Frisco ISD statement on 2020 Marching Band Season- July 29th
Today the Frisco ISD Fine Arts Department released this statement, announcing that FISD bands will not be participating in 'competitive' marching events this season; the UIL Region Marching Evaluation will be considered as the season unfolds. We encourage our families to read the full FISD release linked above.
One guiding principle that should be apparent in Frisco ISD's decision is that we will still be working very hard to provide our students with a robust and relevant marching band experience. Here at Frisco High School specifically, we are determined to make sure that our new members learn all the most important visual and marching skills, that all of our members have a challenging and meaningful musical experience, and that our senior class has one more great year of making memories with their friends while performing at a high level.
The Frisco Band Staff has decided that for our organization, the best vehicle to achieve our vision of the season is to proceed forward with the marching production we have planned: "... the unexpected". Many of our members have already been actively engaged this summer learning the music for this show, and we have been deep into plans to bring an exciting and engaging program to the field. Obviously, within the current climate of safety measures, precautions, and restrictions (all of which are changing daily), we do anticipate that the scope of what we are able to do with the show will be shifting as we move through the marching season.
It's probable that we will need to shorten the length of the show, and reduce the amount of drill that accompanies the music. It is also likely that we will start out with one plan as of today, and have to alter or cut-down what we plan based on the ever-evolving situation at hand. But whatever comes our way, the Frisco Band staff is dedicated to doing what we can to make the students' experience a memorable one.
We have discussed some possibilities to highlight our season performance accomplishments beyond potential performances at football games. Some of these include the prospect of arranging to have a professional video recording made of our show at the end of the season. Depending on how the season evolves, we could explore incorporating the music from '... the unexpected' into Winter or Spring productions of some sort, as allowed. Again, whatever ends up happening this Fall, we will do whatever we can cap off the marching season in a way which celebrates and highlights our members' efforts and growth!
We are still slated to begin our full band camp on August 3rd. We released information last week with a new summer band calendar, based on the UIL's recent announcement of a delay to the start of the football season. Further information regarding our summer camp will be released by the end of this week.
Go Raccoons!