A series of pilot events dubbed “Band Fever”, leading up to the September start of the Jamaica Best School Band (JBSB) competition, got off the ground recently at the Barbican football complex in St Andrew.

What was lacking in attendance was made up for with high-energy performances from five of the participating schools. These were St Jago High and Bog Walk High from St Catherine; Vere Technical from Clarendon; and Pembroke Hall High and Camperdown High schools from the Corporate Area.

The Spanish Town-based St Jago was the most eclectic, displaying versatility with renditions in a number of different genres. St Jago’s only weakness was that they were without their vocalist.

The other bands generated more reaction with the small gathering (comprising mainly supportive schoolmates) as their vocalists all gave an interactive performance.

Pembroke Hall and Bog Walk with strong contributions from vocalists Havakaye Brown and Dwight Fearri, respectively, were the most exciting aggregations.

An interesting feature was that all bands had an impressive horn section.