By Jadynne Brady
The Jag
For nearly five months, band director Ken Hansen had held onto one of the biggest secrets about his band.
“The worst secret ever,” as he describes, it was great news for not just his department, but for the choir and orchestra as well.
The entire music department has been invited to perform in London.
Blue Springs South’s band, orchestra, and choir have been invited to participate in the 2025-2026 London’s New Year’s Day Parade.
The Jaguar Pride Band will march in the parade, and the choir and orchestra will perform in some of London’s venues and music halls.
Hansen says that he had found out that they were going earlier this spring.
“The school board gave us a soft like quiet yes, that they would allow it to happen, and we can kind of put the wheels in motion. So, I had to keep quiet because I have three kids of my own in the program. I couldn’t say anything to anybody from May until end of September,” says Hansen.
Robert Bone, the founder and chairman of the parade, and Steve Summer, the chairman of the Mayor’s Association Councilor, had travelled from London to Blue Springs to personally invite South’s music department.
The parade itself has 2,000 performers and brings in over 10,000 other participants from Europe, the UK, and the U.S. The parade includes not just South’s marching band, but other bands from across the world. With that are performing groups, like dancers and bands, and even popular TV characters. The parade also raised fundraising for London Charities and donated more than £2M according to their website.
The parade will take place on January at 12 pm and will be on aired TV stations like PBS.
The department in charge of the parade reached out to Ken Hansen, the band director for the Jaguar Pride Band, and he extended the offer to choir director Jason Bean and orchestra director Jamey Mitchell.
After the parade officials reached out to him, Hansen did his own digging and reached out to his colleagues who had been a part of the parade before.
“That whole part of the process was pretty cool,” says Hansen.
Freshman Bella Secundino, who’s part of the Freshman Treble Choir, is excited to be able to perform in London.
“[It’s] crazy that we have this opportunity to go and to perform in a worldwide event,” says Secundino.
She says that she is thrilled to be able to travel to a foreign country.
[I’m most excited for] probably being able to travel out of the country with our school district,” says Secundino, “because it’s just such a big thing to travel that far, and to be able to go and see the parade, and what it’s going to be like, and being able to spend a week in London.”
Freshman Gabby Vigliaturo, who is part of the color guard that travels with the marching band, is most excited to travel with the whole group to London.
She also says that though she is nervous, she thinks that those nerves will wear off.
“I think it’s going to be more stressful preparing for it than it is going to be there,” says Vigliaturo.
Bean says he is thrilled to be able to have this opportunity.
“I think it’s really, really, really exciting,” Bean says. “We’ve never been able to travel outside the country as a group, and so it’s amazing. And the coolest thing is that it’s band, orchestra and choir. So, we are coming together as a music department to perform.”
He is especially delighted to be able to bring his students to another country.
“I’m just really excited because I think travel changes kids’ lives,” he says, “and I think it changes their minds about the world and about other people and about other cultures. And so, I’m just really excited for the opportunity.”
Junior Sharon Lee, who is part of the symphonic orchestra, says that she is excited to play in London’s music halls.
“I’m very excited,” says Lee, “because I know the music halls are very big and grand.”
She says that South has never been able to go to another country, which is a change from past trips.
“It’s different because, well, we’ve really never had an international trip like this before,” Lee says.
The orchestra has gone to Chicago and the band has travelled to Carnegie Hall and Disney Land and World, among other places.
During the announcement of the location, one of the parade officials gave junior Alex Saddler an umbrella. He was told to make sure to always have that umbrella on him, or else it would rain during the parade.
“I was very surprised that I was chosen as the most trustworthy person,” says Saddler, “I’m very prone to losing things, but thankfully, I haven’t lost it yet.”
Though the trip and performing will be difficult, Saddler says it will be worth it.
“I’m very happy. I mean, it is very expensive, but also, considering we’re spending a week in London and getting to perform in one of the biggest parades in the world, like, yeah, that’s the kind of opportunity you give everything for,” says Saddler.
Hansen says that he is confident that the music department will be ready to perform in London when the time comes.
“I think we’ll be we’ll be ready. I think the component of that for us is, how do we put the band, choir, and orchestra, maybe together to play in one of those venues and perform, sing, and perform in one of those venues overseas?” says Hansen.
Though overwhelmed, Hansen is honored to be a part of the parade.
“[It’s] an unbelievable, like goosebump moment for us as a program. It’s just so cool to be able to go overseas, [it’s] the first time we’ve ever done that. Little nerve wracking, little scary, but a huge honor,” says Hansen.
