Greenbrier East Marching Band wins two championships in one day
By Stephen Baldwin, RealWV
Jim Allder, Director of the Greenbrier East Marching Band for the last 26 years, is a seasoned professional. But even he thought he may have bitten off more than he could chew last weekend when he took the band to an away game on Friday night, a competition in Charleston on Saturday morning, and another competition in Huntington on Saturday afternoon.
“We were maybe insane trying to do all that,” he confesses. “But no one complained!”
Two major competitions in two cities in one day
After supporting the Greenbrier East Spartans in a victory on Friday night against the Summers County Bobcats, little did the band know that those winning ways were only a taste of what was to come.
They packed up their instruments, a bagged lunch, and hit the road Saturday morning for Charleston, site of the West Virginia Marching Band Invitational.
“It’s the finals for the Governor’s Cup,” Allder explains. “We had three contests as part of that series under our belts this fall and went to the finals. There were 35-40 bands total in the series.”
The Spartans “put on their best performance of the year” that morning, Allder said. But there was no time to celebrate, or even to wait for results. The students had to eat that bagged lunch, repack the bus, and head for Huntington where the second competition of the day awaited them.
After they arrived and went through a quick warmup, it was time to take the field.
“The kids went out and put on an even better show, their best of the season, in Huntington,” Allder beams. “I told the kids at that point they had no control. The panel of judges would make the decision, but they did their very best.”
Allder explains that the subjective nature of band competitions makes it difficult to gauge. “If you’re playing basketball, you know a basket is two points unless it’s behind the three-point line. It’s objective. With marching band, there’s a lot of artistry.”
As the awards for each division were announced, the Spartans didn’t receive a single one. Allder wondered if the competition has simply been too good for them to match. But then they moved to captions (specific categories of the marching bands), and the Spartans began to rack up win after win after win.
It was a tri-state competition with bands from Ohio and Kentucky as well. And when it came time to announce the grand champions for each state, the winner from West Virginia was…the Greenbrier East Spartans.
“We won our class of about 7-8 schools who were all about our size, and then we were grand champions for the state as well!” Allder shares.
About the same time, he began receiving texts from another band director who was still at the Charleston competition.
“You guys are doing pretty well here,” the director told Allder.
“Then a few minutes later we got the news. We were also state champions in Class B for the Governor’s Cup Series!”
‘Really happy for the kids’
Allder preaches that students can’t judge the worthiness of their season on accolades from competitions alone. “I just don’t care too much about placements,” Allder says. “But the students do, and if it motivates them to improve then that’s terrific.”
“They put in a lot of hard work,” Allder shares. “I’m really happy for the kids.”
Band is a year-round sport with very little offseason. In the fall, students play for football games and competitions, in addition to practicing during the day and two days a week after school. In the winter, they play concerts and community parades. In the spring, it’s more performances and competitions. Over the summer, they begin practicing in July, including an intensive week-long camp. They take a break for the State Fair of West Virginia, where they park cars to fund their trips and programming.
“Band is a year-round activity with different facets,” Allder explains. “While I’m not driven by awards, it’s important for the community to know how successful the band is. It’s important to celebrate that.”
The Spartans could use help getting to Pearl Harbor
For the third time in school history, the Spartans have been invited to represent West Virginia at Pearl Harbor for the 84th anniversary of the attacks in December 2025.
“Expect to see the kids out in the community a lot,” says Allder. The cost of the trip is $3,100 per students, and he hopes to raise enough funds to cover at least half of the cost.
“We know not all of our students and families can shoulder that expense, so we’re working to raise funds with grants, donations, and fundraisers. Every little bit helps. We’re very grateful to the community for their generous support.”
Stay tuned to RealWV for ways you can help the band travel to Pearl Harbor.
*All photos by Brittany Mandeville. Used with permission.
