MikeKyu

I have the same top 5, just in a different order 1. Cedar Park 2. Marcus 3 Round Rock 4. Dripping Springs 5. Hendrickson I would love to see the 5A schools 1-2 but I don't think that's in the cards this year. I see Rock staying ahead of Dripping Springs again this weekend. CP/Marcus should be incredibly close. Not too sure where Marcus' show is but CP doesn't have their closer in yet (it's a big GE closer).

Glenn gets just as much support from LISD as Vandy, CP, Rouse, VR, and Leander. It is an extremely young program. There is not the depth of experience that the other LISD schools have, yet. I saw them two weeks ago and the improvement over last year is fantastic to see. Give them a few years to mature. It's a process that cannot be rushed or faked. Glenn just opened in 2016-2017. They are the next LISD school up. They are following the trajectory as Rouse. In a few years they will be right there. Once they are there the Leander Festival of Bands may be the best district show in all of Texas and will be a must see, as if it isn't already.

Cedar Park is very similar to Leander. Fundraising through both the parents and kids has been a godsend.

CP probably had their worst musical performance of the season in prelims. Hopefully they can clean up the music in finals and hunt for a medal. Keller sounds and looks great. Hebron needs to un**** their wireless mics if they want to win this. FLO MO is huge, artistic and a pleasure. Union looks better than anticipated. It's good to have L.D. Bell back.

Not exactly my dream show, but one that I think would be a lot of fun with a Scottish theme. I would open the show with "Scotland The Brave" I would throw a tour de force out next. 3 key signatures, 3 meters all playing together on the field at the same time. This could serve as solo features as well Fanfare For St. Edmundsbury by Britten. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nR8OVlRlog High brass: part 1 - Bass drums Woodwinds: part 2 - front ensemble Low Brass: part 3 - snares and cymbals Percussion/Front Ensemble Feature: "Lords of Iron" by Antti Martikainen Transition and close with Amazing Grace

Monday October 1, 7PM.

It's contest day!! I can already hear the warm ups and taste the Bush's chicken rolls

It was a tough night. At least the rain held off for homecoming.

I saw Rouse tonight. What a great show. Elegant, well performed, and the sound is much deeper this year than last. Definently a finals contender. Cedar Park got screwed by home coming and a rain shower. They did not get a chance to perform their show.

It's still a field show, but it is vastly different from the shows that they perform at baseball games. I saw them several years ago when we went to the Japan high school baseball championships (it's like College Football National championships in the states) and was immediately a fan. What a great show! I was a little bummed out this year when we were in Kyoto and there wasn't a chance to see them.

I am coming with my wife, my mom, and one of my buddies is coming as well. Should be fun. I am really hoping that there aren't storms that spoil any band's shot at making finals.

They are just a little 5A band from the sticks north of Austin.

Yeah, it's going to be a complete contrast in style and sound.

Cedar Park should have all but the last 2 parts of the close.

These may not be legendary shows, but they are some of my all time favorites in no particular order: Plymouth Centennial 1990 "The Music of Stephen Sondheim" Broken Arrow 2011 "Destiny Leaves You No Choice" Marian Catholic 1998 "Exotic Gardens" Carmel 2015 "Nine Lives" Kyoto Tachibana 2015 Indoor competition show I loved Vandergrift and Hebron's shows last year as well. I just need to see how they age for me. Cedar Park's 2016 All Hallows Eve is another local that I love. It would just be disingenuous of me to include a CP show as my son now attends CP and is in the band (He did not attend in 2016).

Ahhh, what's old is new and exciting again. Installing the entire show is how we learned in high school, and we were a grand nats finalist twice. I was shocked when we moved to Texas and the first show I saw was 1/3rd done. I really wonder how greatly GE is affected in early season contests overall scores when the show cannot build to a conclusion. GE should not be just a collection of moments, but the entire effect of the show in it's entirety on the audience/judges. I prefer seeing bands have the entire show installed and refined on a weekly basis. That being said, I fully understand and see the results of building a show over a season, and it's hard to argue against.

Streaming has gotten better throughout the day for me. When CTJ came on and the sun came out (how did they arrange that?) I stopping having connection issues. Hopefully by 4:45 the Oxford stream will be running as well as the Texas streams are right now.

Dripping Springs is a great band. They don't get the accolades that they should because they have had to fight with the Leander 5A bands (Leander, when they were 5A, Cedar Park). At UIL last year they were fantastically close to winning. They won preliminaries but Cedar Park put on their best show of the year in finals and squeaked it out, again. Dripping Springs doesn't travel as much and aren't seen as much as the other top-flight bands. This leads to them being slightly overlooked by the regular fan/parent.

Rouse had their coming out party last year at UIL 5A. Another Leander School District Band on the rise. Weiss is another Central Texas band that has a chance to become something special.