Sorry...Lounge Closed
The new forecast has it a little warmer with a little less rain so they have decided to not open the upper level lounge. Sorry to any parents who were looking forward to that.
Premium Lounges and Free Hot Chocolate?
If you are planning to go to Met Life Stadium to see the kids perform in the Yamaha Cup this Saturday we know that the weather isn't looking great. USBands has announced that they will have one of the large lower level lounge areas open to the kids so they can duck in out of the cold in between watching some bands. All of the vendors will also be in this area. They have also announced that the Lexus Lounge will be open to ticket holders on the upper level. They are also working on hot chocolate being free to everyone all day long, however this has not been confirmed. I'll keep everyone updated as I get new information.
Remember that Mrs. Stanziale will be selling our allotment of discounted tickets before and after tonight's rehearsal. Also don't forget that tonight's rehearsal will end at 8 pm rather than the normal 8:30.
Yamaha Cup Info - Awards!
There will be an awards ceremony following each division. The Group IIIA ceremony will be at 2pm. Awards ceremonies are being held at the Stadium Concourse Stage while other groups are performing. We are obviously now staying for awards. I would anticipate that we will be back before 4pm. The Saturday schedule now looks like this:
9:00 am Arrive at South in uniform (dress warm)
9:30 am Depart for Met Life Stadium
10:30 am Arrive at Competition
11:45 am Warm Ups
11:50 am Moment of Zen
11:55 am Block to performance area
12:17 pm Perform
12:35 pm Pack up & eat (we are staying in uniform)
1:20 pm Block to Awards
2:00 pm Group IIIA Awards Ceremony
2:45 pm Depart for South (approx.)
3:45 pm Return to South (approx.)
We can discuss on Wednesday if we want to enter the stadium to watch some of the Group IV bands after awards. This will have us get home a little later and closer to a time that you would want to go to the diner, which will probably factor into your decision.
For anyone interested, here is the band info packet that lets you know where to park and enter the stadium, as well as other info about the competition.
yamaha_cup_event_information_packet_bands.pdf
Veteran's Day Parade Cancelled
Do to construction along the normal parade route this year's Veteran's Day parade has been cancelled. The calendar has been updated with this information.
States Spectator Info
Follow the link for info on parking, Rutgers bag policy and other stuff you may need to know.
States! Tickets & Schedule
First off, we have discounted tickets for NJ States at Rutgers. If you buy them there they are $25. We have them for $20. If you would like tickets to the State Finals this weekend at Rutgers Mrs. Stanziale will be here before and after rehearsal on Wednesday to sell what we have on a first come first serve basis. One other note, Rutgers will be charging $10 to park.
Our schedule for this Saturday is as follows:
Call Time - 10am
Rehearsal - 10:15 - 11:15am
Lunch - 11:30am - 12:00pm
Load - 12:00pm
Depart for Rutgers - 12:30pm
Arrive at Rutgers - 1:30pm
Warm-ups - 2:00-3:00pm
Moment of Zen - 3:00 - 3:10pm
Block to Field - 3:10-3:20pm (Rutgers is a Reverse Entry)
Arrive at Field Gate - 3:20pm
Performance - 3:38 - 3:51pm
Collapse into quivering puddle because you left everything you had on the field - 3:55pm
Collect yourself, pack up, get changed, eat something - 3:56 - 5:54pm
Awards - 5:55pm
Stand with arms locked and fingers crossed swaying gently back and forth with your eyes closed - 5:56pm - ?
Return to South - 7:30pm (approx.)
Thank You Band Families!
A special thanks to all of the families who came out to support the band at last night's show in Jackson. The kids had another really great performance to finish up our best regular season ever. Three 1st place finishes and one just barely second.
I am excited for next week because for as well as the band performed I know that they can still do better, and they will. It's time for South Music to take a bow on a big stage and let everyone know that we mean business!
The many ways to support the band & Saturday 10/11 schedule.
Before I get to the schedule I am going to make a plea. How many parents and families have seen the band perform at a competition? I know that we have a great group of parents who support the kids and the program. I see them in the food booth at football games, running clothing drives in the rain, making donations of goods, time and energy. They chaperon events and help make this program run. Everyone is driving their kids to rehearsals and games, cleaning uniforms, getting instruments fixed, and heading out at late hours to pick them up when we get back. But other than the groups that chaperon when was the last time we had a crowd in the stands for our performance?
It's not the same as a football game. There we are entertaining, at a competition we are performing. We are at an event that is dedicated to what we are doing and it's a different atmosphere, and there is nothing like those awards ceremonies. How many families have felt the tension and the rush of those scores being called? You would never know that the air could be pulled out of an outdoor stadium, or that the kids could be so quiet waiting in anticipation.
This Saturday is a great opportunity for us to make a collective effort to be there and see it for ourselves. To provide that intangible support that goes along with the kids just knowing that you are there for them. We are performing late (9pm) and very close to the awards ceremony (10:30pm). Get there a little earlier and see the rest of our group. Stick around to see the bands from Jackson (2 of the best in the state) and experience those scores being called for yourself. Thanks for hearing me out, and thank you all for all that you do.
Here's the schedule for Saturday:
Call Time - 3:00pm
Rehearsal - 3:15-5:15pm
Pack Truck
Food - 5:40pm
Get dressed, fix hair, etc.
Depart for Jackson - 6:30pm
Performance - 9:00pm
Awards - 10:30pm
Return to South - Midnight-ish
Some Perspective on the Weekend
Just a couple of thoughts on this past weekends show:
A win is a win. I know we didn't move the needle on the score, but neither did anybody else at the top. Point Pleasant was in the same boat and both Jacksons actually went down from the week before. Did their shows get worse? No. Did ours stay exactly the same? No. Every team of judges will approach things a little differently and that came through in the scoring. The most important thing is that we were at the top. SO...
Yes, we slipped a little in the state standings for seeding. But look at this, Kingsway (who we were ahead of on Saturday night) went out the next day and scored almost 3 points higher. I don't think they radically altered their show in the 12 hours between getting the judges comments and performing again. That group of judges just gave out some higher scores. My thinking, if we were at that show our score probably would have been higher too and we would have beat them there as well. When we walked off the field I thought we would pull a 76. That would have us 2nd in the state right now. We are still in this!
Also, don't discount these 4th place overall finishes. For the past 3 weeks we have come in 4th overall just behind some heavy hitters. Twice it has been Jackson Memorial (a group 6), Jackson Liberty (a group 5), Point Pleasant ( a group 4), South. See a trend here? That's some pretty nice company. We know all about Jackson, and Point has been competing at a high level for a long time. Like, since before you guys were born. We have made some big steps over the past few years. Don't forget how important that is.
Why am I so optimistic? Because I know that our show isn't done getting better, and I know that you know that too. People like this show. Judges like this show. You've heard it in their comments. We are in our wheelhouse doing something that we are good at. It's time to double down on ourselves and know that we have the potential to get better and the ability to tap into it. Don't take your foot off the gas, don't let up even a little. Floor it, and see that we are capable of being the best!
Whether to weather the weather...
The forecast for tomorrow looks pretty wet in the early part of the day, but performances look safe. So we're going to push back call time to 11am and then plan on leaving a little later (maybe by a half hour or so). If we're lucky it won't be too bad, but sports will be cancelled and we'll be able to spend some time on the front field. Please make note of this change and come prepared to have you best performance ever! We're still hanging towards the top of the field for finals and that is where we want to stay.