Rubisco

While music is 3/5ths of a band's score at UIL, I'd like to remind people that the other 2/5ths are visual, and in a state with many great sounding programs, it might become a deciding factor, if one clearly stands out as the cleanest. I think Marcus' and Hebron's music performances are (or at least will be) outstanding and are perfectly tailored to UIL, but visually, I'd give both The Woodlands and Bowie the edge, based on what I've seen. Then there's CTJ, who just upset The Woodlands yesterday in a most spectacular way.

Oh, also, TW received a .3 point penalty in finals for some reason. Not that that would have saved them...

Hahaha. Well, I'd probably want to be in the stands for the encore to see what upset/dominated me in finals by 3 points, too. I was out of town for this regional, so I have no idea what happened, but the score gaps and the extreme score reversal (The Woodlands was first by over a point in prelims with their two captions) are really, really strange. The judges also seemed to rein in the score inflation we've seen from the previous two regionals. Reagan's score dropped two points from what it was two weeks ago at the Austin regional. As I said on the BOA forums, I would guess a combination of three things: a.) weird judging b.) weak Woodlands performance c.) strong CTJ performance. Based on some of the comments, that seems to be exactly what happened. I'll have to watch both prelims and finals videos to be sure. This makes San Antonio predictions very tricky. I saw The Woodlands' show (not at BOA), and I feel quite strongly it will be in the top 3 by San Antonio. I might have to add CTJ to that top 3 as well, which could knock out TW, Hebron, or Marcus.

I've got an update on a couple groups that might interest people going into the Conroe regional tomorrow. Since I fly out to St. Louis tomorrow and won't be attending the Conroe regional for the first time in a couple years, I drove up tonight to Shenandoah from Houston (where I live) to watch the TWHS versus TWCP football game. I left after halftime, go figure. I thought I might as well see two potential Conroe finalists before I leave. I sat pretty close to the highest spot in the stands on the 50 yardline, though unfortunately even this isn't very high up at Woodforest Stadium. I've definitely got some thoughts. It should be noted that there was a lot of football crowd noise, so I couldn't hear some of the softer music from the pit and woodwinds. TWHS. "Descending from Chaos". The first thing people will notice that's different, if they've seen the early video of this group, is that the intro drill set now takes up a lot more space and incorporates the guard and props, which are rather large arrows that are wheeled around by band members and that can pivot a full 360 degrees on their axes. (The guard members have their costumes now as well. They start out in black dresses with parts of their secondary, chartreuse outfits poking out from underneath.) Similar to last year's crossing gates, the arrows seem to influence how the drill develops as the show progresses. It's another very clever idea, but I don't think the integration of these props has been entirely smooth so far, as they seem to have introduced some dirt into the show. The band also seems to be pussyfooting around with how to use them effectively. Prior to the inclusion of the arrows, I imagined them chasing the guard backfield during the chaotic, follow-the-leader drill at end of the opener, which would have been a really neat effect. Instead, they just sit there! Why? It makes no sense given the frantic, chaotic music. Also, the arrows are removed from their wheels during the ballad, hoisted upright into the air, and then pointed downward with absolutely nothing in the music reflecting this bold, descending visual statement. I'll give the directors at The Woodlands time to figure this all out, with the aid of the surely abundant comments they'll receive tomorrow from the adjudication panel. Anyway, while this prop stuff might just be me quibbling, I'm definitely concerned about the somewhat low demand of the visual and musical package. (The show is also incomplete, and it seemed like it was over in 6 minutes, even after the park and play at the end.) What happened to The Woodlands band of pre-2006, 2007, and 2008-- the band that flew around the field, rarely stopping, playing a boat-load of notes? I understand that you shouldn't bite off more than you should chew with the UIL 8-hour rule, but I think The Woodlands has erred a little too far on the side of caution this year. That's not to say I was completely and utterly disappointed with what I saw. In fact, musically and visually, the show is one of the most fascinating I've seen this year. During the beginning of the ballad, there are two arcs on each side of the field that merge upward into a giant arrowhead on the 50 yardline. As the pit starts up with Radiohead's Everything in its Right Place, the arcs collapse from the outside inward into a series of moving arrows pointed in all sorts of directions. It's the most sublime drill I've seen this year so far. It fits the music perfectly. Anyway, do I think they'll win Conroe? Maybe. Probably. Though I could see them getting beaten by a strong CTJ. I'll still predict them for the top 3 at San Antonio, given their penchant for improving drastically between early and late season. They should have a better thought-out product by late season anyway. TWCP. "From Frost to Flower". This group caught my attention with an early video, and I'm glad to report that I was not wrong in touting this group early on. I think I've said this before, but each year it seems like TWCP learns how to design and perform a finals worthy show better. I actually thought they sounded better than TWHS in parts tonight. A lot of this has to do with the fact that they play their horns with the utmost sense of control. There's a lot of warmth in that ensemble sound, and the balance between the various choirs is pretty much on point. Indeed, you really can hear the strength of their concert program in their marching music. (For those that don't know, College Park has been named a National Winner in the Foundation for Music Education's National Wind Band Honors Project several times now. They're also under the direction of the incomparable Charlotte Royall, who was the first female president of the Texas Bandmaster's Association and led middle school groups in Spring ISD to 1st place Texas State Honor Band glory.) There's also more power in TWCP's sound than perhaps there has ever been, and it's thrilling to hear. Everything is clearly articulated. Visually, the show is quite lovely, with the guard in flowing, white dresses performing mostly flag work, and frost-bitten trees framing the field in the back. The guard works well as an ensemble, which should make them standout in a good way tomorrow in prelims. I also give TWCP huge props for performing their entire show tonight. That's not to say it was clean. In fact, visually, and a little bit musically, the end was a complete mess, but at least they went for it! Hahaha. Anyway, they'll make finals for sure. I think I originally predicted them to do better than they've ever done. I could see that happening, too. What's the highest TWCP has ever placed at Conroe? 6th or 7th? Maybe 5th will happen for them tomorrow evening.

Hebron probably wins, and Marcus medals. The other medalist should be Bowie, Coppell, or The Woodlands. I have yet to see Bell, but placing outside of the top 3 at a regular BOA regional for the first time since 2005 (almost 10 years!) doesn't make me want to predict them as a medalist at UIL State. Then again, they should have been around 8th place last time at State and somehow ended up placing 3rd. There's always the possibility that Denton wasn't a good reflection of the program this year, and that Bell will vastly improve between now and then. I'd list CTJ as the wild card. I haven't seen their show, but they improve each year. They also have a very fine concert program and just medalled at the State Honor Band Competition. Sounding like a concert band on the field is a huge advantage at UIL State, though CTJ, like The Woodlands, tends to emulate DCI more than a symphony hall. I think Lippman is gearing his group for consistent BOA success and eventually the Grand National Championship, though success in both UIL and BOA obviously isn't out of the question. In fact, expect just about all the UIL finalists to be picked from the BOA San Antonio Super Regional finalists.

I suggest you take a look at San Antonio results from last year. A competition that had both CTJ and eventual national champion The Woodlands at it last year was definitely harder to win than one that had Marcus and LD Bell, as fine as those programs are. In any case, I strongly suggest you save your indignation for someone who gives a darn.

More complex shows take longer to master. Hebron's music is usually very technical, so that might explain the 4th to 2nd jump (though I think the Denton win can be explained almost entirely by weaker competition). The Woodlands always peaks late because they always have a crap ton of stuff going on in their shows. They also seem to make more modifications than their competitors.

Posted on TW's Facebook page. (Nothing interesting posted on LD Bell's yet, btw.) This is what I was talking about when I mentioned that I had trouble seeing the drill by itself. Imagine these on wheels interacting with the drill. It looks like there's a spot to insert a dowel, which might imply that the direction of the arrows can be changed and locked into place. Apparently the "descending" part of their show name will be communicated quite literally. I can also see the opening, descending motif of Radiohead's Everything in its Right Place being used to communicate this. By the way, did Marcus have any props on the field? I'm just curious to know whether or not they're going with giant props in the upper left corner of the field again. That's sort of their signature. I think something was actually lost visually last year without them. https://www.facebook.com/twhsband/photos/pb.19279833424.-2207520000.1411275571./10152480674683425/?type=3&theater

I think the difference in placement for The Woodlands between UIL and BOA can almost entirely be explained by the fact that BOA judges typically have far more experience in DCI than UIL judges do. UIL judges tend to place more emphasis on sounding like a concert band than DCI judges ever have. This is why Marcus has dominated year after year. They're essentially a concert band on the field. This is excellent, though it often tranlates to general audiences finding them boring. TW certainly goes for more of the loud, in-your-face style DCI sound. The result of this is a sound that, while excellent in its own way, isn't quite as well-blended or balanced as a group like Marcus (or Hebron for that matter). The thing that baffles me the most about UIL judging is probably the visual judging, honestly. I think BOA gets it right far more often than UIL does. This may be because BOA's visual judges tend to be visual designers and whatnot, while UIL often recruits judges whose main emphasis is music pedagogy. This year, I would expect Hebron and Marcus to be in the top 3 like they were last time. They approach music in a way that UIL really appreciates. Coppell, Bowie, and The Woodlands would be my next picks, though CTJ sounds better and better each year and could be a threat. After watching some videos, I feel like TW could break into the top 3. Right now, they're performing their show at a level that goes beyond any other group I've seen from Texas. In my assessment, it's really beat-you-over-the-head obvious. Now, whether it remains this way as the season progresses is an entirely different story.

I'm impressed by this. The brass could be a bit better blended (definitely some heroics), but it looks like Wakeland is off to a strong start on their nationals season.

Keller! http://vimeo.com/105411435

Pflugerville. Very strong for an early season performance. Competition will be stiff at BOA Austin.

It's a professional quality vid. (You can hear more of the pit stuff and see individual marching.) Without a doubt, this is the strongest I've ever seen them this early, musically and visually. Then again, there's still quite a bit of movement and whatnot to add, which could add some dirt. I don't know what comes after this drill-wise, but if this is any indication, and if they clean exponentially, like they usually do, the show will probably be unequaled in visual performance (and maybe visual effect) in Texas by the end of the season. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYQQYkB8KaM

I already like Cedar Park's show way more than last year's. It's way more interesting visually, to say the least. It also looks quite a bit cleaner than what's typical for them at this point in the season. Strong music as always. There's another video on YouTube that I won't post here after all the Hebron videos were taken down. (I was sort of surprised by that, because Hebron has never struck me as a group that cares about videos on YouTube.) This group's musical selections (as announced in the video) are The Canyon by Philip Glass, Everything in Its Right Place by Radiohead, Garbage Concerto by Jan Jarvlepp, and Piano Concerto No. ? by Prokofiev. This is all information that will be available in the program booklet before the group performs, so I don't see the harm in posting it. No guard uniforms yet, no props yet, no movement yet. Still, this might be the strongest performance I've seen from them this early.

The scimitars! Hahaha.

That's because the person who posted them has since taken them down. Apparently they know we're on to them. Haha. Rest assured, they sounded fantastic.

Yay! See, sleuthing does work, sometimes. I'm wondering what sort of visual motif they're going with this year. I guess it could just be a lot of scatter forms congealing into geometric shapes, but I have a feeling it'll be something a bit more involved. Any cool music selections?

Oh my goodness! Bands practice 9 1/2 hours a day during August?! What rock have these people been hiding under? Hahaha. Unfortunately, you can't hear any show music in this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-21vyjrjPow

Here's a stand-still performance of Part One of Round Rock's Arabian Nights (no pit). Sounds like some Aladdin stuff in the beginning, but then it quickly starts to sound like Lassiter '98 (The Wind and the Lion). Lots of exciting stuff, though they don't have quite as much focus or control in their sound as groups like Hebron.

LD Bell's show is supposedly called Vertical Meditations. No idea what it's about or what they're playing. Unfortunately, Marcus no longer seems to post little pictorial clues on their website. (I'm still waiting to see a snake or key or something.) No idea what The Woodlands is doing, though I did read a comment by somebody on YouTube that incorporated a bunch of their old show names. They talked about feeling "uninvited" and "letters to home" and blah blah blah. They end by saying that they hope this year is successful and "a little bit chaotic." That stuck out to me. Can anyone confirm that The Woodlands' show this year has anything to do with chaos? Hahaha.

I think it's important to note that listening to a band playing their entire show standing still in an auditorium is like reading the screenplay of a movie before the movie has been made. You can see that there's a lot of awesome stuff to work with, but the end result can be vastly different depending on how the director envisions it and how well he works with his actors.

I agree that Hebron's ballad isn't as affecting as a stand-alone ballad this year compared to last year, but it does fit seemlessly with the rest of the show. The thing I like most about what I heard (besides the insane level of musical accomplishment) is how seamlessly everything flows, one idea to the next. It all seems to fit together. That's going to get them some big music GE scores down the road at BOA. I also like that they seem to have more power in their sound this year.

Just saw the "trailer" for CTJ's show. It's called Chameleon. Wagner's Tannhauser Overture plays in the background. I'm not sure if that means they're playing it, but it's a strong possibility. It looks like they have some strange stack of neon orange and blue boxes in the middle of the field that band members can stand on. Looks like something that dropped out of cyberspace. I wonder if they change colors. That would be appropriate.

I just heard all of Hebron's show on YouTube. There are three separate videos of the Opener, Ballad, and Closer. Cinderella-themed. There is no drumline, but there are the winds and the pit. I watched a similar video from Hebron last year. While I was impressed by that video, this year's video just absolutely blows me away. If I were a director that wants to win state or BOA San Antonio, I'd be pissing myself. The show is absolute magic. The technical demand is insane, but they sound absolutely amazing. Of course, sounding great standing still in an auditorium isn't the same thing as sounding great while marching, and I definitely think this show could be a bit rough early on due to the high musical demand, but by end season, if they get it together like they usually do (and if the visual matches the music), they're going to be in that tip top group again. For me, Hebron is pretty obviously the heir apparent to the old Reagan. With the Kevin Nix visual influence and the well-executed sentimentality, they just scream classic Reagan. I will say this, though: Reagan never sounded this good, even when they were on top. I absolutely can't wait to see this show on the field, along with all their nearest competitors.

Supposedly Marcus has been named the 5A State Honor Band. I think we all knew that was going to happen sooner or later. Congrats to the amazing Marcus Wind Symphony on their win and to Amanda Drinkwater for becoming the first female director to lead a band to the Honor Band title in the largest class since the competition's inception decades ago.