Germantown H.S. Marching Band performs in London

LONDON -- London's New Year's Day parade hit the pavement Tuesday, January 1st, and one of Wisconsin's very own was chosen to take part.

The Germantown High School "Warhawk" Marching Band took the international spotlight Tuesday morning.  91 band members performed in front of hundreds of thousands of spectators in the historic heart of Trafalgar Square, and millions more watching on TV around the world.

"Definitely very proud.  I thought they did really well compared to everybody else," said father Todd Janes.

Among those watching was the Janes family.  Their daughter Mikaela is a sophomore at Germantown High School and plays the flute and was proudly parading through the streets of New Year's Day.

"She did text us, or email us, and said this was the time of her life," said Todd Janes.

"I thought it was really cool because she's in London and that's really cool to see her," said sister Grace Janes.

Mikaela and her band mates left for London last Thursday for the week-long trip, packed with practice and, of course, a lot of sightseeing.  The Janes family, though, was able to follow her journeys through pictures posted on the web.

"They've been doing a lot, a lot of sightseeing and they're tired, but it's been exciting and great," said mother Tammy Janes.

As for the annual parade, the Germantown Marching Band was invited to join 8,000 other performers from more than 20 other countries.  It's a rare opportunity to represent the U.S. by showcasing the talent of this small town.

"It's really awesome that all these people get to a watch her play," said Grace Janes.

This isn't the first time the Germantown High School Marching Band was in the London parade.   It went back in 1999.   The band tries to take part in international trips every four years.