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The Western Band Association (WBA) is a nonprofit organization that promotes high school music education in California, Arizona and Nevada. Specifically, the WBA organizes marching band competitions for high school students. Its championships event is considered to be the among the largest marching band championships in the United States.[1]
 Logo | |
| Abbreviation | WBA |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1979 |
| Founders |
|
| Type | 501(c)(3) organization |
| 01-0560311 | |
| Purpose | To ensure a high quality, educationally sound performing experience in full support of the total band program |
| Headquarters | Chino, California |
Region | |
Executive Director | Rob van Loben Sels |
Adjudicator Coordinator |
|
Event Director | Brian Nunez |
Formerly called | Western States Marching Band Conference (WSMBC) |
In addition to marching band events, WBA also organizes concert band festivals, symposia, and musical and leadership clinics. In 2008, over 12,000 students in 133 bands performed in WBA events in multiple competitions hosted throughout the state.[1]
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The Western Band Association was started in 1979 by marching band directors from five Northern and Central California high schools: Mike Rubino (Live Oak High School), Ramiro Barrera (James Logan High School), Dan Smith (Independence High School), Gary Runsten (Modesto High School) and Mel Stratton (Clovis High School).
In 1984, Gary Gilroy (Moreau High School) coined the name "WSMBC" Western States Marching Band Conference, which would later be shortened to WBA by Ramiro Barrera (James Logan High School) in 2002. The first WSMBC Championship was held in conjunction with the 1984 Music Bowl Prelims at James Logan High School. In 1995, John Hannan (Mission Viejo High School) helped expand the organization's efforts to include Southern California bands as well.
In recent years,[when?] bands have also competed under the "WBA" banner from nearby states, including Washington, Oregon, and Nevada. The scoring system also grew to become a two-tiered criteria based curriculum designed for bands of various size memberships, assuring that the small band would have the same opportunity as the large band to achieve a high score measuring their unique orchestration and design options.
In 2006, the competition schedule has grown to offer consecutive contests in each of the three Regions (Northern, Central and Southern California) helping to alleviate the costs of travel for the bands.
In 2012, James Logan High School and Ayala High School tied for first place at the WBA Championships, with both scoring 93.40. However, the tie was broken based on Ayala's General Effect score. The tiebreaker settled Ayala as the WBA Champions.
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 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2017) |
The WBA organizes a marching band circuit with competitions held throughout October and November leading up to the circuit championship competition.
Historic classes
Available classes:
| 1984–1999 | 2000–2003 | 2004–present |
|---|---|---|
| A-60 | 1A | |
| A-90 | ||
| 2A | ||
| 3A | 3A | |
| 4A | 4A | |
| 5A | ||
Class alignment
Below is an incomplete table of class alignments based on number of performers. Classes were re-aligned in 2021, 2023, and 2024.[2]
| Class | 2004–2021 | 2021–2023 | 2023–2024 | 2024–present |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | up to 60 | up to 45 | up to 50 | up to 60 |
| 2A | 61–80 | 45–65 | 51–70 | 61–80 |
| 3A | 81–100 | 65–85 | 71–90 | 81–110 |
| 4A | 101–140 | 86–115 | 91–125 | 111–141 |
| 5A | 141 or more | 116 or more | 126 or more | 141 to more |
Championship format
Class champions are determined at the conclusion of preliminary competition. After prelims, the bands then move on to one of two finals competitions: the A/AA/AAA Championship and the AAAA/AAAAA Championship. The top three bands from each division move on to their respective championship and the remaining field is filled by the next highest scoring bands.
The Finals field is composed of:
- The top 3 bands from each of Class A, AA, and AAA, then the next highest 6 bands from those 3 classifications combined (regardless of class and score) for a total of 15 bands in finals.
- The top three bands from each of Class AAAA and AAAAA, then the next highest 9 bands from those 2 classifications combined (regardless of class and score) for a total of 15 bands in finals.
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Each individual judge is assigned to a specific caption (Individual and Ensemble Music, Individual and Ensemble Visual, General Effect, Auxiliary, and Percussion). General Effect and Music are each worth 30% of the total score, Visual is worth 20%, and Auxiliary and Percussion are each worth 10%.
Awards are released by division. The band with the highest award points for each caption per division is awarded a caption award, while the band with the most overall points in each division is awarded first place-prize. The band with most points in A/AA/AAA combined classes and AAAA/AAAAA combined classes are awarded a "sweepstakes award", with that band removed from the rankings of their class; the next band in placement in that class is moved to "first place" and so on (only for that class). Each competition will have two Sweepstakes winners, one each for A/AA/AAA and AAAA/AAAAA.
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Below is an incomplete list of past class champions and sweepstakes winners:
Class champions
| Year | 1A | 2A | 3A | 4A | 5A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 (17th) |
Riverbank | Trabuco Hills | Buchanan | James Logan | |
| 2001 (18th) |
Buena | Live Oak | Buchanan | James Logan | |
| 2002 (19th) |
Gilroy | Live Oak | Buchanan | James Logan | |
| 2003 (20th) |
Newbury Park | Valley Christian | El Toro | Clovis West | |
| 2004 (21st) |
Modesto | Live Oak | Valley View | Cerritos | James Logan |
| 2005 (22nd) |
Newbury Park | Live Oak | Fred C. Beyer | Trabuco Hills | James Logan |
| 2006 (23rd) |
Newbury Park | Independence | Fred C. Beyer | Nogales | James Logan |
| 2007 (24th) |
Live Oak | Independence | Fred C. Beyer | Fountain Valley | James Logan |
| 2008 (25th) |
Live Oak | Madera South | Fred C. Beyer | El Diamante | James Logan |
| 2009 (26th) |
Live Oak | Valley Christian | Los Alamitos | Trabuco Hills | James Logan |
| 2010 (27th) |
Live Oak | Clovis North | Los Alamitos | El Diamante | James Logan |
| 2011 (28th) |
Peninsula | Clovis North | Basha | Granite Bay | Ayala (tie) James Logan |
| 2012 (29th) |
Damien | Live Oak | Trabuco Hills | El Diamante | Ayala |
| 2013 (30th) |
Damien | Cerritos | Nogales | El Diamante | Upland |
| 2014 (31st) |
Live Oak | Cerritos | Trabuco Hills | Nogales | Ayala |
| 2015 (32nd) |
The King's Academy | Cerritos | Clovis East | Granite Bay | Ayala |
| 2016 (33rd) |
The King's Academy | Fred C. Beyer | Cerritos | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2017 (34th) |
Independence | Kingsburg | Trabuco Hills | Granite Bay | James Logan |
| 2018 (35th) |
Championships cancelled | ||||
| 2019 (36th) |
The King's Academy | Oak Grove | Mission Viejo | Clovis North | Chino Hills |
| 2020 (37th) |
Season cancelled | ||||
| 2021 (38th) |
Regional championships only | ||||
| 2022 (39th) |
The King's Academy | El Toro | Trabuco Hills | Gahr | Chino Hills |
| 2023 (40th) |
The King's Academy | North | Trabuco Hills | Upland | Chino Hills |
Sweepstakes winners
Combined 1A–3A Grand Champions
Previously known as the Class A/AA Championship.
| Year | 3rd Place | 2nd Place | 1st Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 (17th) |
Valley Christian | Clayton Valley | Trabuco Hills |
| 2001 (18th) |
Bullard | Aliso Niguel | Live Oak |
| 2002 (19th) |
Aliso Niguel | Bullard | Live Oak |
| 2003 (20th) |
Aliso Niguel | Bullard | Valley Christian |
| 2004 (21st) |
Independence | Valley View | Valley Christian |
| 2005 (22nd) |
Valley Christian | Aliso Niguel | Fred C. Beyer |
| 2006 (23rd) |
Clovis | Valley Christian | Fred C. Beyer |
| 2007 (24th) |
Aliso Niguel | Chino Hills | Fred C. Beyer |
| 2008 (25th) |
Fred C. Beyer | Clovis East | Aliso Niguel |
| 2009 (26th) |
Clovis East | Fred C. Beyer | Los Alamitos |
| 2010 (27th) |
Clovis North | Valley Christian | Los Alamitos |
| 2011 (28th) |
Valley Christian | Rancho Cucamonga | Basha |
| 2012 (29th) |
Los Alamitos | Rancho Cucamonga | Trabuco Hills |
| 2013 (30th) |
Los Alamitos | Nogales | Clovis North |
| 2014 (31st) |
Chaffey | Cerritos | Trabuco Hills |
| 2015 (32nd) |
Live Oak | Clovis East | Cerritos |
| 2016 (33rd) |
Los Alamitos | Cerritos | Trabuco Hills |
| 2017 (34th) |
Cerritos | Fountain Valley | Trabuco Hills |
| 2018 (35th) |
Championships cancelled | ||
| 2019 (36th) |
Los Alamitos | Rowland | Mission Viejo |
| 2020 (37th) |
Season cancelled | ||
| 2021 (38th) |
Regional championships only | ||
| 2022 (39th) |
The King's Academy | Fountain Valley | Trabuco Hills |
| 2023 (40th) |
Branham | The King's Academy | Trabuco Hills |
| 2024 (41st) |
Trabuco Hills | Granite Bay | The King's Academy |
Combined 4A–5A Grand Champions
Previously known as the AAA/AAAA Championship.
| Year | 3rd Place | 2nd Place | 1st Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 (17th) |
Clovis West | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2001 (18th) |
Clovis West | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2002 (19th) |
Clovis West | Ayala | James Logan |
| 2003 (20th) |
Ayala | Clovis West | Mission Viejo |
| 2004 (21st) |
Upland | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2005 (22nd) |
Mission Viejo | Upland | James Logan |
| 2006 (23rd) |
Ayala | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2007 (24th) |
Mission Viejo | Upland | James Logan |
| 2008 (25th) |
Ayala | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2009 (26th) |
Mission Viejo | Ayala | James Logan |
| 2010 (27th) |
Homestead | Mission Viejo | James Logan |
| 2011 (28th) |
Upland | Ayala (tie) James Logan | |
| 2012 (29th) |
El Diamante | James Logan | Ayala |
| 2013 (30th) |
Mission Viejo | James Logan | Upland |
| 2014 (31st) |
Mission Viejo | Ayala | James Logan |
| 2015 (32nd) |
Upland | James Logan | Ayala |
| 2016 (33rd) |
Amador Valley | Homestead | James Logan |
| 2017 (34th) |
Homestead | Ayala | James Logan |
| 2018 (35th) |
Championships cancelled | ||
| 2019 (36th) |
Upland | James Logan | Chino Hills |
| 2020 (37th) |
Season cancelled | ||
| 2021 (38th) |
Regional championships only | ||
| 2022 (39th) |
James Logan | Vista Murrieta | Chino Hills |
| 2023 (40th) |
Clovis East | James Logan | Chino Hills |
| 2024 (41st) |
Ayala | Chino Hills | James Logan |
2021 Regional Championships
The 2021 season concluded with a series of Regional Championships.
James Logan Invitational
| Class | 3rd Place | 2nd Place | 1st Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | Mountain House | Independence | King's Academy |
| 2A | San Benito | Oak Grove | Santa Teresa |
| 3A | Monta Vista | Branham | Leigh |
| 4A | Lynbrook | Milpitas | Granite Bay |
| 5A | Amador Valley | Homestead | James Logan |
Kingsburg Viking Classic
| Class | 3rd Place | 2nd Place | 1st Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | Exeter Union | Templeton | Selma |
| 2A | Hanford | Sunnyside | Madera South |
| 3A | No champion | No champion | Clovis West |
| 4A | Golden West | Kingsburg | Clovis |
| 5A | Lemoore | Clovis East | Clovis North |
Trabuco Hills Tournament
| Class | 3rd Place | 2nd Place | 1st Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | Laguna Hills | Torrance | Don Antonio Lugo |
| 2A | Palisades Charter | Mission Viejo | Rowland |
| 3A | Murrieta Valley | El Toro | Mira Costa |
| 4A | La Canada | Trabuco Hills | Upland |
| 5A | Ayala | Vista Murrieta | Chino Hills |
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