HHS senior marching in 2026 Rose Parade®

Evan Martinson, pictured in his band uniform at Hannibal High School. He is a senior and percussion band member at Hannibal High School. Photo contributed by EvanMartinson.

MARY LOU MONTGOMERY

The Hannibal High School Pirate Pride Marching Band is scheduled to be in St. Joseph Saturday morning, Dec. 6, for the Class 4 State Championship meet, during which time the Hannibal Pirates (11-2) will face off against Kearney (13-0) at Spratt Memorial Stadium, on the campus of Missouri Western State University. At stake is the Class 4 State Championship title.

While the marching band season has concluded and the concert season is already under way, the band will be on hand to lend a morale boost to the Pirate football team. The band, led by Mike Fuller, Darren Lillard and Hallie Mundle, will be transported to St. Joseph via three buses. Band members will take to the field, performing two songs in support of their athletic classmates.

Once back in Hannibal, there is one member of the band who will begin preparations for another great adventure.

Evan Martinson, a HHS senior and a member of the school’s drum line, will leave for California on Dec. 27, where he will spend a week, and participate in the Bands of America Honor Band, in the 2026 Rose Parade®.

His parents, Brian and Julie Martinson, and their daughter, Claire, plan to accompany Evan on this journey, and to be on hand to watch while he marches the 5.5-mile parade route. He will play the symbols. The parade will take place in part on Pasadena’s Colorado Boulevard.

In preparation for this event, Evan attended a preliminary percussion rehearsal in Indianapolis, Ind. In addition, he has video assignments to complete before leaving for California.

Music performed during the parade by the Bands of America Honor Band will include:

“We’re an American Band,” a celebration of American Rock and Roll;

“Reflections of Earth,” which was  a nighttime show previously performed at Epcot; and

“Times Like These,” a 2002 song by Foo Fighters.

Martinson was chosen to participate via an application process.

Throughout high school, Evan has concentrated on percussion.

“Anything you hit in band,” is percussion, he said, “mallet, xylophone, bells, timpani, drums, base, snare, symbols.”

Musical family

Evan comes from a family with musical inclinations.

“My mother played percussion at Troy Buchanan High School,” Evan said, “and my dad played trumpet at Hannibal High School. My sister, who is four years older than me, (and a first-year teacher at Veterans Elementary School) played percussion at Hannibal as well.”

Both Evan’s mother and sister are employed by the Hannibal Public Schools, while his father recently retired as an accountant for Continental Cement. He is a deacon at Immanuel Baptist Church and does mission work for the Bethel Baptist Association.

Evan plans to continue on in the musical field after high school, with aspirations of becoming a middle school or a high school band director. “I plan to go to a four-year college or university; I just don’t know which one,” he said.

He hopes to teach music.

Will he follow in his parents collegiate footsteps?

His father earned his bachelor's degree from Southwest Missouri Baptist, and his master’s from the University of Central Missouri. His mother earned her bachelor's degree from Northeast Missouri State University, and by the time she earned her master’s degree, the school had changed its name to Truman State University.

 “I’ve applied for a couple of schools, and I’ve been accepted, but I don’t know what my choice will be,” he said.