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Computer rankings

Hi Glen,
You make some good points, but on the one hand you use the computer ranki=
ngs as a
yardstick then see fit to shoot it down.
It's not worth worrying about really. It's superficial and very temporary=
. It's also
another example of our *cultural cringe*.
Personally, i yearn for the day we don't try to copy everything the poms
do in the band
scene. I get the impression many bandies in this country think the poms h=
ave a mortgage
on innovation and creativity.

Norm

Glenn McGowan wrote:

> COMPUTER RANKING FUNDAMENTALLY FLAWED
>
> The =93computer ranking=94 system regularly published in Australia=92s
Band World seems
> fundamentally flawed in that it does not, on any view, reflect how well=
 bands are
> playing comparatively to each other at any time.  At best it might rank=
 them
> reasonably well within a state.  The reason for this is the method of c=
alculation
> that forms the basis of the ranking system.  One accrues more points th=
e more top
> bands one contests against.  The problem is that bands in New South Wal=
es, and
> particularly Willoughby, will continue to be on the top of the scale be=
cause more
> top bands compete in New South Wales than anywhere else.  This is perha=
ps
> understandable because New South Wales is the most populous State.  Wil=
loughby will
> continue to be on the top of the ladder so long as it continues to domi=
nate New
> South Wales competition.  In contrast, Kew, which has won every competi=
tion it has
> competed in for the last twelve months, is ranked 4th.  (Kew has entere=
d four
> contests in the last twelve months, which is enough for any band in a y=
ear.  In
> England the top bands usually compete in about four contests a year =96=
 the
> Nationals, the Open, All England Masters and Spennymoor, and if they ar=
e lucky a
> fifth, namely the Europeans.  Of course some may also have to compete i=
n the Grand
> Shield or the Regional Qualifiers.)  But in Victoria there are far fewe=
r bands to
> compete against, in A-Grade particularly.  Therefore, despite beating a=
ll comers
> and beating all New South Wales bands who went to the Nationals, Kew re=
mains ranked
> 4th.
>
> The ranking system for bands in Australia is artificial and completely
inaccurate
> because amateur banding in Australia is nothing like, say professional
sport.  With
> professional golfers or tennis players, those players tour the world fu=
ll time
> competing in every competition they can to earn maximum prize money and=
 maximise
> their rankings.  Amateur bands in Australia cannot do this.  Our bandin=
g
> arrangements are also quite different from England in that each of the
major
> contests named above attract roughly equal numbers of top bands.  That
is, every
> time such a contest is held, many bands from the top 20 are almost guar=
anteed to be
> there.  At State contents in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, Weste=
rn Australia
> and Queensland, it can be the case that no bands in the top 15 will be
present and
> more often only two or three bands in the top 15 will be present.  In N=
ew South
> Wales the number can be six or seven.   During the hey day of Hawthorn=92=
s dominance
> when they were winning multiple nationals hat tricks, they would not ha=
ve been
> ranked first.
>
> Another graphic way to illustrate this is to consider it in relation to=
 soloists.
> If the same ranking system were applied to brass soloists in Australia
then the
> person at the top of the ladder, ahead of players such as Christina Bow=
den, John
> Saunders, Michelle Stewart and any of the other top players one cares t=
o name,
> would be Kew tuba player Albie Stewart =96 and by a considerable margin=
.  The reason
> for this is that Albie has the time and means to tour Australia regular=
ly competing
> in almost every solo contest which is available.  Few people can do thi=
s.  I know
> Albie personally very well and I know that he would be the first to adm=
it that he
> is not the top brass soloist in Australia.  Yet, on the same basis as t=
he band
> rankings, he would undoubtedly be at the very top, and by a very great
margin.
>
> No doubt people will criticise this article by saying that I have not s=
uggested a
> better ranking system.  One might dabble with weighting certain contest=
s, like the
> nationals.  But then one gets into rather more subjective problems of h=
ow to
> weight.  That is, I don=92t think a good ranking system can be created
for amateur
> Australian bands.  I could give an indication of my view of where the b=
ands should
> be ranked but next week it would be different.  And everyone would have=
 a different
> view.
>
> The conclusion I draw is that the ranking system is completely useless
in
> indicating the comparative strengths of bands at any one time and I pro=
pose in the
> future to completely ignore the rankings.  Most people in England ignor=
e the
> English rankings and they have a better basis for being accurate than t=
he
> Australian rankings do.  The tyranny of distance does not operate to th=
e same
> extent in England as it does in Australia.
>
> Perhaps the only conclusion therefore which can be drawn is that a band=
 is only as
> good as its last performance.
>
> GLENN MCGOWAN
>
> Peter Younghusband wrote:
>
> > Are the rankings not based over three years like England Glenn? What
did Kew do
> > during the other two years if so?
> >
> > Monkey
> >
> > Glenn McGowan wrote:
> >
> > > Kew Band (Australia) has won the Bendigo A grade competition by 13
> > > points, pushing Hawthorn into second place.  This means Kew has won
> > > every competition it has competed in for the last 12 months (4
> > > contests).  Yet it is only ranked in the band 'computer' rankings a=
s
> > > 4th.  This nothwithstanding a convincing win at the nationals.  Com=
puter
> > > ranking seem a little irrelevant don't they?
> > > Glenn McGowan
> > > Principal cornet
> > > Kew Band
> > > mcgowan@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > >
> > > --
> > > njh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx For information about this list, including
how to
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help' to
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> >
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w to
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lp' to
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>
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' to
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--
Norm.
Music is my first love, after Jan and the billies.


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