SRU marching band to perform in London
SLIPPERY ROCK — London came calling on Slippery Rock University, and it was a complete surprise to members of SRU's marching band, the Marching Pride.
What band members were told was an informational meeting in the Swope Music Hall with a guest speaker was actually a special reveal, that the Marching Pride has been selected to perform in the 2024 London's New Year's Day Parade and Festival. The parade happens each year in front of a half million spectators on the streets of London, England, and tens of millions of television viewers.
The parade, which first took place in 1987, attracts more than 10,000 participants each year from the United Kingdom, U.S. and Europe. Approximately 20 marching bands from the U.S. are selected each year to perform.
Parade officials contacted SRU's music department last year about the opportunity and selected the Marching Pride to perform based on recommendations from talent scouts after the band performed at the 2019 St. Patrick's Day Festival in Dublin, Ireland. The Marching Pride captured the 2019 event's "Best Adult Band" and "Best Overall Band" parade awards.
