SpartanBandAlum Posted January 28, 2019 Posted January 28, 2019 Has Prosper confirmed either way for next year? Quote
principalagent Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I heard through the grapevine that Vandegrift is official. Quote
LoveMyBandNerd19 Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I heard through the grapevine that Vandegrift is official. It was announced as official this morning. Quote
LostChoirGuy Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 This is so awesome! GNats will be crazy this year! Quote
MadisonBandMan1 Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 It was announced as official this morning. Yeeeeessss!!! It’s about time !!! Quote
MadisonBandMan1 Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 Vandy is going to tear their faces off up there. I can’t wait! Quote
MadisonBandMan1 Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I'm excited for Vandy. I’m excited to see their product. They must be really confident this year, this being the year they decide to go. Quote
SpartanBandAlum Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I know this has been brought up many times, but could Vandegrift having a dance team rather than a guard drag them down? I know we’ve seen Stephen F. Austin do very will with the Angels Dance Team but I’m just not sure if Vandegrift’s visual design is at the level where they can incorporate their dance team in the way that SFA’s designers were able to Quote
LostChoirGuy Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 Will it be a weakness for them? Most likely. Will it keep them from being very successful? I guess we will have to find out. I think it will stand out more against groups like Carmel and Avon but their musicianship and just blaring sound will really shine there also. Quote
Bandwoww Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 Vandys dance team had been a huge complaint of mine over the last few years. I personally don’t think they need to get rid of it in favor of a more traditional color guard that uses a larger flag vocabulary and weapons. But they do need to implement their guard in a way that is very effective because they have definitely been hit or miss in my opinion recently. Quote
Nny14 Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I know this has been brought up many times, but could Vandegrift having a dance team rather than a guard drag them down? I know we’ve seen Stephen F. Austin do very will with the Angels Dance Team but I’m just not sure if Vandegrift’s visual design is at the level where they can incorporate their dance team in the way that SFA’s designers were able to There's honestly nothing that states a group needs a wgi championship level guard to score well. Obviously it doesn't hurt, but it isn't exactly a prerequisite. Broken Arrow has been keeping up with Carmel, Avon, and TS for years in visual and anyone can tell you their colorguard isn't at the level of those groups. Vandegrift has a terrific drill writer and I think people are exaggerating this whole thing. In a sea of tarps and dancing Vandegrifts straight up marching and playing is going to shine at nationals and I can't wait to see them. Hard Core Band Fan 1 Quote
Bandwoww Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 While BA’s guard isn’t quite on the level of Carmel and Avon, they are quite a bit more effective than Vandy’s. I think it is interesting to look at Vista’s guard from this past year. I definitely don’t think that vista’s guard had the vocabulary and difficulty of work that groups like Leander, Reagan, FlowerMound, CTJ, and Keller had (just to name a few). But they were implemented in a was that was meaningful and effective. In my opinion Vandys dance team is pretty ineffective in its design and implementation. Quote
WoodlandsMom4ever Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 The dance team is the one thing that has always bugged me about Vandy. They have such a large dance team, and their dancing is beautiful, but I miss the rifle lines and traditional color guard. I'm sure they will still put out something amazing... it'll be neat to see how it translates to Nationals. Quote
principalagent Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 One big worry is that high school color guards in marching season have come a long way still since SFA's heyday. And not to knock Vandegrift's dance team at all, but they aren't Angels level (yet). They can get away with it in Texas, and have. I'm not sure what it will look like at GN, but Vandegrift's excellence in marching and movement from a band perspective is certainly enough to keep their VGE scores afloat. Quote
LeanderMomma Posted January 30, 2019 Posted January 30, 2019 I’m utterly fascinated to see how Vandegrift will do at Grand Nats. I think visually and musically they will score extremely well but like everyone else has said, I’m afraid not having a colorguard will hurt them. Someone said earlier that a band doesn’t need a world class guard to win GN but let me remind y’all that the top two bands in recent GN history (Carmel and Avon) DO have the TOP world class guards in the world! I’ve even heard it said elsewhere that Carmel as a band is great, but they are not at the same level as their guard. And since we know Carmel is brilliant at what they put on a field, that’s really saying something about their guard! And Avon? Oh my goodness if you did not see their first place World guard WGI competition show last winter, you missed something that was pure genius. So yes, winning GN is certainly helped by also having a phenomenal guard. Required? No. But hugely beneficial? Absolutely. On the other hand, Vandegrift reminds me a lot of Carmel when it comes to the orchestral sound each band has. While Carmel can play an extraordinarily difficult song in such a pure way that you mistakenly think the song must be an easy one, Vandy plays similarly difficult music in such a huge and attention grabbing way, they absolutely WILL be rewarded for it. And both bands are lovely on the field. And just maybe Vandy’s dance team will bring something fresh and different to Indy next fall and push that visual score up a notch. Especially if they bring something like the year they did the swans! I’m just excited for the rest of the country to see and hear so many fantastic Texas bands this fall! Go #TeamTexas! Quote
MadisonBandMan1 Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 So what if vandy brings the eagle home, this being the first time they attend? Quote
principalagent Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 So what if vandy brings the eagle home, this being the first time they attend? That would be unprecedented (except for, obviously, the first couple GNs). Quote
SpartanBandAlum Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 There's honestly nothing that states a group needs a wgi championship level guard to score well. Obviously it doesn't hurt, but it isn't exactly a prerequisite. Broken Arrow has been keeping up with Carmel, Avon, and TS for years in visual and anyone can tell you their colorguard isn't at the level of those groups. Vandegrift has a terrific drill writer and I think people are exaggerating this whole thing. In a sea of tarps and dancing Vandegrifts straight up marching and playing is going to shine at nationals and I can't wait to see them. I’m not saying that a group has to have a WGI champion guard to be successful. As I said, SFA was able to pull it off beautifully in their heyday. My concern is with the level of Vandy’s design. Comparing Vandy to SFA at their respective peaks, Vandegrift’s dancers aren’t as well incorporated and don’t seem to be quite on the same skill level as the Angels (not to say that they’re weak, it’s just very hard to live up to the Angels). My concern is, is the slight inability to properly utilize their dance team in the way SFA was able to going to hold Vandegrift as a whole back despite their consistently amazing musical and marching ability? Jzkool and RHS2413CC 2 Quote
Crown2018 Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 Grand nats is crazy crazy this year I’m pumped Quote
LoveMyBandNerd19 Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 I do wish we (Vandegrift) would go full on Guard, but we did place ahead of Avon at BOA San Antonio in 2017. We were 3rd to their 4th. And we were 2nd in prelims--for some reason we consistently do better in prelims than in finals. We'll need to clean that up for Grand Nats. 2017 is my all-time favorite Vandegrift show in the 4 years our daughter has been in the band (coincidentally the only non-UIL show we've done in those 4 years). We didn't do a ton of props or a ton with the dance team this past season because the focus was purely on UIL. Excited to see what the show will be for 2019. For sure it will be something with big sound that jumps out and grabs the crowd along with stepping up the props and visual aspect. whitewing09 and WoodlandsMom4ever 2 Quote
MadisonBandMan1 Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 I was just listening to some crown and realized vandegrift NEEDS to to bruckner’s 8th for an opener, STAT. Quote
Crown2018 Posted January 31, 2019 Posted January 31, 2019 I was just listening to some crown and realized vandegrift NEEDS to to bruckner’s 8th for an opener, STAT. I couldn’t agree more Quote
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