(INDIANAPOLIS) – Three Switzerland County students will have the opportunity to compete at the Drum Corps International (DCI) World Championships in Indianapolis this week. 

Nathan Hildebrand, Harold Ballard and Garrett Harris are all members of the Cincinnati Tradition Drum and Bungle Corps. 

They each earned a spot on the highly-decorated ensemble after a rigorous audition process this past winter, and have spent their summer touring and performing with the group. 

Hildeband and Ballard are part of the tuba section while Harris performs on the baritone. 

The Cincinnati Tradition season will now compete against the best marching ensembles in the world during the DCI competition at Lucas Oil Stadium on August 6-8. 

The group will perform in the All-Age Class Championship on Saturday morning.

“It is incredibly rare for a rural county to have one student perform at this elite level of the marching arts, let alone three,” said Keith Hildebrand, who serves as President of the Switzerland County Band Boosters. “Nathan, Harold, and Garrett have spent their summer representing our community through many hours of hard work, musical excellence, and physical strength on the national stage.”

Cincinnati Tradition holds four DCI All-Age/DCA World Championship titles. The corps has  of 108 brass, percussion, and color guard performers ranging in age from 14 to over 50.

While Hildebrand graduated from the high school earlier this spring, Ballard and Harris currently attend Switzerland County.