Hackettstown High School marching band wins four straight competitions, prepares to defend state title
HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. (Warren County) — The Hackettstown High School marching band has earned first-place finishes in all four of its competitions this season as it prepares to defend its state championship and compete for another national title.
The 43-member marching band, which includes students ranging from seventh grade through high school seniors, has been rehearsing since late June to perfect its 2026 show, “Influencer.”
Led by band director Adam Freeman, with assistance from Andrew Seeley, Jeff Klein and Angelo Oliver, the group has steadily improved its competition scores while collecting numerous awards for music, visual performance, overall effect and color guard.
This year’s show explores the influence of social media on everyday life through three musical segments. The opening section, “The Algorhythm,” features music from “Hand Covers Bruises” from The Social Network, “Also Sprach Zarathustra” by Richard Strauss and “The Chairman Dances” by John Adams.
The performance then moves into “Subscribe,” featuring Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi,” before concluding with “Control,” set to Muse’s “Uprising,” representing a break from the influence of social media.
The band opened its competitive season Sept. 12 at Passaic Valley, earning first place with a score of 72.3. The group also received awards for Best Overall Effect, Best Music and Best Visual.
At the Sparta competition Oct. 3, Hackettstown again finished first, improving its score to 77.1 while sweeping all available caption awards: Best Overall Effect, Best Music, Best Visual and Best Color Guard.
The band’s winning streak continued Oct. 10 at Pequannock, where it earned a score of 79.1 and once again captured all four caption awards.
Hackettstown recorded its highest score of the season so far Oct. 17 at Lenape Valley, taking first place with an 82.2 and sweeping the awards for Best Music, Best Overall Effect, Best Visual and Best Color Guard.
Across its first four competitions, the band’s score has increased by 9.9 points, from 72.3 at Passaic Valley to 82.2 at Lenape Valley.
The marching band will conclude its regular competition schedule Saturday, Oct. 24, at Vernon High School before heading to the state championships Saturday, Oct. 31, at Mount Olive High School, where it will attempt to defend its 2025 state championship.
The season will conclude Saturday, Nov. 7, at the national championships in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where Hackettstown will seek to reclaim the national championship title it won in 2024.
