Realignment. HELP!!!!

[Trumpeter07]

If you could please tell me the Area Realignments for the area with Cedar Park in it so i can see who my band will be facing next year in the area comp.? Mucho Gracies!!!!!!

[euro_euph06]

Area D

 

2006 Re-alignment

 

 

UIL 4A/5A Marching Band Areas

 

A - 1 2 6 16 22

B - 5 7 24 25

C - 3 4 20 21

D - 8 12 18 26

E - 13 23 27

F - 9 10 17 19

G - 11 14 15 28

 

 

Area B Notables

Haltom

Richland

L.D. Bell

Marcus

Martin

Plano East

Hebron

Lewisville

Collyville

 

 

Area D Notables

Cedar Park

Leander

Winston Churchill

Ronald Reagan

James Bowie (Austin)

Judson

Seguin

Westlake

 

Area F Notables

Brazoswood HS

Clear Lake

Clear Brook HS

Conroe HS

Oak Ridge HS

The Woodlands HS

Klein HS

Klein Forest HS

Klein Oak HS

Pearland HS

Spring HS

Westfield HS

[Xenon]

You should probably add Mansfield Summit to your Area B Notables.

[sax5warrior]

  Xenon said:

You should probably add Mansfield Summit to your Area B Notables.

and Coppell

[Xenon]

No, Coppell is going to Area C with Duncanville and the rest of Region 20 which includes you.

[sax5warrior]

waaaaaaaaa?

 

so ive been looking at the wrong info the whole time at TMEA

 

i feel...feel...

[aaron067]

I'm afraid you have. Area C doesn't have a list of front runners nearly as long as Area B, though. And it's certainly not the competitive blood bath Coppell and Duncanville came from.

 

Berkner

Coppell

Duncanville

Lake Highlands

Rowlett

 

Hm...that's about all I can think of, and all of those come from Regions 3 and 20. Anyone else know anything about Regions 4 and 21?

[Xenon]

The only other 5A schools that I can think of out there are the ones in Longview, but I'm not sure that any of them should even come close to making that list.

 

I'm also pretty sure that most of the groups out that direction are an interesting mix of Military and Corps.

[Trumpet Master]

Area G Notables

Harlingen HS

Sharyland HS

Harlingen South HS

Donna HS

Edinburg North Hs

Edinburg HS

Lopez HS

 

Just to name a few, sorry I forgot any other school not from the Valley. I just think these schools have a higher standard compared to other Area G bands.

 

And thats my 2 cents...

[aaron067]

This is second-hand information from a guard director working with a DFW school, so I'm not entirely sure how reliable it is but here goes...

 

Their drill writer, who also writes for Duncanville, told him that Duncanville is marching about 70 less than his largest band, which is only marching around 230 (guard and drumline included). I can think of a few ways to interpret this:

 

1) Duncanville is marching around 160 minus the guard or guard/percussion, which puts them around 230-240, as well, or

2) Duncanville is marching around 160 total, which includes the massive drill team they use for a guard.

 

Now, I knew D-ville was on the decline with the change in demographics and all (plus they lost the assistant director who acted as the backbone for the program--incidently, he'll now be on the Music Ed staff at SMU), but it's still shocking to think that they could only be putting a band of 160 on the field this year. Perhaps they chose their very best, the select few, to make a push at winning the State Marching Contest again... Thoughts?

[Xenon]

That is a pretty big and hard to believe rumor. I will go to their practice tomorrow morning and find out whether or not it is true.

 

As far as the comment about decline goes, what evidence is there to substantiate this claim? No, Duncanville didn't win state in 2004, but placing 3rd isn't really a sign of decline, and did you hear their Midwest concert last year?

[I<3thebox]

Holy OHNO! I didn't realize they did Area realignments too???!!! Our Region got split which is kinda a big deal for percussion auditions for Region Band... but AREA!!! oh my...

 

Are Westfield and Spring competing in a UIL this year?

 

and what about SFA what Area are they in?

 

Are they also still planning on the 5 from each Area thing?

 

Whats with UIL Region being on a Saturday? Our region used to have UIL on like a Tuesday afternoon (which was kinda lame, and not lame for different reasons) are other Regions also moving to Saturday competitions?

 

Any word on fixing some of the State judging? I remember last time there was some WACK scorings that people fussed about - particularly SFA had like a 27, 21, 4, for music or something - and Winston Churchill dropped from 1st to 4th during Finals - I don remember our director telling us he had spoken to some of the judges or officials or something (sorry it was 2 years ago) and they said that their instructions were (obviously paraphrasing) "just get the top 10 bands into finals don't worry too much about placements and stuff"

which I can kinda understand judging 50 bands or whatever its hard to get a band in the placement it actually deserves... but hey just saying throw the top ten bands together and forget about the rest... thats kinda messed up b/c then you could have some kids pulling into finals in 10th place which would obviously lower morale when really they deserved 5th or something. Or in Churchill's instance thinking they were in 1st (and maybe they were truly in 1st ... idk) and they dropping to 4th - hopefully dumb stuff wont happen like that this year...

[springbassliner26]

  I<3thebox said:

Are Westfield and Spring competing in a UIL this year?

Spring is, unless something changed, and as for Westfield...I don't know.

[mbui]

QUOTE (springbassliner26 @ Aug 2 2006, 11:03 PM)

Spring is, unless something changed, and as for Westfield...I don't know.

Spring has yet to register for a single BOA Texas Regional....you guys are going, right??

 

Gosh, I hope so.

[Xenon]

  I<3thebox said:

and what about SFA what Area are they in?

Area E

 

  I<3thebox said:

Are they also still planning on the 5 from each Area thing?

1 band advances to State for every 5 bands at the Area competition.

 

  I<3thebox said:

Whats with UIL Region being on a Saturday?

Region contests can be on any date so long as they are at least 3 days before the Area competition. The decision is fully in the hands of the Region staff.

 

  I<3thebox said:

I remember last time there was some WACK scorings that people fussed about - particularly SFA had like a 27, 21, 4,  for music or something

Yes, that 4th (I think it might have been a 1st) was completely out of line.

 

  I<3thebox said:

and Winston Churchill dropped from 1st to 4th during Finals

Stuff like that happens. They are two completely different performances in front of completely different sets of judges.

 

  I<3thebox said:

our director telling us he had spoken to some of the judges or officials or something (sorry it was 2 years ago) and they said that their instructions were (obviously paraphrasing) "just get the top 10 bands into finals don't worry too much about placements and stuff"

They would not have been told that because that is not the way that UIL judging works, however, I could see how some of those judges might have felt that way because they are not familiar with the UIL judging system and TMAA judging standards. This is the biggest problem that I have with State judging; we shouldn't be using out of state judges that don't fully understand how UIL judging works (very different from almost every other circuit) and aren't familiar with TMAA judging standards.

[Xenon]

  aaron067 said:

Their drill writer, who also writes for Duncanville, told him that Duncanville is marching about 70 less than his largest band, which is only marching around 230 (guard and drumline included).

OK, Duncanville will be marching about 165 winds, which is about the same as they have marched for the past 5 years and not much less than they've marched since all the way back in 1986.

 

Add percussion (battery and pit) and you get about 190-195.

 

The big difference this year is going to be, I believe, that the drill team is smaller. Probably on the order of around 50 instead of around 70-80 like they've had for the past 8 or 9 years. This makes for about 240-250 people on the field.

 

One of the things that made Duncanville absolutely massive on the field in the long past was that they used to have both a colorguard and a drill team, pushing the total guard number to around 110-120.

 

So, basically, there is nothing weird going on and Duncanville is not trying to cut numbers so that they can use just the best players. They will still be using freshmen just as they always have.

[springbassliner26]

  mbui said:

Spring has yet to register for a single BOA Texas Regional....you guys are going, right??

I'm just gonna keep my mouth shut until we get a schedule of major events or something to that effect. Don't see why we wouldn't be...

 

But gosh, I hope we are too.

[I<3thebox]

Thanks Xenon for the info - yeah idk about that State judging I was kinda taken aback by the comment - oh well here's to more consistency for 06! yay

and that is weird that they'd use out of state judges - especially considering (and since this is TXBands... I can say this) Band is just BETTER in Texas lol - do you know like how they pick judges? Like the qualifications and such? And what makes UIL so different from other circuits?

 

I hope Spring goes to some BOA regionals too!

[aaron067]

  Xenon said:

So, basically, there is nothing weird going on and Duncanville is not trying to cut numbers so that they can use just the best players. They will still be using freshmen just as they always have.

Well, that's good to know. I was worried that we might not be able to expect the same type of sound they've produced in past years. As for their decline, there has definitely been a difference in marching performance quality over the past few years. Honestly, they didn't deserve 3rd at State two years ago. After seeing them perform four times tha year I can say they were certainly top 10 material, but not 3rd. In fact, they were beaten by a 4A band at a contest earlier that year. On the subject of Midwest, well...that was their Wind Ensemble, and you can't judge an entire program by just the top ensemble (though I hope that performance was better than their Honor Band concert last year). The Wind Ensemble may be just as good as it's been in past years, but several of the lower ensembles are not. The middle schools are falling far behind their usual standards, and that will transfer over to the high school within the next few years.

 

Their private lesson program is dwindling, their numbers are decreasing (yes, they have put more than 165 winds on the field in past years), their success in the All-State and State Solo/Ensemble tracks isn't quite what it used to be (although the clarinets are still maintaining their gorgeous sounds and superb technique), and their percussion was pitiful for a band with such an excellent reputation when they performed at the Lone Star percussion contest last Fall. This all may seem a little harsh, but I competed against Duncanville when I was in high school, and I've watched them over the past four years as a Music Ed major. As a whole band program, they just aren't what they used to be. And while I wish it weren't true, I still say the loss of Brian Merrill, who was an associate director there for 25+ years, will not help matters. Unfortunately, there just comes a time when the reign of a powerhouse comes to an end. Take Permian HS. They used to have an incredible program. MacArthur HS in San Antonio won the State Marching contest how many times in a row when it was first initiated? Is that band on anyone's radar anymore? The fact is that Duncanville just isn't the same type of city that it used to be, nor are the standards held as high. I believe the high school was ranked around 60 in the top 100 High Schools in the metroplex this past year when it used to be very near the top.

 

Still, I'd like to be proven wrong. Region 20 can't lose one of only two strong programs, but I suppose only time will tell.

[manuel_pablo]

  I<3thebox said:

Are Westfield and Spring competing in a UIL this year?

Westfield is not competing in UIL, although we have a.....mmm I'll just keep my mouth shut.

[bluebellbrass07]

QUOTE (manuel_pablo @ Aug 5 2006, 03:41 PM)

Westfield is not competing in UIL, although we have a.....mmm I'll just keep my mouth shut.

you have a......

[sax5warrior]

  bluebellbrass07 said:

you have a......

winner!

[Xenon]

  aaron067 said:

After seeing them perform four times tha year I can say they were certainly top 10 material, but not 3rd.

That is your opinion, and I'm not saying that it is totally without merit, but you have to take into account that they were a very young group that year. Bands go through cycles and sometimes graduate off a large number of good players; it is not necessarily a sign of decline. They were a much stronger group last year than in 2004.

 

  aaron067 said:

In fact, they were beaten by a 4A band at a contest earlier that year.

Mesquite Poteet isn't just any 4A band, they are one of the best. That put aside, it was only due to the lack of a bad judge rule that Duncanville was knocked down to 2nd. They got 4 out of 5 first place votes in music and visual performance.

 

  aaron067 said:

On the subject of Midwest, well...that was their Wind Ensemble, and you can't judge an entire program by just the top ensemble

Very true.

 

  aaron067 said:

(though I hope that performance was better than their Honor Band concert last year).

I didn't hear that concert, so I can't really comment on it directly, but again they graduated off a large number of talented players that year. Also, everybody complains about quality of Honor Band concerts, completely disregarding how early in the year they take place. I always want to ask people how their bands sound that early.

 

  aaron067 said:

The middle schools are falling far behind their usual standards. . .

The middle schools just went through a major transition with the opening of Kennemer Middle School and the reorganization of a lot of staff. And despite all this, Kennemer managed to make it to the State level in Honor Band in it's first year open.

 

  aaron067 said:

. . . and their percussion was pitiful for a band with such an excellent reputation when they performed at the Lone Star percussion contest last Fall.

I will readilly admit that their percussion has been a sore spot ever since Mr. V (now head director at Plano East) left in 1996.

 

  aaron067 said:

And while I wish it weren't true, I still say the loss of Brian Merrill, who was an associate director there for 25+ years, will not help matters.

Mr. Merrill's retirement is a hurdle that they will have to overcome, but they still have a great set of staff that they have been preparing to be able to handle this type of situation.

 

  aaron067 said:

Unfortunately, there just comes a time when the reign of a powerhouse comes to an end.

This is certainly true, I just don't think that Duncanville's powerhouse status is over just yet.

 

  aaron067 said:

I believe the high school was ranked around 60 in the top 100 High Schools in the metroplex this past year when it used to be very near the top.

I hate those types of rankings. They are extremely biased to whatever style of education the surveyors or surveyors' sponsors prefer.

 

  aaron067 said:

Still, I'd like to be proven wrong.  Region 20 can't lose one of only two strong programs, but I suppose only time will tell.

I'd like for you to be proven wrong too. But, I must admit that DeSoto used to be a big powerhouse as well but after making State Finals in 1996 they dropped off the map in only two years after their head director left. MacArthur as you pointed out won everything they ever did until their head director suddenly died of a heart attack and nobody ever heard from them again.

 

But the difference between those programs and Duncanville is that Duncanville has had a long time to prepare for the retirements that have happened and that eventually must happen. We'll just have to see where it goes.

[euro_euph06]

Xenon...I am suprised that you did not comment on the clarinet compliment. Anyways, before this discussion gets out of hand (It probably wont. but I have to say it), bands change for year to year. Someone gets jipped and others are there to move up. That is the nature of the beast. Duncanville has been a good band throughout the years. Go to the UIL awards archive and see all of their achievements. And thats all in one circuit. Yes...they might be rowdy and stuff, but they can play. Once they miss a state Finals, then we can bash them silly . Until then:

 

 

"Good Afternoon, Good Evening, and Good Night"

[Xenon]

  euro_euph06 said:

Xenon...I am suprised that you did not comment on the clarinet compliment.

That's because I wasn't one of those really good clarinets.