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A slight from DCI against the TOC corps? Might I suggest that the very existence of TOC is a slight against the entire activity as a whole.

I don't know how it will impact scores, but here's what I suspect will happen: Blue Stars Tensions will erupt when the brass judge is accidentally stuck by a pin meant for a voodoo doll. After some sort of spell is cast, he will recover and go on to judge brass for the rest of the night, much to the relief of Crown fans. Spirit of Atlanta Partway through the show, an actual raid will occur and the entire corps will be taken away except for one mellophone player who was the designated driver. He will give an intoxicating performance and save the day. Blue Knights As a last minute addition, BK will include the scene from European Vacation where Chevy Chase can’t get out of the traffic circle. They will be rewarded for linking their past English show to the endless circle theme. Boston Crusaders Boston will be heavily penalized by visual judges who don’t realize they are on the field until they reveal the red uniforms. They will get most of it back from GE judges who thought they were performing underground before rising. Madison Scouts The percussion judge will be injured by a stray bullet he had assumed was just a sound effect. Inspired by the show, he will ‘soldier’ on to judge drums the rest of the night, much to the disappointment of Crown fans. The Cavaliers The Cavies will shock the audience by breaking their secrecy to reveal the answer to one of the world’s most enduring questions, namely, what happens to all the odd socks that disappear in the dryer. Bluecoats In an attempt to bolster the parade theme, Bloo will add real horses to the field. This will not be appreciated by the corps yet to perform. Phantom Regiment In an impressive feat of fluid dynamics, an actual moat will be added to fully highlight the castle formation. Triumph will turn to tragedy when VK’s shark resurfaces to eat the heroine. Santa Clara Vanguard In an effort to enhance the Les Miserables experience, Vanguard will add a voice sample of Hugh Jackman singing. Disaster will ensue when they accidentally use Russell Crowe. The Cadets Looking to add a small ensemble feature, Hopkins will ask his staff to shop for a quartet by Barber. His instructions will be misunderstood, and the show will end up with a barber shop quartet. In a thematically appropriate reaction, George will be beside himself. Carolina Crown Not providing the answer that his lover hoped for, John will get slapped into the middle of next week, thus proving that time can be altered if sufficient energy is amassed. Blue Devils In an attempt to save the sacrificed maiden who dances herself to death, the Devils will reprise their 2005 show and have her dance backwards until she comes back to life in their newly titled show, “Yowsa, what a Riot!”

Hi all, I wrote a post for my company's blog that I thought might interest you, so I decided to share it here. Check it out: http://brandwarepr.com/2013/the-drums-of-change-roll-in-media-distribution/ I'm interested to hear your thoughts, I know it's a very polarizing issue. Keep it civil, please. :)

< / thread >

Answer: Because to any non-percussionist, as long as the battery is whacking and banging in some sort of pulse, the non-percussionist will move on to judge (what they consider to be) the real music.

I'm 100% positive that BDB was not spitting. They clapped. I was on the field. You, my sadly mistaken friend, are the one who is classless.

Just curious, shouldn't Crowns weakness in percussion be affecting their ME and MA scores? It seems obvious that guard performance affects visual effect and visual analysis, shouldn't it be the same for percussion in relation the music captions?

Maybe the judges in those captions feel their percussion section works with the music, while the percussion judge is not pleased enough diddle-parachesseum-wing-dang-doodles are rammed through the drum heads.

Didn't see this thread started and since I know the kids read this, I think they deserve it! What a cool show! :thumbup:/> Congrats to BDB and Genesis placing 2nd and 3rd respectively also! Congrats to the rest of the Open Class Field, thanks for the wonderful 2013 season!! Looking forward to 2014 :smile:/>

You mean besides the Velvet Knights?

I've been reading (and occasionally) posting to DCP for several years now. This is not the first "forum" of this type that I have participated in over the years, on a number of topics. I have NEVER seen such consistent MEANNESS in any forum other than DCP. There seems to be a huge number of nasty posts, which range from showing a lack of respect to outright cruelty to a previous poster. Sometime I gasp out loud when I read some of these mean comments. I just can't believe that people are so nasty, much less that they are willing to put it into writing in a medium where it will never completely disappear. What is it about this forum that brings out such lack of common courtesy? such downright rudeness? such nastiness? Don't tell me it's because it's a competitive activity and that people have a lot of passion for it. Other activities are just as competitive, and inspire just as much passion as drum corps, and the fans don't attack each other. Just because I'm a (Fill in the Blank) fan doesn't mean it's okay for me to totally slam someone else just because they like (Not "Fill in the Blank"). I'm passionate about my college team but I don't consider our rival's fans EVIL, and I don't say nasty things about them just because they happen to like a different university than I do. I just don't get it. . . I just wish we could all respect each other, and feel free to discuss our opinions without the fear of being personally attacked. (I fully expect people will respond with comments that say I am wasting DCP bandwidth with this topic, that I'm an idiot, that I'm naïve, that I obviously haven't ever been on another forum, etc. I think that's sad. . . )

I think the question should be 'Does DCI scoring work?'

RAMD wasn't completely bad. I found my lovely bride there. Garry in Chicago (at the in-laws)

I'll hold my tongue about BDB. Vanguard is a class act, always has been, and way to go V cadets! You deserve this win! Maybe it's an all around Vanguard year!

Like anything, it's a tradeoff. If you average 3 panels, you won't have any one judge calling the champion or distorting the outcome too far. On the other hand, you'll never again have a Phantom 2008 or SCV 1999 where a red-hot finals performance takes a championship. You can also easily get a situation (as happens all the time with caption trophies) where the winner is mathematically inevitable after semis. Given how exciting it was to be there in 1996 or 1999 or 2008, I'd prefer that finals alone decides the winner. If you're really worried about That One Judge, I think it'd be reasonable to double all the captions for finals rather than just GE.

The winner of the 2013 DCI World Championship has already been decided and it is without a doubt the Troopers. They may not even get to perform on Saturday night, but what they have brought back to DCI with this years show has won over so many new fans as well as helped keep some old timers around that in my book they are the real champions no matter what placement they get. Congratulations to the members and staff of the Troopers for a job well done!

And the results are in! The wining post of the dumbest thing on DCP goes too……………….. “Santa Clara's Flag Code Disrespect”

I think the top four in 1989 where the best ever, but I admit to probably being biased because that was the first year I was introduced to DCI

No.

Wow... a six year old thread bump. Nice!

honestly, if anything moves it'll be between BD and Crown, and then SCV and Cadets.

C2, win championships? Really? You see them at Downingtown as compared to what MBI and the Bucs offer? Sorry. Any theoretical C2 "best run" will fall short to those programs. They also are rehearsing and improving. And really, the Cabs program is also a very solid package as well from the effect triad standpoint. I still put it ahead of the C2 package. In terms of coordination/overall package, the top 3 right now have that element covered in spades over C2. It would take a lot more than they have now. Miracle? Possible. I can keep open to something like it happening. But I don't put it at a very high level of probability.

Drum corps desperately needs something like VK or Bridgemen. It needs this badly. But of course, no corps who takes this artistic approach will ever be a champion. Bridgemen perhaps could have won a title in 1980; that was probably the closest any of them have come. Under the current scoring and judging regime, no comedy-based show could possibly win Finals. (In fact, you probably couldn't end up in the medals, or qualify for G7. No corps director would take that approach today. It would be tantamount to suicide.)

I would rather have them promote Open Class who they don't give near enough coverage. The poor wittle TOC can do without one article...thumbs up to DCI for covering Open Class first.

Just incase you didn't know, the Govenaires will be hosting the biggest drum corps party EVER! (well maybe not the biggest ever, but lets not let the facts get in the way of a good story) The party starts when the scores are announced. Come to Patrick's for a night of drum corps vids, friends, drinks, food, and all the storys/bs/spectulation you can handle. Some say this is where the real critique happens, so come buy a drink for a judge because it will be worth 5 points;-) yup, I said that.

I saw it live up top...and yes, live it did come across as fitting the overall package better. I changed my opinion. Simple has nothing to do with it...and yes, I looked at the sticks...you dont get points for trying something, and IMO, all of the constant hand motion changes do NOTHING to set the kids up for success. Remember, the sheets are based on the derived achievement method of adjudication......in order to gain maximum credit for content, achievement must be there. And with the gaps between content and performance, it's obvious until achievement happens, the bok numbers won't get love. Now...is the book, per the field sheet, as hard as some others out there? No. Yeah, they have hefty physical and evironmental challenges, but so do most of the lines at the top. But after seeing it in rehearsal as well as live in the show, some of whats written will never get clean. it's written dirt. Sure it may help upstairs because the ensemble holds andit maximizes effect, but for the field sheet, clarity of articulation is a killer. several snares often times don't have the same consistent approach to the drums. If you want to be a top line in August, you don't blow the attack playing 8's in the lot. Here's the big thing too.....numbers management. Music judges with a brass background willalmost always keep things tight. It's the old "don';t want to get yelled at" approach. You see it in DCA, BOA, TOB, etc. Drum judges have balls, and aren't afraid to throw out a spread, and don't care about the total package or placement, they care about their sheet. You can see this in avariety of circuits as well. Look back to 2010...Phantom was what 6th overall? Going on in the middle of the show? And the percussion judge at finals went 99/98. he left some room yes, but Phantom was so ###### good based on the criteria, he gave em the love. You rarely even see a guard judge do that.

I disagree with those that are arguing that Crown's percussion isn't affecting the bigger picture. Having seen the show a few times throughout the season, there have definitely been times when the lack of clarity in the battery was completely apparent from up top. You can bet money that an out of tune brass section would be called out on an MA tape. Why not an obviously dirty triplet roll? I don't say any of this to slam Crown or their show. I just see a pretty obvious disparity in the numbers. Crown's percussion section is clearly not as strong as their brass, or as strong as the rest of the top 6 percussion sections. When its that apparent, there should be an effect on the MA scores.

So you are saying percussion is not as important to the overall package as brass and guard?

Bucs 92.80 Cabs 89.55 C2 86.50 Fusion 85.75 Bush 83.50 Sabers 81.10 Sun 78.00 I dont think Bucs will be as far ahead as some say. No way C2 passes Cabs. Fusion will close on C2 a little. Bush hanging in there. Sabers get back on track a little. Sun makes a nice jump after 2 weeks.

The guard community would presumably include a sea of judges... who've had BD's guard on top at the majority of competitions since 2009. So who do you mean?

Good grief!!!! The response from BDStaffAlum is not anywhere close to being homophobic; it was just a comment about the excessive, crazy, and silliness concerning the overdone movements on the field. Want proof? Webster's Dictionary definition of 'Fruity': relating to, made with, or resembling fruit; having the flavor or aroma of ripe fruit; extremely effective, interesting, or enjoyable; sweet or sentimental especially to excess; crazy, silly. The bold represents what many consider is being performed on the DCI field, and nowhere does Webster's indicate the word is to be considered effeminate or less-than-masculine. By the way; what flavor is your hat?

I would change how judges are recruited. We need to bring in a lot more music professionals, not just music educators. Music educators are important, to be sure, but not when there is an overabundance of them judging. We need folks who have written, produced, and performed in non-drum corps productions. People with Broadway, Las Vegas, and touring shows. Theme park musicians. Military band guys. Rock musicians. Session guys. Professional dancers and choreographers. If we could reduce the music educators and "drum corps guys" to about 50% of the judging pool, it would go a LONG way towards rebuilding the activity as a whole.

My son and I went to our first ever DCI event this year (Allentown) and we were completely blown away with the awesomeness of it. Beforehand, I thought that would get sick of "marching band" music (I know they're not marching bands) but we sat through 2 days with 10-12 groups each day and at the end of it, I wanted more. I have never been more entertained by a show than I was by what I saw and heard at Allentown. I don't have a history with DCI so I can't comment about the changes that have happened but I know what they're putting out now is absolutely terrific. They people around me in the stands seemed to enjoy it quite a bit too. And in any case, if you don't like what you're seeing: don't complain loudly during the performances!!! No one came to hear your negative comments, we came to watch the show! (we had a loud guy behind us on Saturday complaining nonstop during performances about what he didn't like - and he didn't like a LOT of things).

The French guys are going to be offended - declare war on SCV - and surrender. Still a non-issue.

"Hmm, what non-issue can I ##### about today?"

While all 4 are very, very good, I would put 3 other years as at least equal to the top 4 of this year: 1989 SCV 98.80 PHANTOM 98.40 CAVALIERS 97.20 BD 95.90 1999 BD 98.40 SCV 98.40 CAVALIERS 97.00 CADETS 96.40 2008 Phantom 98.125 BD 98.100 CAVALIERS 97.325 CROWN 96.800 If nudged to pick 1 year, I'd say 2008 was collectively the best top 4, as even Crown's 4th place Corps in 2008 is better than any of the other 4th place corps of any year, imo.

Newark, NJ. Number 1 unfriendliest city in the world. http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/07/travel/unfriendly-cities/ Based on the comments from that nutcase, Reason1, I can see why they won that poll.

I can't disagree with your logic, but your result is misplaced, I think. Those of us here who experienced the Buffalo broadcast now know that the stadium crew was doing A/V, and at finals we'll have the penultimate professionals doing A/V: Tom Blair Productions. If I weren't going to Indy I'd absolutely pony up the $70 to watch finals based only on the knowledge that Blair's crew will be doing A/V.

1 SCV 2 Cadets 3 Crown 4 Blue Stars 5 Cavaliers 6 Madison 7 Phantom 8 Boston 9 Bluecoats 10 Spirit 11 Crossmen 12 Blue Knights 13 Pioneer 14 Troopers 15 Pacific Crest 16 Oregon Crusaders 17 Jersey Surf

Something no one is considering....... What if Crown's weak percussion section is hurting their Music Analysis and Effect scores? Maybe they would be 1 pointing everyone else in those captions if they had a drum line on the level of Cdets/SCV/BD.

Attendance has taken a dip since the move to Indy but I think it is more related to the economy than location. The numbers closely match economic conditions more than anything. Moving it around does increase exposure but could effect other things on tour. It if finals were on the west coast the Allentown and other shows will loose out. I like the consistency of how it is now with working their way across the country. As far as a permanent location Indy is ideal. Domed stadium (I understand about the the acoustics but being free from weather is important also.) Airport with discount airlines and central location to many corps and driving for most of the eastern and central US. Consistency verses variety seems to be the question. The major conventions for my job rotate but you can count on Vegas every three years. Maybe DCIcould follow this model. Indy on even years then rotate the odd years around the country.

DCI FB is a work in progress. It's almost doubled in size over the past year, which makes catching things sometimes difficult. We're working on it. (But I was as surprised as anyone to see that attaching your real name to your posts really makes no difference in the civility of conversation as compared to over here.) Mike DCP FB Cat Herder

murph, the TOC cup is a huge middle finger to the rest of DCI. I wouldn't cover it either, if I were them.

So FWIW, I'm actually French, and not the least bit offended by it. I took some family and friends visiting from Marseille to the Allentown show so they could see it. I think it's safe to say we all enjoyed SCV's performance, and didn't find their use of the faux Tricolore disrepectful.

You expected the tenderness and wonder of Crown's show to be matched by a show based on "Rite of Spring"...? I guess I just don't think the comparison is particularly fair... It isn't really taking each show -- to say nothing of their source music -- on its own terms. And at the end of the day, what's the endpoint of this line of thinking? If our expectation is "emotions" = "feeling good," and a corps is dealing with source material clearly meant to make us feel the opposite of good -- which is still a feeling -- are we saying a corps shouldn't use that music? Or that they shouldn't use it unless they resolve it emotionally? Sounds lame, to me.

My Prediction: 1. Blue Devils 2. Carolina Crown 2. Santa Clara Vanguard (I think they'll make a big push to tie Crown) 4. Cadets 5. Bluecoats 6. Phantom Regiment 7. Cavaliers 8. Boston Crusaders 9. Madison Scouts 10. Blue Knights 11. Blue Stars 12. Spirit of Atlanta What I want to happen: 1. Carolina Crown 2. Santa Clara Vanguard 3. Cadets 4. Blue Devils 5. Phantom Regiment 6. Bluecoats 7. Madison Scouts 8. Boston Crusaders 9. Cavaliers 10. Blue Knights 11. Spirit of Atlanta 12. Crossmen

Amen!!! Plus 1!

Electronics I can pretty much handle... to a point. Get rid of the "thunderous goo" and doubling the brass, (e.g., the bottom end), and I'll be fine, but get rid of the mic'd vox and/or samples.