Since July, the Bison Brigade has spent four days a week together practicing for last week’s UIL competition in hopes of going to area. While the band missed the “1” needed by one judge’s vote, the group gained a great deal of experience as they spent the time working together.

“While at times we were stressed it was all in great time as we worked together to make the show better,” squad leader, John Asa Henson. “I think we did really well considering the level of experience of most of our band members.”

The group went to two practice competitions, scoring average ranks that they then improved upon. They worked hard for two weeks to improve fundamentals, balance in the music and body posture.

“Musically we did great, everything was balanced and sounded together,” saxophone player,” Benito Avila said. “Marching wise, we improved immensely, but we still have a long way to go to be where we want to be.”

Usually, the Color Guard just serves as a visual aid to help the formations look better. This year the Guard impressed the judges and were mentioned in the comment sections.

“I thought it was amazing how they took time to notice us and appreciate the hard work we have to put into learning our routine,” color guard co-captain Sean Haycock said. “It really made me feel good about everything that we have done as a guard.”

In the band’s first two competitions, judges said the musical part of the show lacked balance. The trumpets and percussion were too loud. They worked hard to lower the volume, and it showed when all instruments were heard during their final performance.

“We really did improve our sound because woodwinds had some parts we didn’t even know until we turned it down,” trumpet player Iris Valles said. “We did mess up a few times but, overall, at the end of the day we did pretty good at controlling our sound.”

When the show was over, they all headed back to the bus to wait for the band director Jeff Villarreal, to deliver the scores. It has been over 30 years since the Brigade has scored a 1 from a judge. They also scored a two and three. Their overall score, though, beat last years three with a two.

“We’re happy with the progress we’ve made,” quartermaster Omar Almeida said. “We are still not satisfied though.”

After the cheers died out and the Brigade family was heading back home, many of the senior members talked. They all shedded a few tears as they retold stories, encouraged the quitting band members to keep going, and talked about how much they’ve all improved.

“All five seniors decided to talk on the bus about the last few years in band,” drum major Ysabel Salazar said. “We all cried and hugged each other.”