Editor's note: The Bayfield High School band competed at the Colorado Band Masters Association competition on Monday, Oct. 30 in Parker during a winter storm. Bayfield competes in the 1A category and took second place with 61.7 points. Estes Park won the competition with 63 points. This article was written by Derek Smith, music director at Bayfield High School.
Your Bayfield High School Marching Wolverines are state runners up.
I could not be more proud of these music students.
Due to weather, conditions on the field at showtime were too hazardous for marching, with 28 degrees and a quarter-inch of ice (not snow- frozen water rain) coating the turf. Morning 1A bands were told not to march, but only to play in place. Scheduled to perform fourth, we found out at the end of music warm up. Some bands found out on the field itself or at the gate - wherever you happened to be at 9:59 a.m.
Obviously, if you've seen our show, "Cold War, Warm Hearts," you know the Bayfield show this year is fun to watch and hear. But you also know it really shines when the band marches well. Our guard is creative and coordinated. Our actors are charismatic and engaging. Our musicians are hard working and disciplined. This show got audible gasps from the audience every time they saw it. Audiences from other towns, as always, look forward to our show because they know they'll be entertained. Our spy-versus-spy romantic-comedy tragedy was our best yet.
So on Monday, we were primed and pumped, ready to play through the storm and show the Front Range what they were missing.
Even though I think my musicians play quite well, the news of music without marching hit hard. We were - in the minutes leading up to showtime - pretty demoralized. We wanted to march a great show and leave it ALL on the field. But, unfortunately, we could only leave four-sevenths on the field. (There are seven judges: three for visual and four for music.)
Anger, confusion, disappointment and sadness had to be cut off right away, before we lost focus and drive. To their never-ending credit and my expectations, they rose to the occasion. They adapted immediately to the circumstance, re-focused, and got their game faces on.
So while I am disappointed that the Wolverines could not "really" show Colorado what "Cold War, Warm Hearts" is all about, I couldn't be more proud of the resilient, adaptable, disciplined, hard working group of students I had the honor to lead.
A sincere congratulations to 1A champions Estes Park! They are a quality program with a lot of fantastic young musicians, with a phenomenal staff, three years running.
That said... I don't think they know what a big wolverine-sized bullet they just dodged!
Congratulations also to Cedaredge, Gunnison, La Junta and Monte Vista - four 1A bands that do so much with so little. I love marching and playing with the small school set. It's not about the props, or the podiums or the acres of pit instruments, just good kids. They work hard at high elevations, showing the city slickers and our own rural neighbor football fans what we do... not just on Friday Night Lights, but during the Monday morning fog and August afternoon temperature spikes.
Thank you to my boosters, and especially Jenna Stumpf, Jennifer Hollingsworth, Shiela Lane, and so so many others, without whom this trip would have been a dismal experience indeed. Because of them, as well as dozens of other incredible parent volunteers who drove, reserved, ordered, and chaperoned, my job was easy. I only worried about marching and playing, not any trip related difficulties. And thank you to my Principal, Leon Hanhardt, whose support has been unwavering and complete. He has become a band contest fan boy, despite himself. Glad to have you here to see it, Boss.
Thank you to Sharon Hunter, Rachel Phelps, Nick Lister, and Joe Collard. This is an incredibly talented staff. Nobody could do this alone. These people used their expertise and dedication to constantly bring us to the next level.
And thank you finally to my band, my students, my seniors. And my drum major, Savannah Kaufmann, who just showed me in the last 20 days how much of a leader one person can be.
I hope that my Wolverine Band will remember this day for the rest of their lives. And though this loss stings right now, there will come a time when they will recall it with fondness and pride.
Don't forget our band motto: "Always happy. Never satisfied."
