Color Guard and Winter Guard

The Catawba Ridge High School Color Guard participates in two competitive seasons:  Marching Band and Winter Guard. The marching band season starts with auditions in the spring and ends in November.  Most of our basic flag, weapon and dance training takes place during this season.  We will also learn choreography for an eight-minute show that will be performed during halftime at football games and marching band competitions.  The guard performs alongside the marching band and provides a large portion of the visual aspect of the show.

After the Marching Band season concludes in November, we begin our Winter Guard season which runs through April.  The winter guard performs in gyms and arenas to recorded soundtracks. Winter Guard demands more of the performers, as they are the main focus of the show. Because of that increased demand, members continue to fine tune their technique as well as develop more complex spinning and dancing skills.

Catawba Ridge High School has three competitive winter guards: the Cadets, JV Guard and the Varsity Guard.  All three groups participate in our local circuit, the Carolina Winter Ensemble Association (CWEA), and the national circuit, Winter Guard International (WGI).

Percussion

The Catawba Ridge Indoor Percussion Ensemble is an auditioned ensemble comprised of percussion & winds students. The percussion ensemble competes in Scholastic Concert World Class in the CWEA (Carolina Winter Ensemble Association) and WGI (Winterguard International) circuits.

Major Accomplishments
  • 2024 Season: “Beneath Our Soles”
    • CWEA SCW Premiere – 2nd Place
    • WGI SCW Spartanburg Regional Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA SCW River Bluff Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA SCW Indian Land Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA SCW Championship Champions – 1st Place
    • WGI SCW World Championship Champions – 1st Place
  • 2023 Season: “Syzygy” Chapter III
    • ◦ WGI PSCW Silver Medalist – 2nd Place
    • ◦ CWEA PSCW Champion – 1st Place
    • ◦ WGI Spartanburg PSCW Champion – 1st Place
  • 2022 Season: “Aether” Chapter II
    • WGI PSCW Bronze Medalist – 3rd Place
    • CWEA PSCW Champion – 1st Place
    • WGI Spartanburg PSCO Champion – 1st Place
    • South Carolina (SCBDA) PSCO Champion – 1st Place
  • 2021 Virtual Season: “The Cosmos” Chapter I
    • CWEA Virtual PSCO Champion – 1st Place
    • WGI Virtual Finalist

Winds

Indoor Winds is an extension of our Marching Band program for students playing Brass and Woodwind instruments.  All members must be enrolled in a band class. This audition-based, extracurricular group, meets during the Winter season and will perform in the Carolina Winter Ensemble Association (CWEA) and Winter Guard International (WGI) competition circuits. Indoor winds auditions will be held in late November, and the ensemble will rehearse 2 to 3 times weekly afterschool from December to April. During the season students will learn a show that demonstrates a high level of excellence in visual and musical artistry.

Major Accomplishments
  • 2024 Season: The Darkside Experience
    • CWEA Premiere Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA Mooresville Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA Charlotte Regional Champions – 1st. Place
    • CWEA Indian Land Champions – 1st Place
    • CWEA Dorman Champions – 1st Place
    • WGI World Championships Champions – 1st Place

Jazz Band

Jazz Ensemble is an extra-curricular ensemble that will meet outside of school hours during the spring semester. Students must also be a member of a band class. Students will be studying jazz ensemble music and all of its various styles through the performance of jazz literature. Jazz Ensemble students will perform multiple concerts throughout the year, and will be responsible for some community performances. Jazz Ensemble students are eligible to audition for All-State Jazz Band.