2013 Marching Band Thread

[sm4987]

Our band camp starts next week. 8 to 9 then on a modified schedule until school starts. I'm still trying to figure out where summer went!

 

[bittybabygrower]

Ours start two a days next week for 2 weeks and then they go away to camp for a week. I love chaperoning at camp, especially this year since it is DD senior year!

 

[beavismom]

I don't blame him, with the heat index this week being a good 104-107, and who knows how much worse on that blacktop.

I know our kids are not looking forward to the August sun out on the blacktop this week. I am just flat out not ready for it to be time for them to start again.

 

[PizzieDuster]

We just had a color guard "bonding" pool party this Saturday.

Wow, I never knew all the hard work that goes into the band, color guard, etc.

We watched DVDs of competitions. The mom who hosted the event was so patient with us asking tons of questions. I was just "mouth drop open" in awe. We were very appreciative of her helping us and spending so much time answering our questions and explaining things.

We're ready!!!! We are signed up to help with any thing we could.

My thought in my head "um, my daughter has to dance like that?" She's kind of clumsy.

 

[Pembo]

Band camp started yesterday - it was a high of 72 and it rained after dinner - this is not normal weather! A little more heat would be nice. I sent ds's off this morning and it was a balmy 56 but no rain in the forecast.

Mom brag - DS sophomore trumpet got a solo in the competition opener!!!! It's only 4 notes BUT it will be the ONLY sound from the band. DS senior trombone will find out about his solo soon. (director already promised it to him, so I hope he was telling the truth).

 

[jen0610]

Band camp started yesterday - it was a high of 72 and it rained after dinner - this is not normal weather! A little more heat would be nice. I sent ds's off this morning and it was a balmy 56 but no rain in the forecast.

Mom brag - DS sophomore trumpet got a solo in the competition opener!!!! It's only 4 notes BUT it will be the ONLY sound from the band. DS senior trombone will find out about his solo soon. (director already promised it to him, so I hope he was telling the truth).

A solo is still a solo, even if it's only 4 notes.

UGH!!!!!!!!!!! I am so torn on band this year. After DD made dance team and DS stating he wasn't going to march his Senior year, I really thought I wasn't going to be a band mom this year. But at the 9th hour, DS made the commitment to marching. Yea!!!!!!

Until we get to last week, on Thursday. I knew something was up, it just a feeling I was getting. Our golf outting was scheduled for Sat, but I hadn't seen the daily e-mails on it the last 2 weeks, like they had previously done. Which was really strange. So, I get to work on Thursday and there is an e-mail stating that the golf outting is cancelled and they will get us more information later.

Thursday afternoon, DD calls and says her friend from band wants her to come down and her mom wants me to swing by on my way home, as she has some stuff to tell me.

So I get there and one other mom is there and boom right out the gate I find out that our band director QUIT!!!! Resigned some time late the week of the 8th or early in the week of the 15th. Holy crap!!!! He just started with us last year. Came to us as a marching guy. Marched at one of the best high schools in IN. BIG time in DCI. He's the visual caption head with Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corp. With his DCI connections, he was bringing in staff to work with our kids that would be bringing their DCI experience. It was going to be a great thing for our kids and the kids were super excited about it. Now, we have no clue who is or isn't going to be showing up for band camp that starts this afternoon.

After getting hit with that shock, I get told that even before the director left, it was undecided if we were going to march the regular marching circuit or if we were going to march in this new circuit that ISSMA is putting out there. In a nutshell, the new circuit isn't a competing circuit. You go to competitions, you march your show, but there aren't placements. The judges just evaluations on your show. This piece of info had started to trickle through the band and there were Seniors, parents and kids, who were ticked at this thought. Enough that several of the kids said if we go that route, they are done!! They aren't marching, spending endless hours for an evaluation. They want to march for placements.

There's a couple other small issues, but those two are big enough that all weekend long, I kept thinking to myself, I really wish DS hadn't a changed his mind. I don't know if I have the strength to deal with this crap right now. DH and I talked and basicly if DS makes the decision to stick with it, we'll be there involved supporting our kid, but if he wants to throw the towel in, we'll stand behind him in that decision. He asked me what he should do. I told him go to camp Monday afternoon. Listen to what they tell you. It's totally up to him. March or don't. But, he has to make up his mind sooner rather than later, so they can cover up his spot in the show. And once made, he's staying with that decision.

Oh, yea. The name of our show this year is Crossroads. How ironic is that. Very fitting, seeing as what the kids are faced with.

 

[*3*Mouseketeers]

Oh, I love marching band! I was in the marching and concert band when I was in high school. (Clarinet and Color Guard).

The high school that my son goes to has a SMALL band (I think about 25-30 including color guard). He plays Alto Sax and they had band camp last week. He has a solo in Adele's "Rumor Has it" and 2 of the girls in color guard are supposed to fight over him during his solo! He is so shy and I know he will HATE this. LOL This is the part of the song that his solo is:

She, she ain't real,
She ain't gonna be able to love you like I will,
She is a stranger,
You and I have history,
Or don't you remember?
Sure, she's got it all,
But, baby, is that really what you want?

Since it's such a small band he has had a small solo every year since 8th grade, but this is the biggest one so far (with the most attention paid to him). I'm so proud of him because he is such a good musician.

The only thing I dread is the concession stand. We have a hard time finding parents willing to step up.

 

[Gina]

Pembo ~ Congrats to your DS on the solo!! And yeah, like Jen said - a solo is a solo!

Jen ~ What a huge mess... So sorry y'alls band is having to go through this!! Does anyone have any idea why he up and quit?? I hope it all gets resolved soon. And I totally agree with you guys -- no way would I want to see our band go through as much hard work and sacrifice as they do, just for an "evaluation."


Band camp starts tomorrow, and the heat is certainly on. Triple digits or close to it all week, with not a raindrop in the forecast. DS and I were talking last night, when some commercial came on where they were talking about how you look forward to summer and now it's finally here. We were boggling at that, and wondering out loud about what it must be like to live someplace where you don't dread summer with every cell in your body, want to cry just thinking about it. I can't imagine it... but it must be nice!!

Waiting to see what this new band director is going to be like... I pulled up the event schedule for the next year now that it's starting to get filled in, and we have an actual BOA contest this year. We have always been very much a UIL band, focused more on precision and music and less on the flash and fancy props that BOA tends to reward. Not that there aren't plenty of bands that can and do excel at both! Our band has just always focused on the UIL circuit, and UIL doesn't even score on visual effects, not specifically. But a more visual element would be a nice change, and we're curious what is going to be added!

Also curious how much bigger the band is going to get. We were at 290 last year, and we already know there were only 48 graduating band Seniors and something like 150 incoming band Freshmen... so we shall see.

And so our last marching season begins...


-gina-

 

[K and K's Mommy]

My DS is in his second week of band camp. He likes it but says he is terrible at it! Ha! My DH took a video Friday night of their opening number. I thought my DS looked like he was doing fine. He then told me he wasn't playing while he marched yet. Oops! I'm sure he'll get it, but wow, they were all over the field. I know he is a good saxophone player so he just needs to get the marching down!

We served dinner one night last week. It seems like a great group of kids. I think it is about 120 kids because we had to have dinner for 130, including directors.

 

[Pembo]

Proud mom brag again - Senior DS Trombone got the solo and with the props this year he'll be standing on a platform. It's really cool. Heard the director say that for the first game they'll be playing the 2 songs that my boys have solos in. Couldn't be prouder....

Band camp ends tomorrow. It's been in the 70's all week with spotty rain. Tonight it was raining and the sun was shining.

Our show is called I Believe and the music is lovely. The drill looks good too. Tonight they were practicing their singing section. Ummm, there's a reason band kids are in band not choir.

 

[Gina]

Proud mom brag again - Senior DS Trombone got the solo and with the props this year he'll be standing on a platform. It's really cool. Heard the director say that for the first game they'll be playing the 2 songs that my boys have solos in. Couldn't be prouder....

That is so awesome!! I know you are going to be jumping up and down in the stands the first time he is up there playing his solo on the platform.

Band camp ends tomorrow. It's been in the 70's all week with spotty rain. Tonight it was raining and the sun was shining.

That is so awesome!! I know you are going to be jumping up and down in the stands the first time he is up there playing his solo on the platform.

Our show is called I Believe and the music is lovely. The drill looks good too. Tonight they were practicing their singing section. Ummm, there's a reason band kids are in band not choir.

LOL... Hey, they can't be amazing at everything.

Our band is barreling right into things with this new band director -- Band camp only started Tuesday and today they already start drills. At least with our band, progression is usually a lot slower. Just the former director's style, I guess.

DS said the show is called something like "The Rooms Behind Our Eyes" and that the music so far is really awesome. I only know that one of the pieces is Mozart's "Requiem" which is one of my faves -- so powerful and haunting. I am so excited to see it translated into a marching movement! Will be very interesting to see what sort of props and flash they incorporate this year, since we seem to be venturing into the BOA circuit instead of strictly UIL. Can't wait to see the show!

 

[Gina]

Totally forgot about this -- I know there are other band folks here in Texas, and I wanted to pass along the info for the TX Bands website (www.txbands.com). Most of the forums are about the band members themselves, but it's a great place to read about upcoming competitions in the state, other bands' shows, etc. And the owner of the site was nice enough to set up a "band parents" forum for me, but no one knows about it, lol. So if any of you fellow Texas band parents want to come discuss specific TX band stuff, I'd love some company.

http://www.txbands.com/forums/index.php?/forum/60-band-parents/

 

[jen0610]

Proud mom brag again - Senior DS Trombone got the solo and with the props this year he'll be standing on a platform. It's really cool. Heard the director say that for the first game they'll be playing the 2 songs that my boys have solos in. Couldn't be prouder....

Band camp ends tomorrow. It's been in the 70's all week with spotty rain. Tonight it was raining and the sun was shining.

Our show is called I Believe and the music is lovely. The drill looks good too. Tonight they were practicing their singing section. Ummm, there's a reason band kids are in band not choir.

I like it when the bands highlight the soloist. So many times you can hear that there is a solo going on, but your searching the field for who it is.

What a difference a year makes. Last year is was so ungodly hot, that it was not a fun camp, either 1st or 2nd session. This year, knock on wood, both have been so much cooler for the kids. Some of them have actually gotten rained out, so they are working on basic marching skills in the school hallways.

No word yet on a new band director. Don't know if that's a good or bad sign. The kids are all in good spirits. They aren't going to make a decision on which marching division they are going to do until they hire, but the kids have talked to the staff we have and have pretty much said the lower division is not going to go over well and that kids will quit. So, it a wait and see mood for them. But they are having fun hanging out with the band mates.

 

[Katy Belle]

Today ends the first week of Band Camp here. It seems our band doesn't practice as much as some of yours, but it still feels like a lot! Two weeks of 7-11, 12:30-4:30 , one day off, then school starts August 13. During school practice is 7-8:40 every school day, every Thursday evening from 6-9 and one sectional during the week, usually about an hour and a half.

Its weird having only ONE tuba player in my house now! The Tuba's miss my oldest, but DS16 is having a great time! They found out today who has a spot and who is a shadow. He was a shadow last year, but ended up marching all of the contests and the other fellow marched most of the home football games. This year DS16 got a spot! They have 2 Freshmen Tubas and they are sharing a spot/shadows. One is apparently a lot better than the other, so he will probably march the contests. The Tuba Section are a tight group and they have been over a lot already!

Our kids were supposed to get page one of the drill today, but it rained like crazy! They've been playing the music and just doing marching drills/skills. They are always SLOW in getting the show on the field, in my opinion. We usually only march the whole show for our final contest, because it is never finished before that! Our show is something about Machines vs man, or something like that. I haven't heard any music yet. Can't wait!

We had a picnic last night and it was great fun to see everyone again.

Go Band!

 

[Pembo]

Jen - did you start band camp without a director? When will they hire? When does school start? That is crazy that the director quit this late. In Ohio, they have to resign by July according to the contract.

Katy - our kids start drill on day 1. They had all of pregame learned by the end of the first day of band camp.

3Mouse - love to see the little bands. I think they have more heart!

Week 1 is done and it's the tough one. Next week just 8-3 plus a lock-in on Friday that all the kids love!

 

[momof1princess]

Today ends the first week of Band Camp here. It seems our band doesn't practice as much as some of yours, but it still feels like a lot! Two weeks of 7-11, 12:30-4:30 , one day off, then school starts August 13. During school practice is 7-8:40 every school day, every Thursday evening from 6-9 and one sectional during the week, usually about an hour and a half.

Its weird having only ONE tuba player in my house now! The Tuba's miss my oldest, but DS16 is having a great time! They found out today who has a spot and who is a shadow. He was a shadow last year, but ended up marching all of the contests and the other fellow marched most of the home football games. This year DS16 got a spot! They have 2 Freshmen Tubas and they are sharing a spot/shadows. One is apparently a lot better than the other, so he will probably march the contests. The Tuba Section are a tight group and they have been over a lot already!

Our kids were supposed to get page one of the drill today, but it rained like crazy! They've been playing the music and just doing marching drills/skills. They are always SLOW in getting the show on the field, in my opinion. We usually only march the whole show for our final contest, because it is never finished before that! Our show is something about Machines vs man, or something like that. I haven't heard any music yet. Can't wait!

We had a picnic last night and it was great fun to see everyone again.

Go Band!

Ours are doing band camp from 8:00am to about 11:45-12:00pm, then 1:00pm to 3:00pm.

Our band has REALLY shrunk. We have 28 in band, about 10 colorguard, and 3 majorettes. I'm so bummed. Me and the drum major's mom spent the entire day today fitting uniforms and cleaning and organizing the uniform closet. I don't think i've ever sweated so much, or worked so hard. I can barely walk, but I was pretty pleased with the results.

 

[klj27]

What circuit dies everyone compete in? Who is going to grand nationals this year?

We compete msba and will go to a BOA regional and grand nationals.

 

[Katy Belle]

Ours are doing band camp from 8:00am to about 11:45-12:00pm, then 1:00pm to 3:00pm.

Our band has REALLY shrunk. We have 28 in band, about 10 colorguard, and 3 majorettes. I'm so bummed. Me and the drum major's mom spent the entire day today fitting uniforms and cleaning and organizing the uniform closet. I don't think i've ever sweated so much, or worked so hard. I can barely walk, but I was pretty pleased with the results.

Our current roster shows 122 in uniforms and 16 Color Guard. That number will come down a bit, as some of these kids didn't show up for the first week of Band Camp, which usually means they are dropping. We had quite a few drop out this year, but the Freshman class entering is a big group...I think 52 or so.

I help with uniforms too. We were up there yesterday trying to get it all organized again. Still have lots and lots and lots of work to do!!! Shoe, shako, and gauntlet and glove fitting for newbies will happen Tuesday. We have new polos this year. They run small and the girls are the girlie fit, so they want EVERYONE to try them on before ordering their size! We have one in each size. That will take a while! I'm going to bring them home on the day we are hosting the Tubas for lunch. I can get those 9 checked off!

The Director has promised to start on the Drill yesterday. A big thunderstorm came, so they ended up inside. Hopefully Monday!

 

[Katy Belle]

What circuit dies everyone compete in? Who is going to grand nationals this year?

We compete msba and will go to a BOA regional and grand nationals.

We are going to ST. Louis October 18-20, BOA Super Regional Marching Contest. Is that the same thing?? This is my 4th year and I am STILL so confused by all of the band "initials." I have no idea what "circuit" we compete in! All of our contests are in Oklahoma, except this St. Louis contest. We don't go to this one every year.

 

[klj27]

We are going to ST. Louis October 18-20, BOA Super Regional Marching Contest. Is that the same thing?? This is my 4th year and I am STILL so confused by all of the band "initials." I have no idea what "circuit" we compete in! All of our contests are in Oklahoma, except this St. Louis contest. We don't go to this one every year.

I bet the super regionals are fun! We only go to a regular regional in Ohio.