Four States marching contest
Kick-off to Bandtober
October 4, 2022
So the season begins: “Bandtober,” the nickname for marching season’s main action of the month. Fridays have football games, and Saturdays have band competitions. To start the season off strong, Texas High hosted its own marching contest for many schools in the area.
On Saturday, Oct. 1, the Tiger Band hosted the annual Four-States Marching Contest in Tiger Stadium at Grim Park. Since Texas High hosted, they did not compete; however, they performed an exhibition of their show “Queen of the Night.” A total of 20 bands competed. Pleasant Grove came in third, Queen City came in second and Redwater came in first with their show “Shattered,” led under the field direction of Macy Calhoun.
“It’s a really good contest this year. Some of the bands that I’ve judged in the past, I’m seeing them again and a huge improvement in them,” judge Jim Lloyd said. “Oddly enough though, I’m a Texas High School graduate from 1985. But being from Arkansas, I don’t get to see Texas fans as often as I’d like to, and there’s really fun bands I’m enjoying.”
Ouachita Baptist University Director, Lloyd judged the contest along with six others and enjoyed watching his old band perform their show.
“Being back home, [Tiger] Stadium has changed a lot since I grew up here, and so has the Texas High Band. I’m getting to see a lot of people that I know and see their programs and how they’ve grown. It’s very exciting,” Lloyd said.
The Tiger Band performed once at 9:30 a.m. for family and Band Booster volunteers then again at 3:15 p.m. for the whole crowd that had grown throughout the day. Even though they didn’t compete, most members of the band still felt proud of themselves for their performance. Aside from performing, the band members helped with the contest by helping the front ensembles push out to the field, pushing props and keeping bands on schedule. Through volunteering with other bands, students made connections.
“My job was ‘Entry Water.’ The title is self-explanatory. It was fun too, seeing your old friends and band directors again and meeting new people,” senior euphonium CJ Jordan said. “I also was with my friends, and we really just chilled out the whole day and talked.”
The stands were filled with proud fans and families. To the band members, being supported by so many people is something special and important, so they made sure to return that support to the other bands.
“I feel a burst of energy when [the crowd] is cheering me on. It makes me want to give my all into the performance,” sophomore flutist Tulsi Patel said. “It also makes me super happy knowing we have supporters out there that absolutely love what we have put our hard work into.”
