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They’ve historically had a great relationship with the Westlake program, and this marching contest, for decades now and perhaps they prefer this loyalty. I do agree that it isn’t as competitive, but for a long season, that can be okay.

You're forgetting the most important parts. These are kids. Judges' feedback does not matter to a majority of them, what matters to them is if they're getting a good experience. This is still a good competition, they are still going to get good feedback. You act as if there are only 5 good judges in the world and they're all at TMC. There are plenty of people qualified to judge. If the kids have a good time at Westlake, then why care where they go? Not everyone has to be super competitive, you have to still provide an enjoyable experience for the kids. What's best for the kids isn't going to the toughest competitions, it's giving them good memories that'll last for decades. Most of them won't study music, so being in band won't have a large impact on their jobs, people join to do things they enjoy.

Honestly, if I’m having a bad day I pull that thread up because it’s not short of humor at allllll.

Sadly, I feel like a lot of people look over this. I know for me this was the case when we went to VRMF last week. We knew it wasn't going to be nearly as competitive as the other competitions we are attending, but we still had an incredibly enjoyable experience, especially after winning it. For a lot of kids, especially underclassmen, it was their first amazing memory of marching band that they got to enjoy and will look back on, and for me that's super important to me, especially as a senior.

Not all of these decisions are made with strategy in mind. Yes, Round Rock goes to the Westlake contest out of loyalty. Frankly, I admire them for that. The Westlake folks are awesome and run a great contest.

not sure why everyone gets so bent when someone makes a comment about strategy, I took a similar beating earlier this year when I made a comment about a program spending a great deal of money to go to Grand Nats but not attending any other BOA Events that year or even in the past few years. Every program uses a different approach and that is there right. but you would think that you would want to get another opportunity to compete in your back yard against some of the same programs you will see again at BOA-SA as well as in Indy and get comments from the adjudicators on the performance opinions so you can make adjustments before SA and G Nats. It has been mentioned that CTJ will be attending this year, this will be there first time here since 2012. Why? Because, while TMC is not a BOA Event it is mostly scored like one. 2 of the Music judges from BOA Austin will also be at TMC and it is a chance to see what they think of your progress over the past 2 weeks . and many of the same judges that are at TMC will also be at BOA-SA and more importantly at Grand Nats. so you want those comments now so you can adjust to their comments in hopes of elevating those scores at the later events scored by the same judges. I tried to make that same point with the beating I took earlier this year. if you are going all in to spend $400K to make a trip to Indy, you would think you would want to get your band in front of those judges as often as possible to get those opinions - especially if they will be judging you again later in the season. just my thoughts.

I also want to add, going to a competition like Westlake and winning is a good morale booster for the kids.

Lone Star Preview Oct. 9, 2021 @Woodforest Band Stadium 2021 Preliminaries Competition Schedule 10:00 AM CANEY CREEK HS 10:15 AM RIDGE POINT HS 10:30 AM CLEAR SPRINGS HS 10:45 AM MADISONVILLE HS 11:00 AM SPLENDORA HS 11:15 PM LUMBERTON HS 11:30 PM CLEAR CREEK HS 11:45 PM CYPRESS WOODS HS 12:30 PM CY-FAIR HS 12:45 PM OAK RIDGE HS 1:00 PM KLEIN COLLINS HS 1:15 PM PORTER HS 1:30 PM GRAND OAKS HS 1:45 PM TOMBALL MEMORIAL HS 2:00 PM CONROE HS 2:30 PM CLEAR BROOK HS 2:45 PM KLEIN HS 3:00 PM SPRING HS 3:15 PM JORDAN HS 3:30 PM WILLIS HS 3:45 PM PASADENA MEMORIAL HS 4:00 PM KLEIN CAIN HS 4:30 PM MAGNOLIA WEST HS 4:45 PM KLEIN OAK HS 5:00 PM NORTH SHORE HS 5:15 PM COLLEGE PARK HS https://www.lonestarpreview.com

The funniest part of this is Round Rock literally has a rehearsal today with Gary Markham, the Chief judge of Bands of America. But they aren't trying enough to get feedback ?

I was just re-reading some of the pages from the 2018 6A area B thread and it got a little wild ?

I can tell you that your statement in bold above is incorrect, and I say that from experience. I marched in High School band 35 years ago, and never went on to study music, my kids won't either. but my band experience has shaped my adult life in many ways and I credit it for my success as an adult. That is why I wanted my kids to be in band , and sometimes the life experience comes from going up against the best and giving it everything you have and not quite getting the prize. this is from a Wakeland Band parent that was posted in 2014. This is what band gives our kids. One of my friends asked "Why do you pay so much money for your kids to be in band?" Well I have a confession to make, I don't pay for my kids' band experience. Personally, it doesn't matter which activity they choose. So, if I am not paying for band, what am I paying for? - I pay for those moments when my kids become so tired they want to quit - but don't. - I pay for those days when my kids come home from school and are "too tired" to go to rehearsal - but go anyway. - I pay for my kids to learn to be disciplined. - I pay for my kids to learn to take care of their body. - I pay for my kids to learn to work with others and be good team mates. - I pay for my kids to learn to deal with disappointment, when they don't get that score they'd hoped for, - but still have to work hard every day. - I pay for my kids to learn to make and accomplish goals. - I pay for my kids to learn that it takes hours and hours and hours and hours of hard work and practice to create a champion, and that success does not happen overnight. - I pay for the opportunity my kids have and will have to make life-long friendships. - I pay so that my kids can be in a rehearsal instead of in front of a screen. - I pay for my kids to learn how to be part of something, much bigger than themselves I could go on, but, in short, I don't pay for band. I pay for the opportunities that band provides my kids with to develop attributes that will serve them well throughout their lives and give them the opportunity to bless the lives of others. From what I have seen so far, I think it is a great investment!

While the chances are low for Lumberton to make finals, I think they will impress many people!

If any of my acquaintances with TWHS would be willing/able to send a link to a private/unlisted video of their performance after LSP finals I would greatly appreciate it! If not, that is ok too. I don't share the links without permission (as a few here know) so it won't go beyond me. Wish I could be there...

Super excited for this contest. Last time I tried making predictions for a contest, it didn't go so well, so I'm trying something different and instead will try and predict the finals performance order just for fun. Here is my best shot at this based off of prelims performance times and my finalist predictions. Finalist 1 (7:30 PM): John Alexander Finalist 2 (7:45 PM): Hendrickson Finalist 3 (8:00 PM): Weiss Finalist 4 (8:15 PM): Brandeis Finalist 5 (8:30 PM): Hays Finalist 6 (8:45 PM): Bowie Finalist 7 (9:15 PM): Reagan Finalist 8 (9:30 PM): Leander Finalist 9 (9:45 PM): CTJ Finalist 10 (10:00 PM): Cedar Park Finalist 11 (10:15 PM): Rouse Finalist 12 (10:30 PM): Vandegrift Please don't flame me, I just thought this would be a fun and somewhat dumb category to try and predict. See ya'll Saturday.

I'm interested to see how Cy Woods and Klein Oak compare with Clear Brook here. Plus a few groups that we haven't really seen yet that can make a splash (I'm looking at you, North Shore)

It’s been changed now.

How did we even get on this topic!? ? And why am I not even remotely concerned about the Dragon Band? They good, y’all!

Oh and I don’t really have an opinion on Round Rock choosing Westlake over TMC. I think they’ve just always gone and supported the Westlake band with this festival and I know they enjoy the success they have had there all these years. It’s like a comfortable sweater. It might look less fancy than what the trendy folks are wearing, but it’s cozy and familiar, and it just makes you feel good to wear it. ? And at the end of the day, sometimes it’s just about the basics.

I think the guy just doesn’t like Round Rock cause he never got on to criticize CTJ for going to contests like BOA McAllen and Midland, Judson Rocket Review, or Rough Rider. Or look at Burleson Centennial dropping BOA Austin to instead attend a local USBands competition which they won by nearly 4 points. Or Hebron and Flower Mound going to local contests where they absolutely dominated. I could go on and on, but you get the idea. Programs should be able to choose what contests they want to go to for any reason they like, whether it’s for “competitive strategy,” experience for the kids, loyalty to another program, or whatever. What matters at the end of the day is that the kids are getting out there and performing their show in spite of everything that’s going on around them.

As the guy in charge of running the VRMF, I appreciate reading this. Congrats on a wonderful pair of performances! Also, we brought together an EXCELLENT panel of judges from across the country, so I know that all of our bands got some great feedback this weekend.

I really think you have made your point, repeatedly, and need to dial it back now. Also, there is nothing in the statement "Round Rock choosing to attend Westlake has never prevented them from reaching grand national finals in the past and it won't this year either" that is some guarantee that they will make Finals at GNats this year. If it happens or it doesn't happen, it won't have ANYTHING to do with the decision to go to Westlake over TMC.

Round Rock choosing to attend Westlake has never prevented them from reaching grand national finals in the past and it won't this year either ?

I think it is important to realize that those of us in this community are biased towards seeing highly competitive contests and seeing bands compete at a high level, but this is not the only thing that band programs are concerned about. Smaller local contests are important fundraisers for many bands and are also opportunities to make connections and help smaller programs to improve. As said before, competing at these contests can also provide a boost of confidence. Another example: There are a number of small contests that occur each year on the dame day as BOA DFW in the DFW metroplex and some programs that are quite involved in BOA choose to attend these instead. Some may say this is a mistake because the BOA contest is the biggest and most competitive, but there is a lot to be said about the loyalty of attending these contests. It is also somewhat interesting to see what happens when these groups from different contests come together for UIL or BOA San Antonio. Groups like Wylie get overlooked nearly every year because they don't typically compete against many top bands until San Antonio.

No one, and yours? This is a valid assessment. I think these kids are being shortchanged. With a program that is struggling year after year to barely make it in most finals, the leadership seems to take the same path. It's been the same way since my kids went through the program there.

Who pissed in your cereal?

I honestly don't think anyone is really sleeping on Legacy. Like I said earlier, Legacy is much, much improved from 2019. And I think everyone here would likely have them in finals. And then, let's be honest, who knows what happens in finals in terms of who goes to state. All depends on the performance that night. In terms of the Mansfield POC results, I have a hard time wrapping my head around those scores simply because I thought Martin was better than both Summit and Legacy and definitely was not the 10th place band that day. Also, the contest didn't use the UIL system, which is really what will matter come Oct. 23. I do wish Summit and Legacy would go head to head again at some point before area, especially since Summit's finals run at Midland was 1000 miles better than at Mansfield the week before. But Summit will be at McKinney and Legacy at Denton. Oh well. Area will be really fun either way. Also, just curious but what are those school records? Legacy went to state in 2009, so this isn't exactly uncharted territory for them.

A stacked contest with most of the central Texas heavy-hitters and a great BOA judging panel, what more could you ask for? It's going to be a great show. Heck, it's going to be a great weekend, with the DFW regional as well. We'll probably be seeing mostly complete shows at this point, too.

Frivolous probably has too strong of a negative connotation, but compared to BA's show (just as an example) it is a bit "lacking in seriousness," to quote Merriam-Webster. For me, TWHS this year is a delightful confection, and incredibly well-performed. I don't have them in first place in Texas right now arbitrarily. But when I'm making predictions for the very top, do I go with the show that is like a series of incredible desserts (with some savoriness), or the show that is more like a three-course meal? My (maybe biased and incorrect) mental image for the Eagle show is that of the three-course meal. Maybe I don't even fully agree with that myself. It kind of reminds me of when I was watching that Broken Arrow 2006 video with the judging tape playing alongside it. I was watching the ballad and thinking, "Gosh, this is excessively sentimental." Meanwhile the judge is whimpering, "This is art!" Maybe I'm just trying to account for other tastes! ?

Being happy is frivolous? I think not!? Shows about golf or pinball and the like strike me as frivolous, but trying to make people feel good is a good thing and can strike a deep emotional chord. I know on my personal front I find it heartening and certainly refreshing with what I've gone through this year.

I don’t know if I should share my parking secret or not but I’ll think about it. ?

They need to pay you for advertising…

I’m so excited to get back to Austin this weekend so that I can attend this contest! If you are on the fence about going, just do it! Everyone really needs to experience the Texas Marching Classic, and this year is just looking spectacular. The competition itself is a blast because it has that old timey festival feel to it. You can buy a shoutout for your favorite marcher and have it broadcast over the stadium, there’s some really great food to partake in, oh and yeah, the bands are just incredible! This year the contest will feature your current Grand National champions going to bat against your current top ranked band in the country. And if a Vandegrift vs Ronald Reagan contest doesn’t get you excited (because you’re dead??), there’s Claudia Taylor Johnson to consider for the TMC championship this year. Also attending are 5 more BOA Austin finalists from a few weeks ago, Cedar Park, Rouse, Leander, Bowie and Weiss. Will Rouse overtake Cedar Park and Leander again, or will there be a switch up in the LISD order? There will be other great bands attending from all over the surrounding area as well, but the band traveling the furthest for this fantastic showdown is your current United ISD Marching Festival champions (and 2019 BOA McAllen champs), the John B. Alexander high school marching band! Yes, I’m super excited about that as many of you probably know. I am pulling for JBA to make finals this Saturday!!! And If you want to be guaranteed to see an amazing band from the Valley, be at Kelly Reeves stadium in your seats before 4 pm!!! Come out to Kelly Reeves this Saturday for one of the hottest competitions in country this season! And I don’t mean the temperatures.

HEB results have definitely thrown this competition into a bit of a blender. It's not a BOA contest, but the judging rubric is extremely similar, so Keller placing 5th there is a bit of a worry for them here. I thought they performed well enough to place better, but they did have a very short show. Marcus was fantastic and far and away the best band there. I think they have an outside shot at grabbing the music caption and maybe even moving into the top 2.

Yeah, I caught that game on the SLC stream. I was impressed with Keller early but SLC is just a beast. Have to think they are the favorites in Region I and we might end up with Dodge Bowl II in December.

I am really excited for this competition! Super stacked!!

I also saw a video of Pasadena Memorial, and they could do quite well here too.

Breaking news: Dripping Springs has dropped in favor of going to Westlake