2012 5A State Marching Contest

[Mandi]

Being from Cy Fair I personally think we could fit our way in to the finals. We haven't been to state in 8 years but we got first at our area and the show we gave out then defenitly wasn't our best. So we could very well make it to finals.

[takigan]

Be careful with that logic. Not a single 1st place band from Area G has made finals in at least the past 20 years. Areas B, C, and D have consistently had the monopoly on 5A Finals placements for awhile, so bands from other Areas have to work extra hard to be represented.

[kingtbone]

  takigan said:

Be careful with that logic. Not a single 1st place band from Area G has made finals in at least the past 20 years. Areas B, C, and D have consistently had the monopoly on 5A Finals placements for awhile, so bands from other Areas have to work extra hard to be represented.

 

 

Ijust don get how some of these bands are judged. Seems like several bands get a higher score from having a good program from year to year instead of just judgeing the performance on the field.. I have seen Langham creeks show 4 times and still do not see the "great" things the judges see. The same goes for spring.. The tents are way to much ! Good luck Area E bands !

[Anteok]

  takigan said:

Be careful with that logic. Not a single 1st place band from Area G has made finals in at least the past 20 years. Areas B, C, and D have consistently had the monopoly on 5A Finals placements for awhile, so bands from other Areas have to work extra hard to be represented.

 

 

Aren't The Woodlands and Spring both area F? Also Westfield, though they aren't as big a player nowadays.

[Nosagi]

  Anteok said:

Aren't The Woodlands and Spring both area F? Also Westfield, though they aren't as big a player nowadays.

Yes but I think he's speaking in the majority sense. The Woodlands, Spring, and Westfield have been the historical powerhouses in area F with The Woodlands being the most recent. There may have been other area F bands in state finals but I'm afraid I'm not knowledgeable enough on the subject of UIL state to know for certain.

[takigan]

  kingtbone said:

Ijust don get how some of these bands are judged. Seems like several bands get a higher score from having a good program from year to year instead of just judgeing the performance on the field.. I have seen Langham creeks show 4 times and still do not see the "great" things the judges see. The same goes for spring.. The tents are way to much ! Good luck Area E bands !

 

 

Bands that play well all the time do well all the time. There are bands in this state that struggle year to year in getting either a 1 or a 2 at Region and some schools that have maintained 1st divisions every single year for 50+ years. I've watched rehearsals for bands that often get 2s.....their problem in getting 2s I feel doesn't have much to do with what they're doing during the course of 1 hour vs. what they COULD be doing.....it often has more to do with deficiencies that aren't addressed over the course of a month, or over the course of a year, or even the entire student's lifetime. It's a cultural thing. And there are many factors that play into what kind of a teaching/learning culture a band will have, what their goals are, what they're capable of achieving, what a teacher (or collectively "teachers") can pull out of them; all amounting to what they actually end up achieving.

 

The UT football team has years where they're in the top 1% and other years where they finish their season in the top 5% or top 10% of teams, but even if they had a bad day, they would never lose to a High School team. The kind of game they play and program they run enables them to indefinitely remain in that tier of ability.

 

It's the same for band. It would take a very serious transformation in the way L.D. Bell does things to ever create a situation to where they'd be in danger of getting a II at marching contest. I mean look at SFA.....one of the most massive staff turnovers we've ever seen and they can still make Finals at a BOA event. I saw and heard them at BOA Conroe. I thought they looked and sounded amazing....I wasn't aware of the staff changes so I already expected them to be great....I didn't see a show that I felt would be in the running to win it like I usually see from them....Though the bias I had was obviously greater than the judges....I expected a 4th-7th ranking....they ended up getting I think 9th?

 

You develop a good eye and ear from doing this on a daily basis (teaching). Your ear also gets really sharp when you're regularly critiquing a group that regularly plays at a very high level. My ears got way better playing with the Sam Houston State Wind Ensemble than the group I played with in High School (Georgetown) or in Junior College (Blinn). I started hearing things in concerts, the radio and even from people talking to me that I'd never heard before. That sharp sense that comes from doing things at a high level on an incessant basis dulls if you stop doing it daily or even weekly. I've noticed this having not been playing regularly with a full ensemble myself since I graduated college. This is why I think retired directors aren't as good a judge as some of these guys who are active in their 20th to 30th+ year of teaching who teach a top-tier band from early August through November in addition to working with a World Class Drum Corps from May to August and rigorously preparing a UIL concert music program from January to March/April. They lose that constant exposure that keeps them sharp when they retire. It's also the same reason why I have more faith in the eyes and ears of these judges than my own.

[vacon3`]

  takigan said:

Be careful with that logic. Not a single 1st place band from Area G has made finals in at least the past 20 years. Areas B, C, and D have consistently had the monopoly on 5A Finals placements for awhile, so bands from other Areas have to work extra hard to be represented.

 

Actually are F had 2 last time: Woodlands and spring, with Brazoswood placing 11th in prelims.

[Bartok]

  TxRaider13 said:

And here are your judges that have to make this call.....

I don't like the idea of out of state judges coming in for a UIL event, but if this is good enough for the UIL than it's good enough for me

 

 

Keath Bearden, Professor Emeritus - Texas Tech University

Caroline Beatty, Director of Bands - Texas State University

Thomas Caneva, Director of Bands - Ball State University, Muncie, IN

David Clemmer, Doctoral Candidate - University of Missouri-Kansas City

Andre Feagin, Director of Athletic Bands - University of Texas-El Paso

James Hudson, Director of Athletic Bands - Arizona State University

James Keene, Professor Emeritus - University of Illinois-Champaign

Monte Mast, Director of Fine Arts - Klein ISD

Tom Shine, Director of Bands, Retired - Duncanville High School

Steve Wessels, Director of Bands - Cedar Park High School

 

 

All of the out of state judges have taught in Texas before..

 

 

Thomas Caneva- Taught at UT for a few years

David Clemmer- Taught at UT-Arlington(Early 2000's), then Sam Houston State

James Hudson- Taught at Southwest Tx State(Now Texas State) for 11 years

James Keene- Taught at East Texas St (now A&M-Commerce)

 

My concern is that they all don't end up on one panel lol..

[Sousapwn10]

  Bartok said:

All of the out of state judges have taught in Texas before..

 

 

Thomas Caneva- Taught at UT for a few years

David Clemmer- Taught at UT-Arlington(Early 2000's), then Sam Houston State

James Hudson- Taught at Southwest Tx State(Now Texas State) for 11 years

James Keene- Taught at East Texas St (now A&M-Commerce)

 

My concern is that they all don't end up on one panel lol..

 

Have you seen Berkner?? Their show is NOTHING like it was at Denton. I feel like people are discounting them, because they are making predictions based off of their performance at Denton. In my opinion, they have potential for a top five spot.

 

This was for te general public not just to the person I replied to:p

Edited October 31, 2012 by Sousapwn10

[Szuzzah]

  Sousapwn10 said:

Have you seen Berkner?? Their show is NOTHING like it was at Denton. I feel like people are discounting them, because they are making predictions based off of their performance at Denton. In my opinion, they have potential for a top five spot.

 

This was for te general public not just to the person I replied to:p

I feel like you can say that for every band that performed in Denton, however. The weather really brought down the overall quality of performance, and just as Berkner has unquestionably improved over that time frame, so has everyone else.

[TXMarchingMadness87654]

  Szuzzah said:

I feel like you can say that for every band that performed in Denton, however. The weather really brought down the overall quality of performance, and just as Berkner has unquestionably improved over that time frame, so has everyone else.

 

100% agree. I'm pretty sure every band that was at Denton has since improved. Now, it's only left to see how much each band has improved, and that's what makes contests like UIL State and BOA SA so exciting and so incredibly impossible to predict.

[Sousapwn10]

  TXMarchingMadness87654 said:

100% agree. I'm pretty sure every band that was at Denton has since improved. Now, it's only left to see how much each band has improved, and that's what makes contests like UIL State and BOA SA so exciting and so incredibly impossible to predict.

Well, that's what I saying. But how many people actually would have put berkner on top of Area C? And I wouldn't be surprised to see MORE improvement from them. I dot think they will win. But if you have seen their program, you could see where I'm coming from.

[Donezo]

  Sousapwn10 said:

Well, that's what I saying. But how many people actually would have put berkner on top of Area C? And I wouldn't be surprised to see MORE improvement from them. I dot think they will win. But if you have seen their program, you could see where I'm coming from.

 

To be fair, they tied Rowlett for first and Coppell was one rank point away. There obviously was no consensus over who was the top band that night. But yes, they have done well and I expect a strong showing at State. I also wouldn't be surprised to see the Area C order mixed up in prelims (as it usually is.......it was actually reversed completely in 2010.)

[Sousapwn10]

  Donezo said:

To be fair, they tied Rowlett for first and Coppell was one rank point away. There obviously was no consensus over who was the top band that night. But yes, they have done well and I expect a strong showing at State. I also wouldn't be surprised to see the Area C order mixed up in prelims (as it usually is.......it was actually reversed completely in 2010.)

 

In all fairness, you're right. But I would honestly venture to say that Berkner is the best in Area C, even though the points were so close. And like I said, yes, some band have improved, but their show is absolutely nothing like it was, a new name and everything. It should be a great state year!

[~ME~]

  Sousapwn10 said:

In all fairness, you're right. But I would honestly venture to say that Berkner is the best in Area C, even though the points were so close.

 

 

 

Ehhh In my personal opinion Coppell and Duncanville are still the top 2 bands from that area. I think the difference is that Duncanville and Coppell execute their shows better musically, visually, and have a slighty better overall sound from an ensemble standpoint, while Berkner is better at being performers and giving the audience something really awesome to watch (although they still are one of the best bands musically in the state in my opinion. They're a wonderful band that I have always loved to watch). I can't speak for Rowlett as I have not seen their show yet, but kudos to them for doing so well! They have caught my attention for sure! I think all 4 of these bands have a serious shot at making finals at state and placing very highly in finals.

[Donezo]

If anyone's interested, here's Rowlett's area finals performance:

 

 

It's very strong and very clean. They could stand to be more musical, but I think they've got a shot.

 

They're not going to State, but here is North Mesquite from the same contest (came in 5th - 1st alternate):

 

http://gobigblueband.smugmug.com/Competiti...4&k=ZTbQm7t

 

I really love the show and I'm amazed at how much better they are than they ever have been. They could be one to watch in the future.

Edited October 31, 2012 by Donezo

[Drummantx]

Just saw a video of Berkner, they do sound REALLY good, not top music at BOA, but maybe a shot at top 4 or 5.

[rtrezza]

here is a much better video of Rowlett

[Drummantx]

  Drummantx said:

Just saw a video of Berkner, they do sound REALLY good, not top music at BOA, but maybe a shot at top 4 or 5.

 

Oops, meant State, not BOA.

[rtrezza]

  ~ME~ said:

Ehhh In my personal opinion Coppell and Duncanville are still the top 2 bands from that area. I think the difference is that Duncanville and Coppell execute their shows better musically, visually, and have a slighty better overall sound from an ensemble standpoint, while Berkner is better at being performers and giving the audience something really awesome to watch (although they still are one of the best bands musically in the state in my opinion. They're a wonderful band that I have always loved to watch). I can't speak for Rowlett as I have not seen their show yet, but kudos to them for doing so well! They have caught my attention for sure! I think all 4 of these bands have a serious shot at making finals at state and placing very highly in finals.

 

has that ever happened when every band advanced from an area made it to state finals? that would be awesome if it did happen

Edited November 1, 2012 by rtrezza

[Szuzzah]

  rtrezza said:

has that ever happened when every band advanced from an area made it to state finals? that would be awesome if it did happen

It happens pretty often, actually. Last year in 4A all 4 bands from area D were in state finals, taking 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 9th.

[FoobYen]

  Szuzzah said:

It happens pretty often, actually. Last year in 4A all 4 bands from area D were in state finals, taking 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 9th.

 

 

Amazingly, these four bands were not just from the same area but from the same district! Makes Friday night halftime pretty competitive!

[Star21]

I believe this year someone else will steal the top spot besides Marcus or LD Bell. Don't get me wrong, they are both great programs full of great kids, but they just both seem a little off to me this year. LD bEll seems like they still need to pull their show together and at the end I still have to take a second to be like, "Oh that was Bell, ok". And then with Marcus, I am just tired of their shows I guess. They are beautiful productions with immaculate marching and music usually, but I just don't really consider them marching shows anymore. They are more like plays. Just preference I guess. And there have been some bands nipping at their tails this year. Both CTJ and Hebron seem to be having really good years. So who knows. All it takes is one spectacular performance to rise to the top.

[mellopwn1]

  Star21 said:

All it takes is one spectacular performance to rise to the top.

 

Preach!

[Drummantx]

  mellopwn1 said:

Preach!

 

Amen!

 

Love the way that is put.