Trials and Obstacles

This has certainly been a year of obstacles and "trials". As I write this yet another one has been cast our way. We will not rehearse Tuesday. It is a teacher in service day and no instruction or practice is allowed to take place on these days. I suppose it is my fault. The problem is that we are a young band (really young) and our young students that are not able to drive just simply will not be able to come to practice at our regular time of 4 ish to 6:45 p.m. No problem. We will just practice in the morning 8 - 12 noon and then parents can drove off their child on the way to work and then pick them up at lunch. Not going to happen. But then again, we have had so many trials and obstacles, why should we give up now. We have had sickness, we have had injuries, we have had weather problems, we have had...a lot! And what have we done, succeeded. You see there are only two opinions. You either succeed or quit. I have to tell you I thought about giving up today but my students and my biggest supporter ever, Cindy, wouldn't let me. So fight I did. The out come was the same. We can not practice in the day Tuesday. We are going to make it up though. In truth, we may have already. You see I never mentioned it but the student leaders have been starting practice at 4:10 or earlier every day. It may not sound like much but add it up over 14 weeks and it makes up a full rehearsal. Also, one day when it was rainy and nasty, we went outside and did some work. Yet another rehearsal made up, and even when the stadium was closed for repair, we rehearsed on the football practice field. What have we done? Perhaps the impossible. We are no longer just a band. We are a family and we win...a lot! So what is a few more obstacles? Not much. We adapt and figure it out and then we win! Remember not all victories require trophies. Some just require family and friends. If Job could get through what he did, I know we can too! Check out the Book of Job if you need to remember to keep the faith.

Thankful for Great Help

I am very thankful to have great help when it comes to this band thing. You see I have never viewed myself as knowing everything or even very much about band. I see myself as not being too talented and working with what I have the best I can, but I have been very fortunate to have made some great friends in my career. I even seem to be picking up a few more. I have always said it's not my job to be the best but it is my job to find who is to work with me. That has truly been the case this year. We have a great staff from the percussion section to the guard to the visual and musical staff. We even have a new consultant that has been a great help to me personally. I can only hope to continue to have great help and believe me I know I don't this all by myself. Please thank these individuals when you see them. I know it would mean a lot to them.

Weather or Not...

The weather is playing a role in our preparations and rehearsals again. The last thing I saw was it was going to come in tonight. So much for that. It is raining heavily and the radar doesn't look good. My wife told me this morning that I didn't have to worry about though and she was right. We have many things to work on musically and can certainly find more things to perfect so let it rain. I don't think any group in SC is getting outside today so I would say it was a fair rain out at least. I do wonder about the use of electronics that has seemed to become almost a necessity with today's bands. I have heard many of our competitors are using them and maybe even can't perform with out them. What happens to them if it rains at state? Remember state is a rain or shine event. It just can not be rescheduled due to scheduling and judges. It is just a thought.

Not Missing This Weekend

This weekend is upper/lower state for 1A, 2A, 3A, and 4A bands. I have competed in each of these divisions and I must say I don't miss this competition. If your band is not top 6, your season is over. Not redos or anything, just over. The fact is that if you are top 3, you have a very hard road ahead to win or place in the state event which is next weekend. It was always the most stressful competition for me just knowing what was at stake. At least, we get to go to state in 5A on the same day as everybody else. Now of course, we are not top 8 on Nov. 7th, we will be home early and believe when I say we are still in jeopardy of that! I do wish my friends in the above classifications the best for their performance. I would especially like to wish Buford, Batesburg-Leesville, and Swansea all the best. I hope to get to see all of you next weekend at 2A/4A finals.

What we are doing now

Many people may think we don't have much to work on right now. I mean our average score this year is 93.23! That is incredible. Now I know that is elevated and we are getting for state and that is a totally different animal for sure but still... Here is what we are doing. We are getting as perfect as possible. We are totally picking the show apart and our goal is to be perfect on November 7th. It is nice to be able to do this and not have to worry about getting ready for a competition this weekend. We have gone 4 weekend in a row and a break will be nice. It also gives us a chance to get healthy too. So what are doing? We are working very hard and getting better and better all the time.

Garden City Classic - Grand Champions

Dutch Fork "Silver Spirit" Marching Band

Garden City Classic - Grand Champions

Class AAAA - 1st Place - Superior Rating - 94.5

Class AAAA - Best Percussion

Class AAAA - Best Colorguard

Class AAAA - Best Hornline

"Never trade what you want at the moment for what you want the most"

Time to Go

It is time for competition again. We have improved and are even cleaner then ever. It has been a week since we have marched on grass though and our usual pre-competition run through in the stadium won't be possible today because the field is flooded. Never the less, musically we are very fine and if everybody can just think we should be great. We are up against larger bands this week again but is OK too because I really think we have the best show in the state and I know we can play as well as anybody. We just have to hope that the judges are not just wowed by the size of a band. Last time I checked David beat Goliath pretty handily with a stone. It is nice to finally have some cool weather too.

The Question of the Day: Weather?

Weather plays a huge role in what we do in marching band and today is no different. I am hoping the rain will hold off for us because we really need a good rehearsal today. This marching thing is funny. We start out in the hottest part of the year with temperatures above 100 degrees and today it is about 50 and dreary. You just never know. The weather has a strange way of evening up the playing field too. Bands that were once ahead of the game can quickly find themselves behind after only missing a day or two outside. The weather also has a way of getting you back too. How many times has every band director said "We'll get to that next rehearsal"? A lot of times. Hopefully luck is with us. It would nice to have a cool rehearsal. We could really get a lot accomplished.

Weekend Review

We went to Hartville this weekend. It was interesting. We drove through the woods for a long time after we got off the interstate and then there was a stadium in a cow pasture and that was where we went. The people at Hartsville were very nice to us and that is not always the case at some of these local shows but anyway...We were 2nd to Walterboro and that was somewhat disappointing because we had a good run. You never know what you are going to get with respect to judging at these types of shows. "You pay your money and you ride the rides. Some are better than others and you ride them again. Some are not and you don't ride again." One thing that bothers me though is that the entire attitude of the band and parents was very different at the band room. People seemed sad about what we had done. I was not. We are very good and are in a great position for Nov. 7th. We will clean up even more. We scored an incredible 91.71! and that was our lowest score this year. If we score that at state...well you won't have worry about making finals. I am very proud of the students and their understanding of the results too. I wish our supports would not seem disappointed with our results. It was fun to warm up in almost complete darkness. If you don't know, I am just about night blind! I could see a thing. We all did a great job and we are not finished yet. These local shows are fun and really nothing more. It is great to win them and get some good comments but the real prize in on Nov. 7th. Only 11 more rehearsals! I hope everybody has a great day off. I am stuck in the band room again. It is a good day of rest though for all away from rehearsal it is raining. Kind of sign if you ask me.

Ready to Roll...Again

The time is near. We get to compete again this weekend. Today went very well and the stage is set for us. Our goal is simple, we want to do our best job and be even better than we were last week. We have our homecoming game tomorrow night and then we get to sleep in on Saturday except for the about 15 students taking the SAT Saturday morning. I have to say it is pretty cool to load everything up and hit the road with a whole band and support team. There aren't many people that ever get to lead a group like that. The best thing about his weekend is a surprise. Cindy gets to come with us. Originally we thought she might not get to because of work. I am happy and I bet everybody else is too. I need my psychologist and social advisor to be right on competition days. Only 48 hours and we will be in warm up.

Adding the Small Stuff

Today was a great rehearsal. Everybody was paying attention to details. At this point, it is details that will make or break us. We also started to add some visuals to the show. These little things should really help us. We go to a new competition for all of us this weekend. We are in Hartsville. It is fun to go new places and learn how things work at their venues but it also can be a little unnerving too. I am sure we will all figure it out though. Although last Saturday night is one i will not forget soon, I am already looking forward to this Saturday. We have a bit of ride too. Sometimes that is cool too. I always remember the "road trips" we took when I was in high school. I will once again be around old and new friends at competition. B-L will be there as will Walterboro (I just can't call them Colleton County), and Buford will be there. They will always have a special spot in my heart. They gave me my first chance at band directing. I only the weather stays as great as it was today but I know...it's South Carolina...if you don't like the weather just wait a few days. It will change.

Rainy, Cold Day

We stayed inside today and that is ok. We could have went outside and gotten more than a few kids sick for sure but we had plenty to do inside so that is where we stayed. It was actually a good day to do this because we had a guest come and work music with us. I am not too proud to say that I have a lot to learn so I enjoy people in so that not only the band can learn but I can too. We needed a good music rehearsal and we had one. Now it is up to the students to go home and practice what they were taught. The weather is supposed to be better tomorrow and I hope it is. I really do like going outside and working with the students. I said once the competitions start things go quick. We only have 2 rehearsals until our next outing. I hope we can build and improve upon our this past weekend. Band seems to be changing quickly at DF...people are starting to notice us.

Congratulations Dutch Fork Band

White Knoll Silver Invitational

Grand Champions - 93.48

1st Place - Class AAAA

Highest Music - Class AAAA

Highest Visual - Class AAAA

Highest Effect - Class AAAA

Highest Colorguard - Class AAAA

A Nice Thought

"Ideas are like stars. You will not succeed in touching them with your hands, but like the seafaring man on the desert of waters, you choose them as your guides, and follow them, and you reach your destiny" - Carl Schutz

A Night of Rest Before the Real Test

We are off tonight as the football team is in Orangeburg and it just costs us too much to travel that far even with the pep band. I really don't mind traveling with the team though. It is kind of nice to just play and have fun sometimes. It is nice to have some time to rest too. We have a big day tomorrow. We are going to second competition of the year and things look in order for us to have a great weekend. The weather forecast looks good and we seem to be ready. I look forward to going and seeing some old friends too. I still have strong ties with old friends and directors at B-L and Swansea and they will both be there tomorrow. I have never competed at WK high but we marched on the field last year and I was impressed. Mr. Apple just got finished tuning the drums and they sound great. All that is left is to go and do our thing. It should be a packed house tomorrow night. We perform at 8:00 p.m. I really long to hear those famous words "Dutch Fork are you prepared to take the field for competition?" I believe are more than ready.

Thursday Rehearsals

Thursday rehearsals are big. We usually put everything together and learn how to get on and off the field for our weekend competition. The direction we come on and off changes about every weekend. This weekend it is on and off to the right as you face the field. If we are adding any thing it is usually done on Monday and then we rehearse the changes on Tuesday. Generally nothing is changed on Thursdays. Thursday have to be our best day every week. How Thursday goes usually sets the tone for the entire weekend. We will definitely be working hard today. The weather forecast looks good for us this weekend too.