LIVE MUSIC PHOTOGRAPHY AT OCSA


Regularly, I am privileged to be asked to photograph events at the Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) in Santa Ana, California. From graduation, to senior photos, and lots of on-campus events, it is an honor to work with such talented students and faculty. However, the Popular Music Conservatory holds a special place in my heart. Over the years, I get to watch these musically gifted children blossom into adult rock stars as I capture some of their greatest moments on stage.


This year's Battle of The Bands event was held over three days in the school's historic Symphony Hall theater in September 2025. Originally built in 1923, the former church sits on the Orange County School of the Arts campus. The building was converted into one of the school’s concert and theater facilities, with 350 seats, and named Symphony Hall.


27 bands competed over the first two nights, and of those 10 finalist bands were then chosen to compete again on the third night in a final round of competition.


night 1 bands, September 25, 2025

  1. THE COWBELLIANS: BRANDON PHAM, ROMAN RUKOV, BEN AGRAN, DEVEN DHANDINA, ATTICUS COMEAUX, JONAH MELENDEZ)
  2. WAVELENGTH: GIORGIA GREEN, VALERIA VAGA, NICK PILGER, KHILEY TSANGARIS, XAVIER SAENZ, DIONE GARAY
  3. BEETLEJUICE BANGERS: HUDSON TONEY, RYDER HOSTETTER, BODHI ORTIZ, XAVIER SAENZ, TIGER HERDA, KIRA DAVIS, HUNTER EMERICH
  4. CODE 99: HANNAH CRUZ, ANDREW SCAMURRA, LINES ADLER, QUINN JONES
  5. LED 8 ROSES: KHILEY TSANGARIS, MALICE WEIS, LONDON VIK, BENJAMIN AGRAN, BRANDON PHAM, JJ BARTON
  6. CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST: KADEN COFFMAN, CHLOE GARCIA, BEN BRODIE, LILY FRANKLIN
  7. THE WEEKDAYS: LUCIE LACROIX, AMELIA KIM, HOGAN HAN ROBBINS, CALLISTO NIGHTINGALE, GREGORY GAN
  8. STARSTRUCK: CLAIRE HARMSEN, SYDNEY MALONE, AVNI KRISHNAMOORTHY, KHILEY TSANGARIS, MALICE WEIS, AVALON DURAND, OLIVER SHIWOTA, IZ LE
  9. PREDOMINANTLY FEMALE: EMMI NICOLOV, EMMA NEVELL, JESSE SHNEIDER, HP EMRICH, CLAIRE HARMSEN
  10. LITTLE LARVAE: ANDELYN BUSHMAN, EMMI NICOLOV, HP EMERICH, LEXIE SHEHAB, EMMA NEVELL, VAL VAGA, CHARIS GITHUKA-NGICE
  11. SEAWEED MUSTACHE: ANDREW SCAMURRA, CHRISTIAN LIANG, JONAH MELENDEZ, OTIS FRANCIS (MT), SYDNEY RONQUILLO
  12. BOOTSY AND THE GLITTER GREMLINS: LONDON VIK, ROMAH RUKOV, BRANDON PHAM, JU BARTON
  13. GARMADON: HP EMERICH, HANK BRAVERMAN, TRENT CHICKERING, THURMAN AROSTEGUY


night 2 bands, september 26, 2025

  1. GOLDEN THRONE: BRANDON PHAM, ROMAH RUKOV, JOHANN BAY, BEN AGRAN
  2. WAWA: SHEA INGLIS, LONDON VIK, HUDSON VIK, JOHANN BAY, ATTICUS COMEAUX, XAVIER SAENZ
  3. DOPAMINE: ANIKA TANTRADI, LONDON VIK, KAI WILSON, DANIEL PETERS (ACT), BELLA ABIERA (ACT), ROHAN CANESAN (ACT)
  4. CASCADE: LILY WEI-TEN, HANNAH CRUZ, TIMOTHY SUN, ROCKET COLAYCO, ALRIC JAISON
  5. THE PETRICHORDS: BRIGHT LI, AIDEN MCGRATH, ISABEL SAENZ, NIKOLAI OLIVE
  6. THE DOLL PARTS: ALEC ROSS, SHEA INGLIS, DOROTHY MOONEY-HUBBERT, ADELYNN HONG (IA), SOFIA TENA (IA)
  7. TO BE DECIDED: LONDON VIK, YAMYA KAPOOR, IZ LE, GIA SALVAGNI, XAVIER SAENZ, KAYLA VU, AND NARENDRA HATHAWAY
  8. MUTANT LIZARD PIRATE: THURMAN AROSTEGUY, TRENT CHICKERING, HP EMERICH, JESSE SHNEIDER
  9. DEADLY NICHTSHADE: JACK IVERS, OLIVE (LINES) ADLER, ETHAN CANTUS (CW), AVALON DURAND (PM), MALICE WEIS
  10. THE CHILIES: GJ GITHUKA-NGIGE, ANDEE BUSHMAN, JESSE SHNEIDER, NICK PILGER, VAL VACA, BRANDON PHAM, EMMI NICOLOV
  11. TWO SEATER JEEP: OTIS FRANCIS (MT), NARENDRA HATHAWAY, DEVEN DHANIDINA, JONAH MELENDEZ
  12. FOR THE RECORD (LINE-CHECK ON 23RD): ALEC ROSS, SHEA INGLIS, ANNIKA ALMGREN, XAVIER SAENZ, BRANDON PHAM, BRIANNA QUINTOR, RILEY CARTLAND (MT)
  13. 2 STEP CHICKS!: ZURIEL MARTINEZ (IM) LILAH NAVARRO (IM), VAL VAGA, NICK PILGER, ANDEE BUSMAN, ROMAN RUKOV, EMMA NEVELL, CHARIS CITHUKA-NGICE, NATALIA LUEVANOS
  14. BUS-83: NARENDRA HATHAWAY, BRANDON PHAM, ROMAH RUKOV


JUDGES

Battle of the Bands for 2025 featured a panel of guest judges with diverse professional backgrounds in the music industry and education. 


Night 1 & night 2 Judges

In addition to the industry professionals, the judging panel for the first night of the competition also included OCSA faculty and staff: 

  • Sarah Kause: An OCSA high school counselor.
  • Josh Wood: Director of the Creative Writing Conservatory at OCSA.
  • Richard Kinsey: An Acting Conservatory faculty member at OCSA.
  • Marquis Naborne: A faculty member in the Popular Music Conservatory.
  • Amelia Barron: An OCSA alumna and faculty member.Laura Lopez: The first nurse to be hired by OCSA in 2017.
  • Sharon Browne-Davis: An academic teacher at OCSA with a background in rock tour production.
  • Jon Sprekelmeyer: An OCSA academic teacher and music enthusiast.

Professional judges for the final included:

  • Julie Mutnansky: The Director of Education and Community Engagement for the GRAMMY Museum Foundation and GRAMMY Camp.
  • Haleigh Bowers: A songwriter, performer, and educator based in Los Angeles, with songwriting credits featured in hundreds of TV episodes across major networks.
  • Katie Pool: A Creative Music Strategy Manager at Paramount who has previously worked with major labels like Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group.
  • Miki Ratsula: A Finnish-American artist and producer known for their platform centered on vulnerability and self-expression. 


WINNERS

  1. In first place were Mutant Lizard Pirate ( Thurman Arosteguy, Trent Chickering, HP Emerich and Jesse Schneider) ,
  2. Runners up 2-Step Chicks (Natalia Luevanos, Zuriel Martinez, Lilah Navarro, Val Vaca, Nick Pilger, Andee Busman, Roman Rukov, Emma Nevell, Charis Githuka-Ngige) and
  3. Little Larvae (Andelyn Bushman, Emmi Nicolov, HP Emerich, Lexie Shehab, Emma Nevell, Val Vaca and Charis Githuka-Ngige) in third place.



Musicians perform energetically on stage with guitars and microphones during a live concert performance.
Musician in white shirt plays red electric guitar on stage during live performance under warm lighting.
Black and white concert photo showing a bassist performing on stage with a white bass guitar in dramatic lighting.
Musicians perform on stage in a dimly lit venue with purple and blue lighting effects creating a moody atmosphere.
Singer performs passionately on stage in dramatic lighting during a concert performance.
A dynamic black and white photo montage shows musicians performing energetically on stage during a rock concert.
Guitarist performs on stage with colorful blue and orange lighting at Orange County School of the Arts concert.
Black and white photo of a rock band performing on stage with electric guitar and drum kit visible in the background.
A guitarist performs on stage with colorful lighting and Battle of the Bands signage visible in the background.