Birdville High School
MIGHTY HAWK BAND
Birdville HS Mighty Hawk Band
Birdville High School is a Texas UIL class 5A high school in the Birdville Independent School District located north of Fort Worth, TX in North Richland Hills. Learning opportunities for Birdville HS band students include marching band and color guard, 3 concert bands, competitive winterguard, percussion ensemble, steel band, 2 jazz bands, various chamber groups, and AP music theory. Since 1999, the band has experienced many successes including 6 appearances at UIL State Marching Contest, 2 time UIL State Marching Contest Finalist, and many 1st Division Sweepstakes awards. The Birdville High School Wind Ensemble was honored to be invited to perform at the National Concert Band Festival in Indianapolis in 2016. The Percussion Ensemble was also recognized as an invited ensemble to the Music For All National Festival and PASIC in 2019.
The Concert Ensembles
While the concert ensembles do the majority of their competing in the Spring semester, they still rehearse and perform concerts regularly throughout the year. Each student is placed via audition in a specific band class based on which ensemble best suits their ability level. Birdville has three competing and one non-competing band. The hierarchy of the bands is as follows: Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Concert Band, and Instrumental Ensemble. Wind Ensemble represents the highest level of musical excellence at Birdville while Instrumental Ensemble is a non-competing band where young students can continue to grow their skills for the future.
Mighty Hawk Marching Band
The Mighty Hawk Marching Band encompasses all band students during the fall semester of the school year and PE credit is awarded for their participation. The band performs in multiple capacities throughout the semester. The band performs a “Spirit Show” before home football games. The band also performs parts of the competition show during halftime and supports the team through performances in the stands, at pep rallies, and in parades. The band also prepares and performs a “Competition Show” at a State and National level in University Interscholastic League (UIL) and Bands of America (BOA) competitions. To prepare for these performances the Marching Band rehearses 8 hours per week outside of the school day until the last competition or football game. There are also mandatory pre-season training camps during the summer that prepare the band to perform at early-season events.
Jazz Bands
We have two jazz bands at Birdville High School: Jazz Ensemble I and Jazz Ensemble II. Jazz band is a smaller ensemble that students may join in addition to their participation in a regular concert ensemble. Students in jazz band will learn a variety of musical styles in the traditional jazz “Big Band” setting and will perform a several times a year. The jazz bands compete in multiple contests and festivals throughout the year and provide the main entertainment at our Jazz Dinner and Auction fundraiser. Traditional instrumentation for the jazz band includes trumpet, trombone, saxophone, piano, guitar, bass, and drum set.
Percussion Ensemble
In the most general sense, Percussion Ensemble refers to all members of the percussion section as a whole. In addition to being a member of the Marching Band (drumline or front ensemble) and one of the concert ensembles, each percussionist will also participate in a variety of “percussion only” activities throughout each school year ranging from marching percussion competitions in the Fall, to on-stage concerts and contests using traditional or novelty percussion instruments.
Colorguard
The colorguard is a visual performing ensemble that is considered part of the band family. The colorguard performs a combination of dance and drill that incorporates use of flags, rifles, and sabres as well as other props. During the fall, the colorguard provides important visual support for the Marching Band. In November, the colorguard begins preparing for competition in the Winter Guard International (WGI) or North Texas Colorguard (NTC) circuits. The winter guard season is an important opportunity for colorguard students to perform as a stand-alone ensemble in a highly competitive activity, both at the local and national levels.