When Heritage High School’s band director, Jemere Brown, received an email last summer that his marching band was invited to perform in Rome’s New Year’s Parade, he thought it was spam.
When he was contacted again by email and phone, he realized it was real.
“They said they had heard about us and had seen our YouTube videos,” he said. “We started talking so I went to the administration, and they thought it was a good idea. They’ve been very supportive.”
Parade organizers told Brown they were impressed with their field presentation and showed creativity with their designs. They also enjoyed their sound, energy and colorful flags.
Now, the 60 Newport News band members are headed to Rome to perform for more than a quarter of a million spectators on the first day of 2025. The parade features thousands of performers from all over the world, according to organizers.
It is the only event officially recognized by and partnered with the City of Rome with permission to incorporate treasured areas of the ancient city including Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps. It culminates in St. Peter’s Square.
Other schools in Virginia have participated in the past, including James Madison University’s Marching Royal Dukes and Charlottesville High School’s band.
Following the parade, Heritage band members will enjoy a weeklong tour of the city’s historic sites along with educational tours of Naples, Pompeii, the Vatican, the Coliseum and other parts of Italy.
Band members were told about the trip last summer at the final show of band camp, which band members’ family and friends attended.
“It was very exciting. A lot don’t travel out of the Peninsula. It was hard to explain to them, ‘We are going on an airplane overseas,’” Brown said. “It took them a while to realize it was really going to happen.”
To prepare for the performance, the band is practicing music and marching in parade formation as well as regular cardio exercises to build stamina.
The band usually plays “old school music,” as Brown describes it, plus soul and hip-hop. Brown, a graduate of the historically Black Livingston College, gets his inspiration from music typically played in HBCU bands.
For rising Heritage senior trumpet player Madyson Brown (no relation), the performance in Rome is an opportunity to lead - she’s aiming to be the drum major this year - and start fulfilling her goal of traveling.
“I’ve always been a globetrotter at heart,” she said.
Madyson has been studying Italian cuisine and language and said she is most excited to visit the Vatican.
The group must raise $300,000 ($3,050 per band member) for the trip.
They recently received $50,000 from Coalition of Concerned Clergy, plus members are holding food fundraisers. They’ve also set up a page to collect donations online.
The band will show off some of their hard work at an end-of-summer camp performance on Aug. 15. The concert is free, and donations are welcome.
To make a donation to the Heritage High School band’s Rome trip via check, mail a completed check to the Heritage High School Band at Heritage High School, 5800 Marshall Ave., Newport News, Va., 23605.
Newport News Public Schools are a member of the Hampton Roads Educational Telecommunications Association, which holds WHRO’s broadcast license.
