FMB Tradition Origins?

[FliccGirl]

I believe this is my first post in this thread since it turned into a discussion NOT about tradition origins. The best part about threads like these is that we get different opinions from people who obviously all care about the FMB, or we wouldn't have strong opinions at all. The worst part about threads like these is that people tend to get angry and misunderstand each other. So please don't misunderstand me-- I'm not trying to be antagonistic with this post. Disclaimer aside, here we go.

If none of our shows this year were outstanding, part of the blame for that can be put on the schedule. It sucked-- and that also had some influence on the frustration of the leadership. On the other hand, we didn't have any particularly crappy shows this year. The videogame show a snooze-fest? Maybe it wasn't the greatest show ever, but the crowd certainly seemed to like it. (Of course, that may have had something to do with the fact that we were losing to Western Michigan and they would have loved anything that cheered them up a bit. )

Last year, when we didn't have a schedule that sucked, we had two very good shows-- the patriotic show and Bohemian. I base "very good" on two main points, I guess: the crowd's reaction and the band's attitude. These were shows that the band was excited and motivated about-- like the last show in 2002, and Frontiers in 2003, which you referenced.

Yes, some members of the crowd liked Western's show better than the show we put on for the same game. But ours was a repeat show, full of music that a lot of the crowd didn't recognize, and it wasn't one of our better shows that year. That isn't to say that it sucked. It didn't. The mood of the crowd plays a LOT into whether or not a show is successful, regardless of its inherent worth.

Most of your points, I don't have any idea about-- I readily admit I don't know anything about the drumline.

I liked Dr. Toney. I did. He was an extremely nice, funny, and likeable guy, who tried to be fair and tried to be liked by everyone. But it seemed to me-- and I was only a freshman, so my point of view may be different-- that he didn't really try to motivate us to be the best we could be. Remember the speech he gave us at Homecoming 2002, about the band being nothing but the "commercial break" for the football game?

[Falcons4Life]

Alright....for the reference....and I think I can get Matrix to back me on this one.....PATRIOTIC SHOWS ALWAYS GET THE CROWD!!! All you have to do is whip out a flag and the bandwagon roles!!! If you spell USA you can normally get some form of media to cover it....or end up on the cover of the Pride CD! Patriotic shows dont count....and no offense but the only reason I cheered for the band during the entire season was for pregame and bohemian rhapsody, and all the other times, I cheered for my friends. This band....quite frankly does one of two things wrong (ie if they did one the other wouldnt matter) they Dont a)play for the crowd...they play to make themselves giddy (musically challenging crap that no one else knows) or B) execute shows well enough for people to be like....oh my god I will give up a beer at the Falcon club tent for that even though I have no clue what they are playing!

Sit in the stands once...you will realize what I am talking about....I used to be oblivious to it too!

[jlozer8]

The problem is that the only students who get on here and talk about it are the ones that know that the directors read this and they just want to kiss some serious a**!

Just to be clear, I am not trying to kiss anyone's a** with anything I post on here. Never in any of my posts did I say that the director is doing an outstanding job, I just never said the director was doing a poor job. If I wanted to voice that kind of an opinion, like Fuj said earlier, I could do that on the course evaluations rather than on a public forum such as this. I haven't made any direct connections between the band's improvement and the director, I have just said that I think the band is improving, whether or not it has anything to do with the director. One of the major reason's I contend that the FMB is improving is because each year, we have more and more veterans that come back to march again, and just having more experience makes the band improve every year.

[Falcons4Life]

Kissing a$$es is not reccomended....first of all....bad breath....secondly you never know what kind of weird bacteria may be festering there....thirdly if you are that bad at what you do that you need to kiss a$$ to be good at it....you arent good at, and you must find something new!

And...if you are going kiss one....find one worth kissing!

[FliccGirl]

Alright....for the reference....and I think I can get Matrix to back me on this one.....PATRIOTIC SHOWS ALWAYS GET THE CROWD!!! All you have to do is whip out a flag and the bandwagon roles!!! If you spell USA you can normally get some form of media to cover it....or end up on the cover of the Pride CD! Patriotic shows dont count....and no offense but the only reason I cheered for the band during the entire season was for pregame and bohemian rhapsody, and all the other times, I cheered for my friends. This band....quite frankly does one of two things wrong (ie if they did one the other wouldnt matter) they Dont a)play for the crowd...they play to make themselves giddy (musically challenging crap that no one else knows) or B) execute shows well enough for people to be like....oh my god I will give up a beer at the Falcon club tent for that even though I have no clue what they are playing!

Sit in the stands once...you will realize what I am talking about....I used to be oblivious to it too!

No, I think your post makes sense. (Surprised? )

Two points still stand, though, I think. First, just because patriotic shows ALWAYS get the crowd, doesn't negate the fact that some patriotic shows are good and others are bad. There is quite a contrast between the 2002 and the 2004 patriotic shows.

And second... MOST bands that I've seen have trouble with your points A and B. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't still strive to achieve them, of course... but it can reduce some of the "omg we suck" panic-- "suck" is a relative term.

[Falcons4Life]

I have to say that 2002 was superior compared to 2004! As patriotic shows go....minus the medly.....that one was alright....if you remember we had the WHOLE crowd chanting U-S-A...which is cheesy and way to over patriotic...but they were into it....2004 was like...ooh ahh I hear music I know....yeah I am happy to have an american passport and not an Iraqi one!

And besides..I am not one to get emotionally involved with music...unless it is like Tchaikovsky's 5th and I am sitting in St. Petersburg....but Amazing Grace was absolutely 100% one of the most touching (I use that in the straightest way possible) arrangements I have ever heard....Next only to simple gifts as done poorly by WVU's band!

Oh yes...one more partiotic hippity hop I love america show we did...2001 we did Proud to be an American as a double with the Marching Hicks of Marshall right after 9-11. That one I excuse....too bad Andy Sohm blew it in the waining seconds of the game!!

And by the way...for all for all of you that are thinking to yourselves....DICK HATES AMERICA....I love america....I hate bandwagon wrap myself in stars and stripes, wave a flag, sing yankee doodle dandy, put a sticker on my car, and be oblivious that there are 118 or so other countries in the world patriotism! Jesus....the only other country you see doing that outside of a sporting event is Canada, and they just do that to tell the world that they are not with us!

[Metz]

Just to remind you the student section two years ago wanted to trade for westerns band, and bood the band off the field after the second round of harry potter halftime!

The only reason students stay in the section is so they don't lose their seats. I heard hundreds say those exact words this past season.


And Dick, it's Sahm, not Sohm. I thought he was your favorite BG QB ever!

[Falcons4Life]

He is .....I love him like Germans like beer! He should have gone pro!!!


Andy Sahm for Frankfurt Galaxy practice squad