THE BANDS OF CLAUDIA TAYLOR JOHNSON
The Claudia Taylor "Lady Bird" Johnson High School Marching band opened in August 2008, the newest of seven comprehensive high schools in San Antonio's North East Independent School District. The band program has grown to more than 300 students and received state and national recognition.
The band -- under the direction of Robert Lozano, Julia Donnel, Bethany Smith, Kris Hartman, and Chelsea Arenas -- has established a reputation for quality, innovation, and excitement. Drum Corps International (DCI) Artistic Director and award-winning Fred J. Miller Uniform Designer Michael Cesario has said about the band, "The Claudia Taylor Johnson Band has burst onto the national marching band scene with a brilliant sound and distinctly new look... that has produced a powerful response from audience and judges alike, garnering admiration for its full-throated, rich sound, its imaginative and inspiring presentation, and the high energy and intensity of its young performers."
The Claudia Taylor Johnson Band competes actively in the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) and in Bands of America (BOA) contests. The band has become a consistent finalist at BOA Regional and Grand National contests and has advanced to the UIL State Marching contest five times -- winning the 6A State Marching Contest in 2020.
Additionally, CTJ has won eight BOA regional or super regional championships. CTJ won the 2017 BOA San Antonio Super Regional, posting what was at the time the highest score ever recorded by a band at a BOA regional or super regional event. CTJ also took the Overall General Effect and Overall Musical Performance caption awards -- two of more than 60 marching captions the school has earned on the field. CTJ had top-five finishes at the San Antonio Super Regional each season between 2011 and 2018 and was a national finalist in 2011, 2016 2019, and 2021.
The Johnson High School concert bands have achieved recognition for consistent superior and sweepstakes musical performances at the annual UIL Concert & Sight Reading Contest, and perform throughout the year at holiday and seasonal events. The Johnson Wind Ensemble is a four-time Texas Music Educators Association 6A Honor Band Finalist, with second-, third-, fourth-, and fifth place finishes. Most recently, the Johnson Wind Ensemble earned fifth place in 2024.
On January 1, 2014, the Claudia Taylor Johnson Band marched in the 125th annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. In addition, CTJ received the 2014 John Phillip Sousa Foundation Sudler Shield Award for excellence in marching band.
WELCOME TO OUR WORLD
The Claudia Taylor "Lady Bird" Johnson High School Marching band opened in August 2008, the newest of seven comprehensive high schools in San Antonio's North East Independent School District. The band program has grown to more than 300 students and received state and national recognition.
The band -- under the direction of Robert Lozano, Julia Donnel, Bethany Smith, Gordon Handte, Kris Hartman, and Chelsea Arenas -- has established a reputation for quality, innovation, and excitement. Drum Corps International (DCI) Artistic Director and award-winning Fred J. Miller Uniform Designer Michael Cesario has said about the band, "The Claudia Taylor Johnson Band has burst onto the national marching band scene with a brilliant sound and distinctly new look... that has produced a powerful response from audience and judges alike, garnering admiration for its full-throated, rich sound, its imaginative and inspiring presentation, and the high energy and intensity of its young performers."
WHAT WE'RE BUILDING
Where Music, Community, & Leadership Intersect
Band provides another environment and family atmosphere for band members to lean on.
There will be ups and downs as with any family, but band provides its members with a unique habitat of students that will support them both during good times and bad. For our underclassmen, there are many upperclassmen to learn from who have been through what they will experience. For our upperclassmen, they will learn to develop leadership skills and give back to others in the way someone gave to them.
FAMILY
While the band members and staff do work hard, we also enjoy one another's company on a daily basis making great music and enjoying sharing our musical gifts with others.
Our primary goal as musicians is to entertain and share great music with our parents, alumni, and community. Whether it is playing stand tunes at the football game to fire the team and the crowd up, performing our unique and high energy competitive show at half time or contests, jamming out with our jazz bands or percussion ensembles, lightening the mood of the season through pops music on a concert, or sharing passionate and sophisticated literature through our concert bands, there is no end to the wonderful music that we enjoy with one another. We strive to perform at the highest level but of course, there is great joy in doing what we do.
CAMARADERIE
Band affords its members to benefit enormously from participating on a team that breeds excellence.
All 260 of the students are a part of the greater whole. We experience success and failure together, we learn how to handle ups and downs together, and most importantly your band member can take pride in knowing that they contributed to something greater then him or herself, and can take ownership in the group. Band also provides our members with a model of excellence that can boost their confidence in their own abilities in other classes or activities. Band members will learn that they really can accomplish goals with a clear plan and a high level of discipline, and will be able to tackle other projects outside of band with direction and purpose.
SELF CONFIDENCE
Band teaches the ability to practice and learn follow through. “Doing what I say I will do when I say I will do it.”
Band members learn by committing to a practice schedule, accepting responsibility to complete a task, and making a promise to their teammates to see a task through to its conclusion. Participation in a team sport, and sticking it out when it isn’t always fun or the rewards aren’t always tangible in the moment is a lesson that benefits band members far beyond the music classroom.
COMMITMENT
With approximately 260 members on the team, conflicts are bound to happen. Band members will face conflict in their lives within their families, with friends, and will also have to learn how to deal and work with people they just plain don’t like.
Learning to work through these challenges is a unique opportunity posed through participating in a large team sport. Band members will not just “learn concepts” of conflict resolution, but will practice them through the course of their season. They will gain valuable coping skills both in learning how to “blow off steam” productively and also in how to resolve disputes as they arise.
CONFLICT RESOLUTION SKILLS
LEARNING LIFE LESSONS
The Highs & Lows of High School
For many, video games are fun. They develop hand-eye coordination, and are a great stress release. Unfortunately, they can also become a detriment to productivity.
Facebook, social media, television, and other activities are often more fun than the “ to-do ” list, and band will help its members learn the importance of giving up unnecessary distractions and prioritizing.
GIVING UP SOCIAL MEDIA
Despite our best efforts, sometimes life isn’t fair and it most definitely isn't always fun. Learning how to handle disappointments as well as develop systems for dealing with disappointment is an important part of being in band.
We won’t win every competition, band members won’t win every chair test, and sometimes they will do everything to the best of their abilities ... and things still won’t go their way. Learning how to bounce back from these disappointments will benefit them long beyond their time wearing a band uniform.
LIFE ISN'T ALWAYS FAIR OR FUN
No matter how good you are, there is almost always a "faster gun”. There is almost always someone better. In the competitive world, we live in, many strive to be at the top. Learning how to handle the fact that you will not win every competition, and you will not always be the best is an important skill.
Whether it is through competition in marching band, chair tests, the region process, band enables your band member to learn that striving for personal excellence is a far more important goal than “being first place.” While it is always great fun to win or see our names at the top ... an equal amount can be gained through simply achieving personal goals, and we needn’t be discouraged or feel as though the only priority is to be the best. And learning how to handle when we aren't always on top teaches that the world will not end if we do not win, or if we aren’t number one in our class. We can celebrate others' accomplishments when they are doing well as we would want others to celebrate with us as we achieve goals.
THERE IS ALWAYS A FASTER GUN
There is no shortcut to excellence at playing a sport or an instrument or achieving high marks in the classroom.
Each requires diligent study, focused practice and a high level of commitment, as well as patience. Band members will learn the level of dedication required to achieve excellence in any one skill. Music provides a wonderful outlet for this as it is something that can provide a great deal of enjoyment at all levels and can take the edge off the pursuit of excellence. However, the pursuit of excellence often comes with bumps in the road and demands perseverance and patience. Farming, hunting, sports, sculpting, crafts, and music all can provide outlets for students to develop patience. In their jobs and pursuits some day, “slow and steady wins the race” will benefit them enormously over those who give up long before your band member will.
YOU GET WHAT YOU WORK FOR
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
Preparing Youth for Tomorrow
While some students are “intrinsically motivated,” others benefit greatly from the structure and discipline band provides.
The real world expects its employees to show up on time. It expects a level of discipline and follow-through, and it expects that if an employee gets paid to do a job, they will do it. There are bosses, co-workers, data reports, and plenty of detractors. Employees who perform at a high level are promoted, those who do not perform well are demoted, and those who do not follow the rules or become complacent are replaced. Band is truly a “miniature playground for the real world” and places real-world expectations on its students that build character, and teach independence.
WORKFORCE PREPERATION
It often seems like our band members who are involved in the most activities, AP classes, and top bands are also the kids who achieve the highest grades. Of course, high school will be different for each and every student.
Ultimately, learning how to balance the many requirements of school and band is no different than learning to balance a job, mortgage payments, taking the kids to activities, building in vacation or family time, and other skills that adults face in their lives.
While they are “just teenagers,” learning to balance on their own will prepare them as they head off to college. College requires a high level of independence, and many college students either fail out after their first semester, or burn out under the stress of work. Band will provide students with tools to help overcome these stresses, and ensure they learn how much is possible in a day, and how to manage their time efficiently.
BALANCING ACT
A great sense of joy and satisfaction comes from achieving goals either as an individual or as a team.
Band members will be able to celebrate their victories at all levels. Whether it is simply overcoming the hurdle of checking off a single measure of music, achieving a personal victory they did not believe was ever possible, or learning the exuberance and exhilaration that come from a team winning an event together.
Sometimes, the greatest rewards are those that come from gaining strength through failure or realizing that the sun will indeed come up tomorrow, and you get a fresh chance with each time you start over at something. These rewards become even sweeter the older our students get, and they learn how to truly cherish the rewards of hard work heading into college and the real world.
HARD WORK REWARDED
PREPARING THE LEADERS OF TOMORROW.
Learn more about what our program does to help establish the skills and habits needed to succeed after high school.