PRAng

Nope.

Yeah, they do need to work on getting those high-pitched voices down or out both then and during "I AM SPARTACUS".

The whole 91 closer was about an orgy. So, if the OP is going to complain about child pornography, frankly the 2008 show pales in comparison.

Wasn't it Boston (?) who did a show a few years ago that ended with the brass players laying down on the field to form the stripes of the American flag and the guard (?) forming the block of stars of the flag? My memory is fuzzy on this but I remember that I loved it. Very moving and patriotic. Can anyone fill in the holes that my brain is not remembering clearly about that show right now?

Yes, it's my understanding that the first time it was put on the field in competition was on Wed July 2 at the show in AZ. (They had four competitions prior to that date.)

This sounds like a great event! Wish I wasn't a $600 plane ride away! I went to a fireworks display last night that was set, for the first time in many years, to pop music over the radio rather than the symphony playing patriotic music. It just didn't cut it for me. Not the same emotional impact. The event in Pasadena sounds like it will be a great day and evening with some GREAT music for the fireworks!

I think there are actually two very separate issues being discussed here...... 1. "Unfinished" shows as defined by the rules that state that a show must be 9.5-11 minutes in length 2. "Unfinished" shows that do have the required amount of time on the field but may lack certain elements such as uniforms/costumes, flags, guard work, drill, additional musical enhancements, etc. In scenario number 2, I agree with some of the posters here - judge what is on the field and not what is not. Period. There are no rules in existence that say you must receive a penalty for not having guard work for the entire show. That would just potentially impact your color guard, visual and GE scores. However, scenario #1 is very different to me. There is, in fact, a rule that says your show must be 9.5-11 minutes in length otherwise you get a penalty. Now, if a rules change was adopted at some point that suspends that rule for the early part of the season (which appears to be the case), then I missed that change when it was enacted and I think it's yet another rules change that sucks.

Yes, it has crossed my mind that it's the most obviously violent show I think I've seen. But then, it's part of the story. You couldn't tell the story effectively without violence. And it's certainly not as bad as any violence we see in movies or TV shows everyday.

Can you site a source? Sorry - since we have no idea who you are or what your background is, there's no reason to blindly believe you without a reliable source.

Exactly. So why, if you add 3 minutes to your show on July 2, are you not getting penalties for being over time now or having been under time previously? I've been wondering the same thing. Are penalties "waived" for a certain period of time at the beginning of the season to account for unfinished shows? I think the existing rules should be enforced at every show, regardless of the time of the season. I'm not singling anyone out, just giving an example. I think all rules should apply to every corps, all the time, equally. Does anyone know the real answer here, as opposed to the speculation and accusations that we usually get?

Why will your sister kill you?

Vanguard's probably not done yet.

It's gone.

Wow - thanks for the update. That might just be enough to help me decide to go to bed at a reasonable time rather than trying to wait up for scores. (I'm in the Central time zone.)

Let me update my thoughts....... I need to differentiate between a "theme" and a "story" because I think there's a big difference. I do not think a show needs to convey a story to be good. However it does need a theme. But a theme can be very general and over-arching - meaning simply a reason various pieces of music were chosen to go together and particular guard uniforms and equipment were chosen, etc. I think that shows have always had at least general themes. The question today really is, does a show have to have deep meaning and tell a story. My opinion on that is, No. See above.

My opinion/preference...... A show does not HAVE to have a theme. It can be simply good music and visual and I'll enjoy it. However, if a corps CHOOSES to have a theme/tell a story and that story is not woven throughout all facets of the show and communicated well to the audience, then yes, I think it's a bad show. If you're going to tell a story then do it well. Otherwise, don't try to tell a story; just have good music and good drill. Again - my opinion. Others will feel differently and that's OK.

For encore concerts, Phantom Regiment plays: Rhapsody (a fairly long excerpt from the 2005 show) Ave Marie (from the 2006 show, but the trumpets don't play baritones) Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral

Yes, I was there. And at the Rockford show and the PR dress rehearsal as well. The key to the response "DIE" is that it's not one beat after after the question, but two. i.e. "LIVE OR DIE?" _ _ "DIE!"

Yep. Oddly, Regiment's daily schedule doesn't currently mention whether or not they're doing the encore or America and it usually says one way or the other. But my guess would be BD.

7:00 PM San Francisco Renegades 7:15 PM Mystikal 7:30 PM Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets 7:45 PM Blue Devils B 8:00 PM Blue Devils C 8:15 PM Intermission 8:45 PM Mandarins 9:02 PM Pacific Crest 9:19 PM The Academy 9:36 PM Santa Clara Vanguard 9:53 PM Phantom Regiment 10:10 PM Blue Devils From PR Website/Schedule

BTW - new entries in Courtney's Chronicles were posted yesterday if you haven't seen them yet...... http://www.regiment.org/memoirs.cfm

Sorry to disappoint you, but they're not playing Fire of Eternal Glory. Their encore pieces are: Rhapsody (a fairly long excerpt from the 2005 show) Ave Marie (directly from the 2006 show, but the trumpets don't play baritones) Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral You may have heard that at the Concert in the Park they played a few phrases from Fire of Eternal Glory but that was just one little snippet of several warm-up pieces they played to come up with a full hour of music. For warm-up they also do the half valving into Serenade for Strings and Canon into Firebird. But none of that is part of the show or encore concert. Oh, and PS - win or lose, PR is not doing the encore in San Diego. Sorry! At Pasadena, all 5 corps are doing "instant encores" of "patriotic music". For PR, that's likely National Emblem, their parade tune.

If you read my entire post, you will see that I very specifically said "I'm not saying that it's NECESSARY to have a theme or a story."

Sorry - I think maybe I was not entirely clear in my meaning...... I'm not saying that they don't have "some great music, great guard work, and great drill." And I'm not saying that it's NECESSARY to have a theme or a story. I'm simply saying that they are, in fact, trying to tell a story but the only thing that conveys that story is the narration. Take away the narration and their story's gone. So I would prefer that if they want to tell a story, then use the entire show to tell the story rather than just narration. But if they want to do just great music, great guard work, and great drill (which is what I, personally, would prefer) then do that. To me, this year's show seems particularly disjointed in that respect compared to the past few years. Which is also my interpretation of what a number of others here are saying as well.

Problem is....... "Marie is an original founder of WGI and served as Chief Judge in the early years of the organization. She was instrumental in the development of WGI in the early 1980's and has a long and successful history of judge development within the Midwest." (From the WGI Web site) She is in the WGI Hall of Fame and her husband, Gary, is in the DCI Hall of Fame. Marie will, no doubt, eventually be in the DCI Hall of Fame as well. She is the Head Visual Judge for DCI..... so she DOES the training! SCARY!