Band goes to regionals over Veterans Day weekend

On the frigid field of Chabot College in Hayward, the marching band received third place in its class in the seventh annual WBA Valley Christian Quest Classic on Oct. 19.

Senior and drum major Tim Casey-Clyde said that although the band placed third, they will be working hard to improve the show for future competitions after finishing behind James Logan and Homestead.

“Frankly it doesn’t matter that we received third place,” Casey-Clyde said. “We competed alongside two of the best bands in the state and produced a pretty fantastic show nonetheless.”

In addition, over the Veterans Day weekend, from Nov. 8 to Nov. 10, the band will attend the Bands of America Regional Marching Band Championships in Long Beach for the first time.

The event will feature top bands from California, Colorado, Arizona, Texas and Oregon, according to band director Jonathan Pwu.

Pwu said the band is in good shape to to take on a big challenge.

“We need to keep up concentration and focus and rehearse well and with good etiquette,” Pwu said. “The show design is one of the strongest shows we’ve ever had both musically and visually. It’ll be exciting going into an event we’ve never gone to before.”

However, Casey-Clyde said, the band will have to improve.

“I have been impressed by the consistent focused rehearsal etiquette that the band has shown over the last couple weeks,” Casey-Clyde said. “The band will need to up their game even more going into regional championships. This means learning new visuals and music changes lightning fast.” 

Pointing to the WBA performance, Casey-Clyde said that the band’s performance could have been better, and many events leading up to the performance impaired the band from doing their best.

“I think the performance was great, but far less than what we are capable of,” Casey-Clyde said. “I think a combination of tiredness from Friday's football game, Saturday's PSAT and a physically taxing afternoon rehearsal contributed to a lack of energy leading up to the performance.”

Casey-Clyde said that they performed at a field that is marked with college regulation hashes, and since all of the band’s drill forms are based around high school hash marks, many people were thrown off by the different hashes, which resulted in a significant number of individual errors.

Additionally, while the audience cheered vigorously for the band at football games, the audience was much less responsive at the WBA competition, according to Casey-Clyde. 

“A dead audience can be crippling to a band who feeds off of not only personal drive but crowd response as well,” Casey-Clyde said. 

Pwu agreed with Casey-Clyde, and said that the band was not focused enough at the night of the competition, which led the band to disarray on the field.

“The night was just kind of an off night, and [I could tell that the focus] didn’t seem like it lined up at warm-up,” Pwu said. 

Pwu also said that a difference in the judging at the WBA competition and that at the NCBA competition may have contributed to the band’s satisfactory performance. 

In WBA competitions, there is an individual judge that gives commentary on field and adds pressure to each individual band member. In addition, there are different categories for guard and percussion that contribute to overall band score, instead of NCBA’s overall score. 

However, Pwu said that the band did have some positives in their performance. The scores were close to getting first place in general effects and music, with music being one point away from first.

“I think overall, the band did really well on the things we had rehearsed the week before,” Pwu said. “The color guard had a great performance, and the additions at the end of the show worked out great, really helping our general effect score.”

Casey-Clyde said that only the members of the band can determine how polished the show can be at regionals.

“I will be the best motivator I can possibly be, but it is my other 220 peers who ultimately put on the show. BOA [the circuit the band is performing in] will be a brand new experience to everyone,” Casey-Clyde said. “If every member in the band can personally commit to leaving everything they have on that field then I know our championships performance at BOA will be unforgettable.”