For this year’s annual band trip, director Jimmy Loomis and choral director Aaron Bryan decided to combine their end-of-year vacation to include jazz band, concert band, choir and ensemble.

The groups traveled to San Diego, March 19-22, to participate in a Heritage Festival and also spend time shopping and touring the downtown. They also spent a day in SeaWorld, where the festival awards ceremony took place. While the choir and ensemble returned with every first place award available in their divisions, both concert and jazz band took home silver awards.

The Heritage Festival was held at a local high school in San Ysidro, CA. Though the choirs have participated in the Heritage Festival for the past five years, this trip marked the first year that either band has joined.

Though most students looked forward to the trip, some members were apathetic about the annual vacation.

“I wasn’t looking forward to it because I’ve had a lot of homework lately, especially in journalism,” freshman Mary Hierholzer said. “I just didn’t have the energy. But the learning experience put a new idea in my head of band festivals.”

For others, the combined trip offered the opportunity to visit new places and experience. Joel Hernandez, ’12, first stepped foot in San Diego on this year’s trip.

“I enjoyed the trip after having gone because I can now say that I’ve been to San Diego, and it was a memorable experience,” Hernandez said. “My favorite part was going to SeaWorld because I’d never been there either.”

According to sophomore Josh Smith, who also traveled to Southern California with the band last year, the annual music program vacations always bring unexpected memories.

“I like going on trips with the band because there is always some sort of surprise,” Smith said. “My favorite part was when we were all at the mall and Josh Hopper [’12] got his pizza stolen by a hobo with red socks.”

Loomis says the trip was easier to plan this year because the responsibility was split between himself and Bryan.

“Aaron Bryan and I decided to combine our two trips this year for financial reasons,” Loomis said. “We also thought it would be a neat way to bring the two programs even closer together. I was quite impressed with my students’ behavior on the trip. We represented ourselves with class and style and I was proud to be their director.”

Though Loomis considered the trip a well-deserved vacation for his students, he and the band members were able to receive feedback on their performance in order to prepare for future festivals, including this week’s performance at Washington Union High School, Apr. 2.

For more information on the band and choir trip or future performances, e-mail Jimmy Loomis.