Bandmaster

I'll have to see how this auction does. I still have my copy of the original libretto from when they came out to the west coast that year. Mine's in near mint condition. Maybe I could make some extra money on the side... Good luck with your auction, and I hope you make lots of cash for the corps.

You hit the nail right on the head!!!!! There just aren't enough "highly talented" show designers to go around to allow more corps to become competetive at the level of the top six. Show design is way more important in today's world than the talent level of the kids marching it. There are many schools of higher learning where you study the teaching music and dance, but I know of no schools where you can go to learn how to design field shows. So this stortage of talent will not go away any time soon....

It seems to me that you are trying to make the case that Division I should be limited to 17 corps and the rest should just stay in Division II. I keep hearing from old time corps folks how sad it is that there aren't as many corps in Division I as there used to be, so what is it be? If there are 17 corps Division I, somebody has the come in 17th place and if there are 30 Division I corps somebody will have to place 30th. That's just the way it is. It wasn't that long ago (in the total history of DCI) that you could have said "none have performed finals night" about Boston Crusaders or Carolina Crown or Glassmen. It takes time to build a corps to top 12 level, but if you don't try you definately won't make it. I still remember one time when a first year corps made the top 12. Maybe we have just created an "attitude" of making the top 12 is the only thing that matters? If that's the case we ALL lose...

I thought that's what I was trying to point out!?! Next time I guess I'll have to stick my tonque a little harder into my cheek...

Maybe because for the first time since July 3rd they were in a show that also had Division I corps. I think scores in Div II/III only shows tend to be a little higher. Gee.... but that sounds like the reverse of "the West Coast scores are always higher" excuse.

Do you want to bet? To them it is just a little piddley west coast div 2/3 show. I'll predict no scores or recaps on DCI's website until late tomorrow morning... at the earliest. In the past, they either have them up early or they don't post them until MUCH MUCH later. Well, early has come and gone...

Yeah, Ryan... Sam could use it a little... He can't even remember how Dream placed! But at least he has an excuse... apparently, either there was no one in the audience that stayed for the awards and/or the judges left early and went back to the motel and had a party and forgot to send in the scores. The crowd used to stay for the post show concert, but they got rid of those so there is no longer a reason to stay. There is no full retreat anymore either so the awards are kind of anti-climactic. I don't stay for them anymore either, there's nothing to see, no more pageantry. And look to the head official for DCI Pacific, because he is responsible for submitting the scores to DCI in a timely manner. You know who he is, right?

Nope, they also went up against Fever in the very first west coast show of the summer last year and out scored them by 12 points. Fever finished 4th at finals if you remember. If you go back to June 19, 2004 in their "debut" competitive performance, they out scored three corps that finished in the top 8 at the Div 2 Finals, including Vanguard Cadets, who finished 3rd just 2 points behind the Spartans. You've got to have something special going on to take kids with no competitive experience and do that!

Everyone that criticizes The Academy's show content keep making the mistake of comparing it to Division 1 show content. They are competing in Division 2 and their show is written accordingly. Except that their design places the "music" in the leading role insead of the visual. Just maybe that's why they are connecting so well with all the audiences? My favorite shows of all time are from the 1980's when the visual was still in support of the music. Today the music is just a background sound track to the visual. Remember too that part of the hype is that this is only their third year in competition and they fielded a full 135 member corps in only their second year. I can only think of two other corps that had a faster rise to prominence, the Blue Devils of the early 1970's and the Star of Indiana of the mid 1980's. They have also been the highest scoring Division 2 corps at every show they have EVER competed in, so apparently the judges like them too! Last time I checked it was the judges that decided the final placements. But if I were the top Division 2 corps in the east, I would be worrying about Blue Devils "B" right now. They have the strongest show and are the best I have ever seen them. I am figuring that they will probably take second place in the Div 2 Finals, right behind The Academy.

And you tell this kid to "Get over himself"???? By your statement you must be claiming that ALL Division 2 corps are mediocre! Are you sure you want to go there? Must ALL corps be compared to Blue Devils, Cavaliers and Cadets in order to be called successful? No corps, except a VERY small handful of maybe 3 or 4, can be! Have you really become THAT jaded? Your response makes you look like the one that needs to go out and learn a few things.... Link removed due to copyright issues... GJ

Have you checked with Kanstul to see if they kept any of the left over pieces after doing any of the 3 valve conversions?

Try the Mandarins, they might still have some contras left. The Kanstull 3 valve is gone... I bought it. It cleaned up really nice and plays pretty good now. The others (DEGs) are supposed to be in better shape. Mandarins Brass For Sale