TWHSParent

I've wondered the same. I am guessing we all have different copy/paste methods, and/or posts are being done on mobile devices that don't present as well, so things get messed up.

And my daily vote... PrODDigy +1 Twist of Fate -1 All Hallows Eve 10 One Love 7 En Pointe 4 Twist of Fate 1 Unchartered Waters 16 The 4th Dimension 16 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardo's Dream 22 In The Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 4 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 3 Proddigy 15 Fractured Moments 10 Us and Them 10 Testament 10 Symphony of Silence 17 Sculpt 19 Forest Thru the Trees 9 The Wanderer 10 Change is the Only Constant 5 Synapse 11 Polarity 11 Tremendous Sea of Love 10 Lost and Found 15 Endeavor 14 Loop 17 Pop 17

Between posts 208 and 219, Fractured Moments was dropped. So I am adding it back in: All Hallows Eve 10 One Love 7 En Pointe 4 Twist of Fate 2 Unchartered Waters 16 The 4th Dimension 16 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardo's Dream 22 In The Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 4 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 3 Proddigy 14 Fractured Moments 10 Us and Them 10 Testament 10 Symphony of Silence 17 Sculpt 19 Forest Thru the Trees 9 The Wanderer 10 Change is the Only Constant 5 Synapse 11 Polarity 11 Tremendous Sea of Love 10 Lost and Found 15 Endeavor 14 Loop 17 Pop 17

Lets start here: "Texas bands wouldn't be where they are today without UIL, and UIL would probably be a lot more popular if they did a better job at hosting yearly contests," Hmm. This is not provable either way, and I don't accept it as an axiom. UIL, as the state "championship" absolutely has a place. Is it why Texas bands are where they are today conclusively? Unlikely. From what I've read, and please correct me if I am wrong - Texas today is recognized in the national music education scene as a destination. This is not because people outside of Texas pay much attention to UIL. It is because they see the large number of Texas bands at primarily BOA contests around the country performing at really high levels and choose to investigate further. Without this influx of new ideas from around the country, Texas would not be where it is today in the band world. As a non-native Texan, my view of UIL is as an organization that is not interested in promoting the performing arts. It is primarily interested in pushing sports. And that is fine, but it is not what I would choose to hitch my wagon on for marching band. "Whether you like it or not, the majority of bands in Texas are NOT focused on Bands of America, and this would give them a great outlet to have an end of the year championship that'll again encourage schools to greater support the band program." Whether I like it or not? Little too aggressive. Like has nothing to do with the opinion I expressed. I am not in the music education world, so I have zero vested interest and don't like or dislike BOA or UIL in the sense your statement implies. As a spectator, BOA contests are better across the board in my opinion. Does that make UIL "bad"? Of course not. Does that mean everyone should do BOA? Of course not - was that even implied? If UIL wants to do something, then they will do it. The real issue is that UIL can mandate things that BOA can't, and if UIL does so out of pique, then it is a <<family friendly website>> organization that deserves to be ignored. UIL and BOA have offerings that can be mutually beneficial. Turning the relationship into a competition between the two is misguided and ultimately does nothing but hurt both. No one can force a band to participate in BOA, but a Texas band can be forced to participate in UIL. We should not hope that this is the chosen path. Having an annual regional/area "championship" is fine in my view. But, do it in a way that benefits everyone. That is the approach that is correct, not "forcing' participation because of some nebulous "threat" from BOA. On many of those last points, I think we have lots and lots of common ground. We may differ on how we view UIL/BOA, but the path forward per our messages is essentially the same - let the programs have the choice of what to attend!

Symphony of Silence +1 En Pointe -1 All Hallows Eve 10 One Love 8 En Pointe 7 Twist of Fate 3 Unchartered Waters 15 The 4th Dimension 15 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardos Dream 22 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 4 Sense of Direction 5 SteadfastTin Soldier 3 Proddigy 14 Us and Them 11 Testament 10 Symphony of Silence 17 Sculpt 19 Forest Thru the Trees 10 The Wanderer 10 Change is the Only Constant 6 Synapse 11 Polarity 9 Tremendous Sea of Love 9 Lost and Found 13 Endeavor 14 Loop 17 Pop 17

Absolutely. All the shows are great. They have to be in order to have made finals at San Antonio. Certainly the last 2 years it has been tougher to make finals at San Antonio than at Grand Nationals. Even 3 years ago was pretty close to breakeven.

The 4th Dimension +1 Polarity -1 All Hallows Eve 10 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 5 Unchartered Waters 14 The 4th Dimension 15 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardos Dream 22 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 JustAnother Brick 5 Sense of Direction 5 Steadfast Tin Soldier 4 PrODDigy 13 Us and Them 11 Testament 10 Symphony of Silence 16 Sculpt 18 The Forest Thru the Trees 11 The Wanderer 10 Change is the Only Constant 6 Synapse 11 Polarity 8 Tremendous Sea of Love 9 Lost and Found 13 Endeavor 14 Loop 17 Pop 17

I really liked TWHS's rendition of Emerson, Lake, and Palmer's version of Ginastera's Toccata in 2018 (did I give everyone credit?). I still find myself rolling that through my head from time to time.

So one (truly meaningless) thing I'll point out, the last 3 times The Woodlands attended, they either won GN (2013) or the band that immediately followed won (Broken Arrow in 2015 and Carmel in 2017). So try to get your draws right in 2019!

Well, the CTJ show better be better than Flashdance! Not that Flashdance was bad by any means.... But easily the weakest of the past 3 years in my view. Don't discount anyone. As was stated, it will all come out on the field, and each band has beaten each other over the past years. Except The Woodlands never finished ahead of Flower Mound in my kid's 4 years. That is the only one...

My way of trying to keep things mostly civil is to vote one up and one down on the same band (not all my votes have been that way, of course) based on my personal enjoyment of the shows. Eventually this breaks down, but now that I no longer have a kid in band my perspective will be different. So my favorites for the bands that are 3 time finalists: Flower Mound - Leonardo's Dream Hebron - Sculpt Claudia Taylor Johnson - Forest thru the trees Vandegrift - Symphony of Silence Hendrickson - 3D (already eliminated....) Marcus - PrODDigy Leander - The 4th Dimension Ronald Reagan - Loop Keller - Change is the Only Constant The Woodlands - On the Waterfront Interesting that 10 bands have made finals these last 3 years. I hadn't really put that together until just now. Cedar Park and Cedar Ridge have made finals twice each. Cypress Falls, Vista Ridge, Winston Churchill, James Bowie, Avon, LD Bell, Westlake, and Round Rock have 1 appearance each. Anyway, I'm trying to take a more impersonal view on this. Of course, I have my grumbles (no way did Nine Lives deserve to score higher than Timebenders! And where the heck did Dobyns Bennett come from? Isn't Paradisium a bacteria? - I Joke! - plus, why did we have to follow Castle after that very emotional and sad field interview? Really started the overall show on such a depressing note that it took most of our show for the crowd to get back into the swing of the contest). But I'm trying to keep that out of my thinking on this thread (note I didn't give my grumbles for San Antonio!). OK, I rambled here. Apologies to all for that, but I'll post it anyway....

What has driven the meteoric rise of show quality across multiple programs in Texas, UIL or BOA? My answer is BOA. Seems to me you should embrace that and even work with it to make more improvements. It isn't just about money (talk about another dead horse topic), or winning, it is about experience, especially at the high school level. BOA has pushed programs to achieve more than they would have otherwise (in my opinion). Nothing really wrong with UIL, but it isn't pushing the boundaries.

All Hallows Eve +1 Steadfast Tin Soldier -1 All Hallows Eve 10 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 6 Uncharted Waters 13 The 4th Dimension 14 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardo's Dream 21 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 5 Sense of Direction 5 Steadfast Tin Soldier 4 Proddigy 12 Us and Them 11 Testament 9 Symphony of Silence 16 Sculpt 18 The Forest Thru the Trees 15 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 7 Synapse 11 Polarity 8 Tremendous Sea of Love 8 Lost and Found 15 Endeavor 14 Loop 17 Pop 17

On the Waterfront +1 Unchartered Waters -1 All Hallows Eve 9 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 7 Unchartered Waters 12 The 4th Dimension 15 On the Waterfront 16 Leonardos Dream 21 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 5 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 5 Proddigy 12 Fractured Moments 10 Us and Them 11 Testament 9 Symphony of Silence 15 Sculpt 17 Forest Thru the Trees 17 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 7 Synapse 11 Polarity 6 Tremendous Sea of Love 8 Lost and Found 15 Endeavor 13 Loop 18 Pop 17

42 Ascend Keller 2016, 13th place 41 Wherever You Will Go LD Bell 2018, 14th place 40 New World Cypress Falls 2016, 14th place 39 3D Hendrickson 2016, 12th place 38 Internal Landscape Leander 2017, 14th place 37 In Bloom Winston Churchill 2016, 11th place 36 Renaissance Marcus 2018, 11th place 35 Myspherical Westlake 2018, 13th place 34 New York State of Mind Cedar Ridge 2017, 12th place 33 Triptych Round Rock 2016, 10th place 32 Blueprints for Life Hendrickson 2018, 12th place 31 Rise Vandegrift 2018, 7th place 30 And Then I Saw the Sky James Bowie 2017, 13th place 29 Flashdance Claudia Taylor Johnson 2016, 4th place

We agree, but they are the one program (in my opinion) with recent history that could impact the very top of finals outside of the TX and IN bands.

Synapse +1 Just Another Brick -1 All Hallows Eve 9 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 7 Unchartered Waters 13 Flashdance 4 The 4th Dimension 14 On the Waterfront 15 Leonardos Dream 18 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 7 Just Another Brick 6 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 5 Proddigy 12 Fractured Moments 10 Us and Them 11 Testament 9 Symphony of Silence 15 Sculpt 18 Forest Thru the Trees 17 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 10 Synapse 11 Polarity 5 Tremendous Sea of Love 9 Lost and Found 14 Endeavor 13 Loop 16 Pop 17

The only way that I currently see that #teamtexas does not get at least one medal revolves around William Mason and where they are after their recent upheaval. They made strides last year to where I think they could have made finals in SA (if barely), but that isn't enough. They have to be completely back to their 2015/2016 form. Having said that, I do not think it is likely, but it is possible.

Me too. My wife still has some indirect connections to their program, so I'll see if she has heard anything. I am certain it has nothing to do with all the TX bands, since class A bands wouldn't be impacted.

Proddigy +1 Twist of Fate -1 All Hallows Eve 9 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 7 Unchartered Waters 13 Flashdance 5 The 4th Dimension 13 On the Waterfront 15 Leonardos Dream 19 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 6 Just Another Brick 6 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 5 Proddigy 12 Fractured Moments 9 Us and Them 10 Testament 9 Symphony of Silence 15 Sculpt 21 Forest Thru the Trees 16 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 8 Synapse 10 Polarity 5 Tremendous Sea of Love 9 Lost and Found 17 Endeavor 13 Loop 16 Pop 17

Avon, of course, is not from Texas. Flower Mound was 6th in SA and 5th at GN in 2017. Winston Churchill was 21st at SA and 16th in GN in 2017. Prosper did not attend SA in 2017, and finished 23rd at GN. In both 2017 and 2018 a band that competed and did not make finals at SA made finals at GN (Round Rock in 2017, Prosper in 2018). It astonishes me quite a bit that the impression we are all getting from the powerhouse bands that aren't attending GN in 2019 is that they don't want to compete with such a strong TX contingent. People rag on The Woodlands for being the least winningest Grand National Champion, but they go out and compete against the best year in and year out, and have been doing so for many years. That is what makes winning extra special. It saddens me that programs may be that afraid of losing. Why? Are we really that fragile? Oh, and I'll add big kudos to Avon for coming to TX and giving their all!

42 Ascend Keller 2016, 13th place 41 Wherever You Will Go LD Bell 2018, 14th place 40 New World Cypress Falls 2016, 14th place 39 3D Hendrickson 2016, 12th place 38 Internal Landscape Leander 2017, 14th place 37 In Bloom Winston Churchill 2016, 11th place 36 Renaissance Marcus 2018, 11th place 35 Myspherical Westlake 2018, 13th place 34 New York State of Mind Cedar Ridge 2017, 12th place 33 Triptych Round Rock 2016, 10th place 32 Blueprints for Life Hendrickson 2018, 12th place 31 Rise Vandegrift 2018, 7th place 30 And Then I Saw the Sky James Bowie 2017, 13th place

Loop +1 One Love -1 All Hallows Eve 9 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 8 Unchartered Waters 12 Flashdance 6 The 4th Dimension 13 On the Waterfront 15 Leonardo's Dream 18 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 6 Just Another Brick 5 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 6 Proddigy 11 Fractured Moments 9 Us and Them 11 Test4ment 9 Symphony of Silence 15 Sculpt 20 Forest Through the Trees 18 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 8 Synapse 10 Polarity 5 Tremendous Sea of Love 8 Lost and Found 15 Endeavor 13 Loop 16 Pop 17 Edited for simultaneous posts.

The 4th Dimension +1 Polarity -1 All Hallows Eve 9 One Love 8 En Pointe 8 Twist of Fate 8 Unchartered waters 12 Flashdance 7 The 4th Dimension 13 On the Waterfront 14 Leonardo's Dream 18 And Then I Saw the Sky 3 In the Garden of Cosmic Speculation 5 Just Another Brick 5 Sense of Direction 6 Steadfast Tin Soldier 6 Proddigy 9 Fractured Moments 9 Us and Them 10 Test4ment 9 Symphony 15 Sculpt 21 Forest Thru the Trees 18 The Wanderer 8 Change is the Only Constant 7 Synapse 10 Polarity 4 Tremendous Sea of Love 8 Lost and Found 20 Endeavor 13 Loop 14 Pop 17

42 Ascend 41 Wherever You Will Go 40 New World 39 3D 38 Internal Landscape 37 In Bloom 36 Renaissance 35 Myspherical 34 New York State of Mind 33 Triptych 32 Blueprints for Life 31 Rise