Hempfield Bands eNews > CHAMPS WEEK EDITION! (Part One)

Congratulations on another amazing weekend! From Senior Knight (WE MADE IT!) to capping off an undefeated regular season at Red Lion, our team once again proved that they are one of the elite groups in the entire sport! With the football team clicking on all cylinders, this is a GREAT time to be a Knight!

Marching Band is a sport!

> Like any other sport, our athletes spend countless hours of strenuous physical training (more strenuous than many other sports, in fact) to develop a skill set unique to our event. Individuals that have been involved with competitive marching band as well as other athletics will very frequently list marching band as more physically rigorous than the other sports that they play.

Curious about the physical demands? Watch this video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WWmM1jpM8I

> Like other "artistic" sports such as gymnastics, figure skating, or diving, our athletes perform a carefully choreographed routine that is performed and scored by expert judges according to a set of well-crafted rubrics. Achievement is credited, lack of achievement is noted.

> Unlike other sports, we have all 115 athletes on the field at the same time, each with equal responsibility and equal importance. There are not breaks in the action, and every member needs to be intensely focused and work together for nine minutes.

> Like many other sports, it is impossible to compare the results from one show to those at another. Field conditions, judging panels, show lineups, and performance orders are all variables that make looking at scores from "around the league" an interesting but ultimately pointless exercise. Until all of the groups are on the same field at the same time, it is impossible to compare.

> Unlike many other sports, there is no defense in marching band. We can only control what we can control, and that is our own achievement. While each of our performances have gotten better than the last, there are still individual errors that are evident throughout the production. The same issues that are pointed out by staff during rehearsal are the same issues that the judges are picking out during performances:

- Listen to Krissy McMullen (Field Visual) and you will hear individuals being picked out for feet being out of time and stylistic variations from member to member.

- Listen to Joe Santoro (Ensemble Visual) and you will hear him point out spacing and timing issues throughout the production.

- Listen to Bill Powers (Ensemble Music) and you will hear him pick on releases and individual stick outs during the closer.

> Like any other sport, there is no such thing as "luck." Luck is when preparation meets opportunity. We make our own luck by being as prepared as possible when the opportunity to excel arises!

The bottom line is that this is the last week that we have to clean our own house and put ourselves in a position to be the best that we can be on Saturday night. We cannot control Spring Ford, North Penn, Wilson or any other group that we will see. We cannot control the order of performance, nor can we contr. We can only work as hard as we can to improve with every rep, strive for excellence in all elements of our performance, and leave the field on Saturday night with no regrets. Regardless of the outcome, we will have left everything that we have on that field and will have made an indelible impact on the lives of our audience!

Congratulations on an undefeated regular season! This group has already achieved incredible things, now it's time to finish strong! BE GREAT!

----------------------------------------------------------

CHAMPS WEEK Rehearsal Schedule

Monday > Ensemble Rehearsal (6-9)

- Meet @ HS Band Room for Film Study/Judges Recordings (Field Visual, Ensemble Music)

Tuesday > Ensemble Rehearsal (6-8…please note the time change!)

- Meet @ HS Band Room

- This night will be all about inspiring future generations of Hempfield Bands as HMK performs for the Beginning Band Concert at LMS!

Wednesday > Ensemble Rehearsal (6-9)

- Meet @ Stadium!

Thursday > Ensemble Rehearsal (6-9)

- Meet @ Stadium!

Friday > PLAYOFF FOOTBALL @ Central Dauphin!

*It's postseason play for everyone! This is a great opportunity for a "Dress Rehearsal" prior to the big day on Saturday (plus it's another excuse to perform FATE for a new audience…we'll take it!)

Report to PAC Field @ 3:30

Eat/Dress/Trucks @ 4:30

Leave HHS @ 5:30

Arrive @ 6:15

Perform HALFTIME

Home @ 10:30(isn)

Saturday > CAVALCADE CHAMPIONSHIPS @ Hershey Stadium!!!!

Schedule TBA based on Championship draw on Monday night

Stay tuned for detailed information!

----------------------------------------------------------

Review Knight > Tuesday, November 12th

Report @ 6 PM

Event Begins @ 7 PM (will last approximately 40 minutes)

HMK Banquet > Sunday, November 17th

QVC Christmas Parade (West Chester) > Friday, December 6th

Rehearsal 1 > Tuesday, November 19th (6-9)

Rehearsal 2 > Tuesday, December 3rd (6-9)