New look on tap for MacArthur musicians

The MacArthur High School marching band will soon have a snazzy new look. New uniforms were unveiled at the December Levittown Board of Education meeting, and are expected to debut in the spring.

Band director Joseph Romano showed off the red, white and blue uniforms. “We’re the Generals,” he said, referring to the school’s nickname, “so it has a general style.”

The new uniforms will look similar to the olds ones, but with some modifications. The large “M” on the front right of the jacket will be replaced with a smaller logo on the opposite side. Romano said this was done so it closer to the heart. Buttons will replace the zipper on the jacket, and the backs were changed from red to blue, along with the addition of a large “M” and four stars. The red stripe on the blue pants has also been removed.

The old uniforms were 23 years old. Romano said he hopes to have his musicians wearing the new ones for the Memorial Day parade. Each uniform will cost about $700 for a total of $65,000, which is included in the 2014-15 budget.

“The new MacArthur marching band uniforms are of superior quality and will last another 20 years as the band moves forward,” curriculum associate for music Vincent D’Ulisse said. “We are delighted to replace the old uniforms with a design that proudly represents MacArthur High School’s band program.”

“I was very pleased to see the fantastic job that the MacArthur family and our music department did on the design of the uniforms,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Tonie McDonald said. “They are well deserved, given the superior performance of our marching band at every event they attend. We have no doubt that they will take good care of them.”