Hundreds of local high school band members will hit Southern California streets for the first time this weekend, as they practice to perform at the 2025 Rose Parade.
The 605 All-Star Band – more than 500 students from high school bands based along the 605 Freeway – will be marching in their first practice parade from Bellflower to Lakewood on Sunday, Dec. 1, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Students from Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, John Glenn, Gahr, La Mirada, Mayfair and Norwalk high school bands have come together as the 605 All-Star Band, representing three school districts – ABC, Bellflower, and Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School Districts.
After the pandemic downsized the music programs of many individual high schools, the idea to combine the bands into the 605 All-Star Band was the concept of Mayfair High’s longtime band director, Tom Philips, before he retires in 2025.
Each school’s band has rehearsed separately for musical practice and conditioning, with all schools coming together for their first practice parade on Sunday.
As they prepare to play and march in the 136th annual Rose Parade on Jan. 1, the nearly four-mile practice parade route will begin at Ron Yary Stadium, 15301 McNab Ave., across from Bellflower High School, and finish at Mayfair Park, 5720 Clark Ave.
Rose Parade president Ed Morales and his wife, Lisa, will also be in the parade on Sunday. This will be Morales’ first official parade along with the band, organizers say.
The 605 All-Star Band will be one of the largest bands, if not the largest, to ever march in the Rose Parade.
Organizers say this is an opportunity for Bellflower and Lakewood residents, as well as surrounding communities, to see and hear the band up close. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and find a spot along the parade route to cheer on the band as they march and perform.
People can also arrive early to enjoy food trucks at Mayfair High from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Residents planning to travel along the parade route should plan for alternative routes between 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. as access to driving or parking on these streets will be restricted:
Woodruff Avenue from Artesia Boulevard to Allington Street;
Allington Street from Woodruff Avenue to Bellflower Boulevard; and
South Street from Bellflower Boulevard to Clark Avenue.
Law enforcement officials will reopen the streets as soon as the parade has safely passed.
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