JediSaxSolis

Looking forward to the competition. See y'all there!

Oh, sorry about that, Marcus. It's been several years. Liked the french horns that year, though! Sorry for the mix-up with Haltom. I tried to give you guys some praise.

Getting a bit off-topic here, but I really liked Haltom's show back in '05. I thought the bird-like guard was pushing it a little, but the music you guys had from the Pines of Rome (and I think maybe Firebird Suite?) was awesome.

To tell you the truth, I'd be really disappointed if Bell didn't take home the state champion title. Their show is just too good. The music is absolutely incredible. I'd say they definitely deserve it.

Finalist bands were (in no particular order): Clear Lake Dickinson Brazoswood Westfield Tomball Klein Spring The Woodlands North Shore Pearland The Clear Brook situation was disappointing. I thought they would be a shoe-in for finals. Rumor has it that one judge had them placed 17th, and that threw them out.

We played Dickinson at a football game last week, and they also marched directly after us at UIL Region contest. From what I could see, they play their music very well. I'm not so sure how difficult the marching drill is, but the musicality is executed well.

QUOTE (takigan @ Oct 16 2008, 05:32 PM) * Keep in mind that it's not good form to just come in to a forum and be all like, "Hey, guys, I'm from ____, what do you think of my band?".....even more so if you're from a school that is not well known, because then it just sounds like you're begging for attention.... There are more subtle ways of promoting your band than just saying "Hey, talk about us....please?". Yeah, it doesn't necessarily have to be pointed out in a thread discussing a contest. You could have simply messaged the user if it bothered you. ------ What did you all think of Clements' arrangement of Rhapsody in Blue? It vaguely reminded me of Coppell's show in past seasons.

Agreed. Bell didn't leave me a bit disappointed at all. This year's L.D. Bell show will never be forgotten.

I'm big on classic Nintendo games. Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Kirby, Smash Bros., and even some Pokemon. I actually want to enter into the business of the video game industry when I'm older and am out of college/grad school with some experience(Marketing/Sales). I also enjoy the NCAA football games. I think they outdo the Madden franchise. Along with video games, I love video game soundtracks. As far as orchestral recordings, check out Super Mario Galaxy's soundtrack... it's probably one of the best out there. Banjo-Kazooie is also an old favorite of mine. Love the music on that, too.

I'm almost positive that Lamar is getting a football team soon. A marching band will hopefully come packaged with that.

I was satisfied with the contest. Very competitive, and also a lot of fun. From what I saw, all the bands that made it into Finals deserved it. I'm still thinking Clear Lake should have made finals, though. They have really improved a lot over the past few years.

Waking up early today! Looking forward to a great and competitive contest.

Looking forward to this weekend! I can't wait to see Bell's show.

It really is an amazing marching score. It's almost more thrilling than a blockbuster soundtrack. I expect Bell to do extremely well at State.

We were planning on having our Region Jazz Auditions this weekend... but that got postponed due to the hurricane. It'll probably be in several weeks.

I'm glad UIL is doing this. I think a lot of bands have been affected, and some of us are still out of school and aren't sure when we're going back. Hopefully everything gets back on track soon.

I agree with you. I think that's true with any organization; be it a corporation or a non-profit organization. I think one of the most important traits an effective leader can have is that of humility. Being part of the team is key. If there's any level of narcissism present in the leader, it shows that they're too insecure to lead a group of people effectively. It also hurts the morale of the group when the leader doesn't truly care for the people he/she serves since they're too concerned with their self-perception. I'm not saying a leader can't be confident, but there's a fine line between an overly-inflated ego and showing confidence. I also think that a leader needs to be experienced and able to continuously excel at whatever the particular organization does. The leader has to be able to visualize excellence and understand what they need to do to carry the group to whatever goal the organization desires. If the leader doesn't act on the vision of the group, productivity lessens and it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve the group's goals. In my opinion, the next most important thing would be the leader's level of optimism and how influential the leader can be. No one likes a pessimist; more than that, no one is going to listen to what a pessimist has to say if they're constantly bringing the morale and unity of the group down. All in all, there are many ways to describe an effective leader. It's a very broad topic. Have good character. Show ethical values and morals. Be an example and an influence. If you really do care about the people and the well-being of the organization and you take the proper steps to ensure that you're an upstanding member of the organization... the majority of people will notice, respect, and call you their leader for it. As for selection of Section Leaders and Drum Majors, I agree with Dan. Every program is different in their criteria. From where I stand, though, effective leadership is universal. I'd encourage you to read some books on leadership by either John C. Maxwell or Stephen R. Covey. They're both great authors, renowned speakers, and they explain leadership in great detail. Check them out!

I don't know too much about Angleton... but where I live, Lake Jackson, is only about 15 miles from Angleton. From what I've heard, Lake Jackson didn't flood... but there are a lot of downed trees and powerlines. It sounds like getting power up and running again is what will be the main problem.

Don't get your hopes up. I'm in College Station right now, and it's not bad at all. There's some rain and the wind is strong, but it's kind of pathetic for a hurricane. I think you guys only lucked out on Friday.

Yeah, everyone be careful. Our community started shutting down on Wednesday; our last practice was on Tuesday. We're only about 15 miles inland from Surfside. Stay safe!

Wow, this is going to be an incredible year for Bell. I'm really liking their music. They're definitely on track to being the best marching band in the nation once again.

The school district Reagan was in recently split their highschools; so the band probably downsized.

Even then, it doesn't seem that being traditional really means much in the marching band industry anymore. The industry itself is dynamic enough and the concepts/philosophies seem to change every few years (if not more often). does your band march military style?

I remember hearing the same thing last year. It was almost like it was a done deal that the Alamodome wouldn't ever be used again for State UIL Marching. I'm not really sure what happened; it was probably a misunderstanding or miscommunication.

Haha, I seriously laughed when I read that. That is the time when it starts getting really interesting. They should have biannual UIL State Marching Contests. You could have that year round.