2021 Texas Marching Classic (Oct. 9)

[BandFan59]

It looks like Vandegrift is the band to beat at the moment for San Antonio with Flower Mound not attending this year.

[MikeKyu]

Yeah, Vandy now has the "To be the man, you gotta beat the man" vibe rolling. They put on one heck of a finals performance. 

BOA SA is going to be a dogfight between Vandy, Reagan, The Woodlands, and Hebron. 

[VandyBandyFandy]

6 hours ago, gregorydf01 said:

According to the LiveBlog posts Vandegrift takes 4 out of 5 captions and comes in 2nd?   Not sure how that happens?

 

I heard we received a penalty, but that is absolutely just a rumor, don't know if it's true.

[itsjaredh97]

Another great competition in the books! Here are a few of my takeaways and thoughts after watching finals:

1. Vandy is coming for state. Clean in every aspect. Amazing product and love the ballad. Well deserved win tonight.

2. Reagan surprised me a little bit. Was blown away with their sounds and visual consistency but I wasn't hit with the same effect as I was in 2019. This very well might be because of the high expectations I had for them, as Secret World was on another level of amazing but they still had a very impressive show. Also shoutout to their parents who took over the KRAC during their performance.

3. CTJ was my personal favorite and was a clear crowd favorite; had whole stadium on their feet. Their brass is incredible and they have a incredibly visually challenging show that will only get cleaner. 

4. Cedar Park is back.

5. Did someone say size down? I don't think Leander cares. They sounded amazing and were so powerful and balanced even with the smaller numbers. Happy for my friends over there.

6. Hendrickson has my vote for most improved band of this contest. They cleaned up a lot of things musically and it had a big impact on the field. Loved the props and the way they were utilized throughout the show. Excited to see how they do at state after their reclassification.


These are just my opinions, I am just a kid who goes and enjoys these competitions like everyone else. Go band!

[Rubisco]

Full point between Vandegrift and Reagan is maybe a little excessive, but no major complaints from me. We'll see what the judges think when San Antonio rolls around. I think the spreads are close enough that things could change later in the season. CTJ and Reagan are right next to each other, for sure, so that will be interesting to keep an eye on.

[Rubisco]

It's also probably important to mention that GE at this contest is only 40%, according to the Texas Marching Classic website. So, the weighting is a bit different compared to a BOA contest.

[lost]

Recaps are out, haven’t had a chance to look at them fully but something I noticed really quickly was Cedar Park above CTJ in prelims (albeit by 0.137)

[Bandmomoftexas]

2 hours ago, lost said:

Recaps are out, haven’t had a chance to look at them fully but something I noticed really quickly was Cedar Park above CTJ in prelims (albeit by 0.137)

  Cedar Park was amazing and has a brilliant and wonderfully executed show.  But to be fair to CTJ they had electrical problems and performed their entire prelims show without most of their front ensemble...with some of the drill and choreography performed in complete silence.  

 

[CTJBandPops]

13 minutes ago, Bandmomoftexas said:

  Cedar Park was amazing and has a brilliant and wonderfully executed show.  But to be fair to CTJ they had electrical problems and performed their entire prelims show without most of their front ensemble...with some of the drill and choreography performed in complete silence.  

 

and yet one of the judges had them in 4th in prelims and the same 4th in finals in a different music caption even though prelims has no piano's or pit in a show that is about dueling Piano's 

[Bandmomoftexas]

very interesting

 

[Josegjr]

Great competition yesterday. I have been so upset though after a few events transpired after the competition. When the finalist bands were in the parking lot a few kids from those bands called the JBA kids “F beaners”. Myself nor do the kids know because all the finalists bands were walking by. It’s a really sad thing to hear especially after all of us in the stadium were there to enjoy and stood up to clap after every finalist performance. Nobody deserves to have any racial slur said to them! I hope everyone on here knows how incredibly disgusted I am to hear this! We as a band community already face some bullying and then to hear this from within our own community is disappointing. I hope everyone sees just how wrong this is and I hope we find out who it was and an apology is made. Because who ever those kids were, you’re representing an organization and I’m sure no organization on here condones that kind of behavior. 

[SoundOff]

2 minutes ago, Josegjr said:

Great competition yesterday. I have been so upset though after a few events transpired after the competition. When the finalist bands were in the parking lot a few kids from those bands called the JBA kids “F beaners”. Myself nor do the kids know because all the finalists bands were walking by. It’s a really sad thing to hear especially after all of us in the stadium were there to enjoy and stood up to clap after every finalist performance. Nobody deserves to have any racial slur said to them! I hope everyone on here knows how incredibly disgusted I am to hear this! We as a band community already face some bullying and then to hear this from within our own community is disappointing. I hope everyone sees just how wrong this is and I hope we find out who it was and an apology is made. Because who ever those kids were, you’re representing an organization and I’m sure no organization on here condones that kind of behavior. 

One thing about these bands that are uprising is they will stop at nothing to reach success. It really upsets me that they were making these slurs when all JBA did was support every single band. They shared almost every band on the field via Instagram story and cheered them on. Why can’t our kids show unconditional love and support for each other regardless of where they come from? What a sick world we live in…JBA and the rest of the bands there did amazing. JBA is scaring other programs, there’s a reason why they don’t want them competing with the big dogs. Their staff is phenomenal, they do not care about any negativity and frankly they shouldn’t. They have proven to be extremely successful. Congratulations to all bands…let’s put a stop to this non-sense.  

[Danpod]

Hello folks!!! 

First of all, I want to say thank you to everyone who tuned in to the Live Blog for the Texas Marching Classic yesterday!  We experienced some of the highest viewership ever which is incredible considering that the blog was its own separate link away from our BOA coverage!  You all made that happen and I am over the Moon!  Thank you!!!!

Let me address some things that happened yesterday:

- The reason for the long delay for Prelims results was because there was an issue with the tabulation software.  All numbers were correct so nothing was compromised.  The software wasn't spitting out recaps like it was supposed to so that's why we had to wait for a bit for results.  I know this because I was in the room!!!  I then left the room because fajitas were being served in the Press Box.  YUM!!!

- As far as I am aware, NO ONE was disqualified from yesterday's event.  Everyone who performed is on the recap sheets and no penalties appear on the recap sheets.  To start publicly throwing out rumors like this is incredibly damaging and irresponsible.  If it continues, I'll start removing accounts.
 
- Comments for the Live Blog now have to be approved before they appear publicly.  After Prelims results, a few people could not handle what was announced and decided to chime in with colorful language.  I'm not down with that.  

- I saw amazing acts of sportsmanship between the programs yesterday!!!  It hurts to hear that a few outliers may have conducted themselves in a less than mature fashion.  Hateful language has absolutely no place on this website and this activity.  It's all love here.  

I'll talk more about the contest on my Cherry On TMC episode which will come out later this week.  Until then, please take care of yourselves

[LeanderMomma]

This contest was simply epic. I just got home a little while ago from my 9 hour drive back from Austin and I just wanted to share a few of my own observations. 

• Vandegrift. I often get gut feelings about things, and after seeing all of prelims yesterday, I was absolutely convinced that Vandegrift was the winner of this contest. They just have something really special happening right now, and they totally blew me away with this incredible show. I’m glad the judges agreed with me. 
• Reagan. I sure was excited to finally get to see this show live, and it didn’t disappoint. While I can sort of see what some of you are saying about it seeming like a regeneration of 2019, I think some of that is just because all of their shows have a similar feel to them. And I think it’s really an amazing thing that they are doing at Ronald Reagan high school, and I have no complaints about them continuing to do these types of shows. If it ain’t broke, why fix it?
• Claudia Taylor Johnson. This year’s show is such a great example of what CTJ does so very well and why this formula works for them. They are truly a “Broadway show” style high school band and they do that style exceptionally well.  And even when they have disastrous electronics issues, (or a massive prop in the wrong place), this incredible group of students just knows how to perform the HECK out of a show no matter what. I am just flabbergasted at their ability to adjust on the fly. And dang it, I just really like this show!
• Cedar Park. Wow…the improvement in the band and in the guard since their disappointing 2019 BOA season is just phenomenal. I absolutely felt like they deserved fourth place right behind the Big 3 yesterday, and I can totally see another 5A state championship in their near future. Great job by the Timberwolf Band! This show is superb!
• Leander.  So much improvement in the last few weeks. This show has really grown into a real favorite of mine!  And I love what a happy “feel good” production it is. And that ballad absolutely makes me weak!  It’s just a fantastic show and I know it will only get better.  I can’t wait to see it in the Alamodome at the Super Regional!
• Rouse. I really feel so proud of these kids and I love how they are neck and neck with Leander and Cedar Park at every contest these days. What on earth will happen at state?!  I predict a 5A medal of some sort for this incredible band. Gold?  Silver?  Neither would surprise me anymore. What a fantastic group of kids!
• Bowie. Again, so much improvement from these kids. I loved seeing them do well here yesterday. I know the future is bright for the Bowie HS band and they are resilient. They’ll always be a personal favorite of mine. 
• Hendrickson. Wow, wow, wow this show is night and day better than it was a few weeks ago. And speaking of night, did you see all those cool lights on the arches?!  What a fun show!  Hendrickson is back, baby, I can just feel it!
• Weiss. Can’t get enough of this over the top production by the incredible Weiss band!  I hope they’ll add a little more to it before San Antonio because it feels a little short, but maybe that’s just because I didn’t want it to end??
• Brandeis. I was so happy to see the Brandeis band at this contest and for them to make finals!  I bet we will continue to hear more about this great band in the coming years. I’m so happy we keep getting more San Antonio bands at this great contest. Now JP Stevens just needs to come back!
• Georgetown. Another super fun (and electrifying ?) show by the Eagle Band!  And those new uniforms under the lights last night were just stunning!!  I really do enjoy this band so much and I always look forward to seeing what they’re doing every season. Just truly a great band who obviously enjoys performing incredibly entertaining shows!  
• John B Alexander.  I’ve been so excited to see this show ever since I heard they were making the trip to Austin!  And I was absolutely thrilled when they made finals!  I know they weren’t expecting that, and the kids were just so happy to be there. The ‘Are We Alone?’ show is just so good and so typically JBA. They really do shows that make you think, although this one is definitely a more lighthearted approach than past years. I really enjoyed it!

On another note, I was invited to spend some time with the JB Alexander band students last night and I was just so thrilled to do so!  The students there just have an incredible desire to learn and grow from watching bands like Reagan and Vandegrift and CTJ, and that was one of the biggest reasons that they attended this contest. I loved sitting with them as they watched and were amazed by the performances they saw from these three bands.  I wish you all could have heard their enthusiasm and respect for these amazing groups, and I truly do hope that any students who are fortunate enough to be part of a program like Vandy, Reagan and CTJ truly appreciate the status they have achieved and that they don’t ever take it for granted. Success like that also comes with responsibility, and I do hope the students in these programs, and others like them, know just how much they are being looked up to and that they don’t take that lightly.  And if you aren’t fortunate enough to be a part of a band like one of these, then maybe consider what you can do to improve the success of the program you are affiliated with. Practicing your instrument and your technique every single day is a start. Being a positive influence on the other students in your program is another. Encouraging your directors to take you to contests where you can witness what the truly successful bands are doing is yet another. Everyone has to start somewhere and no program becomes highly successful by chance. I love that the JB Alexander band is such a great example of what it’s like to be both humble and grateful for what they have, yet always yearning to learn everything they can in order to become a program that is as successful as those mentioned above.  May we ALL remember to be humble and grateful every single day for the blessings we’ve been given, and to never take those for granted. 
 

 

 

[LeanderMomma]

22 hours ago, Rubisco said:

Full point between Vandegrift and Reagan is maybe a little excessive, but no major complaints from me. We'll see what the judges think when San Antonio rolls around. I think the spreads are close enough that things could change later in the season. CTJ and Reagan are right next to each other, for sure, so that will be interesting to keep an eye on.

But were you THERE?!?!  ???

[Rubisco]

59 minutes ago, LeanderMomma said:

But were you THERE?!?!  ???

Nope! Definitely not! But I'll take your word for it. There's no substitute for being there!

[LeanderMomma]

6 minutes ago, Rubisco said:

Nope! Definitely not! But I'll take your word for it. There's no substitute for being there!

Definitely take my word for it. Vandegrift was ?!

[lost]

This was a very good contest. Congratulations to all performing bands.

 

I would like to repeat what everyone has already said. Don’t spread random rumors especially when they’re totally wrong and with topics as heavy as disqualification. Students do read these boards and that can have negative effects. 
 

I feel awful for those JBA kids and I hope the students responsible for those comments are held responsible. They didn’t have to travel to Austin but they did and they did great and behaved very responsibly, nobody deserves those comments and especially not the JBA students. 
 

Congratulations to all finalists and a special congratulations to the first few bands out. McNeil almost cracked finals and they’ve been improving immensely. I think we should recognize their work along with Belton who also came quite close.

 

[FaultLineBlues]

5 hours ago, Josegjr said:

Great competition yesterday. I have been so upset though after a few events transpired after the competition. When the finalist bands were in the parking lot a few kids from those bands called the JBA kids “F beaners”. Myself nor do the kids know because all the finalists bands were walking by. It’s a really sad thing to hear especially after all of us in the stadium were there to enjoy and stood up to clap after every finalist performance. Nobody deserves to have any racial slur said to them! I hope everyone on here knows how incredibly disgusted I am to hear this! We as a band community already face some bullying and then to hear this from within our own community is disappointing. I hope everyone sees just how wrong this is and I hope we find out who it was and an apology is made. Because who ever those kids were, you’re representing an organization and I’m sure no organization on here condones that kind of behavior. 

Unbelievably disappointed to hear this. JBA was easily one of the most entertaining shows of the night, and heck even if it wasn't, NO ONE deserves that kind of treatment. Make my blood boil to know that they got away with this. 

[natertater21000]

A really interesting data point from this contest that I don't know if anyone has mentioned yet, is that Leander, Cedar Park, and Reagan all tied for third in music. Really cool to see just how many groups are achieving high marks in music regardless of design or marching ability. 

[BandFan95]

Being called beaner is nothing new. I remember when I was in high school (big 5A school from the Valley when 5A was the biggest thing) and we were called beaners by San Antonio Taft football and band members. It happened to me..it wasn't a rumor, I was the victim. Biggest difference was that we were expecting it because our band director warned us. We took it in stride. Its now 30 years later and people still say stupid stuff all of the time. People talk crap about you when they are afraid of you. JBA is coming now becoming a powerhouse band, along with Roma. Expect trash ignorant talk from idiots who don't know any better. And, when its all said and done, feel sorry for ignorant people. At the end of the day, it's their loss and their ignorance that will catch up to them.

 

 

[Hard Core Band Fan]

22 minutes ago, BandFan95 said:

Being called beaner is nothing new. I remember when I was in high school (big 5A school from the Valley when 5A was the biggest thing) and we were called beaners by San Antonio Taft football and band members. It happened to me..it wasn't a rumor, I was the victim. Biggest difference was that we were expecting it because our band director warned us. We took it in stride. Its now 30 years later and people still say stupid stuff all of the time. People talk crap about you when they are afraid of you. JBA is coming now becoming a powerhouse band, along with Roma. Expect trash ignorant talk from idiots who don't know any better. And, when its all said and done, feel sorry for ignorant people. At the end of the day, it's their loss and their ignorance that will catch up to them.

 

 

Words only have the power you give them. If you get upset, the people using them win. Don't let them win. It is a choice.