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This announcement has me betting that they're going to prove everyone who has been claiming that they won't make another Finals appearance wrong.

The Academy 2017: "By A Hare"

So much for the Academy " following the leader " ( Bluecoats ) and going hatless. Heck, Academy is responding by going BIGGER and BOLDER on their hats for this season. Good for them !

I'm bumping this thread to the top. I am so very surprised that people aren't hyping out on here more about this corps. This is SCV's 50th, and they have added Gaines to an already great team. The rumor mill has been quiet for them as well. I haven't a clue what they're going to be doing. I can. not. wait. to. find. out! Come on SCV, let us know something.

And that was one of the greatest visual moments in DCI history. The dissolving company front until the end. The end was perfect and beautiful. Still one of my top 3 favorite shows ever.

If anyone can sell a cheesy show well, it's The Academy. I remember thinking "oh god...Mary Poppins? Really?" But come July I was singing along with them.

I have been. 3 DAYS!!! I've had a warm and fuzzy feeling about this show......whatever it may be since I saw their 50th Anniversary add on the webcasts last year.

Setting aside for a moment the costuming chosen for Academy for this summer, little mention so far has been mentioned about the music listed. Lots of very appealing music here, imo. And Michael Klesch certainly knows how to write appealing and fan friendly music, imo. So this has all the promise of a fun show... provided of course it strikes the right balance between camp and cheese.

Wow, this should be a fun show. I know some consider these types of shows corny, BUT I think it's pretty fun. This IS shaping up to another great year musically!

Be vewy vewy quiet....we're hunting finals... Vewy intewesting.....

I think them bringing in Ike Jackson will make a world of difference. (well gotta give credit to gbass for reminding me that he is behind Ayala's indoor percussion genius).

I THOUGHT you were familiar!

mentioned him a total of 3 times in 30 days; that's about .0000000001 compared to your fried egg posts.

Sky Ryders, 1980 or 81. In an era of overblown, screechy hornlines, Sky Ryders' brass was remarkably lush and balanced. I was in the Guardsmen at the time, and our brass instructor, HOF-er Tim Salzman, made us go listen to the Sky Ryders as they warmed up for a show. Salzman told us to take note of the overtones that the Sky Ryder horns produced, something that only happens when the members of an ensemble listen to each other and play coherently and in-tune. Sky Ryders also had beautiful horns, silver-plated Kings, if I recall correctly, at a time when most folks were using chrome DEGs.

I'm not over hyping anything. I'm just forming my own personal opinion based off of a few things I feel like they're doing very well after only one season together as a staff. Bouncing off that they hit it off REALLY well as a team for their first year recovering from 2015s 9th place finish. They seem incredibly in touch with what works now and really in tune with how to design a show based off the corps strengths and weaknesses. They know who and what they are VERY well and obviously have some fantastic chemistry. They have staff consistency, with good staff. Blue Devils and Bluecoats are my top two until something changes because they have teams that are doing things that work and are not fixing what's not broken. I think this team remaining together will do great things because they have chemistry. I'm certainly open to Carolina Crown proving me wrong but they lost EVERYTHING on the visual side of things. Rant and rave about brass all you want but they wouldn't have been a sneeze out of 2nd place without their color guard and visual performance, as well as an outstanding choreographer for the hornline. They're completely rebuilding that part of the corps. Who they have coming in are fantastic and could hit it off really well but I'm just cautious when something like that happens. (I don't see long term damage, just some time to recover). I like the theme and list of composers. I think they have a potentially fantastic mix of stuff with a theme that has tons of great possibilities. It's a gut feeling, I just feel good about them. I want some mixing up of the norm. I like them. Ok. The last three are pointless, but predictions are fun. They're a little what you want, a little what you feel, with some facts/thoughts/opinions as to why you feel that way thrown in too. I'm not saying I'm right this will 100% happen but I can certainly see a road there. People get so feisty like someone kicked their dog when they don't agree with someone else on this thread......

So you're too cool to be impressed by that?

That is the perfect show name! "The Cone of Silence!" a drum corps off season parody. :D

Ok, I think the only connection to Hamilton that BD has is that the jacket here looks like their old uniform jackets. That's why I said "nice jacket" before. A Hamilton show doesn't jive with the rumor mill either, but the rumor mill doesn't have a complete list of tunes...

Very sad that some find it necessary to mock the present to honor the past. Loved what BD did in the past -- probably my favorite hornline for a LOT of years. I never failed to run down to the first row to hear an encore. My kid always came along just to get our faces ripped. Spent many rehearsals on the sideline just getting blown away by the guard performers up close. Heck my kid swore she was gonna march in the BD guard until Crown '07 / ''08 came along and put Carolina on her mind :-) In the past decade I may not have always been the biggest fan of their arranging style. But the excellence of the corps, the professionalism of the performers, and the consistently top quality designs just can't be denied. Want to know how to run a drum corps rehearsal? Go watch BD rehearse. They do it better than anyone. Bar none. (and remember I'm the big Crown honk). IMHO suggesting BD doesn't exist is just plain disrespectful of all the current MM's, instructors, and admin. Very silly.

A show referencing Looney Tunes? I'm down with that. Can the DM be Leopold?

Nice to hear from you again Sam.

Minnesota's Rivermen wore top hats in '79, just before they became a DCI top 25 member corps ('80 & '81).

" What a shame the poor groom's bride is a *dut dut dut*"

Here's the Valkyries reference:

Dang clap back

Pride of Cincinnati drum corps wore hats that were pretty close to being top hats. They looked like a top hat from a distance. They wore a white tux shirt with a maize jacket. That was 81, 82, and 83.

Velvet Knights 2008 & 2009.

I trust them after doubting the idea of their show last year and feeling stupid when I saw it live in early July. This will easily be a crowd favorite all season. Uniforms work perfectly with the theme. Academy with the FUN show again!

Looks like they will be accessible again -- a good strategy to move up. So long us they don't get overly "cute" this may give them a chance to take another step forward.

on point!

yep -- Cadets had Lion King so Hamilton is the west coast reply. funny thing is , the Lion King meme was entirely grass-roots member-driven. had nothing to do with the YEA machine.

you don't happen to like bourbon?

Love your screen name DT. Greatest band ever

1985 Santa Clara Vanguard. I am a bit biased here, 1985 West Chester show, Cadets and Vanguard were tooth and nail. Vanguard did an encore standstill. I sat on the field in their arc as they played the show. Simply mind blowing. May be my greatest drum corp moment ever. To me the greatest horn line ever.

All of the above - my mind is going absolutely nuts trying to put the pieces together. Last year was easy, it all fell into place once I saw the first rehearsal. The music is awesome... Can it be late June already???

True... and some of those Drum Corps shows were competitions in April ( standstills ) or May ( field competitions ). So we basically knew by now what a lot of the Corps would be playing, as in some cases, we'd have already seen them in competition by now, or over the next couple of weeks.

Cadets or Crown

Funny irony is that this has been done before. When in 1992 when Cadets' did Holsinger's Tame the Perilous Skies, the rifle line discarded their weapons and took up airplane propellers. I still remember helping the line dsmantle the ceiling fans the staff had bought, repainting them, and figuring out whether they should be carried or spun. Against the blue jackets and jumpsuits the guard wore, few in the stands realized that the propellers on the field were fans. Literal meaning given to "props."

Well I for one am very excited to see crown 2017. With the returning brass team, some very solid guard/movement folks and some guy who is new to them who I've heard can write some darn good drill.... I have a feeling they are going to be very very good!

Truth. Lots of amazing ideas that are "not fully realized" end up getting credited to a top level unit that has the horses to pull it off.

This for sure over the years has happened often.Even in WGI many of the innovations do come from A class guards and developed to a more sophisticated level by other classes. Sometimes, I repeat sometimes the idea is there at lower levels but either not performed at it's fullest potential or written at a cohesive level. Nonetheless, creativity is NOT exclusive to the elite.

Or wait for people like me that come along and ruin the surprise! :) I have Crown, PR, SOA, OC, and Legends. If you want to be spoiled send a PM. Remember, these are all unconfirmed and likely preliminary designs. We're like a month and a half out from seeing everyone's anyways.

96 BD is something I bring up every time this thread comes up. Also, SCV's opening hit in 2004 made my 8 year-old nephew cry in the stands.

The Erie Thunderbirds are looking to add a few Brass to complete our 2017 hornline. We are looking for 3 sopranos (trumpet), 1 Euphonium, and 1 Contra (tuba). We are starting drill this weekend, so now is the time to jump in! Contact our Director, Sean Bartlett (SBartlett@eriethunderbirds.org), or fill out an interest form on our website (www.eriethunderbirds.org) if interested!! #WhatsTheWord #DCA2017

Probably Phantom 1989 for me

From a legendary standpoint, but corps I did not see live, I've always heard of Spirit of Atlanta in 1980, Madison Scouts in 1975 and 1978. From a LIVE standpoint I'd say the following stick with me: Madison Scouts 1980, 1988, 1995, 1997, 1999 Blue Devils 1984 Star of Indiana 1991 & 1992 Phantom Regiment 1996 The Cadets 2007 Carolina Crown 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 I don't think I could actually rank the above. We tend to remember the most recent shows and it's difficult to compare the old and new. In terms of encore performances, one really stands out to me. Phantom Regiment 1991 at the University of Pennsylvania stadium in Philadelphia. Loudest encore concert I ever heard. Wow! My ears were stinging after that one.

Completely disagree about 2007. Do you understand where the theme that year came from? "This I Believe" is an international organization that gets people to write and share essays about their beliefs and core values. The entire 2007 production was essentially the Cadets' submission. Narration was required. Take it away and the whole purpose of the show is lost. That program was one of the more complete concepts they've ever fielded, and they played the #### out of it. A monster show that should've won