LeanderMomma

He's a pretty talented guy. Super proud of him! www.ilyanazarov.com

I think it's going to be super tight between the top 5 and ANY of them could win. I'm thinking Vandy takes it again tho obviously I hope Leander repeats our 2015 win. Truly tho, it could be ANY of those top 5. Or Bowie! Or Hendrickson! Dang, this prediction stuff is hard. :/

I'm looking forward to hearing your band this fall. Which competitions will y'all be at?

Plus it's just fun to say "Sachse." I bet most non Texans couldn't pronounce it right on the first try!

Do you play Fallout 4 at all? My son-in-law did a lot of the art in that game. <proud momma-in-law moment> But I'm so glad someone agrees with me that we need a band to do a video game storyline for a marching show!!!

Ha ha! I even emailed my "idea" to the Leander directors last Spring but I don't think they were interested. (I'm sure they rolled their eyes because you just gotta KNOW they get TONS of unsolicited advice from band parents). But seriously, my girls are video game freaks and my youngest (who is 18) has even purchased video game sound tracks because she loves the music SO much. And I admit that I do as well. (My son in law is a graphic artist at Bethesda studios so video games are a big topic in our household!). There is a weekly program on our local radio station (Austin's classical station KMFA) that focuses on film score music which I just love, and every now and then he will do a program based on video game music. There is some incredible video game music out there....I just don't know if people realize that!

:-O say what??!!

Can't wait to see what Marcus is doing with this theme. Will there be the usual massive in size and almost cartoonish props that we are accustomed to seeing with Marcus? It will be fun to watch, I'm sure!

That's great that Anderson is going to BOA St. Louis! There are some FANTASTIC bands in that line-up. A great number of them are regulars at Grand Nats. Enjoy!! #teamtexas

That's a great analogy. "Slow cooker." We all know how amazing food tastes when it's been in the crockpot all day! Now we know Avon's secret.

I also don't think that "money" makes as big of a difference as some might think. I heard from a Flowermound student that they do tons of fundraising and that their props and uniforms are actually what he called "cheap!" The school itself is in a wealthy area, as is Vandegrift and the Woodlands, but that does not guarantee anything. Case in point, LEANDER!!! While there are some wealthy neighborhoods in our area, there are also PLENTY of low income neighborhoods as well. We are what you might call, a "well-rounded" school. But the bottom line is, each school only gets a certain amount of money from the district and it does not matter if it is a wealthy area or not. Money does not a fantastic band make. Plenty of examples that show otherwise! And I know for a fact that Leander does an INSANE amount of fundraising. I'm not saying that a wealthy school district does not have it's perks, but I don't think it makes as huge a difference as one might think.

As impressed as I was with Avon at Grand Nats, I just have to admit that I am really pulling for a Texas band to beat them in San Antonio. If anyone can do it, a Texas band can! I absolutely LOVE that Avon is coming down for this great super regional, and I predict that they will do an amazing job as always, but I want the gold medal so to speak, to stay in Texas.

I went back and found a video from TMC and did not hear any shout outs BEFORE the bands marched....only after. So that's good!

Seems like they do some of the shout outs before the band marches and some more after, but I could be misremembering! Someone correct me if I am.

Another great one, Daniel. Your poor mother!!! I'm glad my kiddos were younger at the time. I had a 13, 10 and 2 year old then, and I guess I never thought about what they might remember about that day, the older ones at least. I remember watching a crappy old tv all day at work and leaving early to get my children. Since Austin is the capitol of Texas, we worried about an attack here as well. I'm sure most larger cities did worry about such things, and it was a relief when all planes were grounded and we knew at least that there would be no more planes flying into buildings that day. My oldest daughter lives in the DC area now, and I admit that I worry about that as well at times. But are we truly safe anywhere? The world can be a scary place. I've had the privilege of visiting NYC many times since 9/11, and the very first thing I did on my first visit was to see the 9/11 memorial and go through the museum. Seeing where the towers once stood and reading all of the names of those lost is something I wish every American could do at least once. And the museum itself is a must see experience, if one gets the opportunity to do so. I highly, highly recommend doing both when in NYC. So much was lost that day, yet it was an event that bonded this country together like nothing else. Never forget...

Totally random...for some reason this beautiful 9/11 morning, I was thinking of the TMC competition and the really awkwardly amusing thing they do at these types of non BOA local competitions. I know it's a fund raising gimmick, and I respect that, but I would love to know what you band kids think of the "shout outs" that your friends and families can pay to have read over the PA system as your band takes the field. Sometimes they are truly funny, and sometimes they are just painfully embarrassing for the poor kid. I do get a kick out of listening to them, but I was wondering what the band kids actually thought of them? I think my kid woulda killed me if I'd done it!!!

You totally could have been talking about the poor Leander football team in this podcast. I can't even remember the last time we had any kind of winning season! Well actually I do. My middle daughter graduated in '09, and LHS was pretty good back then, but we never got to go. My middle daughter played just about every sport possible, and we always had volleyball games to go to during football season so we never got to see any football games at all. And then when my youngest daughter, who was in the band, started at LHS in 2013, the football team was as bad as what you described in your podcast. It was so hard because we rooted for those poor boys to do well, but it just never happened. We can't even win our non district games early in the season. I've attended both of Leander's first games of this season, and it still doesn't look good for the Lions. Poor kids! I admit I was envious when Cedar Park took state in both the 5A football and UIL band competition in 2015. What a high THAT must have been!! Your step dad story made me tear up a little. Good stuff, Daniel.

Great job for your first TXB podcast, Anthony! Like Daniel (danpod), you're a natural. I could easily listen to any future podcasts you might endeavor to do, if you do. I have been participating in online forums since the mid 90's, longer than my own (recently graduated) band kid has even been alive! I completely enjoy the different personalities of each forum that I'm a part of, and I am pretty much exactly the same person in RL that I am online. I think my spirit animal is probably a Chihuahua...yappy and irritating.

The entire state is rooting for y'all!

Ok, I would love to see your face when these mega 5A and 6A (Texas school size, not BOA sizes) bands hit their first big hits in the Alamo Dome! Your eyes are going to glaze over and you may lose consciousness momentarily.

Wow, your first BOA SA experience??!! Your world is about to be ROCKED!

Not at all. Need to see the first 3 weeks of BOA before decent predictions can be made. Obviously we can predict who we WANT to win, based on emotions and past history, but no one truly has any idea what will happen. FWIW, I hope to see some new bands in finals this year! Go #teamtexas!

Wow, what a way to build interest and excitement for TWHS show!!! Now I can't WAIT to see it!

We love you guys and our hearts and prayers continue to go out to everyone affected by Harvey. I am hopeful that our Houston area band friends will rebound and excel this season! See you in Conroe!! ❤