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The Greatest High School Marching Band of Alltime


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(Note: this is a re-post of something I wrote three years ago. I believe, in many respects, what happened "then" continues to influence the marching arts of "now." Enjoy!)

 

The Greatest High School Marching Band of Alltime

 

Bands of America 1993: A Ten Year Retrospect

 

By Alan R. Irons

 

It was ten years ago that a band from Spring, Texas won the 1993 Bands of America Grand National Championships. From then on this band has become somewhat of a legend in the high school marching band community. The 1993 Spring High School band is considered by many as "the best high school marching band of all time."

 

You may have seen pictures of Spring '93. In 1993, Bands of America used a picture of a mellophone player from the band for the cover of their BOA Grand National Championships video, and in 1995 (BOA's 20th Anniversary) BOA used a picture of three trumpet players from the band for their BOA Regional Championships program book and for their cover of the BOA Regional Championships videos. The pictures from both years show perfect posture in regards to straightness (head-to-toe), with perfect horn angles, perfect elbow angles, and PRESENCE. The 1995 picture shows three trumpet players that look exactly the same, as if one had copied a picture of one of the trumpet players and placed it next to the picture. The photographs of the band make them look like perfect robots. You could say they were a model for all bands that aim high. Indeed, Spring High School looked great on paper, but how did they look in the flesh? I admit this is my setback, that I did not see them live in 1993. Nevertheless, videotape is the next best thing. I have watched the Spring '93 show over and over again, and have yet to see a better performance live or recorded. Everything they did was fantastic. No, it was not just perfection that helped them win...it was so much more. This group changed the image of high school band, and gained respect from those both inside and outside of the marching band community. But do not take my word for it! If you research the vast archives of rec.arts.marching.band.high-school (usenet), the Bands of America forums, and other related high school marching band discussion groups, you will find others who agree with my claims. Sure, there are some who think Lassiter '98 or Plymouth-Canton '99 are the all time best...but Spring was first, and the units of the future had to reckon with that standard.

 

But 1993 was not just about Spring High School...it was the year a handful of students from Jackson, Mississippi beat a gigantic high school marching band from Duncanville, Texas...it was the year Lake Park High School Marching Band from Roselle, Illinois had an amazing performance perhaps overlooked because of Spring High School's history-making performance...it was the year the Plymouth-Canton Educational Park High School Marching Band continued to redefine the high school marching band as "entertainment," with their electronics and Broadway-like theatrics...it was the year the defending Bands of America Grand National Champions, the Centerville Jazz Band, failed to defend their title well enough, yet was still in contention for the top spot. I will now do a videotape analysis of these six groundbreaking high school marching bands (in performance order):

 

Spring High School

Spring, TX

Repertoire: Music of Paul Hindemith: Symphony in B flat, and 3rd and 4th movements from Symphonic Metamorphosis

Comments: Before the band is announced, you can hear the sound check, "Test! Test!" This sound check will forever be etched in time, because it reflects the perfect, and because it reflects the future. The garb of the marching members were black and grey: white plumes, black shakos with a standard silver sunburst, grey tops with silver buttons on the front and shoulder wings, a black sparkling sash, black gauntlets, black pants, and black shoes. (Their look was incredibly minimalist, yet incredible effective.) I have not seen a band seem to own the field like this one. This band seems to explode with the first few measures of music they perform. The confidence of this group is astounding. The first part of their show is a feast for the eyes and the ears. Their drill is extremely, extremely difficult. When the first part of their show ends, you know they will win, but this great show goes on and on. Note that the camera closeup of one color guard members reveals the ultimate in discipline: she is motionless, except for her eyes that watch the drum major. The flute soloist that begins the second movement (and plays a fine role in the rest of the show) is famous. (People write about her today!) The dangerous blind passthroughs are utilized to the max. The second movement is like a whirlwind that gets stronger and stronger. The band gets into a triangle formation that morphs into what looks like a three-sided chinese-star formation. The audience seems to love this show with a passion. The third movement, has a clarinet solo, a concert baritone solo, a concert french horn solo, and another clarinet solo. The moment when the flute soloist starts playing and there is applause is stunning. It was as if this show was meant to win. The final movement has a trombone section that knows no limits. I love how the camera close-up focuses on the upper body of the saxophones, and when they move one sax girl diagonally behind another sax girl uses her eyes only to keep the spacing between them even. Plus, it is neat to watch their upper bodies barely move as their lower bodies move. (The camera, focusing on the upper bodies, really shows how this works.) The end of the show is monstrously powerful musically, and though the last two drill moves are not much to brag about, the last two drill moves do seem to be flawless.

Score: 96.55 (1st Place)

 

Lake Park High School

Roselle, IL

Repertoire: Fiesta Roma

Comments: The musicians of this band looked like a lighter version of the Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps, with lots of blue and white to them. In a fanfare type movement, a square formation morphs into a rhombus formation. Music switches from loud and harsh, to soft and sweet, and then back again. A vocal soloist who looks italian, and who has a microphone attached to his uniform, sings in operatic italian. He sings with unparalleled expression. At one moment he creates more drama as he pulls out a handkerchief from under his uniform, and the audience responds with applause as he pats his forehead with it. (What incredible showmanship!) At the high point of his solo, the band goes crazy with sound, and the audience goes nuts with them. Oh wow, a marching member appears to have a step size of 3 (or 4) to 5 going from the far side of side B of the field to side A. Had Spring not been at this show, I think think this band would have won hands down. The end of this show is like a discharge from a double-barrel sawed off shot gun. The impact is awesome.

Score: 95.25 (2nd Place)

 

Plymouth-Canton Educational Park High School

Canton, MI

Repertoire: Jesus Christ Superstar

Comments: This band goes all out in theatrics. Most of the first part of this show is made up of percussion and synthesized sound. This show is quite dark at times. The evil laughter from Roman henchmen is certainly effective. The "I Don't Know How to Love Him" ballad grabs hold of you tight and does not let go. Plymouth-Canton Educational Park High School know how to use electronics effectively, and boy did they do it this time. In fact, they were one of the first bands to bring this type of sound to a new plane.

Score: 92.65 (5th Place)

 

Duncanville High School

Duncanville, TX

Repertoire: Versanitis 1, Rocky Point Holiday, Slava, and Armenian Dances

Comments: You do not understand the enormousness of this group until the marching members break away from their pods and spread themselves across the field. Their sound must have been ear splitting. Their size seemed to hamper how they moved around. There were lots of curved lines. Nice direction of motion pass-through by the auxiliary. A hint of Leonard Bernstein's On the Waterfront was heard, and then Slava which was not, I repeat, not an easy piece of music. When I went to school at Jersey City State College (now New Jersey City University), I played in the symphonic band under the direction of Nicholas Cerrato. Well, Mr. Cerrato was a big, big fan of Bernstein. (In fact, I think he may have even played under the direction of Leonard Bernstein). Mr. Cerrato had us play Slava and even we (a college level band) had a tough time with it! Duncanville handled Slava very nicely, although most of the difficult parts were played halted. Also, they did not yell, "Sla-va!" at the end, but that is a personal preference. Overall, this band did a fine job, but were left in the dust by a tiny, tiny band known as Jackson Academy.

Score: 88.65 (9th Place)

 

Centerville High School

Centerville, OH

Repertoire: From Earth, Wind, and Fire, including In the Sone, Got to Get You Into My Life, and Faces

Comments: The auxiliary seems to tease the crowd before and after the show. The drum majors were the epitome of cool, dressed in all black with oversized white suit jackets. Chuck Henson, also known as "The Voice," does not announce this band as he announces the other bands (like "The Spring High School Marching Band," or "The Lake Park High School Marching Band.") Instead, he announces this band as, "The Centerville Jazz Band." Also, "Jazz" is scripted on the shakos they wear. This band specialized in jazz, which is interesting, difficult, and admirable. Two keyboard synths get this band rolling. The trumpets explode their sound like all great jazz trumpet sections, and the trombones sound is quite mature. The first saxophone solo is nailed. The peashooter trombone soloist is utterly amazing. Saxophones, what can I say? If you want to know how to march saxophone "properly," check this band out. The Centerville sax section does not mess around, with matched to the max sound, and perfect shoulder angles. The flutes have a neat soli where they play and dance at the same time. (Who said a flute can not play jazz?) The auxiliary claps their hands as the drum beats get bigger and bigger, and then...the FINALE!

Score: 94.25 (3rd Place)

 

Jackson Academy High School

Jackson, MS

Repertoire: See the World, In Her Name, and Minuano

Comments: A tarp stretched from 35 yard line to 35 yard line. The design of the tarp was of a sandy beach and the ocean calm. A prop that seemed to be a tower made of sand was on the tarp, and on the back corners of the tarp were props that looked like waves, and on the front corners of the tarp were props that looked like mounds of sand. The pit was centered in the mid-part of the field. Wind players seem to come out of nowhere from behind the "mounds" and the "waves." I counted 20 wind players total. Each horn player had his or her horn angled to the box, probably to get the maximum sound from it. The drill is complex with pass-throughs and ripple movement. The first trombone soloist sounds like a pro. Some members are doing intricate body movement. This group, though small, sounds big. The end of the first movement has a rotating triangle form with a circle form spinning from within, and the it ends with wind players dropping to their knees. Some of the wind players dance with the auxiliary in the second movement, while one percussionist takes to the hand-held bells up-front. The trumpets, I think, switch to alto horns, while the mellophones stay the same. One of the auxiliary members "discovers" the giant oyster prop, opens it, and finds a black pearl inside. The auxiliary member takes the black pearl and does a few eye catching flips across the field with it. During the incredible synthesizer soli, the brass players ground their horns to pick up woodwinds, and even the guard is now marching with woodwinds! (There is a marching snare drummer at this point, too). After this marvelous showmanship, the primary musicians hand off the woodwinds to the guard and pick up the horns they had at the start of the show. The music and marching near the end of this show is on fire, with complex rhythms and drill whiplashing all ways.

Score: 89.50 (8th Place)

 

1993 was a landmark year for high school marching bands. In my opinion, *this* was the year high school marching bands began to surpass drum and bugle corps in terms of difficulty, innovation, and powerfulness. Now I know comparing marching band to drum corps is like comparing apples to oranges, but I believe that they are closer than that. Think of it as comparing apples to pears. Both can be compared as "close" both musically and visually. The 1993 Star of Indiana Drum and Bugle Corps (from Bloomington, IN, which later became Blast!) seemed to push the envelope as far as it could be pushed in the marching arts activity, whereas Spring High School and other high schools that year and in later years picked up that torch. The Cadets of Bergen County Drum and Bugle Corps (from Bergenfield, NJ), both traditionalists and innovators since the early 1980s, may have come close to what Star of Indiana Drum and Bugle Corps did in 1993 (and granted they did defeat them in 1993), but since then they have had trouble along the way. George Hopkins, the director of the Cadets of Bergen County, tried and (somewhat) failed to change drum and bugle corps to become more relevant to the "new marching arts" by trying to include woodwinds and electronics. High school marching bands have used woodwinds, electronics, and new instrumentation for years, and with them stepping it up musically and visually, it can be argued that the drum and bugle corps art has become somewhat stagnant. (Note: There have been some exciting changes in drum and bugle corps, with brass now in "any key" and new amplification rules for 2004.)

 

I highly recommend that high school marching band enthusiasts purchase the 1993 Bands of America Grand National Championships videos. Or better yet, I highly recommend any high school marching band enthusiast to purchase the Bands of America "Best of the Best" DVD collection, which features every Bands of America Grand National Championships winner since 1979. (With the "Best of the Best" DVDs, you get a choice of seeing most of the bands in either high-cam or multi-cam.)

 

The future is bright for high school marching band...

 

APPENDIX

 

1993 Bands of America Grand National Championships Results:

 

1. 96.55 Spring H.S., TX

2. 95.25 Lake Park H.S., IL

3. 94.25 Centerville H.S., OH

4. 93.85 Westerville H.S., OH

5. 92.65 Plymouth-Canton Educational Park H.S., MI

6. 90.55 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

7. 90.20 Seminole H.S., FL

8. 89.50 Jackson Academy H.S., MS

9. 88.65 Duncanville H.S., TX

10. 88.25 Center Grove H.S., IN

11. 88.25 Northrop H.S., IN

12. 86.60 Webster H.S., NY

 

Here are some random quotes (edited) taken from usenet over the years on the Spring, Jackson Academy, and Duncanville bands of 1993:

 

"During my 7 years of marching band experience, the greatest show to ever hit the field is without doubt Spring HS (Texas) 1993 "Symphonic Metamorphosis" show. It was more than incredible. It was in an entirely different class than any other band that year. I was in one of those other bands. (Webster, 12th place boa finals)...I know I'm not supposed to say this... but...this show probably could have challenged some of the top 12 corps from that year....( yes I know band and corps are two different animals but...)"

 

"Do everything humanly possible to get copy of Spring High School's 1993 BOA Grand Nationals Performance. They took the championship with it. It included Hindemith's Symphony in Bb and movements 2, 3, and 4 from Symphonic Metamorphosis. I cannot say enough about this show. It is truly incredible. If you can appreciate true marching band art form (as opposed to the crap that a lot of the bands are doing nowadays) then you must see this show. It will forever change your view of what a high school marching band is capable of."

 

"The move you are refering to is what we called the DNA move. That move was performed before the Cavies did it by Spring HS in 1993. If you have the BOA Nationals Videos from '93 (not high-cam), you won't be able to see it because of a close up on the flute soloist's nostrils. Great filming that year..."

 

"I LOVE spring, they rock sooo hard..... all i have to say is "Spring '93...exactly!"

 

"Scores aside, Spring was cleaner. No marching band has ever come even close to being as clean from a music and visual standpoint. (Plymouth and Hammond have come close, though.) Spring '93 was cleaner than most of the corps in 1999 DCI finals."

 

"A lot of bands want to be like Spring '93 (probably the best show I have ever seen)."

 

"Spring's show was the hardest marching show I think I've ever seen a band march and they made few errors. Having played both of the above pieces in a concert band, I can tell you, they did a jaw-dropping job with it. I have been to many marching competitions and marched in many too since I was in 7th grade (1984) and I think this show ranks up there will my all-time greatest. The finest of course being SCV's "Phantom" second edition."

 

"I still say Spring '93 was the best show of all time..."

 

"My favorite show was Spring High School in 1993!!! This band brought perfection to a new level. One of the cleanest high school shows ever."

 

"Spring High School's Hindemith show was arguably one of the best high school shows ever put on the field."

 

"I must say that the most amazing, if not the best, band I've ever watched was Jackson Academy HS (MS). I attended the BOA Grand National Finals in 1993 and witnessed both the largest and smallest bands I had ever seen at that level of competition. Jackson Academy HSMB had 20 winds, 12 guard, 7 perc (39 total). They pulled out a 30x25 yard tarp painted to look like a beach and lined the pit across the back edge (just behind the front hashmark). They had no percussion battery. The entire Jackson band at one point twirled flags and danced. I believe that I saw all the wind musicians playing brass instruments at one point and all woodwinds at another point. They did the most with the least, in terms of personnel, than any other band I've ever seen. Usually, given equal performances, a big band will beat a little band, but Jackson Academy finished 8th, I think, that night at Grand Nationals. One of the bands they beat BTW, was from Duncansville (TX), who was bigger than most college bands."

 

"It was a few years back so my memory may be a bit fuzzy, but here goes...Jackson Academy is a music performance school located in [Mississippi]. There were probably fewer than thirty people in their band. From what I could determine, everyone in the hornline played two instruments and guard members played instruments in addition to their flag work. They peformed on a tarp that stretched from 35 to 35, sidline to front hash. There were marine/ocean props around the edge of the field. I believe the music was by Pat Methany(sp?) and was of a nautical nature. It was an incredible show! They scored higher than Duncanville in Finals. BTW, Duncanvlle had at least 300 to 350 members."

 

"Hello, I saw your posting and wanted to respond. Please don't think that the size of your band would have any impact on how well your band would do at a Bands of America event. I've been attending the shows for 10 years now and have numerous stories to tell about the "David and Goliath"-type things that can happen. BOA is about excellence. Really it is! Just this past weekend Paden City HS from West Virginia made finals at the Morgantown Regional. They have 36 total members in the band grades 7 though 12 in a small country school of 250 total students. Ask any member of the Jackson Academy band in Mississippi (all 40 of them) how it felt to make finals at Grand Nationals and place just ahead of the largest band to ever come to the event? (Duncanville TX over 300 on the field). My point is that a band doesn't have to be a certain size to participate at BOA. Anyone and everyone is welcome! If you want to make finals... be the best you can possibly be, on an off the field. Play your horns well. Be creative. Show you have what it takes to make the cut. I am very familiar with your high school, I grew up just down the road in Boone County. We never had the opportunity to participate in BOA when I was in school. I highly recommend that you come to the Cincinnati Regional just to watch on October 17th. I think you'll see what I'm talking about. Have a great fall!!! Take Care, Chuck Henson (the 'Voice')"

 

"[Jackson Academy] are great musicians. They sound like a professional jazz band, which gets them extremely high music difficulty points. Also to actually build a drill with such a small group is no small accomplishment. Talk about your "body movements". This band has invented a whole new direction. When you add in the fact that apparently most of this band can play more than one instrument, it pretty much shoots any other Class A band out of the water. Still, it takes you by surprise when you see it for the first time. And after seeing them over the last 3 years, it seems their formula tends to repeat. Guess they'll keep using it until the judges get bored with it."

 

Past Bands of America Summer National Winners (1976-1978):

1976 Live Oak H.S., CA

1977 Murray H.S., KY

1978 Live Oak H.S., CA

 

Past Bands of America Grand National Champions:

 

1979 Sylva-Webster H.S., NC

1980 Tate H.S., FL

1981 Chesterton H.S., IN

1982 Norwin H.S., PA

1983 Rocky Mount H.S., NC

1984 Rocky Mount H.S., NC

1985 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1986 Rocky Mount H.S., NC

1987 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1988 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1989 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1990 Plymouth Centennial Educational Park H.S., MI

1991 Plymouth Centennial Educational Park H.S., MI

1992 Centerville H.S., OH

1993 Spring H.S., TX

1994 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1995 Center Grove H.S., IN

1996 Lake Park H.S., IL

1997 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

1998 Lassiter H.S., GA

1999 Plymouth-Canton Educational Park H.S., MI

2000 Marian Catholic H.S., IL

2001 Lawrence Central H.S., IN

2002 Lassiter H.S., GA

2003 Westfield H.S., TX

 

***END***

 

Alan Irons

Fountain Valley High School Marching Band 1993-1996

Pacific Crest of Diamond Bar 1997

Nashua Spartans 1998-1999

UCSB Class of 2002

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