GREENDALE, Wis. — Five busloads of students, band directors and chaperones rolled into Manhattan late Sunday night after departing Greendale High School at 2:00 a.m. The GHS Marching Band is set to perform Thursday in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Skip to the 18:18 mark in the 8 a.m. hour of today’s Wisconsin’s Morning News Podcast to hear Vitrano’s full feature on the event.
“Is this a level one playoff game,” Director of Bands Tom Reifenberg joked Saturday afternoon as the community packed the football stadium for a send-off.
Senior drummer Ben Wimmer told WTMJ that while he’s most concerned about “messing up,” he’s also excited to play in front of millions on the streets of New York City.
FIRST REPORT: Greendale High School Marching Band returning to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
“Right now you can only imagine what 3.1 million people sounds like, but seeing it in person is going to be pretty cool,” Wimmer said.
Weather is a big concern for the band, of course. While the forecast for Thanksgiving Day looks pretty good (sunny and a high of 53 degrees), wet weather Tuesday and Wednesday for rehearsals could be a challenge. Colorguard Head Tami Reifenberg is preparing her group for every possibility.
“We’re bringing practice flags. We’ll have 2 sets there. They’re really good at spinning in the wet weather, so we should be alright,” Reifenberg said.
HEAR FROM STUDENTS: Greendale Students share excitement about trip to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The band will rehearse their national TV routine on the Macy’s Star on Tuesday night. NBC, which broadcasts the parade, is planning to feature Greendale in its Wednesday night preview show as well. That program will air locally on TMJ4 at 7 p.m. CST.
Broadcast time for the parade on Thanksgiving is 8:30 AM. The band does not yet know what number in the parade they are to appear.
If you would like to learn more about the event, click here to read the initial report from Wisconsin’s Morning News’ Vince Vitrano.
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