I never want to hear that BD doesn’t move enough again

[Tad_MMA]

I'll research more later, but the one show I know for its entire 12m 56s is Garfield '85. Beginning w the opening movement, they stop moving (as a complete unit)  only NINE times. That includes 4x to end tunes (the opener is in 2 parts) and the end of the show. Those other 5x: opening block fanfare and brief pause to conclude the intro, twice in the ballad and to set up the closer w the sop solo. What we call Park n Play comes twice - in the ballad.

"They" say the activity is better today. Could a corps manage that kind of movement even with 1.5 minutes less?

(I haven't relived SCV's Perpetual Motion show. Will do tonight.)

[ContraFart]

BD marches more this year than in any other year since 2008. However, it's still not at the level of difficulty of cadets, crown and yes SCV. 

BD uses a lot of smoke and mirrors. All of the technical parts in the opening move are played by kids not moving at all. Every time you see them doing larger than an 8 to 5 step, they aren't playing, even when the ensemble might be. Don't get me wrong how they design the ease is genius, but they have not had top 3 difficulty for over a decade. The judges finally agreed last night with 4th place in content scores.

[ThePlanets]

9 hours ago, dbc03 said:

I was really excited after the first 30 seconds of BDs show because they were running and playing. Then the other 11 minutes happened.

 

SCV was guilty too, but I still felt like they moved and played more. That could be my desire to see someone other than BD win though. Either way they learned the formula from the corps that has won with it 6 out of the last 10 years.

Let's take it too the top 6 even.  I don't need to rehash the top 2...we all know how BD moves and plays and the OP does have some validity. I will say though that SCV has the best staging for big moments I have ever seen. BDs props were more in the way.

BLOO was running and playing a lot in their show last year (which was nuts) but this year they don't seem to be moving as much. Okay so I have my eyes closed and am in the moment for the back half of their show.

Crown has been slammed for visuals all year. They don't move fast or a lot and they aren't all that great at marching and movement.

Cavaliers do run when they aren't playing.

 

Boston clearly has the best overall visual package this year. Good footwork, great movement, a lot of movement. Good use of props and great formations.

Going to give an HM for the Cadets and hoping for something that looks like the old Cadets uniforms back. PS such class with Cadets field entrance.

 

I come from a time where there was so much marching and movement that music was secondary so I love the few shows that have both.

The culprit is not necessarily BD although they were the trendsetters. The culprit is the axing of marching and movement on the sheets.

Edited August 11, 2018 by ThePlanets

[dbc03]

9 hours ago, saxfreq1128 said:

BD moves and plays for the opener, they move and play their way through TWO ballads, the company front and the crazy section immediately following are pretty traditional moving and playing, the closer is certainly moving and playing. Yes, there is other variety mixed in there, but to suggest that they don’t move and play at all is, among other things, lazy.

But if you just meant during the drum breaks, no, totally, you’re absolutely right.  

They aren't literally never marching and playing, but much of their marching and playing is an illusion. 3/4ths of the corps will be running around like mad while the other 1/4th is standing still and playing or *maybe* marching 8 to 5 across the field.

At one point (I think in the ballad?) you could tell exactly when different sections came in because they stopped running and went into a slow 8 to 5 lateral slide across the field.

If someone wasn't paying attention it may look demanding but it was an illusion

[Ghost]

16 minutes ago, dbc03 said:

 3/4ths of the corps will be running around like mad while the other 1/4th is standing still and playing or *maybe* marching 8 to 5 across the field. 

Just about every corps does a version of this.  It may have first come to my attention while watching PR on the Fan Network, how every year they had a brass section play while stopped, then the next one section stopped and played, etc.

[craiga]

I will restate my belief that in terms of visual design as it relates to actual drill, The Cadets and Boston Crusaders move more than anyone else..and move extremely well.  Are we seeing an emergence of an "East Coast" visual style?

In terms of "staging" instead of real visual design, BD, SCV, and Bloo all do this to the extreme.  But, notice who occupy the top 3 spots right now...in DCI, that which is rewarded is perpetuated.  As a visual design/drill writer of four decades, I fear I am becoming obsolete. I give myself 5 more years....   :(

[Jeff Ream]

1 hour ago, ContraFart said:

BD marches more this year than in any other year since 2008. However, it's still not at the level of difficulty of cadets, crown and yes SCV. 

BD uses a lot of smoke and mirrors. All of the technical parts in the opening move are played by kids not moving at all. Every time you see them doing larger than an 8 to 5 step, they aren't playing, even when the ensemble might be. Don't get me wrong how they design the ease is genius, but they have not had top 3 difficulty for over a decade. The judges finally agreed last night with 4th place in content scores.

and look at last night's recaps. VP....performer number over book. VA....same. only guard has the book over performer, and it's .1. Ge had one of them performance under rep. Brass and MA are the sheets that hurt, because the musical performance isn't up to what it should be with the demands.

Now that said....demand isn't just running and gunning. and BD has shown for a decade that if you show a skill once and do it really well, why continue to beat the crowd over the head with it? You don't get bonus points for doing something a dozen times. 

[Jeff Ream]

13 minutes ago, craiga said:

I will restate my belief that in terms of visual design as it relates to actual drill, The Cadets and Boston Crusaders move more than anyone else..and move extremely well.  Are we seeing an emergence of an "East Coast" visual style?

In terms of "staging" instead of real visual design, BD, SCV, and Bloo all do this to the extreme.  But, notice who occupy the top 3 spots right now...in DCI, that which is rewarded is perpetuated.  As a visual design/drill writer of four decades, I fear I am becoming obsolete. I give myself 5 more years....   :(

no, we're seeing a retention of the East Coast style. in the east, there's still a mentality of more is more. 

[Cappybara]

Vanguard absolutely deserves to win this year. 

But if you tell me any of the top 3 marches more than BD this year, I will laugh at you 

[karuna]

23 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

no, we're seeing a retention of the East Coast style. in the east, there's still a mentality of more is more. 

This is nonsense. Less is less. If you dig  into it the “variety”  really isn’t there at all.  It’s just running ,posing, and regurgitated choreo. 

The reason SCV is such a powerhouse this season is that their choreo is fresh, non-repetitive material.  And Gaines has visual staging perfected.   Musical staging is out the window  if someone is in the wrong place to be heard, just mic them   

it’s winterguard on the front half of  a football field.  Musicians are now guard members whose equipment is brass .

Is that a good direction?  Not sure but it’s where we are.  I will miss drill. 

Edited August 11, 2018 by karuna