TWHSPercDad

Well, I’m sitting in the UD Arena parking lot, looking at the heaviest rain of the week. Every team tonight will get to experience the nasty weather, trying desperately to keep everything as dry as humanly possible. It’s going to be treacherous for the unload, but am INCREDIBLY excited to be down on the floor with an AMAZING group of 32 young people attempting to finish a truly magical season. I hope everyone here and at home enjoys the performances tonight! GO THE WOODLANDS! GO TEAM TEXAS!!

We are leaving Wednesday morning. It’s always great to talk with the other Houston-area teams, color guard instructors, and enthusiasts on our same flight and at the airports. Lots of comraderie and wonderful conversation. That’s just a warm-up though to the enthusiastic response all the guards receive coming up the tunnel after their performance runs. The WGI World Championships is a such an awesome event! Let’s go get ‘em Team Texas! Best wishes to ALL!

Agreed about our Texas guards performing in San Antonio. For example, Jordan HS went from 3rd in SA seeding last week, to 23rd this week. That is a KILLER!!!!

That is a good point, @jmartin1056. Over the past three seasons, the WGI Austin Regional was TWHS’ final opportunity for a seeding score. Well, this season they are attending the Southwest Power Regional and will have a scoring opportunity in the final week of the season. Hard to say what difference that will make, if any. I can safely speak for all the parents and fans here north of Houston who are enjoying every single second to experience the amazing talent that these performers exhibit on the field and floor over these past three seasons!

Great analysis as always @packwick !!!

TWHS was the 2004 Scholastic OPEN National Champion. 2019 was their first WORLD Class Finals appearance (14th). Since COVID (2020 & 2021), TWHS finished 3rd, 4th, and 3rd in WORLD Class (2022, 2023, and 2024). TWHS World Guard will be back in Dayton this season (April 2025)!

from Avon Band’s Instagram site.

This will be The Woodlands World Guard’s first appearance at Denton in six years. Having a late-season opportunity to improve their World Championship Prelims seeding position/score will be nice!

Some of us can remember the Westfield HS Band (school opened in Fall 1981), finished second to Marian Catholic in 1985. First Texas band at GN, first Texas GN finalist. I’d say I wasn’t born yet 😂, but I was actually an oboist and color guard member at Westfield those four years.

No rest for TWHS Color Guard! Back from San Antonio late this past Tuesday night, then TWHS Winter Guard placement auditions were held 36 hours later on Thursday and Friday! Can’t wait!

As someone who has done that for the past three years, I would suggest to do that at least once! I’ve been so fortunate to be on the Floor Crew with an insanely talented TWHS World Guard, and a percussion dad and board member of Austin’s Rhythmic Force, WGI Independent World Percussion finalist 2022 and 2024. Can’t wait for April 2025!

There are essentially two different random-choice events. Prior to Area weekend, the UIL State office will conduct a random draw for each performance time being assigned to one of the ten areas. After Area finals (or prelims, in some cases), the advancing directors pick one of those randomly pre-assigned times. Area C has been assigned 8:30 AM, 1:45 PM, 7:00 PM, and 8:30 PM. The four advancing directors will have a blind-draw for those randomly pre-assigned performance times.

Bumping for dry-sky karma!

Interesting how areas/regions handle things a bit differently. Contest info for 6A Area F notes its Rain Date as Sunday the 3rd.

By the way, I don’t think the musical selections for TWHS’ show have been mentioned anywhere. So in case anyone is interested: Fantasia on Frenchman Street Liberty City - by Jaco Pastorious Invitation - by Bronislaw Kaper Interplay, for Piano Four-Hands and Orchestra - by David Gillingham Summertime, from the Opera “Porgy and Bess” - by George Gershwin Atchafalaya - by Snarky Puppy Home - by Wynton Marsalis

You are correct, as usual, @packwick! The opening 40ish seconds is from the beginning of Wynton Marsalis’, “Home”. It is a pre show, with the BOA announcement concluding immediately before Jaco Pastorious’ “Liberty City” (the first wind statement).

My pleasure! I wish you and your program all the best for the rest of the season!

I understand what you are saying, I really do. Let me give you another perspective though, from my band director and judging days. (1) Only half the score (even in performance captions - meaning the “individual” and “ensemble” captions) is based on the “how” (execution). The other half is the “what” (construction/difficulty, etc.of what is being performed). (2) Me, with my band director hat on, hates to receive what is generally called “tick tapes” from the ensemble judge. Why? Because if there are spacing, or form problems, I can see those easily also and I know how to fix them. That doesn’t mean the judge is not considering the execution component. The judge addresses that by the score that is given (100 possible out of the total200). I want to hear something, as a director, that is not as easily seen or perceived by me. When I watch the drill each day in rehearsal, it is not as easy to perceive the “what,” and how to possibly make changes ….. while still cleaning and addressing the execution. There is only 8 minutes that the judge can offer insights. Especially on an early season tape and performance, I want to hear things I DONT necessarily know — Not stating obvious drill performance issues. This may or may not address your issue, but I think it can address how the judge approached your critique tape.

The schedule for TWHS (game Friday night, combined with Saturday’s 7:30 AM prelim time) is FAR from ideal. The student performers are going to have to step-up on this one…..then find ALL the energy they can muster to get them through Finals. This will be a new experience for all of these performers. The last time they had a BOA SA-SR schedule like this was 2018 (or 2019). I’m getting too old to remember. Lol

You might be on to something here, @packwick!!!! 😉

I’ll be in San Antonio also. I’m very excited to see our The Woodlands HS Band current and former students and their awesome performances Saturday; IN PERSON!

I agree with you 100% on this, @Rubisco!!!!!

Top six in Scholastic World Finals will definitely be “Must Watch TV” (or even better if you can be in UD Arena!).

I was waiting for someone to break this down. Thanks @packwick for working through the statistics behind TWHS World’s art and athleticism. This show is OUTRAGEOUSLY AMAZING!