So, Sioux City was ahead in raw score, best vocals, best band and tied visuals (choreo). in finals. It was 100% subjective consensus on who wins. I don’t claim to know why they favored Bemidji, but I do know the audience was very stunned and confused when SCE was announced as 1st runner up, therefore in disagreement with the judges decision. This comp will go down in the “what happened” books of competition judging.
It always seems like it's parents, alumni, or fans who are most upset about results. From my experience, the actual kids in the choir just want to have fun. It's about the sportsmanship and dance parties before award ceremonies. Kids are resilient and they'll move on from results, whether disappointed or victorious. These trophies just collect dust and eventually get thrown out anyways. Several of the folks commenting here who are upset about the outcome have some sort of a personal connection to Sioux City East, so I'd considering acknowledging that personal bias of yours as you dismiss the judge's collective professional opinion.
Thank you for commenting.. I really think I need to clarify some things as there seems to be some confusion, and partly due to how I commented previously. Bemidji are amazing. I wouldn’t want to be a judge nor do I have the musical background/education to understand what these judges see or hear or how they decide. What is hard to understand is the process related to the outcome. It’s the need for greater understanding of this process. It’s not a matter of being a parent, alumna, or fan, as there have been comments made by those who are not any of the above. Upset about the outcome? Well, everyone wants to win. There is no doubt these kids work hard, all of them, in every choir and parents wanting to watch their kids win. I think what is hard is not understanding. So please, think of it on those terms. East has won and lost just like other choirs do. In my 7 years of having kids in show choir, this was the first time I have scratched my head at a loss. So, this said, please understand my comment was posted based on lack of understanding for the scoring and consensus process. Which I still don’t really understand, however, this doesn’t matter. Also, I am a right brain science geek (this may explain a bit). Tom Hales explained it best above and I appreciate his insight. He is one heck of a director! On that note, congratulations Vocalmotion, great show. Headliners, you guys were amazing yesterday and we are all proud of you. This was a great competition with amazing hosts! Judges, I don’t envy your job, you guys did what you felt was right. No harm intended. This all said, I will think before I type next time????
I'm glad you took the time to look into consensus ranks. What you shared is valid that it's hard to understand "the process related to the outcome." Your average competition does not disclose the scoring rubric, doesn't acknowledge the points vs. ranks part that confuses so many people, and also comps don't typically publicize those scores/ranks either. This discussion has popped up many times on SCC as folks desire more transparency. Competitions have MC's... and programs... so there are certainly ways to spread this information and educate audience members.
With regard to the "I will think before I type next time???" -- I mean, don't sweat it. Folks should be their authentic self as that's what show choir is all about. It's completely fair for folks to discuss results after a competition, and yes even disagree, and there are productive ways to do that. We don't censor individuals on this site (unless it's spam ), so we don't want folks apprehensive to post comments and join the discussion. Show choir brings with it a lot of complexity, so it's best when folks use their words instead of just short, dismissive comments. I think something we often forget is that every user on this site enjoys singing, dancing, and the fantastic shows these choirs put on. That's what the community here is about. So comments back and forth shouldn't be viewed as an attack or defense, but rather an invitation for dialogue.
Thank you. The last thing I want to do is offend judges, hurt other choirs or dishonor our director, show choir members and school tradition. I feel bad about it. Sometimes my filter doesn’t engage in time and then look like ignorant. That’s okay, I learned from it.
Trust me, we are upset. But like you said, we will get over it and continue to work harder. In my personal opinion, there is nothing more determining of how good a group is than how hard they work after an outcome like this.
Enough, everybody. Yes, Headliners had more points than Vocalmotive, but that is not how the competition was designed to be decided. Consensus Ranking, in my opinion, is the fairest way to determine an outcome. I have no doubt the judges made every effort to be fair; they scored groups as they saw fit, those scores were converted to a rank, and the majority of judges viewed Vocalmotive as the winning ensemble. The system worked the way it was supposed to.
Nobody likes “losing” (hard to call second place a “loss”), but it’s time to move on. Sincere congratulations to Bemidji, and to Waconia for producing a great event. That’s got to be the best show choir venue I’ve performed in...
Tom -- I knew when you judged for me at the last minute in 2017 for Eau Claire Winterfest that you were a class act and this comment only solidifies that knowledge. Thank you for keeping this all in perspective. Regardless of where anyone placed, know that the Headliners' show was absolutely amazing from conception to execution. Truly one of the best I have ever seen in my 12 years as a show choir mama!! And I know that many others feel the same way!
Congrats to Bemidji -- as your self-proclaimed "#1 fan outside of Bemidji" (just ask the poor La Voce Ballo parents who had to sit next to us LOL) we traveled the 2.5 hrs to see you just as much as to support my kids' former choir, OASC. Happy that your hard work and dedication was rewarded with the grand champ title.
For those of you who don’t understand consensus judging (I was one of them) here is a link to get a greater understanding. I wish I had understood this before. This makes way more sense and is in true fairness to all show choirs competing. click
for daytime-- sce and bemidji (1 and 2 respectively) were very close around 640
suite and wahlert (3 and 4 respectively) were very close around 590
no clue the pt difference between 4 and 5 but Jefferson was 10 pts ahead of kennedy
Waconia Star Power 2020
