Marching Band Scoring 101

So last night was a great night for the Tiger Marching Band. There is no doubt about that but many people were very surprised to not hear our name until the last three awards. We did not win even one caption award. Or did we? More on that later. Our main competition won best colorguard, best drum major, best percussion, and best horn line (music). We just won 1st place in class 4A, first place in the top division, and oh yeah THE GRAND CHAMPION! But how? I am sure a lot of people left the competition last night wondering the same thing. Well the reason is because I am the band director of Swansea and all the judges were afraid of me. NO, NOT REALLY! This is how it happened. All of the caption awards of drum major, colorguard, and percussion are judged by outside judges. They are only focused on those specific areas with out relation to each other and the rest of the band. They are independent areas. The scores from these judges do not count in the final score. So what does count? Music is 40%. Visual performance is 30%. Musical effect is 15% and visual effect is 15%. So while the announcer was calling our another band for all of these awards, what people did not know what that we only lost hornline (music) by .4 of a point (We know this number well!) and we had won visual performance and musical effect. So when the final score was tallied, surprise! Swansea had won! We had won two captions. They just didn't announce those. The solution to this problem would be if more contests followed the state and BOA practice of giving the following awards: High music, high visual, and high overall effect. Maybe people would have understood a bit more when we took all the big trophies. Here is one thing for sure. We are for real. Last year was not fluke and we will contend for the state title once again.

Here are some other problems. We must focus on the tasks at hand. We seemed to a lot of "Band Drama" last night. I am not sure why but I do know that when compared to doing something like taking grand championships and having a chance to win state, you won't remember the drama, only the end results. My challenge to all involved with our band are these few things:

1. Stay focused on the ultimate task. That is the success of the band as a whole. We can make history this year. Don't let your personal feelings and emotions get in the way of something that will outlast us all. This year could be something everybody will remember long after everybody in the band has graduated.

2. Do not get use to winning. These experiences are unique. So many bands work so long and hard and never get to feel and be a part of what we experienced last night. Cherish the moments.

3. Do not ever think our work is done. We have a long way to go and the largest tasks lie ahead. It will get more difficult to win but if you know me...I will keep pushing! We can relax on the night of October 27th.

4. This one may be the most important. Have fun! I love band. It keeps me young and I have fun doing it. I actually love practice because it last longer than a run at a competition. I can promise you I had fun last night and I saw a lot of parents having fun too. This is what is the best. We all worked our butts off yesterday and it was fun. I don't ever want to have a band that wins and looks sad because it was not fun. I would rather not win and be happy. Of course, the best case is to win and know you did it and we did it too...together.

5. Pray. Some may notice I do pray before we go on the field. I do not pray for wins though. I pray for the opportunity to be successful. I feel that given that chance, the rest is up to us. "Pray towards heaven, but row towards shore." I also kiss my wife before every competition because family is huge in band and the whole band is part of our family.

We have much work ahead of us but I know if we can all pull together, nobody can stop us!