jmj

I can't imagine many of the BOA regulars attending this. Many will be at UIL region. And that stadium has the worst stadium acoustics I've ever experienced. Sound just disappears in there.

100% agree. Great middle school feeders and a former CP director at the helm. The signs started to show last season.

It's like Christmas! So glad to have these to obsess over for the next few months! All Texas regionals look super interesting!! And look at Weiss (opening this fall with 9/10 grades to relieve Hendrickson) already entered in several! How fun! Also excited to see Pioneer at Austin! They were the great discovery for me at McAllen last year and I think they may very well make a nice addition to the 5A state conversation.

I am still shocked over Bowie being left out of finals. Maybe I missed something, but I had them comfortably in finals in my personal rankings with what I thought was a wonderful performance. I also saw a ton of growth in the show from Area, where they finished 2nd to Reagan. First time since 2004 that Bowie was not in the state finals. Of course, they will do Texas proud in Indy this weekend. Also interesting, this is Hebron's third consecutive silver medal at this contest. They absolutely blew me away today with their depth of sound from bass to treble, as well as what has got to be one of the hardest woodwind books ever performed on the field. Additionally, it's great to see some new faces in these finals. Awesome for Round Rock to achieve this success after some rough Area contests in the recent years. Absolutely brilliant show - all those rotating snowflakes in the drill were done so well. And, how about North Shore - I didn't know what to expect and they blew me away with their power and technique. Wonderful to see a nice resurgence for the Houston area between them and the success of Cy Falls at BOA on Saturday. Finally, a quick nod to Hendrickson and my favorite show of the season! Sad to have not seen this one in the finals, but they did themselves proud this weekend - that trombone trio in the closer is forever playing in my head! Nothing but good things headed their way.

I am confused. What even is the point of performing in Area prelims, then, if no intention to go to finals, assuming their likely high rank after prelims?

Also agreed about Cedar Ridge 2013 - the Moon River was absolutely stunning and generally I enjoy a singer. Haltom also had a really nice singer in their La Nouba show many years ago. This year's Reagan is a great show , but it has just way too much singing for my personal taste. I think the vocals are wonderful but when I watched the show from Conroe, I was getting a bit annoyed at certain parts where I wanted to hear the band shine because they are amazing... but then the singing would start again.

Yes, disappointing results from Region 20 today! Also, surprised to see North Crowley not get a 1 in the new Region 30. This does make things very tight moving forward for advancing 5. I think it will come down to Region 5 on Tuesday and seeing what the Arlington ISD schools do. Last year, only 2 of them received 1's...

By my calculation, Area D has a potential 32 bands, so it MIGHT be possible to get 6 advancing. Hays ISD actually is still in Region 18 so that helps. Region 8 (7 schools) - Belton, Copperas Cove, Killeen, Shoemaker, Ellison, Harker Heights, Midway Region 12 (11 schools) - Madison, Churchill, Reagan, Lee, Roosevelt, Johnson, MacArthur, NB Canyon, Smithson Valley, New Braunfels, San Marcos Region 18 (6 schools) - Bowie, Akins, Anderson, Del Valle, Hays, Lehman Region 18 (8 schools) - Round Rock, Cedar Ridge, Westwood, McNeil, Stony Point, Hendrickson, Pflugerville, Manor Last year, 26 of these 32 received a 1 at Region, so we'll need some improvement to get to 30, but it's not impossible. I really think that this is the toughest area as whoever advances (whether 5 or 6) has a great shot to make the state finals. So glad they moved Eanes and Leander ISDs to Area H. Otherwise this already stacked area would be beyond intense.

My personal favorites from the first half of 5A: -Vista Ridge. The velocity! I also adore that reprise of Kaval Sviri at the end. The most blended sound from treble to bass so far today. -Waxahachie. Lovely musical selections all over and I am sucker for the Tchaikovsky R&J that they nailed at the end. -Centennial. Just a great show with incredible brass on all that tough Respighi. Do they ever go to BOA? Would love to see them there - I think people would be talking about them the same way as Wakeland if they just had some more exposure at the early season contests. Come to BOA Austin next year! -Chisolm Trail. The band sounded just lovely on Jupiter and Elsa's Procession. Great idea to use that during the Queen's coronation scene. -McKinney. Truly, all of the sections sounded as if they were indeed "on fire" during parts of that show. So many notes. Watching at work in between meetings and really wishing I'd taken the day off so I could just sit at home and watch uninterrupted. Great morning of bands so far!

Denver City! Love that mellophone duet on Feast Day In Seville! One of my favorite pieces!

Most folks are too young to know this show, but when Holliday pushes the panels of their mountaintop painting together at the end of their show, it reminds me of when The Colony did that with their train panels at the end of their Ghost Train show back in 2000. Very effective.

You've also gotta scratch your head on that 12th place ordinal in music for Hebron. LOL.

Yes, I have even seen people start to line up before the announcement of finalists. Personally, I like getting the reserved ticket for finals. It gives me peace of mind, knowing that I've got a decent enough seat, no matter what and I don't have to worry about my place in line. Also, you have what amounts to a near aerial view of the field, so the visual aspect is tremendous. The forms really come alive for you up there. I have noticed so many things over the years in the drill just by being up there, even on shows that I'd seen 4 or 5 times previously.

Wow on Reagan! I liked the show when I saw it at BOA Austin, but it is truly stunning now. They are performing at an extremely high level now. I find the marching to be quite fantastic - body carriage, spacing, sets locking - terrific. Love the contracting multi-ring circle right before the ballad and some of those helix passthroughs. Very excited to see this in person again at BOA SA!

Coppell, Haltom, and Westwood are the statebound bands competing at the DMI. Will be interesting to find out how they stack up against each other.

Xenon, it looks like 4A Area B actually will have 20 bands at Area, after all. The schedule that I saw for that contest has both Ferris and Dallas Madison from Region 20 on the Area B schedule for Saturday. Even though they didn't make overall 1's, each region does get to nominate 2 bands to be it's representatives at the Area marching contest, and since no bands in Class 4A made 1's in that region, those 2 were picked to advance, it seems. Which is great, since (like 6A) Area B is also a brutal contest for the 4A schools as well.

Agreed on Leander! They are playing and marching that show incredibly! Each different color is absolutely conveyed in a very effective way. They just never let up --from brass to WWs to guard to percussion, the intensity of each performer is just shining through on the field. I particularly enjoy some of the difficult pass-throughs they execute when the music is at its most intense. Additionally, the clarinet solo in the blue movement is particularly stunning with those rich, vibrant tones in the lower register.

I was also very surprised to see Coppell lose some captions and grand champion. Especially given their high finish at BOA Denton and I've heard nothing but great things about their winds, woodwinds, in particular. I am not sure of when their Mesquite performance was in relation to their BOA prelims and finals runs. Perhaps we chalk it up to simply a very long day.

It may be tough to predict much past the very top until we know who is getting out of Areas B & D. Unfortunately, Area B only has 25 total 6A bands in the whole area. Assuming that at least one of them will get a 2 at Region, you're looking at likely only 4 bands moving on to state out of B. And, we must hope that at least 20 of those 25 get a division 1 at Region to preserve that. I think Marcus and Hebron are the likely locks in Area B, so that means the other 2 will probably come from some combination of: LD Bell, Plano East, Flower Mound, Richland, Haltom, Mansfield, or Martin. Good grief! That contest will be brutal. Area D is also incredibly tough, but with about 40 total bands in Area D, there is definitely more margin. Last time, Area D was able to send 6. I would expect that again with an outside shot for perhaps even 7 to go. I think Bowie, CTJ, and Ronald Reagan are the locks there. So, the other advancements will likely be from some combination of: Round Rock, Cedar Ridge, Hendrickson, Westlake, Pflugerville, Westwood, or Anderson. I intend to keep a very close eye on the region contests results to see how the numbers shake out and will make some posts to keep track of it all.

Is there any way that the Westlake Marching Festival can be revised in the predictions? Whoever submitted it did not place their comma correctly. It currently has Anderson and Hendrickson sharing the same line.

Just a few brief thoughts on yesterday's amazing day of marching... -The performance level was so high for it to not even be October yet! I am so excited to see where these shows go over the next month. -Bowie - Utterly breathtaking dynamic control from all sections. Battery played with great lightness and finesse. They were just getting started with Rite of Spring when the show ended, so I am eagerly anticipating the conclusion on this one. -Leander - INTENSITY. Bold sounds, super fast marching and a guard that is integrated beautifully and showed off their skills with both rifles and flags. They have such intense competition even within their own district, let alone everyone else - huge congrats to them on an amazing show. Round Rock - They are soooo huge! They just grab you from the start and take you on that magic carpet ride of fun! Ronald Reagan - Loved this! Wonderful playing on Satie's Gymnopedie. I think by the end of this season it will be absolutely stunning once they add the final movement and resolve some timing issues in the ballad. Their marching fundamentals just knock my socks off! The next time you watch Reagan just take some time to appreciate how wonderful their marching is. Cedar Park - There is a sforzando forte-piano crescendoing chord in the Mozart shortly before the ballad that is just a thing of beauty! The bell playing by the winds in the ballad is just gorgeous. Cedar Rige - I am not at all familiar with their music, but I absolutely found it compelling. I love all of the stretch visuals and forms that expand and contract to convey the theme. The singing integrates beautifully with the great sounds in the winds. Hendrickson - My favorite show of the day! Their Bolero was just lovely. And, I like how the show came back and around to Bolero at the end and featured all that lovely dissonance that Ravel uses in the final measures with the band coming right at us with that intense sound. The guard is great and their orange dresses really pop! The soloist battle between the flute and clarinet was just an incredible joy to watch!!! The entire clarinet section in particular sounded so good on the Capriccio Espagnol!

Here is the schedule as of 9/5 for the BOA Austin Regional on 9/27. This contest is absolutely stacked. There are 26 bands on the schedule and I would say over half of them have a legitimate shot at being a finalist. 9:15 AM - Cuero HS - Cuero, TX 9;30 AM - Westwood HS - Austin, TX 9:45 AM - Cinco Ranch HS - Katy, TX 10:00 AM - John B. Connally HS - Austin, TX 10:15 AM - Vandegrift HS - Austin, TX 10:30 AM - Hendrickson HS - Pflugerville, TX 10:45 AM - Aledo HS - Aledo, TX 11:00AM - Cedar Park HS - Cedar Park, TX LUNCH 12:00 PM - Ronald Reagan HS - San Antonio, TX 12:15 PM - Vista Ridge HS - Cedar Park, TX 12:30 PM - Leander HS - Leander, TX 12:45 PM - Pflugerville HS - Pflugerville, TX 1:00 PM - Earl Warren HS - San Antonio, TX 1:15 PM - Anderson HS - Austin, TX 1:30 PM - Cedar Ridge HS - Round Rock, TX 1:45 PM - Westlake HS - Austin, TX 2:00 PM - Sandra Day O'Connor HS - Helotes, TX BREAK 2:45 PM - Lehman HS - Kyle, TX 3:00 PM - Dripping Springs HS - Dripping Springs, TX 3:15 PM - Round Rock HS - Round Rock, TX 3:30 PM - James E. Taylor HS - Katy, TX 3:45 PM - McCallum HS - Austin, TX 4:00 PM - Wakeland HS - Frisco, TX 4:15 PM - East View HS - Georgetown, TX 4:30 PM - James Bowie HS - Austin, TX

I REALLY REALLY like this from Wakeland. Once they get the rest on the field and start to polish, I think this could really be tremendous by the time they go to GN. I also look forward to seeing what they can do at BOA Austin in a couple of weeks. I think that you definitely have to consider them to be in the mix for the Austin finals based on how the show looks so far.

I compiled all the 2014 marching contests around the state that I am aware of from local invitationals to BOAs to UIL Region, Area, and State. It's almost here! Saturday, 9/27: --Bands of America Austin Regional – RRISD Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex – Austin, TX --Friendswood Marching Festival – Henry Winston Stadium – Friendswood, TX --Preview of Champions – MISD Newsom Stadium – Mansfield, TX --East Central Hornet Invitational – East Central HS – San Antonio, TX --USBands Texas Step-Off Series Odessa – Ratliff Stadium – Odessa, TX --USBands Texas Step-Off Series Oak Ridge – Woodforest Bank Stadium, Shenandoah, TX Saturday, 10/4: --Bands of America Denton Regional – University of North Texas – Denton, TX --Vista Ridge Marching Festival – Gupton Stadium – Cedar Park, TX --Capital City Marching Festival – Burger Stadium – Austin, TX --Centennial Marching Festival – Frisco Memorial Stadium – Frisco, TX --Plano East Marching Invitational – Clark Stadium – Plano, TX --Donna Marching Festival – LaPrade Stadium – Donna, TX --La Joya Marching Festival – La Joya Pack Stadium – La Joya, TX --Golden Triangle Marching Classic – Collins Stadium – Denton, TX --Mesquite Marching Festival – Mesquite Memorial Stadium – Mesquite, TX --Midlothian Marching Showcase – Midlothian Multi-Purpose Stadium – Midlothian, TX --USBands Houston – George Stadium – Spring, TX --USBands Burleson – Burleson Stadium – Burleson, TX --USBands Goliad – Goliad HS – Goliad, TX --USBands New Braunfels – New Braunfels HS – New Braunfels, TX Saturday, 10/11: --Bands of America Conroe Regional– Woodforest Bank Stadium – Shenandoah, TX --Texas Marching Classic – RRISD Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex – Austin, TX --Westlake Marching Festival – Chaparral Stadium – Austin, TX --Tournament of Champions – Standridge Stadium – Carrollton, TX --HEB (Hurst-Euless-Bedford) Marching Contest – Pennington Field – Bedford, TX --Birdville Marching Festival – Birdville ISD Fine Arts & Athletic Complex – North Richland Hills, TX --The Classic Marching Competition – Eagle Stadium – DeSoto, TX --Marching Classic on the Lake – Little Elm Athletic Complex – Little Elm, TX --San Benito Marching Festival – Morrow Stadium – San Benito, TX --City of Palms Marching Festival – Veteran’s Memorial Stadium – McAllen, TX --USBands Dallas – Collins Stadium – Denton, TX --USBands College Station – A&M Consolidated HS – College Station, TX --USBands Cypress – Pridgeon Stadium – Houston, TX --UIL Region 1 Marching Contest – Bivins Stadium – Amarillo, TX --UIL Region 12 4A & Below Marching Contest – East Central HS – San Antonio, TX --UIL Region 22 Marching Contest – Socorro Athletic Complex – El Paso, TX --UIL Region 25 5A/6A Marching Contest – Clark Stadium – Plano, TX Tuesday, 10/14: --UIL Region 4 2A-4A Marching Contest – Mt. Pleasant HS – Mt. Pleasant, TX --UIL Region 20 5A & Below Marching Contest Wednesday, 10/15: --UIL Region 3 4A & 6A Marching Contest – Mesquite Memorial Stadium – Mesquite, TX --UIL Region 25 2A-3A-4A – Hendricks Stadium – Princeton, TX Saturday, 10/18: --Lone Star Preview – Woodforest Bank Stadium – Shenandoah, TX --Sam Houston State University Marching Festival – Bowers Stadium – Huntsville, TX --UIL Region 2 East Zone Marching Contest – Collins Stadium – Denton, TX --UIL Region 2 West Zone Marching Contest – Memorial Stadium – Wichita Falls, TX --UIL Region 6 Marching Contest – Ratliff Stadium – Odessa, TX --UIL Region 7 West Zone Marching Contest – Early HS – Early, TX --UIL Region 7 Central Zone Marching Contest – Glen Rose HS – Glen Rose, TX --UIL Region 7 East Zone Marching Contest – Burleson HS – Burleson, TX --UIL Region 8 4A/5A/6A Marching Contest – Midway HS – Waco, TX --UIL Region 10 Marching Contest – Port Neches-Groves HS – Port Neches, TX --UIL Region 11 1A-4A Marching Contest – Hondo HS – Hondo, TX --UIL Region 11 5A-6A Marching Contest – Gustafson Stadium – San Antonio, TX --UIL Region 12 5A-6A Marching Contest – Judson HS – Converse, TX --UIL Region 13 2A-3A-4A Marching Contest – Ricebird Stadium – El Campo, TX --UIL Region 14 1A-4A Marching Contest – Sinton HS – Sinton TX & Falfurrias HS – Falfurrias, TX --UIL Region 14 5A-6A Marching Contest – Laredo SAC – Laredo TX & Calallen HS – Corpus Christi, TX --UIL Region 15 Marching Contest – McAllen Memorial Stadium – McAllen, TX --UIL Region 17 Marching Contest – The Rig – Pearland, TX --UIL Region 18/26 2A-3A-4A Marching Contest – Giddings HS – Giddings, TX --UIL Region 19 Marching Contest – Galena Park ISD Stadium – Houston, TX --UIL Region 20 6A Marching Contest – Panther Stadium – Duncanville, TX --UIL Region 21 Marching Contest – Stephen F. Austin State University – Nacogdoches, TX --UIL Region 24 Marching Contest – Standridge Stadium – Carrollton, TX --UIL Region 26 Marching Contest – RRISD Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex – Austin, TX --UIL Region 27 Marching Contest – Berry Center – Cypress, TX --UIL Region 28 Marching Contest – Morrow Stadium – San Benito, TX Monday, 10/20: --UIL Region 16 South Zone Marching Contest – Wylie HS – Abilene, TX --UIL Region 16 North Zone Marching Contest – Lowrey Field – Lubbock, TX Tuesday, 10/21: --UIL Region 5 Marching Contest – Pennington Field – Bedford, TX --UIL Region 9 Marching Contest – Woodforest Bank Stadium – Shenandoah, TX --UIL Region 13 5A-6A Marching Contest – Mercer Stadium – Sugar Land, TX --UIL Region 18 5A-6A Marching Contest – Burger Stadium – Austin, TX --UIL Region 23 Marching Contest – Rhodes Stadium – Katy, TX Wednesday, 10/22: --UIL Region 3 2A-3A-5A Marching Contest – Mesquite Memorial Stadium – Mesquite, TX --UIL Region 8 1A-2A Marching Contest – La Vega HS – Waco, TX --UIL Region 8 3A Marching Contest – UMHB – Belton, TX Wednesday, 10/22 – Thursday, 10/23: --UIL Region 4 3A-5A Marching Contest – Mt. Pleasant HS – Mt. Pleasant, TX Saturday, 10/25: --Waller Marching Festival – Waller ISD Stadium – Waller, TX --USBands Yamaha Cup Texas – Rutledge Stadium – Converse, TX --UIL Area A 6A East Zone Marching Contest – Chisolm Trail HS Stadium – Fort Worth, TX --UIL Area A 6A Central Zone Marching Contest – Lowrey Field – Lubbock, TX --UIL Area A 6A West Zone Marching Contest – Soccoro Athletic Complex – El Paso, TX --UIL Area A 4A Marching Contest – Lowrey Field – Lubbock, TX --UIL Area B 4A Marching Contest – Collins Stadium – Denton, TX --UIL Area B 6A Marching Contest – Pennington Field – Bedford, TX --UIL Area C 4A Marching Contest – Lobo Field – Longview, TX --UIL Area C 6A Marching Contest – Mesquite Memorial Stadium – Mesquite, TX --UIL Area D 4A Marching Contest – Gupton Stadium – Cedar Park, TX --UIL Area D 6A Marching Contest – Heroes Stadium – San Antonio, TX --UIL Area E 4A Marching Contest – Calallen HS – Corpus Christi, TX --UIL Area E 6A Marching Contest – Berry Center – Cypress, TX --UIL Area F 6A Marching Contest – Galena Park ISD Stadium – Houston, TX --UIL Area G 6A Marching Contest – Gustafson and Farris Stadiums – San Antonio, TX Friday, 10/31 – Saturday, 11/1: -Bands of America San Antonio Super-Regional – Alamodome – San Antonio, TX Saturday, 11/1: -Duncanville Marching Invitational – Panther Stadium – Duncanville, TX -USBands Remo Series Finale Conroe – Woodforest Bank Stadium – Shenandoah, TX -USBands Remo Series Finale Dallas – Midlothian Multi-Purpose Stadium – Midlothian, TX -USBands Remo Series Finale Austin – RRISD Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex – Austin, TX Monday, 11/3: --UIL Class 4A State Marching Band Contest – Alamodome – San Antonio, TX Tuesday, 11/4: --UIL Class 6A State Marching Band Contest – Alamodome – San Antonio, TX

LOVE the use of the hymn from 1812 Overture in Cedar Park's opener. That's my favorite part of the whole work- it's so lovely. It's fits in nicely with the bells theme here. I happened upon the other video referenced and WOW! Very impressed by them. Ensemble sound is bold and gorgeous and the marching is quite good already. But they've never really had a show that I didn't love! (and I've seen them in person every year since 2000). Also, I got to watch CTJ in person last week at the Cedar Ridge football game. I was incredibly impressed for this early in the season. They had a woodwind run that had me on my feet and cheering gleefully. I think it will be a fun ride!