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DCKMelloGal

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Posts posted by DCKMelloGal

  1. Orlando. Not necessarily awful, just odd because of all the random sand. And Lucas Oil. I don't think I've ever seen that many marchers fall in one day, and I felt some odd resistance through the "grass" that shouldn't be there on turf. Possible preview of things to come? Maybe, but that goes on a long list of things that make that place far from ideal for finals.

    The turf in the Luke is just field turf. The reason the kids fell was because they weren't using proper technique. I've marched on field turf and it's pretty nice. Yeah, it grabs if you've got to pivot quickly, but that's about it.

  2. FWIW, I was in the LOS for Indiana Marching Band State Finals in the 540 section in line with the 50 and the sound didn't really reach there except for three or four bands out of the 40 (10 in each class) that played that day. Since corps really know how to project, this probably isn't going to be as much of an issue. For BOA Grand Nats Finals, I was in the 339 section in line with the 40 and heard things much clearer than I had in the 540 section.

    At any rate, the acoustics are really, really nice especially since they put curtains along the back side of the stadium and along the sides to keep the echoing down and it worked rather well.

  3. UofL (University of Louisville) is using amps this year since we've got a jazz band on the field and the rest of the marching band is basically a back-up band to the jazz band. Yeah, it's odd. It sounds pretty cool, though. This past weekend at the FSU game, we had the Sinfonias sing while we played an arrangement of America the Beautiful, so that was pretty neat as well. We only use the equipment during halftime, and we don't have a pit, unless you count the jazz band as a pit of some sort.

  4. I play clarinet, saxes and bagpipes. I taught myself mellophone the summer after I graduated high school (so I've been playing for two years now) so I could march corps and I found out about Derby City Knights (all-age corps based in Louisville, KY) and have marched there for two seasons (counting this one).

    I could not live with myself if I ever marched corps with my clarinet. I just wouldn't do it. Corps is corps for a reason and it should not ever include woodwinds. But that's just me.

  5. *Steps on soapbox*

    I am tired of reading posts that bash Pioneer for who they are. the kids work just as hard as any other member in any other corps. I, for one, am a fan of Celtic music. Heck, I play bagpipes! If you have an issue with Pioneer keeping their identity the way it is, apply for the position of corps director. I enjoyed their show in Louisville. Was it the cleanest? Heck no! Did they do their best? Heck yes! Those kids join that corps for the experience of just that-drum corps. They know what they are getting into when they audition/fill a hole/whatever just as the kids who audition/fill a hole/whatever for the Cavies, Cadets, Blue Knights or any other corps (note: these names were picked at random). If you don't like who Pioneer is, do something about it or stfu.

    *Steps off soapbox*

  6. I think Louisville would be a no-no too. Louisville airport is the worldport hub for UPS. In the evening, hundreds or jumbo UPS Jets fly right over Papa Johns stadium to land. I would hate for a 757 to ruin someone's ballad. The planes were loud at the Louisville show last year.

    Just a clarification: UPS has their own "airport". Its all one big area, butUPS's area is blocked off from Louisville International. And yes, the filght path for landing is pretty much directly over Cardinal Stadium. It really stinks. I know this becuase I go to school there...

    And I'm sure everything's going to be just fine in B-ton. That's a big enough school that the company knows they will have to do a good job quickly.

    Here's to Finals only being an hour and a half drive from my house!!! :thumbup:

  7. I was also at the show and found it nicely refreshing to have things "mixed up" from the "normal" order (upper-tier corps going last). Just thought, but it seemed like more people were there for the Cavies and then stayed sitting until the intermission-a nice thing for the "middle-tier" corps.

    Oh, and I also greatly enjoyed the show. Next time I get to see another corps live will be Finals and I can't wait!

  8. Pioneer-I love how they always play true to themselves year in and year out!

    PR-I really liked the past few years and am looking foward to this year's show!

    Madison-They always have such energy in their shows and always entertain.

    SCV-who can't appreciate their uber hard-coreness?

  9. My story isn't quite finished yet. I'm going into my junior year for music ed and I'm a clarinet player that's on my second year of playing mello. For the music ed degree at UofL, two semesters of marching band are required. I marched clarinet my freshman year no problem, well the bd writes the drill himself and its pretty much always symmetrical and ment for field coverage, so woodwinds are always in the back...and I don't like being in the back. So I marched dc last year with DCK and decided to march mello at UofL. First day of band camp I played for the bd and he reluctantly agreed (with me, there were ten mellos, if I had marched clarinet, there would still be roughly 30 clarinets...makes sense, right?). Before band camp started, however, I had told them I would be having a conflict with the first game of the year (away game vs. UK-that's a HUGE game, but at the same time he said he'd try to work things out). Well, he then turns around and says there's nothing he can do, so I was SOL. I would have failed marching band for missing the game for DCA World Finals, so I dropped the class. During this past fall semester, I petitioned for an exception to the rule that says performances with outside groups are not counted as excused abscenses, but the adminsof the school of music couldn't understand that I didn't want a rule change, just an exception. And I've still got my second semester of marching band to do, and I'm going to march mello-and I'm going to show up the entire alto-voiced section (saxes included) just to prove how wrong they are about not counting all-age/senior corps as a respectible organization.

    The really funny thing is, though, my clarinet prof (who never marched in his life) supports me fully, as does his wife (a voice prof at the school), the tuba instructor supports me as well because he taught DCK's corps director about 10-14 years ago. My clarinet prof has noticed a definite improvement in my tone and air support since last year, so he doesn't mind at all.

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