BOA Austin 2018

[justabandkid94]

I believe the kids would say “shook” in a situation like this.

 

Congrats to CTJ on another win.

 

Amazing job Vista Ridge.. how insane it is to continue to watch the Leander ISD bands grow and flourish. Very excited to see how the band does this year.

[A Testing Trumpet]

Round Rock in 10th  . That's kinda surprising. 

[LostChoirGuy]

More than a few surprising results today.  I can't wait to see the scoresheet breakdowns.

[Nny14]

 

Round Rock in 10th . That's kinda surprising.

They completely deserved it. I'm not sure what they're doing there anymore, but they've definitely lost it.

[justabandkid94]

sometimes it’s just better to not comment at all

[bandperson1997]

11. Pflugerville 

12. Carroll Senior

13. Westwood (received a .5 penalty that put them under Carroll Sr.)

14. Rouse

15. Lake Travis

[principalagent]

Yikes at these recaps. Judges were largely just not agreeing with each other in either round. Or maybe they were truly calling balls and strikes. Who knows?

 

Actually on second look, the judges seem pretty set on the top three today. And finals is pretty well contained. But past that, all bets were off.

[bandperson1997]

Glad to see that Pflugerville placed so high after a couple seasons of low teen placings at BOA Austin!

[LostChoirGuy]

That Pflugerville placement is surprising to me.  I was perhaps a bit too distracted by their cheesy voice recordings talking about blueprints to take them seriously.

[LeanderMomma]

I was so tired I had to get on home before full retreat, but can I just say VISTA RIDGE KILLED IT TONIGHT!!!!

[principalagent]

I was so tired I had to get on home before full retreat, but can I just say VISTA RIDGE KILLED IT TONIGHT!!!!

YESSSSSSS! San Antonio finals for sure! A lock for State Finals too. I can honestly see them in the top half of both if they keep pushing. 

[A Testing Trumpet]

Round Rock's students have done amazing work, and should be proud of what they have achieved today. Comparing them to the past is not relevant because because they are not that band, they have a new uniform and a new identity. One could look at this and say that they have regressed, or see it as a symptom of a change in the program's direction; and I think when they have had more time to mature with this new direction they could be better then they have ever been. It's only late September, and their is still plenty of time in the season for them to mature. Personally, I'm proud of them tonight for trying something new  .

[LeanderMomma]

YESSSSSSS! San Antonio finals for sure! A lock for State Finals too. I can honestly see them in the top half of both if they keep pushing.

I truly had them medaling in my personal predictions after finals tonight. They deserved it. They were simply phenomenal.

[LostChoirGuy]

Cedar Park was in 10th place going into finals.  That's interesting.

[Samuel Culper]

Yep. Like I said: Vista is going to surprise some folks this year.

[principalagent]

Cedar Park was in 10th place going into finals.  That's interesting.

That is 100% believable, unfortunately. Well. In this crowd I would have had them 9th or maybe 8th. But not top five.

[Nny14]

 

Round Rock's students have done amazing work, and should be proud of what they have achieved today. Comparing them to the past is not relevant because because they are not that band, they have a new uniform and a new identity. One could look at this and say that they have regressed, or see it as a symptom of a change in the program's direction; and I think when they have had more time to mature with this new direction they could be better then they have ever been. It's only late September, and their is still plenty of time in the season for them to mature. Personally, I'm proud of them tonight for trying something new .

You're right, the lost it part was rude of me and I apologize. It's hard for me to not have expectations from when I went there. On a more positive note I know this will motivate them to improve rather than stagnate like previous seasons. Can't wait for area.

[Omega]

Let’s not discount this though: Cedar Park came out in finals and did that thing where they just shoot up under the lights. 10th in Prelims is unexpected but shooting up to 6th in finals is impressive nonetheless.

[LKendrick]

I’m so happy for Vista Ridge.

[PLC137]

I’m so happy for Vista Ridge.

 

Yes, me too, because it gets demoralizing for the kids trying so hard but always placing behind the same three Leander ISD bands and the only other city of Cedar Park band.  There is a lot of overlap in the neighborhoods and many of these kids from different schools know each other.  

 

More selfishly, I have two kids in the VR band and it was particularly great for my senior to get to enjoy a caption award and at least one time placing among the marquee schools before he graduates!  

[inmysights31]

Some of my thoughts if you want to read them.

 

1. I am quite surprised by Round Rock’s placement tonight. I would definitely not had them in 10th.

 

2. To me Bowie’s placement was shocking. Don’t get me wrong. All of the finalists were great, but I probably would have had them in either 9th or 10th. There show just wasn’t really doing it for me.

 

3. Given Cedar parks preliminary performance I am stunned they made it into the 6th spot in finals. They have improved a lot from two weeks ago and their show is much more cohesive, but the Cedar Park Winds, on of my favorite H.S. sections ever, just didn’t sound that great compared to everyone else tonight. I would have probably had them in the 8th spot.

 

4. Winston Churchill in my opinion was ok tonight. It looked like they gave it their all. However, they just lacked that little extra to push them into a higher placement.

 

5. I really liked Hendrickson tonight! There show was refreshing and I thought the voiceovers were a nice touch. Also, that featured soloist was amazing playing Rhapsody in Blue!

 

6. Cedar Ridge was really impressive! In my opinion, they had one of the best wind sections of the night, despite being half the size of some of the other finalists. In addition, the vocalist was nails and added a lot to the program. Well done Vesar ridge! I really thought they would be in the 4th or 5th spot.

 

7. Vista Ridge has a solid production for sure. The brass and soloist were solid. The visual package was ok, and yes, the marching was outstanding. I am so happy for them tonight!

 

8. Wow what can I say? Vandegrift blew me away again this year! The show was well put together and fluid. The winds just play and march like robots with an outstanding pit and drum line to back them up. I’m pretty surprised though that they didn’t take home the silver medal tonight.

 

9. HELLLLLOOOOO LEANDER! There has been so much improvement from last year to this year. The show concept is really nice and the brass in particular just plays unapologeticly. Plus the new unis looked great tonight. I would definitely look out for them in the future...

 

10. What else can I say other than we all saw it coming. CTJ wins it again. The show was engaging and emotional. The voiceovers helped guide the audience through while the winds played the crap out of the book. Not to mention the visual package for this show looked pretty demanding at times. Lastly, the props just set a perfect backdrop for this program. I honestly don’t know if this show once cleaned can be topped.

 

MY UNOFFICIAL placements for tonight

 

1. Claudia Taylor Johnson

2. Vandegrift

3. Leander

4.Cedar Ridge

5.Vista Ridge

6. Hendrickson

7. Round Rock

8. Cedar Park

9.James Bowie

10. Winston Churchill

Music: CTJ

Visual: Vandegrift

GE: CTJ

[whitewing09]

I think BOA Austin made it very clear it’s a State year.

 

Cedar Ridge had this weird pattern of returning to two spots on the field during sectional features and impact. While this is good for their amazing musical book, it is very restrictive for their visual package.

 

Vandegrift’s musical book is amazing, which is the reason why I was more shocked at CTJ taking music than Vandy taking GE. However, their visual book is very textbook UIL. It’s something to clean, but not necessarily convey a story.

 

Round Rock’s show reminded me of 2016 where they had all the aesthetics in place, but the show is more geared towards showcasing strengths of the band than telling an intricate story.

 

Hendrickson and Bowie were nice surprises. They were also very aesthetically pleasing and their musical books allows then to really showcase their talents in a fun way, but they don’t make it so obviously that they’re catering their show to UIL.

 

I’d say the three UIL 6a shows that didn’t seem to concerned about UIL are Leander, vista, and CTJ. They are all performing very well, but their shows take a lot more risks. I think those risk are going to pay off in both BOA and UIL!

 

Can’t leave CP out. I didn’t get to see the prelims performance that apparently was very weak for them. They impressed me a lot in finals. Their show sounds hard. I always hear little nuances in their show and say, “wow that’s very difficult and pulled off with finesse, nice.” Last night their show sounded blatantly difficult. I was impressed.

 

Churchill: I don’t really know what to say. Nothing really stood out to me like the other bands. I guess they good at being dependable?

[jmj]

my favorite things....

-The power of Vandegrift!! Jaw on floor at the depth of sound as well as the flute craziness in Concerto for Orchestra.

-Leander being back! So much more demand while on the move than previous years. The ballad is also simply gorgeous. What a treat to hear Nino Rota’s Romeo & Juliet on the field and so clever to use it to help convey the polarity theme. Outstanding guard.

-I love Cedar Park’s fun shows that hit me over the head with the theme. Light years better from prelims to finals. The Euphonium battle was sensational as was the Can Can and the nicely done block drill during. Also seemed to be bringing a little more volume than last year, I thought.

-Vista Ridge’s new arrival! Even though they have been amazing forever, this just felt next level. Wow Wow Wow! I love the idea of using the spinning compass as a showcase for soloists and cool visual moments like when the whole cymbal line was up there. Incredible soloists! It just felt so fresh and interesting. Visually, the individual performers are so committed to incredible fundamentals which elevated the whole production even more.

-Hendrickson’s blue soloist - amazing player AND actor, as well! And you’ve got me hooked if you play Blue Rondo ala Turk on the field! Introducing high schoolers to Dave Brubeck’s music warms my heart!

-Cedar Ridge - Kashmir on the field with lovely vocal solo - yes!!! Polovtsian Dances - yes!!!! I thought it was beautiful and accessible in both theme and musical selections. Also the double (or triple?!) tonguing brass in Sabre Dance was on fire!

-The CTJ trombones are probably the section of the day - bringing the power and the beauty!

 

Overall, fantastic day of band!

[Hard Core Band Fan]

You're right, the lost it part was rude of me and I apologize. It's hard for me to not have expectations from when I went there. On a more positive note I know this will motivate them to improve rather than stagnate like previous seasons. Can't wait for area.

 

You have a right to express your frustrations with a program that you were once in. There is obviously something different going on now. They were 3rd just last year here with a 81.95 and are last this year with a 73.55. Whether this is acceptable to this year's directors and band is yet to be seen. You don't need to apologize for being honest.

[Hard Core Band Fan]

Round Rock's students have done amazing work, and should be proud of what they have achieved today. Comparing them to the past is not relevant because because they are not that band, they have a new uniform and a new identity. One could look at this and say that they have regressed, or see it as a symptom of a change in the program's direction; and I think when they have had more time to mature with this new direction they could be better then they have ever been. It's only late September, and their is still plenty of time in the season for them to mature. Personally, I'm proud of them tonight for trying something new  .

 

You have the right to be happy with what they are doing now, if you so choose. If someone else that was also in your band is not happy with it, that is also their right.