We traveled on Saturday to Sonoraville High School to compete in the Inaugural Ring of Fire Marching Competition, where we competed against a lineup of very talented bands. The students arrived at the school early, had an extremely focused rehearsal, and loaded just in time for uniform checks. We were accompanied by a team of dedicated parents who assisted with props, loading and unloading equipment, making final touches to the uniforms, checking the medical bags, feeding the students lunch (which was provided by Simply Catering and was DELICIOUS), and providing encouragement throughout the day to staff and students. Our bus drivers took us to Buccee’s for a restroom break and so that the students could grab dinner and snacks for the ride home before completing our trip to Sonoraville. We were greeted by very friendly and helpful Sonoraville parents and band students, especially Brycen and Leonardo, who were our guides. They escorted us from the bus parking area to the equipment parking lot, to the warm-up area, and got us to the field for competition. They did an outstanding job.

Our students encountered a few distractions after arriving at the competition, but handled them with maturity and class. They were locked in from the time they got off that bus until after their performance! The audience’s response was so rewarding! The students received applause at all of the right places. The opening hit was effective and caught everyone’s attention. Movement 2 dazzled with electronic solos, cool choreography, intricate colorguard work, and the king destroying the village with the stolen cube. Movement 3 changed the mood and continued with a captivating duet and a very dramatic big moment as our wizard refocuses the band on the 50-yard line and challenges the hunter with the task of defeating the evil king. And movement 4 got the loudest applause. The villagers get past the king’s guard, wrestle the cube away from the king, and depose the king by summoning a dragon. When the audience saw the dragon fly overhead, we heard a gasp followed by a thunderous applause. After dethroning the king, the villagers restore their village with the help of the wizard’s magic before claiming the castle as their own. The performance on Saturday night was thrilling! The students performed with maturity and clarity that typically have taken us until late October/early November to achieve. They made us all so very proud!

During the awards ceremony, we sat together in the end zone and waited anxiously for the results. Watching our new members experience an awards ceremony for the first time is especially fun. They begin wondering what the ratings mean, and start asking why they haven’t called our name yet. I love it when the older members use that time to mentor our younger members. Then the awards get to our class, and they insist on being extra quiet during the announcement.

Our students were awarded with 1st Place in Open Class for Band, Percussion, and Colorguard, 1st Place in Gold Division for Band, Percussion, and Colorguard, and were named the very 1st Grand Champion of the Ring of Fire Competition hosted by Sonoraville High School. Before announcing the Grand Champion, the hosts played a clever video that spoofed The Lord of the Rings, introducing their Grand Championship rings. Then they presented the trophy to the leadership and delivered a box of rings to our students. The students were extremely excited to adorn their new jewelry and celebrated.

When we arrived back at CHS, with the help of Jared Price, we were greeted by congratulations on the jumbotron, and parents lined the parking lots with their cars. They flashed lights and honked to celebrate our return! After we unloaded, Dr. Carr kept his word and allowed the students to perform his traditional grand championship ritual, where the students get to shave his head. It will be a night that we all remember forever! We perform again at the County Exhibition on Tuesday and in competition in Elijay at the Blue Ridge Mountain Marching Festival hosted by Fannin County High School this Saturday. Onward and Upward We Hustle! Go Trojans!

This Week at a Glance • CHS School Announcements
9/29 – 10/4

Carroll County Marching Exhibition • TUESDAY

Access More Information By Clicking This Link

🎺 What: Carroll County Marching Band Exhibition
🗓️ Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2025
⏰ Time: 6:30 pm (Gates open at 5:15 pm)
📍Location: Villa Rica High School Stadium
🎟️ Admission: $10 • Go Fan Link
🍔 Delicious concessions
👕 Exhibition t-shirts and souvenirs
🚗 Free parking
Prepare to be entertained by 7 outstanding marching bands – Bowdon HS, Carrollton HS, Central-Carroll HS, Mount Zion HS, Temple HS, Villa Rica HS, and the University of West Georgia!

Friday • Away vs. Westlake

Blue Ridge Marching Festival on Saturday

Performance Schedule:
Click HERE to see the tentative performance schedule.

Maps: 
Click HERE to see our maps for this year. Things are a little different than they have been due to ongoing construction of an athletic complex on campus. Here are the specifics:

There is no active parking area on the visitors side of the stadium. There is a single lane of traffic on the visitors side which will only be accessible by Fannin County HS staff.

Parents should park in one of the Spectator parking locations:
• 87 Industrial Blvd Blue Ridge, GA 30513
• 118 Industrial Blvd Blue Ridge, GA 30513
• 211 Industrial Blvd Blue Ridge, GA 30513
• 159 Industrial Blvd Blue Ridge, GA 30513

Bus parking will be off campus, at Fannin County Middle School. After your band’s performance, we need to move your equipment trailers from our trailer lot over to the middle school. There will be a shuttle running to and from the school. We will start running a shuttle back to the middle school at 7:30 for drivers to get back to FCMS. Our amazing parking crew will help the buses line up so that finding your bus is stress-free! Your buses will remain on campus until after your performance, and then your buses and equipment trailers will need to be moved. 

GPS Address for Arrival: 
Fannin County High School
360 Rebel Circle
Blue Ridge, GA 30513

Bus and trailer post-performance parking location:
Fannin County Middle School
4560 Old Hwy 76
Blue Ridge, GA 30513

DHB Etudes are available • Sign Up To Audition

This link was posted in Google Classroom, also, but please use the following link to sign-up for GMEA Auditions.

GMEA has posted the District Honor Band etudes on their website: https://www.gmea.org/asb-information

New for this year, students will still have to perform their scales in the correct order, at the correct tempo, with the correct articulation, but they can perform them while reading the scales. The scales no longer have to be memorized for the audition. Students will be provided a clean scale sheet to read from at auditions.

DHB auditions are on December 13, 2025, at East Paulding HS. Sign-ups will take place very soon via Google Classroom. First round auditions (District Honor Band) cost $10 and second round (All-State Band) cost $25. To audition for All-State, you must qualify during the 1st round, but you have to decide before auditioning if you are auditioning for just district honor band or also for All-State. If you have any questions, please reach out to Dr. Carr at christopher.carr@carrolltoncityschools.net.

Colleges often look at DHB and All-State participation when considering meeting with potential students for scholarship consideration. Ultimately, it is your preparation for the college audition that earns a scholarship, but preparation for DHB and All-State each year is a great way to practice preparing for a scholarship audition in the future.

We are traveling to Universal Studios! Sign Up Today

We currently have a waiting list for the trip. You can still sign up for the trip, but will be added to the waiting list until a spot opens up. You can access the information to sign up for the trip at https://chstrojanband.com/26-bandtrip/ • Sign up using the links to the Super Holiday Tours website.

Chocolate Bar Fundraiser • We have Chocolate Left to Sell

Although our goal was to completely sell out of chocolate by September 5, we still have chocolate left to sell. If you have not turned in your money from the original box that you took home in August, that money is now due. Thank you so much to the families who have sold multiple boxes! We will keep selling until we sell out. Remember, you earn $25 per box sold to use towards band fees or towards the Universal Trip once the band fees are paid off.

Trojan Band Golf Tournament

We are hosting a Golf Tournament at Mirror Lake Golf Club on November 3 to benefit our band program. Jacob Moomey has organized the event and secured a few teams and sponsors already. If you know of anyone who would like to sponsor the event or play in the event, we would greatly appreciate your help sharing the word! Download this flyer and share it on social media please!

Sponsorship Drive • We need your help

We need your help securing sponsors for our Trojan Band. Students will earn 10% of any sponsorship that they secure to use towards band fees or the Universal Trip. Sponsors have helped provide meals for away games and competitions, they help us maintain our fleet of vehicles so that we can transport equipment to football games and competitions, they help us purchase materials for props for half-time productions, and their generosity in addition to our fundraising efforts helps us keep our band fees affordable for our families.

Sponsors can receive advertising at our Legacy of Champions Competition and other thank-you gifts from our Booster Club for their support. For more information, please contact Heather Warren. We must be strategic and not all contact the same businesses. Please reach out to Ms. Warren before reaching out to businesses independently so that we do not bombard our generous community of supporters. If you have a personal connection with any specific businesses, please let Ms. Warren know so that we can work together for our students.

Upcoming Events • Download and Share on Social Media

These are the larger events throughout the year. Please mark your calendars, download, and share on social media as we get closer to the event to help us advertise. Thank you for spreading the word!

Upcoming Dates

Be sure to subscribe to the calendar • www.chstrojanband.com/calendar • Some calendar events stopped syncing after we transferred to CutTime. Be sure to subscribe to this Google Calendar — the CutTime calendar automatically syncs to this one. All you have to do is click the “Add to Google Calendar” at the bottom after visiting http://www.chstrojanband.com/calendar to subscribe. The photo below shows you where to find it.

September

• 29 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • Stadium
• 30 • Carroll County Marching Exhibition • Villa Rica HS • Volunteer Here

October

• 1 • GMEA District Jazz Auditions • Villa Rica HS
• 2 • Full Band • 6:00PM – 9:00PM • Stadium
• 3 • Away vs. Westlake • Volunteer Here
• 4 • COMPETITION • Blue Ridge Marching Competition at Fanin County HS • All Day • TBD • Volunteer Here
• 6 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • Band Field
• 7 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • SAC
• 9 • Full Band • 6:00PM – 9:00PM • Stadium
• 10 • Homecoming vs. Chapel Hill • Volunteer Here
• 13 – 17 Fall Break • No School
• 17 • Home vs. East Coweta • Report 3:00PM for rehearsal • Volunteer Here
• 20 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • Band Field
• 21 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • SAC
• 23 • Full Band • 6:00PM – 9:00PM • Stadium
• 24 • OPEN
• 25 • COMPETITION • Home Show • Legacy of Champions • All Day • Volunteer Here
• 27 • Wind Ensemble • 3:45PM – 6:00PM • Rehersal to add percussion
• 28 • Full Band 3:45PM – 6:15PM • Halloween Show
  • Wind Ensemble Concert featuring Chris Mothersole • 7:00PM • MAC
• 30 • Full Band • 3:45PM – 6:15PM • Halloween Show
• 31 • Home vs. Douglas County • Halloween Show • Volunteer Here

November

• 3 • Trojan Band Golf Tournament • Mirror Lake Golf Club • 9:00 AM