Multiplication by Division?

Let's do a countdown, shall we, starting with ...

6 - USSBA groupings, based on total band size.
5 - The State of Texas UIL (school size)
4 - Band of America (school size), TOB (winds), Cavalcade of Bands, ISSMA
3 - WGI (World, Open, A), a possible expansion from ...
2 - classes based on ability (DCI, USSBA*)

1 - "champion"?

How much is ... too much? How do you compare "like" bands, especially in contests where too many cuts make for too few competitors, leading to watered down championships? When does a band (and school - and face it, sometimes directors need "wins" to satiate principals and boosters and to justify ongoing investment in the marching program) start to break away from seeking quality, constructive and educational evaluations, and move in the direction of self-esteem contests?

I believe in the value and values of a marching program, to the kids, school and the community. The marching band is the one music education entity that touches the community, not just the parents.

Maybe in starting, or immature, programs some self-esteem is necessary. But this isn't life, and it isn't music education. Music education means the kids get scholastic adjudication. That being said, what does that mean?

One of the things I often wonder is what is the right balance of music (and the validity of percussion sub-captions), visual (with or without the color guard sub-caption), and effect (music and visual). Consider this:

... TOB weighting is 40% music, 20% visual (performance), 40% effect
... USSBA weighting 40% music, 30% visual, 30% effect
... BOA weighting is 20% music, 20% visual and 60% effect (although 2/3rds of that is music effect, upon which arguments that they are 60% music can ensue)

TOB and USSBA use other classifications based on ability, which I think is appropriate. But when you get to large bands, are you just watering it down? Some large bands can be thought of as "developing" marching programs, no doubt, but by breaking them into ability classes are you rewarding their achievement or encouraging their mediocrity?

Does "over"-weighting effect put too much emphasis on design (or, "the adults"), or is this a reward of how much the kids learn (or how well the teachers teach?).

I'm not an educator. I'm a band geek ... and band parent. I believe the scholastic programs should be education based, not design based, rewarding the teaching and the student.

Little wins do matter and they are necessary. (I use the term "little wins" from the business lexicon). But we need to encourage development and growth of the program and the kids.

So if it was up to me ... Two classifications ... two "5 Box" scales ...

Classification I - for the "leading bands":

* Music Performance - 30% ... 20% music, 10% percussion
* Music Effect - 20%
* Visual Performance - 30% ... 20% ensemble (which is an outgrowth of individual), 10% guard
* Visual Effect - 20%

It is "marching (and) band", after all. With this scale music and visual performance are balanced (50/50 on this scale), and performance is given greater credit than design (60/40 in this case).

Classification II - for the "developing" bands:

* Music Performance - 40%, with no sub-caption
* Music Effect - 20%
* Visual Performance - 20%, with no sub-caption
* Visual Effect - 20%

Here performance and music are given greater weight, and music outweighs visual, because from what I have seen developing programs are weaker in fundamentals and music, and this encourages development and growth in those areas.

Program growth - more kids, more bands - is the multiplication effect of this division!

This, of course, will be debated among circuits, among states, among regions ... but I am optimistic it will be settled soon. In fact, I'm told that the experts will get right on it!

After NCAA Division I Football Playoff's implemented. And Texas high school football goes back to A-AA-AAA-AAAA-AAAAA playoffs. And Indiana returns to one high school basketball state champion.

Resistance ... and Resilience

During this past weekend I peeked in on the BOA Grand Nationals with a particular interest in how some bands were performing, notably last year's champion Avon (IN), "From the 50 Yard Line" star Centerville (OH), and of course the Texas and Carolinas bands.

And American Fork HS, from Utah.

American Fork, you see, was returning from a competition earlier in the year when a bus went of the road. A number of students were injured, and sadly their woodwind instructor lost her life.

Some bands would have quit. Some kids resist going on. American Fork - in one week's time, I found out - raised a quarter million dollars to get to Indianapolis.

What is it that drives some bands to collectively resist the efforts their directors, their peers, and their community? To resist relentless improvement, and be satisfied with mediocrity? The (developing) teen mind, I am finding (hello, MP and TP!) is a wonderful yet strange thing. Dr. Tim's seminar gave me some insight, especially regarding the allure of the 10% who are negative leaders (the resistance!) against the 10% who are positive leaders.

Still ...

Perhaps like the marketers trying to figure out and capitalize on the teen mindset and lifestyle, it is elusive. Some bands have figured it out, however. The directors, kids, parents and community ... implicitly or explicitly. And those bands have resilience, no matter what they face.

... .... ...

Ironically, American Fork's show this year is titled, "The Greatest Generation", the term used to describe the Americans who grew up in the depression and went on to fight in WWII, then brought a new age of prosperity to our nation. Who had ... resilience.

In some ways, and in some places like American Fork, there are some pretty good members of this new generation, too.

... ... ...

I drafted most of the above knowing American Fork had advanced to 2009 Bands of America SemiFinals. In the end, they did not advance to the finals. Still, they showed resilience.

At a Crossroads - What is Mission Critical?

Indiana in general and Indianapolis in particular is nicknamed the "Crossroads of America." It is home to a number of non-profit music organizations - the Percussive Arts Society and Drum Corps International among them - but I want to talk about Music for All.

Formerly Bands of America (which itself was once known as Marching Bands of America), Music for All was the name adopted following the merger of BOA and the Music for All Foundation. Known for events in big domes and other venues and the crowning of a Grand National Champion each year, the merger was to allow the organization to continue to expand its reach into band camps, orchestras, jazz bands, honor ensembles, concert festivals, and advocacy.

Then the economy struck.

Right now the organization is in the middle of a critical fundraising campaign to reach $220,000 (they have a pledge for the last $30,000) by the end of this month. As of this post date they have more than have the way to go.

BOA has made sacrifices in staff, but not yet programs. In the weekly CEO chats, it seems like enrollment is going to be up, although insiders in other band programs tell me travel seems like it will be down more than 25%.

BOA has had the reputation of serving "high end" bands able to raise significant funds and put on very highly designed programs. I don't know if that was the reputation they set out to cultivate, but it is out there.

So, now the organization is facing the need to make some hard decisions. I think they have made some. But I am concerned they have not made the one that counts: What is absolutely mission critical?

There were good questions raised in the February 11 chat - what are the metrics that need to be used to determine if a program should be continued?

For me, today is a good day to reflect on what is mission critical. I hope others do so as well.

Go West! (A Review of Westminster, MD)

MP did the Cadets' Music is Cool! event again this year, the shorter (1/2 day) pre-band camp edition. Today is a bit of a sacrifice for them, less than a week before finals with a lot of cleaning to do.

Last year I was a bit of a helicopter parent at the event. This year I had to make myself hang back a bit. However, as before, he seemed to enjoy the experience, although there wasn't as much field time, there were at least more kids ("Twenty mellophones this time, not four").

The show itself featured five corps and a bonus.

The Troopers are America's Corps, and persist at the World Class level. Organizationally, I question if that is the right place for them. I think they need a chance to bring back some of the winning tradition, and creatively what they put on the field was a nice Open Class show. The Troopers displayed some humor, which was unexpected but pleasant to see. This corps faces design challenges just by being, well, the Troopers. There is the iconic image and musical style, and the familiar sunburst and "Ghost Riders", that at least this year they worked into a program about the old west railroads, or "The Iron Horse Express." I guess I lost my senses, though, in scoring. I said 76, MP said 89.65 ("Too generous", he said after the show), and the judges went with a more accurate 81.10.

Although I didn't realize it at the time, I think the Crossmen were the corps that was most "on" tonight. The gentlemen seated next to me - whose story made me appreciate the time with MP even more - remarked on the visual offering of the corps. Even from a few nights ago, the visuals were better, the guard was stronger, and the silks were well used at the end. I thought they improved to an 86, MP said 89.30, and the judges said 85.05 - still better than Thursday but not as good as Saturday. Go figure.

The Blue Stars were our fourth Blue corps this year, having seen the Devils and Knights twice and the 'Coats once already. It looks like 1/3 of the top 12 will be Blue this year, with this one bringing a splash of yellow. I was asked by a friend for an instant impression, and it ws that this was the best band show of the year. Maybe that's a compliment? Although the opening sound and visuals were strong, I don't think the concept was executed as well as envisioned. I could not tell whether it wanted to be literal (which is was too confusing to be) or conceptual (which it was to specific to be). I was actually disappointed in a way, given that the "race" run by the Tarpon Springs HS Band at the Bands of America Grand Nationals several years ago was better executed. Maybe Kevin Ford, who was the designer behind Tarpon Springs (as well as Carolina Crown's "Stormworks" and "Chess ... and the Art of Strategy" that propeled the corps into the top 12), "re-cycled" a bit. My seating neighbor liked it, commenting on the more subtle body movements corps are employing these days. (But he was not a big fan of the Cadets' narration, so sometimes change only goes so far!) I said 89, MP said 91.23 (where he gets the precise fractions is not from me!), and the judges were less impressed: 87.90.

How do you find fault with a 95? How do you find fault when you finally get to see "your kids" win a show outright against top corps? Carolina Crown had a strong Allentown finish, but seemed to try to give this show away tonight. They seemed "off" (was it the lights? was it the sound?) enough that a fan a few seats away commented, "They seemed flat tonight." Maybe they were just tired, and were just getting past releasing some of the pent of tension of the weekend. The sound was clear, but it seemed to me the corps was afraid of the field, as if the corps before them said as they walked on, "Psst - watch out for the divots ... pass it on!"). I marked them down a bit, to 95, MP said 95.2, and the judges went with 95.15. A winner, but not as winning as last week.

The Cadets, as I noted to open this post, made a rehearsal sacrifice for the Music is Cool program. Maybe that had an impact, or maybe, like Carolina Crown, they were just off their game a bit after Allentown and realizing the organization seemed to shift gears to 2009 this past week. Quite frankly, they had a better rehearsal than performance. The impact points the design staff is writing in made better sense - I see even more clearly where they are going - but the timing was off (with another sabre drop that had been hit at every run through I saw that afternoon), and the ending is not quite yet ... "snapping" ... with some lost emotion from before. I suspect they'll get there by Saturday, but "there" is probably not where they really wanted to be. I said 94, MP said 94.50, and the judges said 93.9.

The bonus corps was The Commandant's Own, the U.S. Marines Drum & Bugle Corps. I remember every year they would do a nightly performance at the Texas State Fair, and every year when I went to the fair I would plan to be "on the 50 yard line" of the small performance venue. There were much as I remembered, and with music from Shostakovitch to Souza, from Jersey (Boys) to Malaguena, this corps (also founded in 1934 and celebrating a diamond anniversary next year) reminded us of all of some of the traditions of drum corps.

A quick note about the venue. I must say the Westminster HS Band Boosters were well organized hosts, and this is probably the best high school stadium for watching marching music that I have been to in Maryland!

This is the end of my 2008 live reviews. The corps now go west to Bloomington, but I'll stay home in Maryland. However, I'll get to watch on the big cinema screen on Thursday night, and on Friday at our neighbor's house where they are hosting a big screen webcast. Music is cool - and how cool is that!

March 2nd

Or, as I call it,
TEXAS INDEPENDENCE DAY !!

The book "American Band" (have you read it yet?) may have been about a band from Indiana (home to Bands of America and DCI, I know - my darling beloved is a Hoosier!) but Texas is where band is celebrated! Texas Monthly has done wonderful stories about bands, a Texas band is the current Bands of America Champion (see two posts back), Texas is where I fell in love with band and drum corps, and Texas is where - like a lot of people across the ages - a drum corps scrawled "GTT"* on the door post and is seeking out new and better days. (Will they make it? We don't know. But they will try!)

Band are big! Bandmasters are big! Stadiums are big! Crowds are big!

Although I haven't lived there in nearly 20 years, "You can take the boy out of Texas, but you can't take the Texas out of the boy!"

* GTT ... Gone to Texas!

"Anyone can cook!" (more thoughts on talents)

L.D. Bell HS (Hurst, TX) won the 2007 Bands of America Grand National Championship. In reading the items below on their website, it’s evident how. But this goes beyond band into our everyday work. I’ve commented {accordingly} , starting with this clear "mission" statement:

AT LEAST ONE HALF HOUR PER DAY MUST BE DEDICATED TO INDIVIDUAL IMPROVEMENT.

{Wow. How many of us devote one half hour today to individual improvement in whatever we do? And notice the word most musicians hate was not used - "practice"!}

Start by taking your instrument out of the case and place it where you will be inclined to pick it up and play. {Ouch. That confronts the basic obstacle head on. You've heard it before, right? "Out of sight, out of mind." Absolutely true. Do we exercise if we hide the machine where we are not likely to see it?}

Students {aren't we all?!} need their:
• Instrument, Metronome, Tuner (w/clip), stand, and a space that is distraction-free. {The right tools and equipment in the right place. Without these elements, it won't be that you are not mentally ready. You won't be physically ready, either.}
• Warm Up Sequence (w/metronome), Breathing, Starts, Tone, Endings, Flexibility, Technique, etc. {The simple things. The basic things. The fundamental things. You do it over and over again. Why? To remind yourself what it takes.}
• Foundations Exercises, Range Extension Exercises. {More than a once-over re-hash. A review of the basic skills and more that are needed for what comes next.}
• Preparation for you weekly playoff. {A weekly measure of actual performance, not just “practice.” How are you doing today?}
• Prepare sections of etudes from your All State Music. {Work on your reach goal. You may not make All State, but it seems to me that the directors take the position of Auguste Gusteau to the student’s Remy in Disney-Pixar's Ratatouille, “Anyone can cook!”}

I "LUV" Band!

I've got a few posts I've got to get to - a review of the USSBA National Championship for one (a Dad and son field trip) and thoughts on a band on a mission - but until I get those ideas together ...

A few posts ago I wrote about the book American Band. If you still have not purchased this book (Christmas gift, anyone?), Southwest Airlines excerpted a chapter the book as its cover story in the November issue of "Spirit", its inflight magazine.

Hey, Southwest - I LUV you! (And the fact that your HQ is in my Heart-Q of Dallas has nothing to do with it!)

By the way, if you need another thing to read to tie you over until the summer drum corps season, check out Halftime Magazine, with a great issue this time out covering events around the country. I tip my hat to Christine Ngeo Katzman, CEO and Publisher, for daring to leave warm southern California to promote her magazine at the USSBA event in Baltimore! (I took a picture of her all bundled up, but the camera is cheap, so I borrowed this from her website!)

Oh, and by the way, Congratulations to the 4 Texas bands making the Bands of America Grand National Championship Finals, including champion L.D. Bell HS Blue Raider Band of Hurst-near-Fort-Worth-but-Dallas-will-claim-you-now, Texas!