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Realistically, if this area were to take 7 bands to state, the top 3 spots are going to be Celina, Suplhur Springs, and Farmersville almost guaranteed although Farmersville could drop since they haven't been the most consistent this year. Canton, Lumberton, Pine tree, and North Lamar will battle out for the final 4 spots and Van Alstyne could very well be in that mix since they appear to be neck and neck with North Lamar. I do think the gap after top 3 is pretty significant if we were to say all the bands perform at their best.

I do think Farmersville should be put obove canton since Farmersville beat alvarado earlier this season and Alvarado beat canton. Sulphut springs did beat Farmersville yesterday at royse city prelims, so I think that's pretty accurate in placement, however it'll be interesting to see how they stack up against china springs. I haven't seen their show yet, but I'm sure they are definitely competing for those medals. The top 5 are neck and neck, anyone could really take them, although I think panther creek is pretty much sitting at that first place podium already.

Top 3 are North Lamar, Mineola, or farmersville on my opinion. The rest I'm not sure since I've never see the other bands perform.

I just saw Celina's show on yt, and it's pretty much a copy and paste from the previous 2 years. As clean as it is, it really is like watching paint dry. As far as of right now, I have Panther Creek as the best 4a and Celina in 2nd. Farmersville is my 3rd choice rn, but other bands are rapidly closing the gap. This area is really competitive this year and it sure will be fun to watch.

1. Panther creek - Pretty much guaranteed 1st place in area, and more than likely will win the state competition. 2. China Spring - State band Pretty consistently, and has competed at very high levels with many great shows. 3. Aubrey - They made area finals for this area last year, and they finished 6th. Now that Anna and Kaufman moved up, along with Canton, Celina, and Farmersville, it only leaves Panther Creek ahead of them. 4. Krum - They really had a good show in 2022 and I believed they had a great spot at making state that year. They are making great progress and improving year after year. 5. Sanger - decent band, I don't remember if they made finals in the last couple of years, but they did make area B which and compete with many of those great bands, now that the competition is easier in this area, they will probably make area finals and possibly make state. Alvarado - I haven't seen them, but I hear they are a good band. Since I dint know the variability of this band, I can't place them anywhere rn.

It seems like many decent bands are going to this competition. Many notable ones 4a since a couple belong to the same area. Any thoughts about the bands going? Who's favored to win and what's expected from what has been seen so far in the season?

Interesting prediction. Maybe we can Bring Aubrey from area B into this area to test it.

New predictions 1. Celina - nothing to say. They are the best 4a rn 2. Farmersville - They definitely picked up their pace and have one of the hardest 4a programs of the season not far behind Panther Creek in terms of difficulty. 3. Canton - Off to a rough start, but they picked up and closed the gap pretty fast to the other 4a programs. 4. Sulphur springs - Off to a great season start as always and are getting really good really fast. 5. Pine Tree 6. Lumberton 7. North Lamar/Community

You know directors, they will always be confident for their band no matter which it is

Well, I understand bias is definitely something to look out for, and although I try no to it's inevitable. Farmersville tied for 5th last year in area B with Kaufman a previous state band, which at the time was debatably the hardest area to compete it. Earlier that season they beat out sulphur springs and other great bands like mineola only a week away from area. They may be a small school and not well known, but they can definitely compete. Besides that, I think from what I've seen they are the current best band in this area atm. I can't stress "atm" enough, no one that I've seen has watched Celina amd there's no livestreams viewable. I'm not saying North Lamar or Sulphur Springs and even canton can't beat them, but atm that's just how I view the band as they stand currently. like you said, it is only sep. 15th so absolutely anything can change.

They have 3 parts of their show down. They are sounding pretty decent for this time in the season. Their marching is far from state level atm though. Besides some balance and intonation issues, they are off to a phenomenal start. They played north lamar last week and I'd say they definitely were better off at that time. I do have videos, and somewhere in a different post I mentiones I am a part of the fhs band. We do have video, but the directors asked us not to share it. Our show contains 2 parts of Timber Creek's 2023 show and it's intitled Aurora. We definitely hope to perform great this year.

Not currently. Maybe you could find some videos on YouTube, but I doubt it, they seem to be cracking down of videos from being posted, so I assume they are following suite of celina and such

You'd have to watch the livstreams on Friday. They usually get taken down pretty soon after being filmed though

For this area, I would agree Farmersville seems to be at the top currently. Their marching definitely needs improvement, but their playing is sounding really good for this part of the season. I haven't seen Celina, but obviously it's safe to assume they will be good. They probably are off to a slow start since they added so many more spots out of the blue. From 4a, I think panther creek is definitely the best at the moment, and Farmersville is second from what I've seen so far. In this area, Sulphur Springs and Canton are probably second and 3rd with Pine Tree and Lumberton somewhere in the mix. North Lamar is off to a slow start from what I see in this area although they always pick it up mid to late season. I haven't seen paris, but I assume they are doing their own thing and putting in that work.

I think they went to aggressive this year with their show. They have a lot of choreo that's for sure, but music doesn't seem to be following up with the choreo

I heard the commentator say something about mics, was there something wrong? I don't want to seem rude or amything, but this is my first time hearing NL and I really thought they'd be sounding better at this point in the season. I know shows are still relatively nee and still being put together, but if so, then I think rankings are seeming pretty mixed now.

I usually go from what I know a band has accomplished. For Celina, they've won back to back state championships so it's fair and safe to assume they will be first again. Since most bands remain with majority of the same staff and students, they usually perform the same year after year so it's safe to place them around the same as previous years. Canton for example used to be a consistent silver medalists and bronze at the state champioship, but from what I know they got a new director and staff shifted and since then, they have dropped in rankings not even making state finals last year. You'll get used to it as you learn the bands and see how certain classifications seem to fair throughout the season. Nonetheless, we support every banf and they all always put great effort into every show no matter what band it is.

Interesting predictions, are there reasons that you have placed these bands where you did? I'm curious as to your reason behind these placements. It's really early in the season so predictions are hard at this point in time since shows are just now being seen by the public and major changes are still being made. My predictions 1st - 8th: Celina: Pretty obvious they are the best band in this area since they won back to back state champions for 4a. Sulphur Springs: Always a phenomenal band and always brings competition at the state level year after year. North Lamar: Same as sulphur springs. They are an amazing band and could be interchanged with sulphur springs for 2nd both at area and the state level. Pine Tree: I've never seen this band perform in person or even video. From what I know, they were a state 5a band so I think they will do great and even take over at the 4a level and establish themselves as a top band. I'd place them top 3, but that's the only knowledge I have. Lumberton: I've never seen this band perform either, but I hear great things and I do think they will compete for the finals spots at area C. Canton: They have tapered off in recent years, otherwise I'd place them second. My confidence in this band being a top competitor in this area and even at state isn't too great. Considering they didn't make state finals last year, I don't think they will be beating Sulphur Springs or North Lamar at the area level. Farmersville: Great band and has come close to advancing to state even tying with kaufman last year. They beat paris highschool and sulphur springs at the royse city invitational by a pretty big margin. Great band that can be competitive, but lacks consistency for staying at that competitive level. Paris: Great band year after year and always a pleasure to watch. I really enjoyed their show last year and think it will be great this year aswell. While they are great, I don't see them placing higher than 7th in this area just because the competition is so great. All of these bands are phenomenal and all have great things going for them. Hopefully all these bands see growth and bring their full efforts to the area competition as always. I think this is the most competitive and tight a single area has been at the 4a level, bands will have to bring quite a lot to stand out and cement their spots this year for sure.

I am part of the Farmersville marching band and I don't know exactly what day, but we go against north lamar at a football game and I'm really excited to see their halftime show. Since now Farmersville is in the same area, I believe this will put into perspective the challenge that awaits us in the future. I've always loved the North Lamar band and I'm really looking forward to their program this year.

One that I realized popped up in recent years is in the 4A programs. Farmersville and Kaufman battled it out 2022 and 2023 placing single digit points apart at the area contest and tieing for 5th placing only one spot away from state. It's sad to see Kaufman move up to 5A this 2024 season since they could have definitely brought in some punch to the 4A area C competition. I can also see at 4A state Celina and Panther Creek battling it out for 1st once again and forming a new rivalry just as strong as when Argyle and Melissa were competing year after year at the 4A area contest.

I was unaware thanks for letting me know. I guess that 7th spot id up for grabs then but Farmersville might take it since they did tied with Kaufman 2023 and didn't get to far off in 2022. Can't wait to see Paris, Lumbertown, and Farmersville compete for their spot at 7th and 6th place spots.

Based on last year, I think the 7th place spot belongs to Kaufman or Farmersville. They were both above Paris and tied eachother at the area finals for Area B. While Paris always performs great shows, Kaufman has consistently been a highranking and competitive school. I don't see a school such as them not placing in the 7th spot or above for this area. I'm not so sure about lumbertown since I've never seen them in person or recording but I think they will definitely have a very tight sliver to try to slide into. Needless to say, This year will be the most competitive I've ever seen; probably more than back in the Argyle and Melissa years for Area B.

Last year they had a phenomenal show but crumbled due to tuning issues in the bad weather. This year if they can overcome that issue they could very well place in the top 5 spots and achieve the state status. I haven't seen their show this year but if it is anything like last year's they very well could make it.

Do you know if it is only online, or can you buy tickets at the gate?