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The national news is consistently showing some one to two second shots of this band playing.
I have a friend who flew there to participate.
It probably was not inexpensive to do that.
They also diligently practiced the four or five pieces of music that were assigned to them, and did a lot of walking and jogging, to make sure they could deal with the long parade route, while playing a lot.
I see this is a testament to how much band directors love “band“.

It was awesome! The foundation that put it all together, sold roses on the float to honor and memorialize people to raise money to recover some of the costs involved. My nephew bought two - one to memorialize his dad, and one to honor me. That was one of the coolest gifts ever.

Is a stream of it available somewhere??

Three Valves wrote: ↑Sun Jan 02, 2022 11:42 am Is a stream of it available somewhere??

Here ya go...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQyB8c0xhhE

Here you go...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_cont ... e=emb_logo

RECEIVED THE SHOWMANSHIP TROPHY

Three Valves wrote: ↑Sun Jan 02, 2022 11:42 am Is a stream of it available somewhere??

I marched in the 1978 Rose Bowl parade in high school, and I can attest to the accuracy of all of your statements. Shout out to Fort Walton Beach High School Band, then under the direction of Mr. Ernest O. Hebson and Mr. William W. Creekmore.

The comic "Funky Winkerbean" has had a story for a while about this band. Here's Friday's entry:
https://comicskingdom.com/funky-winkerbean/2021-12-31

(Beware of the comments section. They are always a bit on the caustic side for this comic strip.)

My first Rose Parade, and our daughter procured grandstand tickets at the parade starting area.
There were some oohs & aahs (LeAnn Rimes fireworks, the B2 stealth flyover, a huge whoosh of Mardi Gras streamers from the mid-parade Hot 8 Band), but the only two that got folks on their feet in our section of the stands were the 9/11 tribute & the Directors Band.
They marched out of their parade block to part for their float to drive through, then marched back into block in its wake, sounding solid the whole time. They were great.
I also really admired the Tennessee State University band - I wondered whether they could sustain that energy level over the whole 5+ mile route.
We didn't notice whether our daughter was also on the jumbotron, but a friend sent us a screen-grab of her off the television:

I, too, had a good friend who participated in this group. Nobody becomes a band director for the money. It is about people and relationships. Music and the teaching of love for music is just the vehicle. My own band directing career began some 48 years ago. I loved every minute and still get invited to my "kids'" class reunions. The most disappointing thing about this career is discovering how much education is about politics and money. These guys put up with ladder-climbing micromanager administrators, lack of budgets, and staffing shortages. Sadly, school is not about kids anymore, and that's what convinced me to retire. How many of us in the music world can relate back to a band director who inspired us to do what we didn't know we could do? That director was the reason I became one.

Jperry1466 wrote: ↑Tue Jan 04, 2022 3:25 pm Sadly, school is not about kids anymore, and that's what convinced me to retire.

My Old BD has an intense following. But he was pretty intense himself!!

https://www.facebook.com/paul.parets

Being a tuba player, you may be more laid back, I hope!!

Three Valves wrote: ↑Tue Jan 04, 2022 3:32 pm My Old BD has an intense following. But he was pretty intense himself!!
https://www.facebook.com/paul.parets

Being a tuba player, you may be more laid back, I hope!!

Now that I'm retired, I'm very laid back. Not so much when I was teaching. Hard to be laid back when you're competitive. Lots of trophies, but they are forgotten somewhere in several school closets. I do keep in touch with my former students, though.

Having more time now, I really enjoy helping the young directors learn the ropes and have taken two of our ensemble euphoniums, who are young band directors, under my wing. One is a trombone player in real life who tends to way overbalance the ensemble if I don't get a little intense. Next time I work with his band, I'm going to 'splain that. He's a promising young teacher, just a little hard of head.

tokuno wrote: ↑Tue Jan 04, 2022 2:05 pm I also really admired the Tennessee State University band - I wondered whether they could sustain that energy level over the whole 5+ mile route.

I have really enjoyed the TSU band when I’ve seen them at football games. They perform continually at a football game, beginning when they leave the bus in the parking lot to when they march back to the bus after the game. Constant energy is what they do.