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Austin Stars

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  1. I hope no one jumps the gun announcing their show on here before they have made sure that "permission to play" is possible... I've heard at least one show that experience would tell that they may have problem getting the necessary releases...

    anyway - not trying to start another round of complaining... but it's the good old USA and John Williams (or whoever) has a right to say NO - you can not re-arrange and play Star Wars or anything else he wrote publicly...

    Funny story about this... When Patriots were doing Philip Glass, we had a good relationship with his organization... When Mandarins asked for permission a couple of years later - we got a phone call asking - "are these guys ok or will they butcher the music?" Don't even know if Ray knows that happened - but it did...

    Some composers really do care...

    That's the beauty of arranging. Sometimes it only takes three or four notes to identify a song. :thumbup:

  2. Brent, Normally it would be in DCWorld, but with the new DCW/DCP partnership, the review can be found right here on the Home Page under Featured Columns. Check the latest DCW On-Line review from Douglasville-Alpharetta, GA.

    Lookin' forward to the '09 Austin Stars. Make it to Rachacha!

    Awesome, thanks!

    Not just big news, but great news! Here's to a big meet-up in Ra-cha-cha. :withstupid:

    Robert

    I'm looking forward to seeing Niagra for the first time, too!

  3. Brent,

    I'm delighted that the Austin Stars are making the next logical step! If you double the size of you horn line to 18 with the same talent I heard at the CorpsVets's home show in Douglasville, GA, it should make for an amazing corps. You guys rocked!

    Bring it on. Broadway is perfect for y'all.

    Gracias, Cozy! Hey, where can I find your report from Douglasville?

  4. Congrats on you Big News and The best of luck to you and your organization Brent....Huge undertaking...But you sound like your up to the challenge... See you in Rochester...

    Thank you! The good vibes and well wishes from the "big guns" really means a lot.

    This sounds GREAT!,.........do you have a Paypal link?

    Our Paypal account is "paypal@ausinstars.org" or "theaustinstars@gmail.com". Both of them work... however we prefer that you mail donations to us if possible. PM me for details on that.

    love the sound of your program for this upcoming season! best of luck with the road ahead for the next 11 months!!

    Blake Waller and I discussed program ideas on the road trip to and from Douglasville, Ga. We liked the genere of music we had chosen for the '08 show so we decided to make '09 sort of a continuation of that thought. The great thing about doing music from theater is that it can be both jazzy, symphonic and rockin' all at the same time so we get to enjoy a variety of styles. This will definitely be a very fun show!

  5. NEW YORK, HERE WE COME!

    The Austin Stars will take the next big step and go all the way to the Drum Corps Associates (DCA) World Championships in New York for the first time on Labor Day Weekend in 2009. We will get there one way or another even if it means selling our souls! (O.K. Maybe not that but some of us might consider it!) There is no other moment that is more important than this and WE NEED YOU TO HELP US GET THERE! The best way you can do that is to donate or become a member.

    Percussion Caption Head and Arranger

    We are pleased to welcome Alex Turkovic as percussion caption head! Alex received his B.A. in Music Production and Engineering from Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts in 2003. While at Berklee, he was a member of the Berklee Dumline and studied percussion under Dave DiCenso, Kenwood Dennard, Rod Morgenstein, Mike Mangini, John Ramsay, Jackie Santos and Francisco Mela with an emphasis on drum set. Alex has recorded extensively in rudimental drumming, drum kit, various rock projects and classical recordings. Alex's full bio will be posted on our website soon.

    Returning Staff and Current Staff Openings

    Ashleigh Jacobes returns this year as color gaurd supervisor as well as Brent Unger as brass caption head. Blake Waller will take on a new role as our primary brass arranger.

    We currently have staff openings for an assistant corps director, visual caption head, assistant visual caption, assistant brass caption head, assistant percussion caption head, assistant color guard caption head. There are also several teching positions available. All staff members are volunteers.

    2009 Program

    The Austin Stars will be taking the spirit of our 2008 show a step further, concentrating on music of the theater with our 2009 field production "BROADWAY!". The show will feature the music of some of the greatest broadway shows of all time including Jesus Christ Superstar, West Side Story, The Jazz Singer, A Chorus Line and Hair just to name a few. It will be a seamless program from beginning to end, weaving some familiar songs into a web then sewing them together with short clips of other tunes that will pop out of nowhere.

    Open House

    We will be hosting an open house on Sunday, October 26th from 1 to 4 p.m. (Location T.B.A.) This will be a non-rehearsal gathering with food, drink, conversation and discussion about drum corps. You will have an opportunity to meet staff and members of the corps, ask questions, talk aobut the 2009 program and watch some of our favorite drum corps DVD's!

    First Rehearsal

    The corps first rehearsal has been moved up to Sunday, December 7th from 1 to 7 p.m. (Location T.B.A.) The rehearsal fee is $20 which goes towards dues. (Exact dues for the 2009 season will be confirmed shortly.)

    Openings for Members

    Our goal is to field a corps of 46 members with 18 brass, 12 guard, 11 battery and 5 pit. Currently there are spots available in ALL sections. It is VERY important that all of you take the time to contact anyone you know who may want to participate. Membership is open to all adults age 18 and up. The only requirement is previous experience in marching band, drum corps, color guard, drumline or other percussion ensemble. Members of the hornline, guard or battery must be capable of marching a moderatly demanding drill and play their instrument (or spin guard equipment) at the same time.

    WE CAN NOT DO THIS WITHOUT YOU!

    Spread the word and get hyped for what promises to be the next exciting step in building this awesome drum corps!

    Many thanks!

  6. Congrats to Alliance! Thank you for turning it up a notch (actually about 5 notches) in Class A competition. What you accomplished will make us all strive to be better.

    I learned a valuable lesson from your pit ensemble this year; something that every small corps should do. Having two keyboard players playing the same instrument in unison (marimba or vibe) is much more effective than just one on a part. (Bells and xylo don't need it as much) So if there are only four or five people in the pit, put two of them (at least) on marimba. More expensive equipment wise but worth the effort if you can do it.

    When I saw yall in Douglasville there were times where it almost sounded like the keyboards were (dare I say) amplified. Very smart! I'll always remember that for our own purposes in the future.

  7. The Austin Stars are now accepting applications for the 2009 season. Spots are available for staff and performing members in every section of the corps. We will compete in the Drum Corps Associates circuit and go all the way to the DCA World Championships on Labor Day Weekend 2009. A show announcement including repertoire will be coming soon!

    Positions for performing members include color guard, battery percussion, pit percussion, trumpet, mellophone, baritone and tuba. You must be at least 18 years old and have previous experience in marching band, drum & bugle corps, winter guard, indoor percussion or other percussion ensemble. All members pay annual dues to participate. We are a small, new corps with ambitions to grow in size and competitiveness. A wise man once said, “Size matters not. Judge me by my size, do you?” If you love drum corps, challenges, teamwork, having fun and making new friends, this is for you.

    Staff positions are available in all sections. We are most in need of an assistant corps director and a percussion caption head. Staff members must be at least 21 years old and have previous experience as an instructor, designer or arranger in marching band, drum & bugle corps, winter guard, indoor percussion or other percussion ensemble. All staff members currently work on a voluntary basis. If anyone is to be compensated in any way, caption heads and designers will receive first priority. Your reason for joining our staff should be because you love drum corps, teamwork and building an extended family, not because you want to boost your ego or income.

    To apply, click here to send in the online registration form.

  8. Case in point, it's all Corps B fault.

    I've been in 90 member groups that were missing 22 members at at least one show during a season. Wasn't Corpsvets missing 14 members at their HOME show a few years back. It's not quite as simple as recruit one more member. There is no safety net. And I doubt DCA will approve a penalty for each member under rule, as it would give a degree of measureability to the greater issue. Even though it could fill the void 22-34.

    What? I responded to it. And you even asked me to appologize for my response. What planet are we on again?

    That's enough. I think everyone knows how you feel. You're beating a dead horse.

  9. Since this forum is typically used by many to trash the Cadets, I sure hope that everybody noticed that they handled retreat last night with the uptmost of class which can't be said about many of the other corps.

    I was particularly disappointed with the behavior of the Cavaliers as they mocked the Blue Devils by entering the field mimicking the tight rope walking done by BD in their show. Perhaps some of the other corps directors should contact Hopkins to see how to instill some discipline in their corps and show their members how to represent their corps in an appropriate manner when in uniform.

    If DCI did retreats more often at more shows, maybe corps would have more practice at being a class act instead of all the horseplay and messing around on such an important night as finals.

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