko Marching Band Festival — one of the largest in the region — will begin before 9 a.m. Saturday and end more than 12 hours later.
The festival is expected to bring 2,500 high school band members and an additional 5,000 spectators to campus.
In all, 26 local and regional high school bands from Missouri and and Oklahoma will participate in the event. They are split into divisions based on size.
Here is the tentative schedule :
- Maroon Division starts at 8:45 a.m. and includes: Thayer, Tipton, Harrisburg, Sarcoxie and Spokane;
- White Division starts at 10:15 a.m. and includes: Aurora, Reeds Spring, Houston, Owensville, Strafford, Clever, Fair Grove, St. James, Ava, Seneca and Hollister;
- Preliminary awards for the first two divisions are at 1:15 p.m.;
- Silver Division starts at 2 p.m. and includes: Sullivan, Potosi, Nevada and Logan-Rogersville;
- Gold Division starts at 3:15 p.m. and includes: Rolla, Francis Howell, Charles Page (from Oklahoma), Willard, Republic and Nixa.