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I went down to GW and watched Crown rehearse, with a full run thru at the end. As someone said earlier, the show is dark. I guess my expectations were unrealistically high based on all the positive comments. It wasn’t entirely clear to me what the show has to do with Camelot. It seems cluttered with a lot going on. I was unable to pick out any Camelot references, except for one guy holding a crown (I think) in the 4th movement. Maybe when performed with their costumes and finished props it will be clear what’s going on. The percussion sounded very clean for this point in the season, The CG looked like they are making good progress too. The brass… I don’t know, they don’t sound like crown brass to me. Maybe it’s the strange dark music selections they are playing. I wouldn’t say this will be a fan favorite show, it was just foreboding darkness, then it stopped. Maybe there is an ending they haven’t learned yet. Anyway, just my opinion, I guess I’m the only one that isn’t crazy about the show or the music.

I know that your post was critical overall but these are still the two most exciting things you could possibly have said about this show imo. If it’s true, I’m gonna love this show. Esp if the design team really doubles down, as they’re known to do. BRING BACK DARK SHOWS. And none of this “darkness into light” business either. Heathens need representation too! Gimme dark, triumphant, Wagnerian — it’s out of step with what’s current and will be that much more bad***.

Haven't seen the show, but I have a question: why make her do all that running et. al. right before a solo? In the "caveman" days of drum corps, soloists stepped out of formation and spent a few seconds prepping for a solo. If the choice is between nailing the solo and staying in formation, I'll take the clean solo every time. There shouldn't be a deduction for having a soloist take a few seconds to get ready for their feature.

I would definitely be surprised for BD if this year’s wasn’t a fan favorite, not that there isn’t a lot of opposition to BD due to the sport of it all and spectators wanting their favorite/another corps to win, but I’m sure this one’s gonna be a crowd pleaser, and it can be said that a lot shows will be this year. Crown, BAC, Phantom, Cadets, and more will all have fun shows and lots of fantastic moments this year, I believe👀

She did struggle, but who can blame her. It is REALLY hard to sprint and do complicated dance choreography for a minute and a half and then have to pick up a mellophone — a famously ornery instrument on a good day!! — as a soloist, while mic’ed, and deliver a clean, warm solo with long tones and great breath control and emotional finesse. I think that when we talk about the demand of modern drum corps, and relative difficulty of extensive drill charts vs sprinting and choreography, the difficulty she had with that solo should make us all way more sympathetic. Because sprinting, dancing and then having to play is basically what they all have to do now, soloists or not. The Funliner guys were honest that she didn’t usually nail it, but they were critical in a healthy way, not a cruel way, in case anyone is wondering — it’s the straight talk of fellow MMs. They’re recent BD guys who know firsthand what pressure and demand goes into a moment like this. So they’re not ragging on her. To her extreme credit, fwiw, she DID nail it for the victory performance. I was excited for her!

Vic Firth "Learn the Music" videos have started uploading for BAC. Tenor & Bass also available as of today:

Covid effected the quality of shows and performances since 2019 as it interrupted the flow of marchers to and from corps. Under the unusual circumstances, DCI allowed an extra year to march which made the exhibition season top heavy with veterans. The 165 max on the field rule was temporarily waived during this period. As such, some Corps had as many as 90 brass and 50 + guard out there, and well over 165 total on the field... one Corps over 200.. Since then, DCI has adopted a truncated season that goes between 4-6 weeks for most Corps now. Corps that once had 30-32 competition shows, now have 21-24 in a shortened season with travel costs one of several factors for this. Put these ( and other factors together ), if some are noticing a fall off in performance execution quality , especially in the post covid period, these things might help explain why, imo. As for the Blue Devils, their performance quality levels may or may not have been advesely effected by these things ( as well as extended layoff ), but nevertheless, their quality levels by Championships week was superior to all others, and thus their 3 wins with 3 different judging panels was both compelling and deserved, imo

So, I have another question regarding the Blue Devils, and I am interested in people's thoughts, especially Chief Guns. I will start out by absolutely acknowledging their consistent dominance and again reiterate my position that they won in 2022 because they were the best. Having said that, does anyone here think that BD is actually GETTING BETTER each and every year? They obviously know how to win the big dance, but was BD 22 better than BD 19? 18? Thoughts?

Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and opinions on what you saw and heard !! 😊

I agree that technically it may now have been their best brass last year, but the way the music was written and their overall ability to handle it and to blend as a hornline is what kept them at the top.

Id be worried if you were hearing bad things from inside.

I do think the brass caption for them has been hit and miss over the 2010s going into 2020s. Last year they won high brass but it was not their best line IMO (and I only say that because BD have had some amazing lines over the years) and eventually Carolina caught them on Finals night. Having said that getting caught by Carolina in brass is not exactly a bad thing. I see that John Meehan left for a new gig in Canada. So that may change some things (unless he is still helping BD this summer). Boston has certainly risen to their level in guard but BD's guard is still pretty fabulous so I don't see that as a weakness. Percussion continues to be strong for BD and usually top 3 most years. Where I have seen an improvement with BD is in GE. Go back to 2010 for instance. That show easily won the title but many fans griped that it was a golf clap show. Personally I liked the show but I know many did not. But since 2014 I have noticed that BD is appealing to more and more. They continue to win due to sheer excellence, but they certainly have put more fan-friendly moments into their shows since 2014. So I do think they have improved in GE and perhaps even visual over the years. Brass, percussion and guard continue to be top 3 level captions which is always good, but GE to me as been upped a notch.

Place your bets for first complaint on something with out headgear or a "costume".

Very true. When you look at The Cadets 10 DCI titles and 10 American Legion titles they certainly are one of the oldest and most honored drum corps in the world. We often leave out the pre-DCI years for various reasons, but when you look at a long-term picture of the world of drum and bugle corps the Cadets and Cavaliers have a glorious past in addition to many fantastic DCI years. But there is no denying that during the DCI era the Blue Devils are a tour-de-force in many ways. They are the Gold standard and that is not a bad thing. It gives the other corps something to shoot for, or perhaps to just learn from.

1) Reads topic on BD's opening solo from 2022. 👀 2) Starts researching funliner on the YouTube. 🧐😁

Okay, it is time for the yearly topic. Who has new drums and/or new wraps for 2023? Let's see some pictures as they are put out for public consumption!!

Personally, from a GE standpoint, I feel uniform headgear helps sell the drill visually.

This comment actually gives me more hope than I have had for years with Crown. 2015 was a stinker for much of the season and a miracle by finals. I'm glad Crown is doing something dark and different. I can't wait to see it.

For those (like myself) who wonder what a Parapheniliasaurolophus is, you're welcome. hat

I don't hate the head gear.

Depends on how one defines better, I guess. One can argue the activity itself improves each year due to innovations, style updates, and evolving audience/judge expectations. Many top corps age out a high percentage of their most experienced and mature MMs. Maintaining a high achievement level with many new members each year is a huge accomplishment in itself. The competitive landscape also changes yearly. I can’t say whether BD 2019 or 2022 was better. Both were winners and both navigated a different set of challenges to reach the top.

Tough to answer. BD's success is the perfect convergence of so many things. Fantastic staff, management & financial responsibility, talented students, growing their own base through the B and C corps and through other services they provide in the north Bay area, loyal alumni, a commitment to having full-time teachers on staff, and so much more. If you gave the Cascades members to BD staff they would provide the better show, experience, and resources to push for excellence. This is not a knock at the Cascades or any corps.

I'm also thinking about Pre-DCI championships. There are the DCI championships, then the CYO, AFL, and VFW stuff. I'm also looking at the entirety of Junio Drum Corps. BD has DCI locked down, but Cadets and Cavaliers have those other championships to look at as well.

Phantom Regiment uniforms for their 2023 production, Exogenesis!

What an eventful evening lined up, Lucky you, I'm so jealous lol.. Enjoy every bits and moments and give us your feedback on as much as you can. Give us all the mouth watering juices, we are thirsty LOL, But give nothing away. Ps. Oh and one more thing. You can DM me too, I'd love to hear some special audio if that's allowed. That is all.. my hearing is really curious.

.... and then the bass....

I have a feeling the Regiment will show the drum line playing on dinosaur skins until the first show….Just sayin’…and I love ‘em for it!

Carolina Crown has introduced some interesting headgear, what else do you call them, to great effect. Let’s see how “the chevrons” read from the stands.

The “sauruses” are taking over…Muwahahahaha!

OK Suta...follow me here. We have seen the dinosaurs hiding the props. We have the dinosaur T-Shirt. And the headgear doessssss kinda look like a Parasaurolophus. I'm kinda diggin' on this vibe man.

No. Corps aren't getting better, they're just different.

Not the first nor last time we hear of this I am afraid.

Agree. Cadets had their shot. At the end of the 2000 season it was Blue Devils with 10 and Cadets with 8. Cadets won those 8 titles in 18 years (1983 to 2000). The trajectory was there. By 2005 it was BD 11, Cadets 9. In 2007 when both BD and Cadets went head to head for the title in Pasadena...had the Cadets won it would have been BD 12 to 10. But that did not happen. BD won #13 in 2007 and from there on they have dominated like we've never seen in this activity. Sadly The Cadets continued to show amazing talent in percussion and brass but lost their mojo in show design, GE, and guard to some extent. There are factors there that do not need to be discussed. They did win again in 2011, and they did have shows in 2009, 2013, 2014, and 2015 that were extremely competitive. All were top 3 except 2015. At this point unless there is some financial crisis with the Blue Devil org I do not see them placing below 4th on any given year, and more often they will be top 2.

Check out PR site or previous topics. There were some sketches of their outfits.

....... I need it to start right meow! Lol! I'm just really excited 😊

That makes me feel better about the visual aspect. We need this season to start already.

Well there goes my excitement of wanting to watch Elroy Jetson march for Orbit City Drum and Bugle Corps.

2019, Cavaliers was my favorite show of the year, even though my beloved Blue Devils were two of the best corps alongside Bloo. LOVED Ghostlight! But the Cavies that year won me over. What a show!

I'm hoping for an entertaining show!

Does FanDuel have a category for DCI?

the cup on his tray is fighting for its life 🤣

Excellent!

Carolina Crown has held Spring Training at Gardner-Webb University since 2007! GWebb is small school in the very small town of Boiling Springs, NC. Alex is on staff again this year at Crown! And 2007 -- what a year that was:

But they have made their repertoire known, and their show design, and their uniform. I’m good with that.

I do think Cavies were hit harder by Covid than anyone else, but I do not attribute Regiment beating them at finals or their 9th place finish to Covid. I don't think you are either. Regiment had a fantastic show last year, and IMO it was a better design than Cavies. I would place my bet on 6th to 8th. It's not like it was back in the day. It's not easy to climb up the latter and corps just aren't going 12th, to 8th to 4th over a few seasons. Look how long Blue Knights and Blue Stars have been in the 7-9 range (save last year for BK). Look how long Vanguard hung in the 5-8 range. Blue Stars finally broke into the top 7 last year after first breaking into the top 8 in 2008. IMO, Blue Stars were still quite far ahead of Regiment in design and execution last year. Not saying something amazing can happen, but I would doubt very much they will find themselves in the top 5. I hope I'm wrong, because honestly it's just so boring to me competitively now because there's seemingly so little movement, and I still believe judging is more political than anything.

Saw the run through last night of parts 1-4. I don’t want to give too much detail but I can say that this is the show that Crown was destined to put on the field! It’s epic story telling - dark and powerful. I am really liking the integration of all elements. Yes there are props - still a work in progress but I think they will be the best use of props that crown has ever had. It would be pointless to make competitive speculation so I won’t even try. I just know that I am really going to enjoy watching this show mature over the summer!

You have heard right Hook. They are well ahead of schedule for putting the show on the field. Kids are having a great time, working hard. They post daily on instagram with mm interviews. All the new Saders are loving their time with a relaxed learning atmosphere and the Castleton experience. The only thing a bit unexpected for kids from TX and southern areas is the cold. It’s been chilly the past couple of days. But so far everything’s is going well. Boston should come out strong. Best wishes to your favorite team. This is going to be a very good year for all.

I’ll be heading out towards the end of the month

They have the most show on the field and no INT to hurt their score.

I predict Gates Open the winner in a major upset.