May 30, 2006 > Newark Band wins

The Newark Memorial High School concert band with only 21 students in its ranks earned first place in Class AA and a rating of "Excellent" during the Santa Clara competitions, falling short of the highest attainable rating by only four points. 

This is the band's first competition since the instrumental music program was re-bolstered by grants from the partnership between the City of Newark and the school system last year. The band program had basically been shut down for over ten years.

Many of the students in this group year have only two years of playing experience as the program became a reality last year and they learned an instrument for the first time.

This past year the NMHS Music Department formed a new Jazz Band, marched its very first field show performing at home football games to enthusiastic crowds, and established the first band awards banquet to honor the hard work of its musicians.