2021 BOA San Antonio Discussion Thread

[Rubisco]

There seems to be a server error for the other San Antonio thread when submitting new replies. So, here it is again, unless that one gets revived!

FRIDAY
9:15 - Sandra Day O’Connor H.S., TX
9:30 - New Braunfels H.S., TX
9:45 - Hargrave H.S., TX
10:00 - Pecos H.S., TX
10:15 - Bryon P. Steele II H.S., TX

10:45 - Legacy of Educational Excellence H.S., TX
11:00 - Smithson Valley H.S., TX
11:15 - W. Charles Akins H.S., TX
11:30 - Earl Warren H.S., TX
11:45 - Hutto H.S., TX
12:00 - James Madison H.S., TX
12:15 - Weiss H.S., TX
12:30 - Cuero H.S., TX
12:45 - Robert E. Hendrickson H.S., TX

1:30 - Waller H.S., TX
1:45 - Lake Travis H.S., TX
2:00 - Rouse H.S., TX
2:15 - Westlake H.S., TX
2:30 - Round Rock H.S., TX
2:45 - Mission Veterans Memorial H.S., TX
3:00 - Tom Glenn H.S., TX
3:15 - William H. Taft H.S., TX
3:30 - John B. Connally H.S., TX
3:45 - Crockett H.S., TX
4:00 - Pflugerville H.S., TX

4:30 - Johnson H.S., TX
4:45 - Veterans Memorial H.S., TX
5:00 - Cedar Ridge H.S., TX
5:15 - Keller Central H.S., TX
5:30 - Cedar Park H.S., TX
5:45 - McNeil H.S., TX
6:00 - Winston Churchill H.S., TX
6:15 - Jack C. Hays H.S., TX
6:30 - The Ann Richards School, TX
6:45 - Westwood H.S., TX
7:00 - Churchill Fulshear H.S., TX
7:15 - Vandegrift H.S., TX

7:45 - Leander H.S., TX
8:00 - James Bowie H.S., TX
8:15 - Timber Creek H.S., TX
8:30 - Jourdanton H.S., TX
8:45 - Coppell H.S., TX
9:00 - Hidalgo Early College H.S., TX
9:15 - Douglas MacArthur H.S., TX
9:30 - Keller H.S., TX
9:45 - Claudia Taylor Johnson H.S., TX
10:00 - The Woodlands H.S., TX

SATURDAY
7:45 - Azle H.S., TX
8:00 - Sachse H.S., TX
8:15 - James E. Taylor H.S., TX
8:30 - Clear Creek H.S., TX
8:45 - Vista Ridge H.S., TX
9:00 - Seven Lakes H.S., TX
9:15 - Pearland H.S., TX

9:45 - Wylie H.S., TX
10:00 - John B. Alexander H.S., TX
10:15 - Dawson H.S., TX
10:30 - Brazoswood H.S., TX
10:45 - Oak Ridge H.S., TX
11:00 - College Park H.S., TX
11:15 - United H.S., TX
11:30 - Friendswood H.S., TX
11:45 - Hebron H.S., TX
12:00 - Cypress Woods H.S., TX

1:00 - Roma H.S., TX
1:15 - Granbury H.S., TX
1:30 - Pioneer H.S., TX
1:45 - Marcus H.S., TX
2:00 - Wylie East H.S., TX
2:15 - Klein Oak H.S., TX
2:30 - Waxahachie H.S., TX
2:45 - Ronald Reagan H.S., TX

[Rubisco]

I'm really going to miss Flower Mound here. It's going to make things more difficult to predict at Nats!

[Rubisco]

Testing, 1 2 3.

[lost]

I wish New Braunfels had a later draw. I think they could genuinely place really nicely.

[Rubisco]

Yeah, that's a really rough time to perform. At least they're fairly close to San Antonio though, so hopefully they're able to sleep in at least a little bit more and give a great performance.

[Rubisco]

Hmmm, it might just be the giant blocks of text that aren't working. But that's my specialty!!! ??

I'll try to post this stupid post one more time, and then I'll try to break it up.

[Rubisco]

Alrighty. Things are starting to come into focus.

The top 5 groups seem pretty clear in my mind. Claudia Taylor Johnson, Hebron, Ronald Reagan, The Woodlands, and Vandegrift. I guess technically Cedar Park should be thrown in, based on that TMC score, but I'm going to fall back on my own personal judgment when comparing across contests and give Hebron that edge. Maybe the judges will throw me for a loop at San Antonio, but I seem to be seeing pretty eye to eye with them this year so far.

Top 3... I could see that being really any combination of the top 5. Heck, maybe even Vista Ridge will really polish up and crash the party here. That wouldn't be completely surprising.

[Rubisco]

As far as picking the champion goes, I could see any of the top 5 achieving that with enough improvement, but I'm guessing it'll be either Vandegrift or The Woodlands.

[Rubisco]

Vandegrift's show has the weightiness and mostly great musicianship of a championship show. They're the reigning Grand National Champion for a reason! They've also got some really beautiful props this year, with those letters popping up out of the ground and that spinning red heart. The opening piano feature followed by the arpeggiated triplet figure in the front ensemble followed by that massive opening hit, such an incredible sense of yearning followed by pure magic.

Great stuff! There's some significant visual dirt, and visually it's somewhat busy at times, but overall it's a very engaging production.

[Rubisco]

On the other hand, The Woodlands' show is fresher, more contemporary, very effective, and also has no major performance weaknesses, at least without the closer on the field, which could be a complete mess. I could see them edging out the competition here on the strength of visual and effect, but the show also feels a bit light (tonally) compared to the others in the top 5. It'll be interesting to see where it lands.

[Rubisco]

The rest of the finals, I mean, there are some groups like Marcus and Vista Ridge and Leander and Cedar Park (etc.) that I would be surprised to see miss the cut, but I'd have to go back through the list more carefully to really figure out the remaining finalists. That's a very difficult thing to predict.

[cjm715]

i really really really really REALLY wish flower mound was going to this contest

[Rubisco]

Flower Mound's show is certainly bookended by championship quality material with that amazing start and finish. It's just the stuff in between that's making me wonder. The momentum of the show, the continuity, is interrupted at times, and that's a big part of effect for me. But again, it's all part of the quirky design, so I excuse it more than I otherwise would. It's all very playful, actually.

But yeah, they aren't at this contest. So they're making my job a little easier here.

[Rubisco]

I feel like if Pearland is in the conversation for finals, Cypress Woods probably should be, too. I guess scores were a bit lower at Lone Star than expected. I was going to say maybe Klein Oak as well, but they seemed to fade a bit this weekend. That being said, I don't 100% trust the results of independent contests.

Seven Lakes also seems to be having a great year, but there are a lot of great bands at this contest.

[contrabassclarinet]

  On 10/10/2021 at 6:42 PM, Rubisco said:

I feel like if Pearland is in the conversation for finals, Cypress Woods probably should be, too. I guess scores were a bit lower at Lone Star than expected. I was going to say maybe Klein Oak as well, but they seemed to fade a bit this weekend. That being said, I don't 100% trust the results of independent contests.

Seven Lakes also seems to be having a great year, but there are a lot of great bands at this contest.

Expand  

Cypress Woods is directly after Hebron- should be interesting to see if/how that affects placement. Definitely not making it easy for our first time attending. I will say that there are a LOT of bands that have a shot making finals purely because of how close the competition is.

[Texasenthusiast]

What class are each band?

[Guest]

  On 10/10/2021 at 6:42 PM, Rubisco said:

I feel like if Pearland is in the conversation for finals, Cypress Woods probably should be, too. I guess scores were a bit lower at Lone Star than expected. I was going to say maybe Klein Oak as well, but they seemed to fade a bit this weekend. That being said, I don't 100% trust the results of independent contests.

Seven Lakes also seems to be having a great year, but there are a lot of great bands at this contest.

Expand  

Klein Oak is year over year very hard to predict week to week. In 2012 they were a very solid fourth at Friendswood over some very big names, and then placed 14th at LSP. They finished their season in finals at a VERY stacked area F. In 2016, they were a solid 13th at BOA Conroe, only to have the same placement at LSP the next week. In 2019 they placed 20th at BOA Katy, 7th at LSP behind some names they are typically ahead of, and then finished in a VERY strong 29th at BOASA, ahead of many bands that had beaten them earlier. I think they will have a great day at this contest:)