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G-Rott

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    A DII first timer

    in DCI Open Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    You'll get to see other junior corps all summer. Members are in your age bracket, so bus trips and socialization will be different (no beer for one). You'll get that feeling of aging out, which doesn't happen elsewhere. Longer touring time, depending on the corps.

    Good luck and enjoy the season.

    Andrew...for some reason when I tried to respond to your PM, DCP didn't recognize your name...if you want to PM me with your normal e-mail address...I can respond to that...

    A DII first timer

    in DCI Open Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    I agree with all of the above....I marched Bucs, and my daughter marches Surf...the only real differences would be:

    1) age of members

    2) intensity/length of practices

    3) cost

    4) as for surf....there's a 1 1/2 week mini tour in june-july, and then 2-2 1/2 week tour july into august

    5) more shows...

    Those are the only real difference I can think of...

    Rain and Finals

    in DCA - All-Age Corps Discussions

    Posted

    Based on the weather reports I'm seeing it looks more likely that prelims will be rained out rather than finals....how will they determine the corps in finals in that event...use the same scores that used for seeding in prelims?

    Also...is the stadium available if they do decide to move it to Monday?

    and would it be MonDAY or monday night?

    Things to do in Rochester?

    in DCA - All-Age Corps Discussions

    Posted

    So my son and I are driving to Rochester on Saturday morning, and then heading over to Canada for Saturday afternoon/evening. Do you guys have any other suggestions for things to fill our free time (we are only going to Finals Sunday night, by the way). Activities in Rochester...plus some nice (or interesting) restaurants to eat at? Thanks!

    Power, Passion and Precision

    in DCI Open Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    Passion … Jersey Surf … You put your heart and soul into this one and it was simply beautiful. You worked so hard and came so far. At the finals you played the best ballad I heard all year … in any division. Your flags were … you know I’ve forgotten if they’re green or they’re blue. Anyway, the thing is what I really mean is yours was the sweetest show that I saw in Div II this year. And you can tell everybody this was your song. And now that it’s done, I hope you don’t mind that I’ve put down into words … how wonderful life is when you’re in the show.

    Oldguard:

    My daughter marched with Surf's guard this summer, and I read your review to her last night...when I got to the green/blue flags part, she looked up at me, smiled and said..."He got it!" Good for you...I never picked up on that...

    Bensalem, PA Review and First Impressions

    in DCI (All) Corps Show & Event Reviews

    Posted

    Greetings fellow DCI enthusiasts. I just got back from the Bensalem, PA show. Tonight was the first live show I have seen this year. The show began at 8:00 PM instead of 7:30 PM as originally planned due to the heat and humidity. It was indeed incredibly hot in Bensalem. You could see a haze on the field through the lights. The stadium was packed, which didn't help the heat at all. During the National Anthem, the singer's microphone went dead and all of the lights in the stadium stopped powering up. The lights remained off until the Jersey Surf came on the field, when they finally came back on. There were reports of rolling blackouts in the area, so this was probably related. But this was not an issue after this. So here are my reviews for the shows. Since this was my first time seeing these shows live, I probably missed out on a lot of the details. So this is my first impressions and overall feelings on each. Sorry if I lack in color guard comments...not my area!

    Jersey Surf: Div. II; The Surf have really matured a lot. Music was a little thin in sections, especially in the drumline, but they had a decent sound. I heard bits and pieces of Moulin Rouge in the show, but most of the music was not from Moulin Rouge. They had some nice moments and it was a nice start to the evening.

    Pioneer: They had a great balance throughout the show, especially for a smaller corps. They definitely lacked some power and seemed to struggle with stamina as the show progressed. I was impressed with their snare line and with some of their park and play sections.

    The Magic: A definite step up from Pioneer's show. They looked pretty clean to me. Sections of the drill were poorly designed in my opinion and they had several noticeable gaps and interval problems. Overall, I thought they had a nice sound, but didn't have much of an upper register. The "Chaos" section of the show needs to be a little faster to be more effective. That being said, "Chaos- Reflections of Earth" is a solid drum corps song, as displayed by the Cadets in 2000.

    Crossmen: If I had only one word to describe the Crossmen's 2006 show, it would be entertainment. This show is just a pleasure to watch and hear. It is well executed and they really sell their theme and concept to the crowd. The radio section is very creative and I really enjoyed it. The ballad is absolutely BEAUTIFUL! What a great song. The horns sounded so melodious and intonation was excellent in my opinion. The ending builds to a great chord which resonates once it is released. The corps has a ton of talent The visual program also really plays to the "Changing Lanes" concept and fits nicely.

    Blue Knights: This show is exactly what the title tells you it is: DARK. Wow...I have never heard such a rich low brass sound from a corps. The entire show is very low, dark, and mellow, but the lead trumpets hit some incredible notes in a few of the chords. The visual program is very creative, especially in one of the later sections where the corps is running around in a sort of frenzy that all comes together at the end. A very solid show from the Blue Knights.

    Santa Clara Vanguard: I really liked SCV's music. They use a wide variety of styles that all seem to connect well from section to section. My favorite part was when the trumpets use mutes. The sound is just so unique and cool. The audience, of course, was intrigued with Mr. Moto as he marched the perimeter of the field. The final chords were the loudest of any corps the entire show, just explosive! I liked how they tied Mr. Moto into the show finally at the end, when he walks towards the corps as they are exiting and joins them. Great show by SCV!

    Bluecoats: I like the beginning section, where the front ensemble plays a great melody as the show begins and the corps does some nifty drill formations backfield. Mallets and snares...wow! These guys can really play. The snare feature was tight and clean. I like Distorted a lot, but felt they could have done even more with the arrangement. The trumpet soloists struggled a bit. It could have been cleaner for sure. The soloist around the 50 and front sideline had to really push to hit the high note. But the Bluecoats really have a great show this year. Very easy to watch and follow, the ballad is beautiful, and the hornline is powerful.

    The Cadets: The beginning of the show does a nice job in tying the show together with last year's. I loved last year's music, so I really enjoyed the snippets of last year's show at the beginning. The beginning narration is exactly the same as last year as well. Once the main character went through the door, I stopped following the characters to a point. I definitely felt they distracted from the show and couldn't really follow what they were doing. When I did follow them, Alice did a nice job with the dance and fit in nicely with the rest of the color guard. White rabbit had some nice tosses, Red Queen was all over the place and just a mess, and the Mad Hatter was sort of in the background throughout. But anyways, back to the show. The Cadets can REALLY play. But I think that they could have had more of a chance to display this. Why sit out for the entire middle of the show? The drumline feature was really well done in my opinion. The tenors especially are just incredible. These guys were on fire! There were sticks flying all over the place, sweet impacts, and incredible parts in the drumline. During the feature, I really don't think that the props added all that much, but the crowd went nuts when the guard members ran up the benches and jumped/flew off. Ah, the ballad. What happened with the singer tonight? You couldn't hear her at all! It was very, very faint. Maybe it was just where I was sitting. The hornline was definitely holding back in this section to allow the singer to come through, but you couldn't really hear the singer anyway. That being said, she has a great voice and I actually liked it a lot, but would have preferred the hornline to really play out more. Going into the ballad, as well as at the end, the drumline plays a faster-rhythm transition. The tenors were just remarkable during this section, great sensitivity and dynamics in the backfield. It worked well! Overall, I did not find the use of voice to be as controversial and distracting as many have claimed. What puzzled me the most were the characters. I just don't think they added anything at all to the show. Also, the crowd didn't know how to react to the show. They (and I) were very unsure as to when to applaud. All distractions aside, The Cadets show is very well executed and enjoyable (but definitely in a different category).

    I expected the Bluecoats to win it, but also expected the Cadets to be close behind. SCV was also not too far behind, which was great to see. The corps seem to be cleaning up nicely as they head towards Finals next week. I was one of the few that stuck around for awards and the Crossmen alumni Hall of Fame presentations, so getting out of the parking lot wasn't as bad as others have described. If you were at the show, please add your thoughts! G'night all.

    KR..

    Thanks for the review...I just wanted to go on record by saying that all of the music Surf plays IS from Moulan Rouge...it's just that alot of the music in Moulan Rouge IS from something/somewhere else...(Elton John's "Your Song"...the Can-Can, "Roxanne" by the Police, etc...)

    Activities in Madison

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    So my wife and son and I have Tuesday evening, all wednesday and all thursday for touristy stuff in Madison. My wife and I plan one of those days, and we let our son (19) plan the other...he's not too proactive at that. My wife and I are pretty flexible in terms of how we spend our free time, but my son gets bored easily...SSSSOOOOO...I'm looking for suggestions for one of those days for something the three of us can do that my son will also enjoy....thoughts?

    Scores - Wildwood, NJ

    in DCI Open Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    It's actually a 14.20 jump from 2 weeks ago, 6/30 they had a 63.35 and on 7/15 they had a 77.55

    In looking at the scores from the past 2 weeks there was an 18.55 jump with the Raiders Div 3 corps

    7/1 they had a 51.25 and on 7/15 they had a 69.70

    They both are big jumps no matter what.

    I believe there was a 68 in the middle there for Surf

    finals predictions

    in DCI Open Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    Here are my predictions for Grand Finals 06:

    1) The Academy: There is no way that they will get anything other than first people. Please be realistic.

    2) Spartans

    3) East Coast Jazz

    4) Blue Devils B

    5) Vanguard Cadets

    6) Teal Sound

    7) Oregon Crusaders

    8) Memphis Sound

    9) Impulse

    10) Revolution

    11) Fever

    12) Yamato

    It's very possible that some around the middle will change...

    Wow...no Surf? I think you might be surprised when they get the whole show together and cleaned up...

    1980 Bridgemen

    in Historical Junior Corps Discussions

    Posted

    '78 is probably my favorite Bridgemen horn line.

    I love to illustrate how the activity has changed by having people listen to Harlem Nocture as played by...

    '78 Bridgemen

    '87 BD

    '01 Crossmen

    You tell me which version you prefer and I'll know right away what era you're from.

    To my ears it's not even close. The whole interpretation of and arrangement from '78 should have retired the song from the activity.

    Agree Russ....100%....and 1978 is my favorite musical Bridgemen year as well.....

    Spring Preview - The Ship Has Sailed

    in DCA All-Age Corps and Alumni Corps Show & Event Reviews

    Posted

    There is a Jim McDevitt and a Jim McDermott in Reilly and both play soprano. Jim McDevitt is listed on the staff of Reilly on their website.

    Whoa......my bad......Robbie Ellis is right.........and I should stop drinking my own home brew. Jim McDEvitt is the Show Co-ordinator of Reilly. He can't be the one you're looking for since he marched in Reilly in the '50's and left drum corps until they returmed as an alumni corps. He has a daughter but I'm not sure if he has a son. His brother Jack is a soprano with the corps and may have marched in PAL. He went to Cardinal Dougherty and is younger than Jim.

    Hope this helps.....now that I got the name right

    Jim Cossetti

    The Jim I'm looking for went to Father Judge High School in Philly...

    Spring Preview - The Ship Has Sailed

    in DCA All-Age Corps and Alumni Corps Show & Event Reviews

    Posted · Edited by G-Rott

    Come to think of it, Harry asked me for my email address at the Stinger so he could email our photos. Haven't gotten any yet. I know he took a bunch. He has an email address on Drum Corps World's website and he does live in Maine. My husband knows him really well from their marching days in Philadelphia PAL Cadets and he takes alot of pictures of us (somebody has to).

    www.drumcorpsworld.com/photos/photographers.

    Robbie

    When did you march PAL? That was my first performance with drum corps....I also knew Harry, but I doubt he would remember me...it's been a v ery long time...

    I would love to get in contact with Jim McDevitt...he also played soprano with PAL in the mid-70s....so if anyone knows him or how to contact him, let me know...

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