The 32nd Annual Westlake Marching Festival begins early morning Saturday, October 11, 2008, when half-asleep band students, parents and band volunteers start arriving at Westlake High School’s Chaparral Stadium in Austin. The contest is a tradition for many high school marching bands as a testing ground for their complicated music programs to be critiqued by marching band professionals.

The annual date for the Westlake Marching Festival, run entirely by the Westlake High School and Eanes ISD band programs, gives marching bands---from 1A through 5A---the opportunity to present their University Interscholastic League (UIL) Marching Contest program in a dress rehearsal before the formal UIL contests begin the following week.

What began as one of the first high school marching festivals in the state is now one of the most popular and respected state marching festivals. Eighteen marching bands from throughout Texas inaugurated the Westlake Marching Festival in 1977. Over the years, 18 to 50 bands each year participated in the festival but now an average of 30 bands perform.

The Festival consists of both preliminary and final rounds and UIL contest procedures are followed. Each band’s performance is evaluated by nationally respected adjudicators in the marching band arena. Written and oral critiques are provided to participants along with a video recording of the performance to further the benefits of contest participation.

As the 32nd Westlake Marching Festival unfolds October 11, hundreds of Westlake band students and parents along with friends and relatives will work from dawn to midnight to ensure a successful contest experience for each participant, band director and observer. Whether slinging hotdogs, selling tickets, directing traffic or welcoming the visiting band students and directors, the community effort that comes together for this event provides lasting memories and friendships on both sides of the experience.