ProudBandDad

Preliminary schedule: 10:15 AM Birdville 10:30 AM Azle 10:45 AM Granbury 11:00 AM Wylie East 11:15 AM Forney 11:30 AM Richland 11:45 AM BREAK 12:30 PM Wakeland 12:45 PM Creekview 1:00 PM Newman Smith 1:15 PM RL Turner 1:30 PM South Grand Prairie 1:45 PM Nimitz 2:00 PM North Crowley 2:15 PM Mansfield 2:30 PM BREAK 2:45 PM Haltom 3:00 PM Frisco Centennial 3:15 PM Bowie 3:30 PM Carroll 3:45 PM Fossil Ridge 4:00 PM Boswell 4:15 PM Aledo 4:30 PM Marcus 4:45 PM Trinity Exhibition 5:00 PM UTA Exhibition 5:15 PM Prelim Awards and Finalist Announcements

(Unofficial results) Prelims 3A Captions Color Guard Teague Percussion Teague Music Teague Visual Teague GE Teague 5A Captions Color Guard Aledo Percussion Boswell Music Aledo Visual Aledo GE Aledo 6A Captions Color Guard Marcus Percussion Marcus Music Marcus Visual Marcus GE Marcus Placements 3A 1st Teague 5A 3rd Timberview 2nd Boswell 1st Aledo 6A 3rd Martin 2nd Fossil Ridge 1st Marcus Finals Placements 11th 58.6 Sam Houston 10th 60.7 Teague 9th 63.0 Juan Seguin 8th 65.3 Bowie 7th 66.3 Nimitz 6th 66.6 Timberview 5th 70.5 Martin 4th 70.6 Fossil Ridge 3rd 71.9 Boswell 2nd 76.7 Aledo 1st 82.4 Marcus

School Classification Performance Teague 3A 2:15 Sam Houston 6A 2:30 Nimitz 6A 2:45 Timberview 5A 3:00 Juan Seguin 5A 3:15 Boswell 5A 3:30 Aledo 5A 3:45 Fossil Ridge 6A 4:00 Marcus 6A 4:15 Bowie 6A 4:30 Martin 6A 4:45 Trinity 6A Exhibition 5:00

Safe travels for everyone heading to San Antonio. And best of luck to all performing! I'll be reading the TxBands Live Blog today at work - thanks guys! .... --PBD

Duncanville High School - you guys are 1st class! The DMI is a very nice competition - well planned and executed. I feel for the kids that did not get to play because of transportation issues. That really bites. For a second, I thought the DMI was giving out 42" TV's for captions, then found out it was a raffle... prizes for captions, hum... that would make things interesting.... Anyhow, job well done Duncanville Panther Band & Boosters - rock on! -- PBD

Wow! This is all interesting debate and I'm not advocating that it should be stopped. However, and (now I'm going to sound like a old man but that's ok because I am) let's don't forget that each and every student performing in San Antonio has put in countless hours practicing for their 8-10 minute show. I'm sure a fair number of band students read these postings and my guidance to them is this: The only bands that can't make it to the finals are the ones that didn't enter the contest. If you are there, you can make it to finals. Don't worry about it if your band isn't on the 'locks' list or the 'bubble' list. Those are created so the kids that have already graduated can show off their intimate knowledge of marching band. Do your best and feel good about yourself for the commitment and dedication you have displayed. There are a lot factors that determine which bands move on to finals and many of those are out of your control, but your personal performance is entirely up to you. Do your best -- and be proud of your accomplishment and we will be proud of you too! OK - now you guys can go back to the lock & bubble debate and I'll be quite. -- ProudBandDad

All this "lock" and "bubble" talk is making my head spin. My only sure fire lock is: Saturday lunch on the Riverwalk! Let's hope for fantastic San Antonio weather with blue skies and cool breezes. Ahhh... I can taste the guacamole now..... For all the band parents who have never been to the San Antonio Super Regional, it is highly recommended as a weekend getaway. Lot's of good sportmanship and great bands to enjoy! Love mingling with the other band parents & fans too! -- PBD

Now you got me humming Outkast's Roses... "Ohhhhh, I know you'd like to think that your....." I'm ready to head down I-45 - but got to wait another day! Pack it up, load 'em up, and safe travels to all! --PDB

I hope you are wrong, too! (no disrespect intended) These results show that bands from all classifications can compete: 2010 BOA Woodlands - Finals Winner - Class AAA band. 2nd - Class AAA. 3rd - Class A band. 4th - went to the highest ranked Class AAAA band. This may not hold true for all competitions, but it shows it can be done and not all competitions are dominated by AAAA bands. Judges should score on execution and not size/reputation, but neither of those elements are easy for humans to ignore. There is always going to be debate in such a subjectively scored contest; but, there is precedence that you don't have to be classified as a big band to get a good or even a great score. -- PBD <H1 class=itemTitle> </H1>

Daniel Valdez, you are wise beyond your years! I've been a band parent for 6 seasons now and your observations ring true. It amazes me each year how a show grows and evolves into the final product. As you said, directors take different approaches to putting their show on the field. The October 1st show can be a complete show with much room for improvement or 3/5's of a show that is very clean - but either way, the show on November 5th most likely will be on a different level. Love to read the Danpod posts (as do dozens of my fellow band parents). Keep up the great work and best of luck to all the hard working kids out there! --- ProudBandDad

I don't think you'll be disappointed. There is no substitute for seeing these performances in person! I love having years of performances on DVD, but I don't get the chills down my spine like I do when in front of the real deal. Enjoy! --PBD

Claudia Taylor Johnson Jaguars in the house! Wow - 1st performance and no met - that is nice. Congrats - it sounds like you did really well! Full uniform so early - you guys are going all out. Looking forward to seeing you at BOA (Conroe and San Antonio) & best of luck at Grand Nats! -- PBD

Nice review TxRaider13. I chuckle at the amoeba reference . Sometimes it's hard to tell in these early performances if that is a majestic arc or just a crooked line. I'm sure the Pirate Band and Forney Band will be bringing their best effort this year and will represent north Texas well at state - those are both excellent programs. -- PBD

My younger son's first marching performance at halftime went remarkably well Saturday night. I had fears of tripping, wrong turns, collisions, and total meltdown, but none of those surfaced and he did great! He remarked later that night that he thought he was going to be nervous marching and playing in front of the crowd, but said he was pretty calm and confident. With the Opening and Part 1 under his belt, I'm starting to get comfortable with him out there and my fears of twisted trombone pieces scattered across the field are slowly fading away! Oh and btw, Waxahatchie Band sounded great and I loved the fight song with the tomahawk chop! --PBD

Thought it might be fun to post about your first game performance experience of the year. What went well and maybe what didn't go so well. Nothing too specific or critical. Looking forward to read about some of the other band's experiences. Our first performance is on Saturday and the heat will be a big issue. Our saving grace is that the game doesn't start until 8:00pm so the sun shouldn't be a factor for too long. The kids have been working hard and as usual have made terrific progress in a few short weeks. Be sure to cheer and applaud loudly for your band! Stay hydrated, -- PBD