Nordonia Marching Band premiers light show for half time performances

by Michele Collins

Nordonia High School Band Director Tom Weaver likes to create something new and unique each season, enabling the high school band members to get excited about their half time performances at football games and at local and regional band shows.

This year, he added lights to the action.

Nordonia High School’s Lancer Marching Band attached LED lights to the plumes, or feather-like accessory, of their band uniform hats. The strip of lights on each band member’s hat changed colors in a choreographed show with the music.

“The show is called ‘Knight Lights,’ and each song [the band plays] is related to night,” said Weaver.

Songs in the band’s set included such favorites as “Light em Up” by Fall Out Boy, an arrangement of Mozart, “Sunglasses at Night” by Corey Hart and “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins.

The Knight Lights move along the field in sync with the music, all choreographed by Weaver, and are put into play by a student who triggers the lights as the 110-member band marches and sashays across the field. 

During one part of their performance, band members take off their hats, and place them on the field, creating a multi-color light show, with the lights blinking on and off across the length of the field, as they play behind them.

Weaver credits the technology to the performance arts staff at the high school, but the concept came to Weaver during the summer. Now in his ninth season as band director, he said this year’s show is special. 

“I think the students are excited, and I am very excited about the show, and incorporating the light technology,” Weaver said. “And I am just thrilled to share it with our audience each week.”

The band recently took second place out of 19 bands in the New Philadelphia Band Show. They also performed Knight Lights at Medina High School on Nov. 6. The culmination of this year’s season was the band’s participation in the Bands of America Grand Nationals show at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Nov. 11. At the time of this article writing, Nordonia High School’s football team is in the playoffs, but after the football season is over, the Knight Lights will go out. Audiences will have to wait until next fall to find out what Weaver and the marching band members have dreamed up to wow their audiences yet again. ∞