2008 Kansai Regional Report

Sunday, October 19th, 2008 | Filed under Other | Posted by

The 30th Annual Kansai Marching Band Contest took place at Maishima Arena in Osaka on October 19th. In the independent class, eight marching units, including six drum and brass/bugle corps were on hand, competing for two seats in the All-Japan National Contest, to be held at the Saitama Super Aena this coming January.

Today was significant for the 2007/08 Drum Corps Japan Division II Champion Jokers Drum and Bugle Corps from Kyoto, who last year were ousted by the Soka Wakayama Bugle Band for one of two spots in the All-Japan National Contest. The last time the Jokers did not qualify for a seat in the national contest was 1994 when they were defeated by the Soka Kansai Bugle band. What was seen today was purely Jokers, complete with a large color guard and a full line of plates.

The show, titled "Crossroads," told the tale of a shop keeper looking for a little more in life, only to find himself making a deal with the reaper itself, exchanging his soul for a soprano, bringing with him chaos to those that hear his soloistic screams. But alas, the good that surrounds him over-powers the reaper’s control, bringing the once chaotic soloist back to who he once was, a shop keeper.

Soka Wakayama brought in their own tale of good versus evil with the show "Jekyll & Hyde," relating mirror images of the dual personality character throughout the production. With their success from last year, Soka Wakayama came in with new uniforms, a new name (Blue Eagles), and an eagerness to hold on to what they had earned the year prior. Unfortunately, their eagerness left them with an unusual false start, which may have cost them the ticket to nationals.

Whether that be the case or not, the Jokers took back what has been theirs since the inauguration of their "Emotion and Groove" show themes.

Other corps in competition included the Legend of Angels from Osaka. Their show, "Strength and Honor," brought together a mature brass sound with their largest corps to date. Maboroshi (Phantom) made a return this year after some time off with their show "Hearts," and Himeji Saints with their silhouettes of ancient Japan in their production, "Scene…" Finally, Soka Kansai Josho Sounds took a ride on the open sea back in Euro-colonial times with their show, "Beyond the Hardship," complete with sails, silk waves and oars, with the captain going as far as to direct the soloists to where they should be playing.

Final placements for the Kansai contest:
1 – Tonan Marching Band (The Gryphons)
2 – Jokers Drum & Bugle Corps
3 – Soka Wakayama Blue Eagles (formally Bugle band)
4 – Legend of Angels Drum & Bugle Corps
5 – Soka Kansai Josho Sounds
6 – Aqua
7 – Himeji Saints Drum & Brass Corps
8 – Maboroshi Brass & Percussion Corps

The 36th Annual All-Japan Marching Band Conest will take place on January 25th at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Kansai Marching band Association – http://marchingkansai.fc2web.com/ All-Japan Marching Band Association – http://www.ajmba.org/

Posted by on Sunday, October 19th, 2008. Filed under Other.