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The Danpodcast - hodgePODge Week Of June 7th


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Plenty of news and notes to go over this week!!

:29 - TxBands.com Statement Recap
1:16 - Summer Marching Band Begins!
5:34 - BOA Regional Lists Delay
8:22 - Harsh Reality #1
13:18 - Prediction About Fans In Stands
14:20 - Context Regarding Fans In Stands
24:38 - Alan Sharps Tribute

 

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I listened to this last night.  A couple of thoughts.

  • I hear what you are saying about stadiums and the cost of cleaning them.  However, I think that we may be overthinking the cleaning.  Most regional BOA contests in Texas are held in the heat.  Depending on what we see in the next two weeks with athletes and band starting up, the heat may do a lot to kill Covid for us. Heck looking out my office window right now, I see the Westwood football team running drills in the Warrior Bowl!
  • I can see an element of not being in the stands for BOA San Antonio or any other place that is enclosed.

 

Like you said, we are gonna learn a lot over the next few weeks. With college football players being diagnosed with Covid as soon as they are returning to camp, we are gonna learn just how many of them fully recover, plus how many of them are truly sick.

I will remain positive, because that's what I do!  Thanks for the podcast..again..another good episode!

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That makes a lot of sense. Seeing a lot of schools hold graduations with a fairly large audience makes me think MAYBE there will be at least some people in the stands. Maybe ticket sales will take place online and they will cap the amount of tickets sold. I hope! I have been a marching tech the past few seasons but I always like to attend at least one contest over the season purely as a fan. Was hoping to make it out to Waco this year. 

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Thanks, Daniel, A lot of great points in this that are worth in depth discussion (since that's all we can do this time of year, right??) Appreciate the facts that are based in the reality of the situation, while maintaining a sliver of hope we all have.

First, I'll show some appreciation for TXbands statement on current events. It's extremely important in all communities for this to be discussed, especially in groups as diverse and tight knit as band families are.

 

As for the pandemic response,  I think the harsh reality for me is that, marching band isn't as important to most of the world and this state as it is to those on these forums. We all love marching band...that's why we're here, that's why you're listening to this and reading this comment. But there's two things we have to remember-

1. For most of the population, marching bands exist to support football teams. That's just a harsh reality. Yeah, those who don't use halftime for the bathroom or snack lines will support the band with half-hearted applause, but the band is just there to fill the gaps between football plays. We saw this last year with some of the controversial decisions of some districts forcing bands to attend football games in conflict with their own competitions. With that in mind, I don't think districts will be willing to put their necks out as much for bands and their competitive schedules as they are football teams. That goes not just for bands, but for other associated groups as well (cheerleaders, dance teams, etc). 

2. There are very supportive and amazing parents (many who post here) who realize how important competitive marching band is to these kids. They will support a marching season as if nothing is happening in the world, because they realize how much this means to them. But harsh reality #2 is that this isn't (I would guess) a majority of parents. I would guess (I'm not a parent, so I could be wrong), that most parents wouldn't want to put their children's health at risk for something, that while life-skill building, is EXTRA-curricular. I think if band season were to go "completely as planned" this puts a lot of pressure on these families to make a very hard decision between pleasing and protecting their children. And that's not a decision I admire any parent, or band director for that matter, for having to make. Football's a bit different. These kids are often playing for their chance (and sometimes only chance) at going to/affording college. Their futures sometimes DEPEND on being able to play and prove themselves on the field (that's an unfortunate reality, but one not meant for this board). No one is basing their college future on marching band. 

 

These two points have me thinking (and I open this as a question) - at what point is a watered down competitive season not worth it? Is a season still worth it if bands can't travel? Is a season still worth it if competitions have no fans? Is a season worth it if full participation in "normal" schedules isn't allow till mid-september? Is a season worth it if UIL/districts reduce allowed hours by half?

At what point is reduction in what is allowed worth investing in competitive shows, rather than pushing to the following year? We obviously don't know what UIL/Music for all/school districts will do yet, and won't till likely July, so just trying to preemptively ask what-ifs? 

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1 hour ago, LeanderMomma said:

I don’t know what to think or say about all this. I’m not sure how I’m going to feel if the season is cancelled. I can only imagine how the kids would feel. ?

Thats why I am trying to remain positive and optimistic. From what I have seen, band staffs are planning and expecting a marching season. I know alot needs to fall into place for a marching season to happen, but I remain hopeful and optimistic. There are alot of people going into their senior year who would be devastated if this season didn't happen, and I believe that a season that looks different in some ways is better than no season at all. Heres to hoping!

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