Dinosaur

Some folks have hit upon the biggest hurdles most people face in teaching - and that means anything, not just drum corps. I would add that it's very important to remember that you'll be a 'rookie' again. You'll be an inexperienced teacher and you have a great deal to learn. That attitude and belief that you'll learn more from your students than they could possibly learn from you is very important. Not only will it make you a better teacher, but your kids will get that vibe from you and they will honor that in you. Good Luck! Sandra

BD84Sop mentioned PDQ Bach's 1712 Overture - very funny stuff. But with narration, amps, and all things amplified - I'm more inclined to go with 'A Bach Portrait'. Check it out - on the same CD with 1712 - hilarious! Sandra

Orpheus, why do you care how many music majors are in any given drum corps? Would you be more willing to major in music if there were many? Less? What if there were few, if any, music majors. Would you be more or less likely to be one yourself? Or maybe you are one and you're wondering if it would look good to others to see drum corps on your resume. My advice: stop caring what other people think so much. If you want to march - do so at the highest level you can. If you want to major in music - or not - do that. Too many people make choices because they feel they should or are expected to. That is the way to middle age mega frustration and sadness. Take it from one who's been there! Sandra

It's been noted by many that the lower 6 - and the semi-finalists - seem to get credit for playing complete works - pieces with the longer phrases and melodies that those vying fo the top spot cannot get away with. With that in mind, I think Troopers should look at music by Don Gillis. This mid-20th century orchestral composer wrote for the NBC symphony and taught university in Texas (that's pretty western!). His music sounds thoroughly American in a non-Copland kind of way. Check out his Star Spangled Symphony - as well as symphony No. 5 (I think -perhaps it's # 6 that's so 'American'). Do an Amazon search if you're so inclined. Great stuff. I must agree with many others - I've found myself enjoying these 'lower' corps way more than I used to. There is a timeless appeal in hearing music - ie: phrases, harmony, ABA form, etc. Call me a Luddite, but that's my preference. Sandra

Madsop - you've written a thoughtful piece. I'm a bit disappointed to see responses such as 'baritoneguru' - a person I've asked to be locked on another thread. Being from the same era as you - mostly - I've been wanting to like drum corps for the last 6-7 years, but have been finding it more and more difficult. I tend to listen with my eyes - I tend to like corps I've always liked, and judge more harshly those that I used to dislike when I was young. Noticing this, I've worked for more objectivity. That has helped. But it has also removed some of the blinders and I'm noticing the similarity to Gertrude Stein. She's the one who said (of a city, but the line fits some drum corps), "There is no there there". By that I mean the very essence of drum corps - music and drill (or movement as we now call it). Take Madison, whom I saw in Indy. I too was excited to see and hear them, having read all the positive reports. The opener was good, though not 'face tearing' as I recall. I chalked it up to being high in a dome where every drum line of every corps seemed to have 98 drummers all playing out of time. Then Carmen appeared and I, like the entire rest of the stadium, couldn't take my eyes off of her. Very quickly I realized that distraction was the point, so I forced myself to watch the drill and listen carefully to the music. I'm sorry, I have to agree with you - bleh. It's lines, chords, and fine playing and movement - but it does not add up to a huge positive effect. It's...boring. It's like a magician's sleight of hand - they get you to look where they want in order that you don't see the trick. And Madison is not the only corps to use this psuedo musical magic trick. BD and Cadets left me with a similar feeling. Especially BD. Cadets less so, as I very much appreciated the quality of playing and marching they showed. I thought overall, the crowd reaction was so much less enthusiastic than I remember from even as recent at 96. The best responses of the night came for Phantom and Cavies - both shows without narration and with some familiar music - though I'm not a big advocate of playing immediately recognizable music. I do however believe corps would benefit from choosing excellent music. Threads like this can encourage long winded responses - so I'll close. I hope other posters do not follow 'baritoneguru' and post innane comments.

All right moderator - you need to lock out 'baritoneguru'. Please - <**>

Thank you Lance. ps - love your sig line ______________________________________ my name is Sandra - I'm not a man

What I don't get is why some are afraid of this kind of thread. I've read few - if any - troll like postings here on this thread. Yet some call for its closure. I realize this is a private board, so censorship is agreed to in advance. But, come on! Let's be reasonable. If we're only allowed to discuss positive things, this is going to get a bit boring (imo). That little parenthetical acronym is important. It can truly be pegged to the end of every sentence written on these boards. For every thing written here is just that - opinion. As such it's neither right nor wrong. Sure, some throw out opinion like gas on a fire - we call it trolling. But by letting those posts burn themselves out, we avoid the conflagration. This thread (imo) is a valid use of bandwidth - so I'll reply. I'm basing this opinion only on finals shows I've seen live - so that would be limited to 76, 77, 84, 86 (semifinals only), 92, 93, 94, 96, 2002 (quarterfinals only), and 04. Out of that pack, the choice (for me -as this is my opinion) is 93 Cadets. My reason: weak horn line. I have a horn line bias. Though I could let that slide easily if I'd enjoyed the book more. As anyone can tell from the CDs or DVDs from 93, the crowd ate Phantom alive, and finally enjoyed Star's show. Either would have been (imo) champions more reflective of an outstanding final performance performing a show design worthy of winning it all. Sandra ok - based on my own criteria, I must remove myself from considering 86 and 02 -

Hi - my first post - I've been meaning to register here and I finally got my rear in gear... Someone mentioned Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3 - great piece! I see that as part of a 'Prokofiev' show - kind of like SCVs 04 show. Music could be drawn from the 5th Symphony (2nd movement especially!), Romeo and Juliet (a long work with many short movements - perfect for DC adaptation - and no copyright issues!), with the closer being the 3rd concerto last movement. Another great work I'm nearly sure has never been done - Sinfonietta by Janacek. Whoo hoo! - this work would be ideal for any corps that likes to play sustained lines (Cavies, SCV, Phanton, Cadets - maybe Glassmen or BK) The work begins with a fanfare and then ends some 23 minutes later with a return to that same fanfare - perfect cyclical structure. Obviously would need some trimming - but once again, no copyright issues! Rachmaninoff - Symphonic Dances. Yes, I know all you Phantom phreaks - Phantom 'says' they played this is 95 or whatever - but in reality, the arrangement was so poor, it's as if they never did it. The work deserves a much better treatment - an 11.5 minute treatment. Rachmaninoff - Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini - OK ok - I hear you - yes perhaps many have played the 'theme to Somewhere in Time', but the entire work as a basis for a show - yes, it would work very very well - even the cadenza! Those are my top choices - obviously, I'm kind of an orchestra fan - but would love someone to post a link to purchase a CD of this Cowboy Bebop - it sounds interesting. The link to the mp3 did not work for me. Sandra