Madison Scouts 2018

[JAZZER]

8 hours ago, queenanne_1536 said:

See it hurt them. But Blue Stars. I knew they'd catch Regiment from the very first show.

You were correct!

On to Rockford!

[Gantang]

7 hours ago, Tupid_06 said:

When I think of the Scouts, I think of jazz, Broadway, pop...even some classical music. There is a decent range of genres to explore and build a program. I don't want them to go and play Ballet in Brass or Malaguena/Malaga again...I just want them to build on their identity and get that Madison Scouts swagger back. I don't feel it in this year's show...and I feel like it the the biggest thing they are missing. The choreography and style of the show just doesn't match their image they have been building for decades.

4

Bluecoats, Devils, and Phantom have not changed the music they play, nor has Crown. Madison was indeed associated with the styles you listed and they don't need to rehash old charts to maintain their musical identity. They don't even have to play full charts, which I don't think is allowed in this era of DCI. They do need to produce the Madison sound and have something on their uniform that you can look at and immediately recognize is "Madison". They could have modernized along with everyone else and still stayed true to what "old" fans loved about Scouts. Sadly, they have lost their identity and are flailing like a drowning man trying to find it. 2018 ain't it...

[ThirdValvesAreForWimps]

10 hours ago, dcikon2 said:

Why aren't there more female judges?

Because they don’t just criticize corps for errors they made on the day of competition;  they’re always bringing up mistakes from past seasons too.

[Prsmpower4]

9 hours ago, splsionbudja said:

So by a show of hands how many people are panicking because colts beat the scouts?

Not!

[PamahoNow]

45 minutes ago, ThirdValvesAreForWimps said:

Because they don’t just criticize corps for errors they made on the day of competition;  they’re always bringing up mistakes from past seasons too.

I don't think I'd touch that with a ten foot pole.

[Cadevilina Crown]

9 hours ago, splsionbudja said:

So by a show of hands how many people are panicking because colts beat the scouts?

Not me. I knew they were toast ever since Spirit beat them by a point and a half in Pittsburgh. The Colts' win last night only confirms that.

[c mor]

15 minutes ago, Cadevilina Crown said:

Not me. I knew they were toast ever since Spirit beat them by a point and a half in Pittsburgh. The Colts' win last night only confirms that.

Scouts only topped Colts in brass, and m/a.   That's a pretty convincing win for the Colts.

[BRASSO]

10 hours ago, madalumni said:

Something aint working and i feel like a house cleaning is in order

 The Madison Scouts seemed to be on an upward placement trajectory in what seems like not that long ago too.

 For example, Madison fell to 15th in 2009 with an out there modern show  called" Relampago".

 But in 2010 they found their roots and their footing again and jumped 5 placement positions, to 10th.  They brought back " Slaughter on 10th Ave ", a song they had played multiple times in previous years. It did not hurt them with either the fans or the judges when they did so.

 Madison Scouts followed up that successful season with their 2011 show " New York Morning "... and the Drum Corps classic song now " Empire State of Mind "... in traditional attire. Once again, a big hit show with audiences. As for judges, the Corps retains 10th... but most importantly, the hit with audiences, sets them up well for the next 2 seasons with talent retention and recruiting.

 In 2012 and in 2013 the Madison Scouts lost no ground in placements. 9th... with "Reframed " then " Corps of Brothers"... Then in 2015 " 78th and Madison " was a hit with screaming trumpets, jazz, and they finished 8th.
 

 So as we can see the trend lines were unmistakably on an upward curve from 2010 to 2015 with great music, great audience appeal, and upward trend trajectory with the DCI judging community.

 But then... for whatever reasons... the Madison Scouts abandoned that style, that attire, etc...  2016-2017 was strange in both music and attire, imo.. Nothing traditional in music, not attire, 2018 is a continuation on that track and the positive trend lines have quickly reversed itself, and the Corps has been in placement slide since with attires, styles, music, that has not been favorably received by most fans, and the judges have followed with scores far below the 2010, 2015 time frames. So thats where the Madison Scouts are at the moment. Where they go from here will be an internal decision made by those in charge there. But with history as their guide, they can look back just a few short  years ago as a formula that seemed to have both audience appeal merit as well as judge acceptance in terms of their direction... with upward trend lines clearly visible then.. Whatever the Madison Scouts decide moving forward, here's hoping they rebound. DCI is made stronger when we have a competitively strong and entertaining Madison Scouts Drum Corps, imo
 

Edited July 6, 2018 by BRASSO

[Tupid_06]

I've watched and listened to this show and replayed small sections many times over the last 2 weeks trying to figure out how it could be better. I don't have any qualifications, it might not save them from missing finals, and other people might not like my suggestions, but these are some of the things I would change or look into if I could:

In the part where the voiceover is explaining how the blood flows through the different parts of the heart, I think they should get rid of the "slow robot walk" that every section does until it is their turn to play. I saw it up close on the Muncie multicam video and from the high cam and it just doesn't work for me. Come up with some better choreography, or completely revamp the visual design of that part for the brass and battery. I also think the entire 60 seconds before the "heart attack" could use some major adjustments musically and visually. It doesn't make sense to me that the drill form dissipates, brass members start lying down on the field,  and the guard is fizzling out right when the tension in the music builds to the climax. 

I like more about the last half of the show, but there are still some big things that I think could use improvement. There is very little interaction between the female soloist and the rest of the corps aside from when she first appears and everyone is looking back towards her and playing backfield. She seems "detached"...almost like a ghost wandering among the corps. There are a lot of times where I think she is in a bad spot relative to the drill and is not highlighted by it or the guard when she should be. Also, the guard is really "separate" in this show...they don't interact and work together much. At the end of the Latin jazz section, I think more intimate and flashy guard work would be better than what they currently have there. They should look like one close unit, and not spread out individuals.

I don't think this show will see much of a score improvement unless some major work goes into editing the show....I'm talking 2007-style edits. There is nothing to lose at this point. I think the first 5 minutes need the most attention. It's not going to be as simple as adding a few notes to the music or doing an extra choreography move. 

Edited July 7, 2018 by Tupid_06

[dcikon2]

Questions:

1.  What is the average age of the corps this year?

2.  How many vets are marching?

A big concern right now, besides low placement, is retaining current membership for next season.