Roman Holiday

The Bloomington All-Star Band, comprised of members from CHS, BHS, and GTHS, celebrates the New Year with a performance at the annual Rome New Year’s Parade

Mark Rodriguez, Pepper Bough Editor • May 5, 2026

Courtesy of Firstpost

Livestream of the 2026 Rome New Year Parade shows the Bloomington All-Star Band in spectacular fashion as they march through the streets of Rome.

Rome, Italy—During winter break students from the Grand Terrace, Bloomington, and Colton High School marching bands lived the chance of a lifetime, performing in front of tens of thousands at the annual New Year’s Parade in Rome.

The Bloomington All-Stars took time during their trip to Rome to take in the sites, like this visit to the Pantheon. (Courtest Victor Torres)

At the annual event, this all-star band of students marched along the Via della Coniliazione to St. Peter’s Square before an excited international crowd as they played the song “Word Up” by Cameo. The event was broadcast live on BBC News, where the marching band was referred to as the “Bloomington All-Star Band.”

“It was truly amazing to see how much these students and their families wanted to perform in Rome,” said All-Star Band Director Victor Torres, “Despite all the obstacles that we faced, they played very well and represented themselves well.”

All band members from each high school received the opportunity to attend the trip thanks to Torres, who in previous years took both Fallbrook and Bloomington High Schools to England to perform in their New Year’s Parade. However, due to incidents in previous trips, this year’s trip was organized independently of Colton Joint Unified.

Separation from the district for this event impacted the size of the all-star band. Several students and their families were reluctant to send students overseas without the district sanction.

For the students who made the trip, this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

CHS Marching Band member Maria Mora cherished the trip. “To travel to another country and to do what I love as a musician was truly life changing and I’m glad a passion of mine opened the door.”

Band

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About the Contributor

Mark Rodriguez, Staff Writer

Mark Rodriguez is a senior at Colton High School. Other than the fact he is taller than you would expect a 17-year old to be, he’s a pretty average high school kid. He tends to get out of line, but he somehow manages to fix that (sometimes). He’s “smart” but struggles because of a lack of effort. However, when he tries, he can do excellent work (according to some sources). He likes to make people laugh and smile, but somehow he still struggles to talk to people. This is Mark’s fourth year writing for the Pepper Bough. He plans to pursue journalism after high school.