vacon3` Posted September 26, 2013 Posted September 26, 2013 how about the crazy competitive lineup for Conroe? Quote
~ME~ Posted September 26, 2013 Posted September 26, 2013 The competition for 1st place and for the captions will be crazy. I think there's four bands that could potentially place first: The Woodlands, CTJ, Hebron, and Cedar Park. I'm expecting The Woodlands to win, but these early season competitions can be so unpredictable that it will all depend on where each band is at progress-wise at that point of the season. Just for giggles though, I'll give my thoughts on all four bands based on recent years: The Woodlands: Again, I don't think it will be much of a surprise to anyone if they win. They are a fantastic well-rounded band, and BOA is where they especially thrive. They've medaled at BOA San Antonio countless times, and they usually a strong early season band. Their show this year looks pretty difficult as always, but I'm sure they will be able to handle it. They are certainly the favorite to win in my opinion. Cedar Park/ Hebron: Has anyone ever noticed how similar these two bands are? It's kind of scary when you think about it! The entire reason I put these two together is because I have the exact same thing to say about both of them! I think they both have a good shot at taking the music caption from The Woodlands. Musically and execution-wise, these are two of the best bands in the state, and they both have a UIL state marching contest medal to prove it. But especially in the BOA setting, music is the only caption I see either of these bands potentially topping The Woodlands in, so I would be a little surprised if either of these bands won the whole thing. CTJ: Man! This band has made so much progress in such little time that it really is impressive! They've gone from being "that other band that Reagan split into" to really developing their own identity in just a few short years. They really have become an awesome band! I expect them to have a another successful season like the previous two years. Since they are still pretty new, it's especially hard to even try to predict how exactly how they'll do (which is almost impossible to do for any band anyways). I think they have a shot at the general effect caption, but I don't think they'll be able to top the other three bands musically, and I think The Woodlands will probably have the Visual caption locked down. Or maybe they'll sweep all the captions and win the whole thing! Who knows? But of course, all of these little guesses and predictions could very well be proved wrong when the competition is over and done. It will be an interesting one! Can't wait! Islababe 1 Quote
Rubisco Posted September 27, 2013 Posted September 27, 2013 At this point, I've at least seen or heard a little something from each of the 1st place contenders (except for Reagan, who placed 2nd last year). I don't think Conroe will be as one-sided this year as it was last year, though I didn't think it would be one-sided last year, either, until I saw The Woodlands in prelims, and then it was pretty obvious who was going to win. Anyway, based on the fabulous videos of Cedar Park on YouTube, I think their show is typically strong musically and probably par for the course visually, but I don't think GE will pan out in their favor. (It's a UIL state year for them anyway.) I've only heard Hebron's music, so for me Hebron's a real wild card. They play wonderfully, but then again, so do their top competition. Claudia Taylor Johnson's show has some of the same rousing pop flair as last year. They play powerfully and sound really, really good doing it. Visually, it ain't bad either. For me, they're a contender for first place if The Woodlands hasn't improved much since that video I saw of them from mid-September (though in TW's defense, the video was from backfield and was pretty dreadfully recorded in general). Anyway, yeah, so for me it'll probably come down to CTJ or The Woodlands. If The Woodlands has reached a reasonable level of cleanliness, they'll win. If The Woodlands is still kind of a mess, CTJ will probably win. Late season, though, based on what I've seen and heard, I don't think the hierarchy will change much. The Woodlands will add something like 10+ points to their early season score like they always do (in 2006, it was 17 points) and will probably place first or second when San Antonio rolls around. The show design is just really, really elegant. With the shuffling around of those railroad crossing gates, I'm expecting some really clever visual stuff reminscent of their '06 and '07 shows. And really, at this early stage, I'm just looking for late season potential, which TW appears to have in abundance. Then again, there's always room for surprises. Janeolea 1 Quote
Rubisco Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 My, what a difference a reasonably good video makes! This show is marvelously, marvelously strange, and in parts, like the entire opener, unfreaking real. I'd be surprised if anyone in Texas other than Marcus beats them this year, and who knows if that will even happen. It's clearly not finished, and clearly not clean yet, but holy crap the music and the effect are through the roof. I do think that certain sections could use some musical extension, particularly the ballad, which seems to come and go a little too fast (i.e. parts need more breathing room), but it's sort of a minor quibble in a show that isn't done yet and probably will be modified as the season progresses. But yeah, I think they'll win Conroe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJVGcwqEVVc justabandkid94 1 Quote
Rubisco Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 I should qualify my "breathing room" statement. I think the very last hit of the ballad needs to be extended a little bit. Even just the last chord. The rest is fine. (Obviously, I'm sort of nitpicking. Hahaha...) Quote
Rubisco Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 I don't know if anyone has posted this yet, either. Enjoy it while it's up! Quote
~ME~ Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 0_0 OH. MY. GOODNESS. GRACIOUS. Yeah I agree, they're definitely going to win Conroe! What an amazing show! That opener is INSANE, and the last little closer tid bit was GE OVERLOAD. I'm gonna go watch that again now... Quote
~ME~ Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 ^That was in response to The Woodlands video by the way. And CTJ is awesome as well... This is going to be an awesome, AWESOME season! Quote
mellopwn1 Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 The Woodlands has GE on lock, even at this point. They look BIG, and the guard looks larger and all around BETTER than it has for many years. The only thing that can keep the win from TW next week is cleanliness, but they still have a week to clean up. Marcus has the refinement. Avon has the power and the velocity. The Woodlands has a healthy combination of the two. Nationals cannot come soon enough. Quote
Rubisco Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 I'm just really, really happy with the scope of The Woodlands' show. They're using much more of the field than usual, and like you mentioned, the guard is just so much larger and so much better than it has been in years. It makes the guards from their 2008 and 2009 shows seem like a bad dream. Also, they appear to be taking pointers from some of their nearest competitors, like Broken Arrow, Avon, and Marcus, but while retaining their own flavor. I'm just very excited for them right now. They're going to have a fabulous season. Now I'm just waiting to blown away by Marcus! kmarimba 1 Quote
Rubisco Posted September 28, 2013 Posted September 28, 2013 Different Trains by Steve Reich. That's at least what the mallet percussion in TW's show is playing. It sounded like Steve Reich, so I looked up Steve Reich and trains on YouTube. Hahahaha... They're combining it with something else like they always do. Need to figure that out. On a side note, Steve Reich seems to combine well with other music, like when LD Bell did his stuff with Pan's Labyrinth music back in '07. That was a super cool intro, especially with that folding box drill. Quote
Nosagi Posted September 29, 2013 Posted September 29, 2013 On 9/28/2013 at 11:45 PM, Rubisco said: Different Trains by Steve Reich. That's at least what the mallet percussion in TW's show is playing. It sounded like Steve Reich, so I looked up Steve Reich and trains on YouTube. Hahahaha... They're combining it with something else like they always do. Need to figure that out. On a side note, Steve Reich seems to combine well with other music, like when LD Bell did his stuff with Pan's Labyrinth music back in '07. That was a super cool intro, especially with that folding box drill. I do believe I also hear Philip Glass, specifically "Heros" Quote
Rubisco Posted September 29, 2013 Posted September 29, 2013 There's definitely Symphony No. 4, "Heroes" mvmnt. VI in the opener. I still don't know what that brass fanfare stuff is, though. It also sounds minimalistic. Oh, figuring out this stuff drives me crazy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBXAS6ryR9o Quote
justabandkid94 Posted September 29, 2013 Posted September 29, 2013 Aram Khachaturian.... Symphony 3? I think I read that somewhere. Positive about the composer, Not sure about the symphony # This show is going to be something else in November Quote
Rubisco Posted September 29, 2013 Posted September 29, 2013 Oh, man. Lots of really, really strong shows this year. Many groups seem to be coming into their own both in design and in performance. Hebron's show is absolutely wonderful (and super colorful!). This could be breakout year #2 for them. Top three at Conroe is a very, very strong possibility. I might even prefer this show to CTJ's, which is a super compliment, but I haven't seen enough CTJ to really make that judgment. (That's what BOA on-demand is for!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxDSTbWYIFE Quote
~ME~ Posted September 30, 2013 Posted September 30, 2013 Geez... Conroe is going to be an incredible display of talent and show design. I can't believe those videos of The Woodlands, CTJ, and Hebron are EARLY SEASON... I can't WAIT for Conroe! I just can't! Quote
Statebound Posted October 2, 2013 Posted October 2, 2013 Thanks to everyone for posting the videos. I think we'll learn a bunch from BOA Houston this weekend. Woodlands, Cedar Park, CTJ, Hebron and Flower Mound for starters. The Woodlands always play well in the BOA format and I'll make them the early favorite based on the videos. I would normally put CTJ ahead of Hebron in BOA competitions but the Hebron show looks interesting and a little more BOA friendly than normal for them. It seems like the Hebron shows typically have really strong ballads and woodwinds where the CTJ shows have big everything with a pop culture hook (fantastic Coldplay theme last year). I'm really excited for this weekend. Has anyone seen Flower Mound yet? They've quickly become one of my favorites. I still can't believe their "Big Top" show didn't make state last year. fleitmanguard 1 Quote
takigan Posted October 5, 2013 Posted October 5, 2013 I will be Liveblogging this contest all day, as I have the past few years.live.txbands.com Quote
Jackson1 Posted October 5, 2013 Posted October 5, 2013 Wow! Looks like a tight competition for making the finals. Brandon is doing a great job!! Quote
whitewing09 Posted October 5, 2013 Posted October 5, 2013 So it looks like Cedar Ridge beat out Hebron and Reagan for the 3rd place spot in prelims! It'll be interesting to see how finals will pan out! baritonegod44 1 Quote
Nosagi Posted October 5, 2013 Posted October 5, 2013 Initial thoughts: I was convinced CTJ won the class after they took the performance captions, so when CTJ was announced 2nd, I was reasonably shocked. To be honest, I loved CTJ's contortionists, it felt like I was watching Cirque Du Soli (that's misspelled), but I found myself spending 90% of my attention on the 4 performers, causing me to miss a lot of the band action. In my opinion they should tone it down a little because the audience may have a hard time focusing on the band at all. Quick disclaimer: I've never considered myself a traditionalist, and I've always advocated new and creative ideas on the field, and what they are doing is jaw dropping, but it felt like just a bit too much. The Woodlands was way beyond my expectations, the drum break was through the rough and I loved the W at the end. I know the show isn't quite finished yet, but (pardon me) darn, THAT GE! It must've been exceptionally close between 1 and 2. Cedar Park was loud, fast and in your face from the beginning, after the first 30 seconds I was positive they won 3a. Cool ending with jumping off guard members. Reagan has a dark, creepy show again, which is great because I love Reagan's dark shows. A bit disappointed they missed out on 3rd but not surprised, because... Cedar Ridge! Wow! In with the big boys! This band only gets better, and I can't wait to see them at Nats! (They're still going right? Please tell me they are!) Flower Mound, loved the white everything, musical selection is straight off of my iPod, I am convinced this show was made for me. Great use of columns as props, and I'm not usually a fan of columns. That's all I can remember for now. Quote
Jackson1 Posted October 5, 2013 Posted October 5, 2013 Comment From Guest Finals Schedule 7:45 - The Woodlands College Park H.S., TX 8:00 - James E. Taylor H.S., TX 8:15 - Winston Churchill H.S., TX 8:30 - Flower Mound H.S., TX 8:45 - Ronald Reagan H.S., TX 9:00 - Cedar Ridge H.S., TX 9:15 - Claudia Taylor Johnson H.S., TX 9:30 - Cedar Park H.S., TX 9:45 - The Woodlands H.S., TX 10:00 - Hebron H.S., TX 10:15 - Ex: Waller H.S., TX Quote
Jackson1 Posted October 6, 2013 Posted October 6, 2013 Sorry, new to this. How do we know Cedar Ridge beat out Hebron and Reagan for third? I thought the draw was random. 10 thru 6 and 1 thru 5? Are scores posted somewhere? Quote
Nosagi Posted October 6, 2013 Posted October 6, 2013 They were 3rd in class 4a, they announce top three out of every class. For 4a, it was: 1. The Woodlands 2. CTJ 3. Cedar Ridge. We don't know the placements of any other 4a band. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.