BOA Grand Nationals

[wolfgang]

I enjoy marching band to a great degree. Not nearly as much as drum corps, but I still love marching band. However, I really dislike/almost hate the BoA organization. The judging system that they have in place sucks, they are expensive, and reward bands that have craploads of money. The judging system revolves directly around cleanness of programs. Nothing about innovation, difficulty, or anything. Just how clean the band is. So band programs become shorter and shorter and easier and easier so they can be as squeaky clean as possible for the judges. Its terrible.

Really? The BOA Grand Nationals I attended bears no resemblence to the stereotype displayed in this post.

I think you are confusing BOA with UIL (the Texas organization). In the UIL system, where there is no GE, you would be (partially) correct.

However, in the BOA system, while being clean is important (as it is everywhere), if you are spit polished clean playing Mary Had a Little Lamb and marching only 8 to 5 perfectly, you aren't going to get squat (just like DCI).

Innovation? Watch Tarpon Springs or Broken Arrow from this past weekend. Difficulty? I must have only imagined I heard 16th note runs galore the past few days (to only comment on the technical aspect... there are other forms of demand as well), not to mention the drill/guard stuff some of the groups are attempting on the visual side of the equation.

For anyone that saw Avon in finals..... Did you think what their entire brass line did at the end of the opener was "easier and easier"???? I would submit there are World Class horn lines that would not have played that feature any cleaner (of course, when you have current/former DCI Brass Caption Heads Matt Harloff and Dean Westman as band directors, I would expect a killer brass section).

Regarding shorter shows- Many of the shows were over 10 minutes long (max time limit for BOA is 11 minutes). I would encourage you to view a video of BOA finals. Nobody is claiming it's Blue Devils or Cavies, and the kids aren't 20 year old music majors, but these high school kids are doing things that a few years ago few would have thought possible.

[charlie1223]

I enjoy marching band to a great degree. Not nearly as much as drum corps, but I still love marching band. However, I really dislike/almost hate the BoA organization. The judging system that they have in place sucks, they are expensive, and reward bands that have craploads of money. The judging system revolves directly around cleanness of programs. Nothing about innovation, difficulty, or anything. Just how clean the band is. So band programs become shorter and shorter and easier and easier so they can be as squeaky clean as possible for the judges. Its terrible.

False, False, False and... False.

None of those comments are remotely correct. Have you read the judging criteria for BOA? I have and I find it to be very fair and gives credit to bands who display risks in technical difficulty as well as execution. The performance level of the show (not cleanliness) is a huge factor in the BOA judging criteria.

General Effect is all about innovation and difficulty and it is a crucial part of judging criteria.

Have you even seen ANY top BOA bands lately! for Christ's sake! Every band had a multitude of innovative and risky ideas! Tarpon Springs would blow your mind if you saw how innovative their product was! And yet you also have Avon who was much more "traditional" in my book but put out the most entertaining show of the night! BOA allows for any all types of bands and shows to excel (even the smaller ones)

Band programs have not changed in length. If there is any reason to shorten a band programs length it is because of ht enumber of bands that now performing at these competitions and there is no way that we can have 20+ hours of bands going on in one day...

BoA is a great organization that does great things for students, you may have an issue with the administration but what the program offers is wonderful.

[Barifonium]

I just got back from BOA Grand Nationals and watched all 12 finalist Bands. Now there is a lot of negativity towards "marching bands" and how drum corps should make a distinction from marching band...

But what I saw from the 12 finalist bands at BOA was anything BUT what is stereotypically tossed around about “Marching Band” even here on DCP. These bands WERE Drum Corps quality bands. From programming, to movement, to speed, to drill design and music, to power of sound, to creativity… I had my jaw open during each of the shows wondering how the heck high school students could achieve a level of performance to rival even mid to lower tiered World Class drum corps.

I wonder if people who are against the “BOA, Marching Band” thing have even taken the time to watch some of the best marching band has to offer. Because what I’m telling you that Marching Band is becoming more and more drum corps like and it’s not the other way around.

It’s clear to me that anyone who appreciates drum corps should also appreciate the potential of marching band. I understand that the bands I saw only a small percentage of all high school bands. And maybe if we all expected more from marching band, and not constantly give into that stereotype, then maybe organizations all over the United States can push to reach their full potential like the 12 bands I saw did.

If we say the term “marching band” with scorn then that’s the way it will be perceived forever and always. All of us who support marching music should never look down to marching band ever, and last night at BOA finals finally proved that to me.

<3 I love you. No h o m o

FINALLY!! VINDICATION!!!!

Edited November 15, 2010 by Impuls!vebari

[audiodb]

I wonder if people who are against the “BOA, Marching Band” thing have even taken the time to watch some of the best marching band has to offer. Because what I’m telling you that Marching Band is becoming more and more drum corps like and it’s not the other way around.

I am not against BOA or any other flavor of marching band. I am also not against drum corps remaining different from marching band.

[Michael Boo]

To make BOA finals, you need money. Just sayin'.

Or have quality in-house instruction. Having grown up and lived for 39 years within three miles of Marian Catholic and being a close friend of their director since the late 1970s, I know they spend MUCH less than the typical BOA band, WAY much less. It doesn't hurt that their director writes all the music and drill. Not every director is as creative or can live on so little sleep, but it is possible. This was the 27th year in a row that the band made Grand National Finals doing things their way...and not to mention that they've won it seven times and have been in the top three more times than any other band. Plus, they're from a region that is very much NOT rich, surrounded by more closed factories than would could believe, and based in a city whose commercial base is essential vacant lots and empty buildings.

Edited November 15, 2010 by Michael Boo

[Michael Boo]

and be big

Two words: Tarpon Springs.

A small band that does amazing things due to good instruction and unbelievably creative thinkers.

[Stu]

Marian Catholic and Tarpon Springs are very fine examples of how it can be done as long as "everyone" involved works extremely hard at achieving success. In fact Marian Catholic has a great all-around music program not just a great marching band, and MC also uses upper class students as instructors who have been taught very very well from middle school on. Thanks for pointing out those schools Boo!

[jjeffeory]

Does it take money? Yes, lots of it.

Does it take time? Yes, LOTS of time. BOA bands don't just pop up overnight. It takes YEARS for some programs to reach BOA level. You have to start small and build every single year.

The band I work with in Tampa, I don't know if we ever want to go the BOA route, but we've gradually been "growing" the band over the last 2 seasons. By growing, I don't mean amount of members, but I mean the organization as a whole. We're revamping all of our equipment, uniforms, equipment transportation, instrumentation, etc. We've have a goal that we started budgeting for last year, and we realize it's going to take us a few seasons to get there.

The boosters do an incredible job with what they're able to raise year in and out for the band. We're lucky to have one of the nation's best football programs at the same school. The growth and exposure they've been getting has been helping the band as well.

But as for dues for BOA bands, are they seriously in the $2000 range? Man, I could NEVER imagine going to my parents and asking them to fork out that cash. They were cool with dishing out the money for DCI, since they could get rid of me for 10 weeks, and that $2000 covered everything I needed for the summer (food, travel, etc).

Way, way back in the day ( 20+ years), I heard storeis of some BOA bands charging upwards to $1600 a season to be in the marching band. It's expensive business.

[Michael Boo]

Marian Catholic and Tarpon Springs are very fine examples of how it can be done as long as "everyone" involved works extremely hard at achieving success. In fact Marian Catholic has a great all-around music program not just a great marching band, and MC also uses upper class students as instructors who have been taught very very well from middle school on. Thanks for pointing out those schools Boo!

You are correct about Marian Catholic's entire band program. As good as the marching band is, the top concert band (which I've heard in dozens of concerts and festivals) is even better.

The program spends less on its entire marching season (instruction and travel) than some schools spend on guard instruction alone, from what I've learned from various programs in other states.

[3rd Glasgow BB]

Money doesn't guarantee success but it helps.