Tailgate88

JET Trumpet ‘84 here! Let’s go Mustang Band! (And good luck to every band today!)

I actually have been on both sides of this, so I can empathize with everyone here. In the fall of 2015 my daughter was a Freshman and our school was in it's third year of existence. They had been 3A the first two years and it was the first year there was a senior class. The band had one panel as a prop - just one. They were good (never not made Sweepstakes at Region) so they advanced to 5A Area D. I took the day off and drove up to Austin and arrived early enough to watch a few bands before we performed. In walks Vista Ridge, twice the size of us - props, guard blockers... the whole deal. They turned around and blew our hair back with the first hit and I just thought..... woah. There were several other Leander bands that followed too. We performed and did well, but needless to say did not make finals. Great first time at Area though, and a learning experience. Our kids on that day were probably wondering "How are we ever going to compete with THEM?" The answer is, we got busy. The kids got better. They learned how to march better because we hired techs. The boosters figured out better fund raisers so we could raise the money for big props, a custom show design, custom drill, etc. In 2017 we went to Area with a great show but had a glitch and lost power. The kids picked themselves up and in 2018 we won a couple marching contests. In 2019 we made area finals but missed state. And in 2021, we are headed to 5A State for the first time. There are some powerhouse bands that will be here, most of which have been doing it longer than us, and in our heart of hearts we know we don't have a shot to win.... this year. But our kids feel like they can COMPETE with anyone now. Now when we roll into a contest and see the other bands walk by as we are building our giant props, I feel bad, because I know how they feel because I remember our kids feeling like that. I wanted my kid to experience being in a program with bigger props and all that goes with it. And you can get there - you just need to get started building the program. That takes great directors and kids, a supportive administration, and a strong and dedicated booster program. It's a process. Embrace it, and realize that it's a multi-year process and it might take longer than the four years your kid is in school to get there. But without the bands of yesterday, there would be no band of today. They all played a part, of building a program. Marching Band is the best! Good luck to everyone wherever you may be performing in the next few weeks!

Trivia question: Has any band advanced to Finals the first time they made it to State?

Wendy, I completely empathize with your frustration. Four years ago at Area we were one of the first bands to perform. We did not have a generator at the time (our fault) and plugged into the stadium power and it was dead. We frantically tried to get everything powered up and the official on the sidelines just shrugged. So we performed our entire show with no power. No amplification, no keyboards, no microphones, no sound effects. It was a disaster. The kids were rattled because it was obvious something had gone wrong. Despite being assured the judges would be informed of the glitch, we later found out they did not. The comments were full of "Nice sound but can't hear the soloists" and "Having a hard time hearing front ensemble" etc. Our kids were devastated, and we went home early. We really thought we had a chance to advance to State. Imagine 200 kids crying at the instrument truck. I remember the long drive home that night and the feeling in my gut for days after. I know your kids are disappointed. I know your parents and directors are disappointed. Nobody from any program wanted things to go down the way they did. Band kids are great kids and given the choice I know 100% of the kids in all those bands would have wanted everyone to have blue skies and calm winds and give their very best performance. All I can tell you is embrace it as a learning experience. Two years later, we made it to Area finals for the first time in program history. Half those kids were in the band two years prior, and they felt vindicated. And yes, we have a really, really nice generator now. There were a LOT of really really good shows last night. I wish they could all win, because they are all great kids. Congratulations should go to all of them. Hopefully UIL will come up with a clear set of guidelines on how to handle situations like all of these, that can be followed consistently across the state. Also on a somewhat different note, I hope whoever hosts the contest next year will open more than two windows at the concession stand. My wife stood in line for an hour to get a hot dog and a bottle of water and almost passed out...but I digress.

AREA I PRELIMS 5A MARCHING CONTEST SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2021 RAY MADDRY STADIUM,CHANNELVIEW ISD DAYTON 11:30 MAGNOLIA11:45 KINGWOOD PARK 12:00 PORT NECHES-GROVES 12:15 RUDDER 12:30 CANEY CREEK 12:45 A&M CONSOLIDATED 1:00 BREAK NEW CANEY 1:30 PORTER 1:45 COLLEGE STATION 2:00 GALENA PARK 2:15 CROSBY 2:30 MAGNOLIA WEST 2:45 Finals begin at 5:00pm 7 bands advance to finals, 3 to State. Best of luck to all!

Crosby is competing in Area I this Saturday rather than going to the State Military competition.

Just wanted to say thanks to the OP for doing this!!

I think you'll be pleasantly surprised on Saturday. ;-)

I was coming here to post the same thing.

That is one heck of a prop Wakeland has. RESPECT to the Wakeland parents from a props dad!

So to be clear, the Area every year thing is a done deal, but the seven judges still have to be voted on? When is the vote? In my view these are both very positive moves in the right direction. We were less than satisfied with some adjudication this year. Seven is better than five.

And we love y'alls show - we knew you guys would advance for sure. We appreciate the classy remarks from your fans, who were very gracious to us in the stands. And also several of your fellow students were very complimentary to our kids. We'll be rooting for you next week - go get 'em!

Saturday was a great day! Sincere congrats from College Station to all the advancing bands - we know you'll represent Area I well at State! I echo the above comments about judging ... not sure I quite understand how all of that works. We were surprised by some of the results for sure, and definitely 100% agree that it is a terrible shame that A&M Consolidated and Magnolia, who both had beautiful, well executed shows, deserved a finals slot, were not able to perform. I hope UIL will change the rules so finals are always at least 10 bands - what's the harm? Everyone is already there, why not let three more bands perform? These kids were tirelessly - I calculated over 30,000 hours of rehearsal for our band this marching season! I also hope UIL will change it so Area competitions happen every year. Our kids left it all out on the field and we could not be more proud of their performance. While we didn't advance, we did make it to finals for the first time in school history, and it was somewhat of a redemption after hoping we would two years ago. (Our power failed and we had to perform our entire show without a front ensemble or soloists. It was a bad day...) We were lucky to draw the final performance slot, but unfortunately the announcers asked the other bands to leave the stadium and begin assembling for the retreat. (Our show is available on YouTube if you want to see it.) Again, sincere congrats to all! It was a honor to compete against all of you! I look forward to watching state next week and am already looking forward to next season!

Best wishes to every band at area competition today! It looks like it will be a beautiful day for marching band!

All right we're all going stir crazy, let's do something to pass the time. Do we know the show titles of the advancing bands? Here are the two I know: A&M Consolidated: The Seasons of Life College Station: It's in the Stars!

So do I!

Official links: Prelims: https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/59e8cd43-c3cb-442a-913b-e742220c84a5/downloads/2019%20Area%20I%205A%20Program%20%26%20Schedule.pdf?ver=1571921969591 Finals: https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/59e8cd43-c3cb-442a-913b-e742220c84a5/downloads/2019%20Area%20I%205A%20Schedule%20Finals.pdf?ver=1571921969591

It seems a recurring theme in the Area threads this year is "there are more state deserving bands than slots". Is it time for UIL to change the rules? Especially since state is only every other year?

It seems like a recurring theme in several of these area threads is... there are more state-deserving bands than there are slots. Maybe it's time for UIL to change the rules to include more bands?

I'm new to this thread - when will we know if these proposals pass? Or has the decision been made? I would love for Area to be an annual event, providing they worked it out to not interfere with BOA.

I remember a few years back, 6A State was Mon-Tues and Grand Nats started on Wednesday. There were a handful of bands that jumped on a plane and went straight to Indy. What a week!

See y'all Saturday! KINGWOOD PARK 10:00 CLEVELAND 10:15 WILLIS 10:30 PORTER 10:45 MAGNOLIA 11:00 NEW CANEY 11:15 LUNCH MAGNOLIA WEST 12:15 GRAND OAKS 12:30 A&M CONSOLIDATED 12:45 PORT NECHES-GROVES 1:00 CROSBY 1:15 COLLEGE STATION 1:30 BREAK CANEY CREEK 2:00 VIDOR 2:15 DAYTON 2:30 GALENA PARK 2:45 TOMBALL 3:00 HUNTSVILLE 3:15 Finals: Band 1 6:00 Band 2 6:15 Band 3 6:30 Band 4 6:45 Band 5 7:00 Band 6 7:15 Band 7 7:30

I was not aware of the 36 bands rule - I'm sure that is correct! So if we're at 26, we need ten more. We are waiting for the results of Region 9 to see if Region I will advance 3 or 4 bands. I don't know what the potential is for Area D or E so I guess we'll wait to watch the results roll in this evening & tomorrow.

If I understand correctly, it seems a near certainty. The State Marching Band rules just state that they follow the Area Marching Band rules,which state: (3) 20 Or More Bands. If there are 20 or more bands, the top 10 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition any band below tenth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the marching judges will also advance to the final round. The two marching judges and two of the music judges will change captions. There will be a drum major retreat at the end of the preliminary round to announce the results. Bands not advancing to final round will receive a participant award. At the end of the final round there will be a drum major retreat where each band will receive a finalist award and the names of those bands advancing to the state marching band contest will be announced. Under extenuating circumstances such as severe weather or limited participation, the contest officials in consultation with the State Director of Music may declare the preliminary round to be the final contest. (4) 30 Or More Bands. If there are 30 or more bands, the top 12 bands will advance from the preliminary round to the final round. In addition, any band below twelfth place that receives a ranking of three or higher from at least two of the music judges and one of the marching judges will also advance to the final round. The two marching judges and two of the music judges will change captions. There will be a drum major retreat at the end of the preliminary round to announce the results. Bands not advancing to the final round will receive a participant award. At the end of the final round there will be a drum major retreat where each band will receive a finalist award and the names of those bands advancing to the state marching band contest will be announced. Under extenuating circumstances such as severe weather or limited participation, the contest officials in consultation with the state director of music may declare the preliminary round to be the final contest. We're at 26 bands already with three regions left to report, and I know Area I alone we are waiting to see if we advance 3 or 4. So get ready for a 12 band finals round!

We won't know until later tonight or tomorrow. There are several regions having UIL Region contests today, and until we know how many receive 1's and we won't know how many are advancing to Area, and thus how many will advance to state.