Ijamsville

[BigW]

I'll get back to this after I have a nice visit with family tomorrow. The show was quite, quite good, especially since it was first time out for several of the competitors.

Urbana's Stadium is really impressive for a Maryland HS field. The stadium's neat, clean, and the pulled pork is excellent.

I'll do into details later, but two really great things happened during the contest- I've been to DCA, DCI, and band contests for about 30 years now and likely seen well over one thousand performances in that time. Certain special ones stay with you- and get this- two things happened. Sometimes it takes years to have that experience. So, it was a great contest.

Back to everyone later this week- Family is important, man.

[Fran Haring]

As always, good to see you last night, W!!!! We hopefully can do the post-show diner thing again after the July 30 show.

I agree about the Urbana venue. This has the potential to be a holiday-weekend fixture on the DCA schedule.

Edited July 3, 2016 by Fran Haring

[BigW]

Long weekend, long day, some shroud is shedding itself from my wagon, one hour to do as much as I can for the review!

I had near-perfect seats about 3 rows down on the 50- a lot higher up than Lehman, and the drill reads were far better.

It was fun to hear ex-Westshore and Brigadier Mr. Stansfield perform the National Anthem- a lot of good high notes to get everyone ready for the contest.

The first group in exhibition was the Thunder Brigade (3CG/6Brass/8 Battery/3Front Ensemble) with their "Rain Dance" show, which they're using for DCI Sound Sport competition.

The guard seemed a bit self-conscious at first- relax, have fun, don't be so nervous!

As small as they are, they have a very solid ensemble sound, and they make a very conscious effort to be musical. The arranging was really well-done for the instrumentation and their abilities. They know how to generate a really nice groove, and I think they presented their organization in a very positive way for the audience. I'm hoping this will be a springboard for the group to grow in numbers and thrive in the activity.

Alliance was slated to be at the contest, I was disappointed when I found out they didn't make the trip. They're one of the teams in DCA I haven't seen live, and from what I've been able to glean on video, I was really curious and excited to see what they can do in a live setting. Hopefully, some time in the future!

The first competitor was the Skyliners, who I got a good look at last week at their show. The corps was left in a holding pattern for some time before they were given the go-signal, and I was really impressed with the corps' poise and how relaxed they were with this delay.

Readers looking for more specific details need to look at the previous contest review, where I go over those details. When I see corps later in the season, I stick to details specific to the contest at hand.

The ensemble balance was a lot better at this show, sitting higher up seemed to help a lot in this regard. The corps nailed a nice hit in "Mr. Blue Skies" and the mellos seemed a bit off-center at first, but got things lo9cked in as the show progressed. sometimes, the brass needs to make sure they get enough air through the tube at the softer sections, and that will happen as the performers get a better feel for their envelope in competition. The one thing that I've found is that I really have come to appreciate their percussion section and their show feature the more I see them. They've got some really good zen going, and I've really come to enjoy their performance.

When I got to see the show ending from the higher vantage point, it really came across much better. It's a really exciting anf fitting ending to the Skyliner program.

The one thing I noted at Lehman, and I observed it again here at Ijamsville, is that this show is really appreciated by the audience, and this time no one could claim any "home-cookin". It's a very enjoyable show to watch- it just needs to be cleaned up and developed, and I know it will be. Little things like seeing the corps being more mature and composed when they got held up tells me they're moving to higher levels this season.

Next up, Carolina Gold (10FE/21 brass/3DM/19 Battery/30CG) with their "Mirror, Mirror" program.

On the plus side:

I think this musical program has a lot more edge and energy to it than the previous 2 seasons, and I think it's in the direction Gold needs to go to compete hard.

There's a lot to clean in it at this point, though, and that's understandable.

The big issues are when the ensemble spreads out or moves into pods. There's a lot of what I call "give-aways"- easy errors like busted attacks and hung releases going on right now as well as issues with what styles of articulation to choose. The thing is, the more difficult things to achieve like intonation on the thicker harmonies are coming off at a very respectable level. My thoughts on it are to make the music panel work to earn their pay and don't make their work so easy.

When the drill moves the music ensemble into more cohesive forms, they play pretty well!

The percussion feature has some tasty ideas in it that will be pretty cool when it locks in.

The Guard, as always presents elegantly and looked very well prepared and ready to perform.

Right now, the show was incomplete and that resulted in a pretty stiff under-time penalty. When they get this show together, they look like they could be well in the thick of the hunt for a finalist spot if they can tidy up the music book.

As for all the discussion on sleeves or no sleeves on the unis, I think they looked fine and the appearance gives them a tough, serious appearance- nothing wrong with that at all. Just do some arm curls and make sure yah look buff.

Next up, Fusion Core. I was really impressed with their run at Lehman. Would coming on after an incomplete Gold show give them a hit of a bump? We'd have to see.

Looking at the show from higher up, really appreciated the whole split percussion battery situation in the intro of the show. Well done!

There's also a lot of stereo work with the ensemble in terms of left-right interaction that's not as apparent when you're right in front of the corps. There's a lot of musical ideas that toss back and forth inside the ensemble that work really well when you're stood off from the ensemble, and they really drew in the crowd with their intensity.

Fusion brings a very quiet sense of purpose and intensity to their performance, and this is the big secret. It brings a lot of power to the performance, and they're doing some great work sectionally and some of the chords are just fantastic.

I think this show really brought home just how tough the Core is this season, and like I said at Lehman, yeah, they're a very dangerous group.

Next up... (INT).... and I have to stop for now- almost 6AM, the wagon needs looked at at 1PM.

And let me tell the readership-- there are other very dangerous corps other than Fusion, and I'll talk about them later.

[totaleefree]

With Thunder Brigade they went into a percussion spot and I noticed 3 cymbal players popped up then I saw a color guard person in a different uniform. At first i thought the Front ensemble may have picked up the cymbals, but then I realized that the Horn line had all either taken up a percussion piece or joined the guard. They made it look smooth because it took me 30 seconds to figure that out. Also this corps looked a little younger than they did at mini- corps a few years ago. IMO they are training up people to get into Drum Corps.

[BigW]

Yes, members double up when necessary for the arrangement and situation. Hopefully they were able to attract some interest from more people to get involved with their program.

[BigW]

My apologies for the delay. 2 great words- Drum Corps

2 not so great words: HEAT and ANTS. I did win the skirmish with the ants.

Let me start with a little discussion here about a problem I've been having at some shows.

I realized at work that I've been having problems at DCA contests with a lady I'll call... Mabel Hofstetter. Mabel's a really nice lady, her husband Frank's also a pretty straight-up kind of guy. They go to DCA shows to see either their Granddaughter Ashley who plays Bass 3 in the battery. she's a hard working dedicated young lady, Mabel really doesn't understand why Ashley likes doing this, and she thinks that indoor group she plays in is too loud in the gym, and she worries that drum is hard on her back. But, she supports Ashley and goes to these DCA shows. Or maybe it's their Grandson Ian, who... what does he call it- yeah, spins a flag in the guard. Ian's a great young man, really squared away, can toss quads and fives till the cows come home and is a really dynamic performer, but they're not sure what the heck he really does and Frank really wishes he'd be playing football--- but, they go to shows so support him.

Mabel's problem is those crazy fans like the one vet from the Bucs who sat behind me, Totaleefree and his Dad who have been through the Drum Corps wars, and me. What are we doing!? Why are we pumping our fists and yelling? Won't golf clapping do at the end of the show and a polite "huzzah, oh those kids were so nice, weren't they"? I get the stink-eye over and over from Mabel when I cheer. I feel a bit bad. Mabel's someone's Grandma, she means well, but... she just... doesn't... understand.

Mabel doesn't quite understand how hard Ashley and Ian work and how they spend somewhere around 20 hours of rehearsal (maybe more) for every minute of the show to make it great and exciting. They don't understand that when they look up, they like seeing people really react, yell and pump their fist to the big hit in the show they worked on for 45 minutes in ensemble rehearsal to get right.

They don't understand many of us cheer and get crazy for EVERY great performance, not just for the corps their Grandchildren perform in. This isn't a New Jersey Band contest where you can tell where every team's parents are by the localized cheering. heaven forbid someone cheers for a corps that Ashley and Ian aren't in !!!!!

Can some of you Ians and Ashleys talk to your grandparents and warn them that some of the fans get wild, and maybe you like seeing the crowd light up from down on the field when you blow down the stands?

I know it's hard. My grandparents made it to something like 3 shows in 6 seasons, one of them never could because of health issues. They never really got it and would have been happier if I'd have been rasslin' or getting a lot of concussions on the football field playing for what was regarded as the worst Football team in Pennsylvania. (not kidding here about how bad they were)

Please help us hardcore fans out with Mabel. Please!

Work calls, I'm burned out from the 90+ degree heat. While I toss boxes, get a hold of Mabel and explain the whole thing about fans who love great performances. Tell her to get up and yell, too.

[trptmagnet]

There's also a lot of stereo work with the ensemble in terms of left-right interaction that's not as apparent when you're right in front of the corps. There's a lot of musical ideas that toss back and forth inside the ensemble that work really well when you're stood off from the ensemble, and they really drew in the crowd with their intensity.

Thanks for the reviews, so much info.

I found this "stereo" comment insightful. I heard the same from Fusion at Lehman, some zippy left to right and back again ensemble sounds.

Now that you have labeled this as the stereo effect, I will listen for it and try to figure out why it seems a bit unique.

It compares to what? the wall of sound, even as it moves left to right to left that is most common?

Maybe after stereo we go to surround sound and VR - lol.

[BigW]

Madison did some things like that in the late 70's early 80's.

It's not always easy to make happen because of timing issues.

[BigW]

The next competitor after the intermission was the White Sabres and their run had a few bumps in it, but the small ensemble and solo work was improved from the Lehman contest. I'd say it was a better presentation overall, especially with the storytelling about the relationship of two young people in love.

The young gentleman from the Baritone section dances rather well and the interaction between him and the young lady from the guard as the show progresses add the dimension to the program that I felt was needed. The music and the couple do a great job portraying the changes in their relationship as the show progresses, and I'm not going to spoil the story's ending- come see the show for yourself.

The Bucs (16FE/3DM/28CG/24 Battery/60 Brass/4MG) took the field next with their "conZENtric" program.

The pre-show is reminiscent of a Buddhist prayer chant and sounds gorgeous. The flying start was big and elegant- and I can tell you, this program quickly became an amazing voyage of discovery.

Th Bucs aren't sailing into the stadium in their old wooden sailing ship this season. They now sail in with a Yamato class battleship and they just keep firing the 18 inch guns at the audience. The brass is crisp and tight, the layered dynamic sweeps are insane, and they perform with demonic intensity.

The Bucs are throwing the Musical equivalent of Shock and Awe at the audience. Poor Mabel. She was like a deer in the headlights. A lot of the crowd was like that when the Bucs made their first big hit. Some of the more savvy folks at least gasped and said "WHOA! and WOW!".. and some of us old guys just grinned, cheered, and started fist pumping, yelling for the Bucs to keep it coming.

Mabel gave me the stinkeye. It was just too loud for her and I shouldn't be encouraging them to do all of those terrifying things! They're so scary!!!!

I swear I've seen BoA's Avon, Indiana also do "Equus" at some point- but this version is a lot more exciting, vibrant, and urgent.

The Bucs did let their foot off the gas in the "Gabriel's Oboe" segment, probably to let the smoke clear so they could let loose with the 18 inch guns later on. I have many for the Flugelhorn solo in this segment. So, so, tasty.

The Bucs are pretty much crushing it with this program- crazy meters, an outrageous percussion feature...

One thing about the battery. They're not just tossing a lot of notes around to say they're tossing a lot of notes around, so please give them a fat number. They pick their spots to dazzle, and in doing that, it gives them more gravity and impact.

And the ending.... I mentioned earlier that magic happened twice, this was one of those times. The show led into its summation moment, the music's spectacular, and to add just the right finishing touch to the moment- Andrea Gwyn's on the podium doing very exquisite Tai Chi moves that compliment the music perfectly- wow. A real moment of perfection.

The Bucs moved the target way past "Twist-it". I try and avoid hyperbole, but I'm thinking that at season's end it might take the mantle of "Best DCA Show Ever" depending on how the season progresses. As I said in my notes, "this show CRUSHES it." I don't know if Mabel can take hearing something like that again. I think it terrified her. I know I can take it. Next show, please. I'm ready.

I need sleep. Then I'll cover CV and C2. So much to discuss. So many cool things and experiences to share.

[N.E. Brigand]

Your enthusiasm has me liking a show I haven't even seen yet!