Saxtastic45

Looking at the snapshot numbers and guesstimating the cuttoffs, I am predicting this… 1st Davenport. because they were the only band close to Celina in my opinion. 2nd North Lamar. Honestly I thought they were slightly better than SS and CS plus they have been steadily improving over the last couple years since the new director took over 3rd Sulphur Spring. I think they have also improved over the last few years. I wasn’t a fan of their show this year but I got to tip my hat. They put on a clinic over how to get better every run. 4th Kaufman. They are a serious band with state experience at 5A. Great players, big sound, well taught. This ones gonna be fun. 5th China Spring. 5th place has been where they live and I think they got away with one this last season. Don’t get me wrong, this is a top tier band with a great history, big sound, and super teaching. 6th Calallen. Fun shows great players and something to prove. They gotta do the clean thing better IMHO. But solid for finals and a crowd pleaser. 7th Pine Tree. They went from not making Area finals to almost getting a state finals spot in a year. They are for real. 8th Fredericksburg. They should get better. I like the way they put together a show. Another group I thought was better than where they ended up. 9th Gatesville. I think they come back. This is a guess. I loved their show 2 years ago. Maybe a little wishful thinking. 10th bubble bands. Krum, Canyon, Farmersville, West Plains, Pleasant Grove, Randall, Bridge City. All bands with recent success and great potential.

I would agree with that statement. I don’t 100% agree with the order of the final results other than Celina winning and Davenport in a close 2nd place. But with those 2 in a different classification next year, do any of these other groups have it in them to rise to those levels? I think there was a bit of a gap between them and CS, SS, and NL. But the weird thing is, I think that it wasn’t necessarily like they were outclassed in every way. There was another gap between those 3 and Calallen/Canyon/WP/and Fredericksburg. My opinion is it comes down to design numbers and production. The achievement factor for the top 6 is so much higher than the medalists 4 or more years ago. But the productions are so much more advanced. can’t wait to see what the snapshot looks like in a couple weeks

Finally got through all the shows from finals. All I have to say is Wow! As someone who follows the Area C bands mostly, it was amazing how high the level of achievement was for 4A. These students are playing and performing at a level that the top 5A bands were doing not too long ago. I have my favorites for sure but every band in finals just crushed it! Bravo! With at least 2-4 of the very top bands going up, it’s going to be interesting to see how it plays out next year. Kaufman coming down also makes it a bit spicier!

My final predictions 1st Celina. Pros-They are somehow better than they have ever been in the winds dept. They are bigger, cleaner, more musical than everyone. Cons-Visually they are slightly less clean than normal and the guard isn’t as good. I also think the percussion isn’t as solid but it is still really good. 2nd Panther Creek. Pros-very uniform movement and fantastic solos. The woodwinds are incredible maybe the best woodwinds in 4A ever. Solid brass. Polished and refined. Cons-kind of a boring show. And visually not as difficult as some other groups. Small less effective guard but all 4 do their job really well. 3rd North Lamar. Pros-visually complex and dynamic. So much variety musically and visually. Sounds great looks great. Content out the wazoo. Kind of an assault on the senses and emotionally performed. Good guard and emergent percussion. Cons- The end of the show is unrefined. They can be inconsistent. They have a recent history of peaking before state finals. Smaller than a lot of other groups. 4th Davenport Pros-the sound is so big and lush. The percussion is so consistent and has a hard book. They also probably have the best guard in 4A by a lot. Really cool brass moments. Cons-The show is not as compelling as last year. They move well but the drill is muddy at times from a design category. 5th Sulphur Springs Pros-Cleanest they have ever looked. Well thought out show design and fantastic soloists. The tenor brass is probably the best in this classification. Guard is also top notch. This is a band that knows how to deliver. Cons-They don’t have an identity as far as how they want to sound. I think they have some very rough spots in their show that I’d be interested to see if they can get worked out. Woodwinds have projection and clarity issues. 6th Krum Pros- Some of the cleanest technical moments in this classification as well as some of the best soloists. Cons- It hasn’t gotten much better in a month. The ending of the show is unrefined and confusing. Visually, while well done, is uninspiring. 7-10 is in any order but my guesses will be Canyon, Calallen, China Spring, Canton. Feel free to disagree.

Mineola is not going to get beat by anyone in 3A this year. I don’t think all but the top 3 or 4 4As from this area could beat them. I’ve seen these bands. Fine programs for sure, but Mineola does band different. It’s not going to be close.

I would agree. I don’t think SS will beat them. For me they are the most serious of contenders for the throne.

To be clear, I am not talking about whether or not they changed the approach to show design. I’m talking about the concept of sound and cleanliness. They are always pushing the envelope when it comes to difficulty musically. But at what cost? It’s never truly clean or musical to my ears and eyes. Just an honest opinion from a casual observer.

Hot take, I watched a video of CS from area. I don’t see them in the top 5. I think they struggle to make finals. I don’t think NL is a long shot for top 5 at all. Competitive for a medal even. I think you’re right about Sulphur. I still haven’t seen Davenport. Any vids? I think Krum is solid for finals.

Celina SS and NL do not park and bark. They have simultaneous responsibilities always. NLAnd Celina’s are particularly difficult. Canton marches and plays almost twice as much as everyone else. BC and PT do a fair amount of park and bark but they sound better than lumberton. Again, great program! If they advanced, I seriously doubt they would be last place at state. But they are not on the same level as the bands that advanced. I also thought PG and Farmersville were significantly better as well.

You know this is your fault LOL!!

I am sorry you feel that way. I have nothing against any school or any band. I do have something against loud unfocused sounds not played together in time or in tune. I also have something against parking and barking. These are the issues I take with Lumberton’s “product”. Not with the students or the program in general. I love that you are Lumberton till you die. But being truthful is important. If the director and students listen to the feedback I’m sure they got without being offended they will get better. by the way. I know Chuck Moon and he is a heck of a director and musician. If he heard something a certain way, I’m sure he wasn’t far off. A lot of these bands are high quality.

I’ll bet NL not having their show complete till last week hurt them. I am pulling for them tbh. But is there enough time to get state clean?

I don’t know, I’ve had a few talks with friends about these new sheets. It’s supposed to eliminate preferences. What I am hearing is that some judges are ignoring the rubric and rewarding personal preferences. I wasn’t there and haven’t seen any runs. But I heard the following. what I see from the breakdown is this: Celina is Celina. NL>SS in music? I thought this was going to be close but maybe the other way around. I thought SS power and production would win out with area level judges, especially outside. The visual scores between The’s 2 is what surprised me. I thought NL would beat them out with the demand. But I also heard it wasn’t that clean. PT was a pleasant surprise. Welcome back! BC is not surprising. Great band. Enjoy State! I’m pumped for Canton. Enjoy! PG on a different run could have iced this. Well done. I bet they will be dangerous next year. WP is on its way. They will probably be my dark horse next year VA is always solid. I just wish there was more to their production and cleanliness. Mabank I heard played Rocky Point. I haven’t seen any vids. I also heard this was rough. Lumberton hasn’t changed its formula in a decade. I’ve never considered them clean. I’m honestly not surprised. Lots of notes not played at the same time. They have great players. They just need to work together better. In conclusion: congrats on making finals. Lots of really good bands didn’t get to perform under the lights or move on at all.

There will probably a lot less people. I think that this is the best situation anyone could hope for given the circumstances. The top groups would have probably been fine with going prelims only. Same with the bands that are less competitive. But the bands who are expecting to make finals and be on that state advancement bubble of 4-6 need to be thanking God for this opportunity. Especially given how tight that race is looking. I know as a former rural band director, Sunday contests are an absolute non starter for most of these bands.

I don’t think so. PC was one of the first bands to go and CS one of the last. Looks like an early draw hurt PC. I think CS will slip this year. They don’t sound that good this year and the show is kinda boring. It’s not the kids fault. It the arrangement. I love new world symphony. I really dislike this take on it. State finals yes, but 7-9 place. PC is amazing. They are the only band I’ve seen that can legit challenge Celina.

So North Lamar has to wait another year to go first again.

Does anybody know who drew the first spot?

The suspense is killing me for C. I think this is the most contested area. I’m glad for the kids though. The area coordinator made the right call. Looks like their finals would have been rained out.

I think the aggregate is fairly close.

Honestly, every band that made Area is a quality band program. But some are more competitive than others. Are you wondering where your band is probably going to place?

I am trying to move my work schedule around to go. I wouldn’t probably get there until the afternoon and watch finals. should be fun. I wasn’t gonna be able to catch the Saturday one anyways. So this makes it better.

I don’t think it’s going to turn out this way. And here’s why. Music matters more than visual. Celina is next level when it comes to music. It’s harder and played better than everyone. one of the reasons I think NL is better than SS is they just sound better. More balanced and more musical. I don’t think they are on Celinas level but they are closer to them than the rest of the field is to NL.

I’d be interested to hear your ideas of what makes a high difficulty marching maneuver. I feel sometimes that this is the discussion that needs to be had. Some of our disagreements over this season I think have been more about this philosophy. For me, I think the hardest stuff to do is block rotations, gate turns especially with 5 or more marchers, and geometric expansions. The more velocity and bigger step size the better. This was something Canton used to do better than everyone. Maybe they are doing it again. That’s what is putting Celina and NL over the bar for me that I don’t feel I’m getting from the rest of the field. I also view the choreography while playing as high difficulty. Especially when it’s really complex. Fluttering isn’t hard the way most of these groups are doing it. But to flutter well like Celina is really hard IMHO. I wouldn’t write off WP either bc of the programming. It’s a well put together show.

You know if this was the Regional round of football playoffs, half of these schools would shut down to make it happen.

So basically everyone else that makes finals. I’m glad I’m not a director any more.