tesmusic Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 Congrats to Will!!! I have a ton of respect for him as a person and an educator. For the few folks that say this was a"safe" decision.......I guess the same could have been said about JD Shaw and we all know how that turned out. As for going outside the organization.... Don Hill had a very respectable run with the Regiment and I personally wish him the all the best in his future endeavors and thank him for what he did for the Regiment....however, folks weren't satisfied with that decision either! Looks like the corps is ###### if they do and ###### if they don't. It will be exciting to see what Will brings to the table and offer him a hearty WELCOME ABOARD/WELCOME BACK!!!! Who better to bring back that Phantom sound than someone who understands it from the inside out? Anxiously awaiting the 2016 show announcement. I respect your optimism, bur for me, based on his writing for marching band a and the DCI level, I'm not sure this is the best choice that could have been made. Rewind to when JD got the gig and I might have said the same, but this is now and that was JD Shaw. Different people, different talents, can't compare. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zachariaswmb Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 I respect your optimism, bur for me, based on his writing for marching band a and the DCI level, I'm not sure this is the best choice that could have been made. Rewind to when JD got the gig and I might have said the same, but this is now and that was JD Shaw. Different people, different talents, can't compare. So, who would you have gone with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarchandPlay Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 I am very interested to hear how Will Pitts arranges for Phantom next year. I haven't been very impressed with any of the music arranging in the past few years at Phantom, and some fresh ideas could be just what the doctor called for. Looking forward to seeing this develop! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tesmusic Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 So, who would you have gone with? Personally, I was hoping for Frank Sullivan. Also, Key Poulan would do nice things as well for them. With the amount is flack people have thrown out about Don Hill, who I do think is talented, I would have gone with someone with a proven track record at the DCI or BOA level, not a decent up and coming nice guy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xandandl Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 (edited) I want to chime in on the Will Pitts selection by the PR admin. Will already well knows and has the trust of those who administer and decide the life of PR. Besides his noteworthy career there as conductor, he also was the corps' tour mgr. for several seasons after aging out. Few other possibilities other than Michael Martin of Cavies' brass staff know better the insides of the PR culture and process. His love for his alma mater will challenge the bar of his composition amazingly. He is a man much driven by honor and character. PR has certainly had excellent hornlines over the years. Perhaps Will will meet a greater talent level than he experienced this summer at SpoA; definitely the age at Rockford was older this past season than the Georgia corps. His name is already known (and proven) to those who wish to audition for Regiment. Auditionees will not be as anxious about the Regiment image that drew them as his sense of Regiment is not "an experiment." He will not need to mark time "adjusting" to the Regiment way or persons. To the Madison homer who keeps knocking Mr. Pitts' band arrangements (and thus is putting down Madison's neighbor to the south, perhaps writing between the lines to audition for Madison instead,) Will's arrangements have particularly been to educate and elevate younger scholastic lines, not the usual challenge level of top 10 finalists for DCI who play with college age maturity.. But he is given a new altitude to attain for Regiment beyond what he has written for much younger ensembles. To me it is interesting that the same DCP posters who so often criticize the lack of new blood and the re-cycling of the same old names and faces propose exactly that to fill the vacancy at Rockford. I anticipate that the Warrenites on the Rock River will be quite happy with their selection come this winter and future. Edited September 13, 2015 by xandandl 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share Posted September 13, 2015 Personally, I was hoping for Frank Sullivan. Also, Key Poulan would do nice things as well for them. With the amount is flack people have thrown out about Don Hill, who I do think is talented, I would have gone with someone with a proven track record at the DCI or BOA level, not a decent up and coming nice guy. Please not Key Poulan.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sutasaurus Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 I respect your optimism, bur for me, based on his writing for marching band a and the DCI level, I'm not sure this is the best choice that could have been made. Rewind to when JD got the gig and I might have said the same, but this is now and that was JD Shaw. Different people, different talents, can't compare. Rewind to what was a gamble. JD grew into an amazing arranger while working with Regiment. This is now and Will certainly deserves the opportunity to surpass what JD Shaw did during his run. Different people? Yes. Different talents? Yes. Why would I want to compare? What seems to be wrong with giving people the opportunity to succeed and make a name for themselves? Why the need to just dismiss someone's talent? I applaud the corps for giving an obviously talented individual a chance to spread their wings. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tesmusic Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 Rewind to what was a gamble. JD grew into an amazing arranger while working with Regiment. This is now and Will certainly deserves the opportunity to surpass what JD Shaw did during his run. Different people? Yes. Different talents? Yes. Why would I want to compare? What seems to be wrong with giving people the opportunity to succeed and make a name for themselves? Why the need to just dismiss someone's talent? I applaud the corps for giving an obviously talented individual a chance to spread their wings. So is it worth the risk if he needs to grow as arranger, as you say JD did. Way I look at it, JD was arranging pretty well by 2003, which was year 2. Maybe I'll be proven wrong, I'll be first to admit if I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
general_tsos_chicken2 Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 (edited) Personally, I was hoping for Frank Sullivan. Also, Key Poulan would do nice things as well for them. With the amount is flack people have thrown out about Don Hill, who I do think is talented, I would have gone with someone with a proven track record at the DCI or BOA level, not a decent up and coming nice guy. Frank Sullivan yesA big NO to key poulin ! Pitts is a better choice than that Edited September 13, 2015 by general_tsos_chicken2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sutasaurus Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 So is it worth the risk if he needs to grow as arranger, as you say JD did. Way I look at it, JD was arranging pretty well by 2003, which was year 2. Maybe I'll be proven wrong, I'll be first to admit if I am. People voiced their opinions about the corps missing their signature sound. Don's arrangements were thoroughly entertaining but did they lend themselves to that sound????? Could it have been the Jupiter brass? I'm not sure, but what I do see, by the corps, is an effort to regain the identity that so many people said went missing and that involves some risk. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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