By HENRY HSIA
STAFF WRITER
Royal Wilson Marching Alliance (RWMA) performed alongside Mesa Robles and Cedarlane Middle Schools at its annual pre-festival concert on March 12.
During the pre-festival, a judge provided feedback to the attendees, preparing them for their next competition: the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District (HLPUSD) Festival.
According to band director Rich Torres, RWMA performed well at the event and taught the middle schoolers in attendance an important lesson.
“Etiquette is hard to learn, and having high school students act appropriately [at a concert is essential],” Torres said. “[Although RWMA] did not do their best, they progressively got better.”
Additionally, french horn section leader senior Ezdras Meraz-Lerma enjoyed the variety of pieces they played at the event.
“[The pre-concert] has expanded my musical vocabulary,” Meraz-Lerma said. “We played different pieces that did not relate to each other but [still required] the same level of skill and the [application of] different techniques.”
Meanwhile, clarinet freshman Jakob Pena believes the team practiced hard for this event.
“Ever since second semester started, we have been practicing hard on these three pieces,” Pena said. “We have constantly been practicing [the pieces], and we still are practicing them just to make them perfect.”
RWMA’s next competition will be the HLPUSD Festival on March 27.