Gaddabout
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Posts posted by Gaddabout
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They might see more parity too.
Just wait until my brain freezes up on all the there/their/they're mix-ups. It'll keep you busy for a week!
:P
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Didn't Skyriders do the Wizard of Oz one year? I remember sitting at a bowl game pageant of bands and watching what I thought was a similar Skyriders show three separate times. They were immensely popular.
Loved Star, but I wasn't paying attention in their last years. Just remember their shows from the 80s. The Star Wars show from '85 was probably my favorite, just because the contras kicked butt and I loved the routine. Didn't care for the circus show in the late 80s, but I always felt like DCI was better to have another corps pushing the ticket. Guess they pushed it too far for the establishment.
Suncoast had the best ever bass line I've ever witnessed. Last year I saw them they actually featured the basses in the percussion front. Never seen that before. Sounded like one person playing five or six bass drums like a tenor player.
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there's a great untapped pool of talent out here that is just more likely to march if they don't have to fly anywhere for camps.
I'm glad I'm not the only one that recognizes that. If they really start pulling in the students, I think the better high school symphony/orchestral programs may fight it a little. I know a lot of local music educators that still believe corps horns = blown embouchure, and concert season still rules here.
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Infereneces and References to Star absolutely BOGGLE THE #### OUT OF ME..i dont get it...it's 100% INVALID.
Star is the envy of any D1 corps startup. The one advantage Star had over any other type of new D1 corps was extreme financial commitment -- there was no doubt they'd be back the next year and the year after that with full national tours because the money was there. That definitely helps with keeping veterans in the corps.
The last time Arizona had a startup corps it was DII Arizona Sun in 1990. They had an OK opening year, and then in May of 1991 kids showed up only to learn there would be no tour. Rightfully, talented bailed and the corps failed.
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It would make for a really fun off-season if DCI published rosters so we could see retention rates, comparative talent, etc. They might see more parody, too, because then auditioners could see where the holes are. I have no idea if this is true, but several of BD friends who've marched the drum line are under the impression many vets ending selling out to a BD audition only to get turned away after a few camps, thus they end up not marching at all. What did Tom Float once say? They usually have 300 people vying for a handful of open spots on the snare line each year? That's astounding. And to think some of these guys could march center for other good D1 corps.
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These kind of discussion is probably better served in the slow winter months, but it's been a long time since I've been able to talk drum corps. Forgive me for lousy timing.
Was thinking about the Cavs show and how different and unusual it was to hear them arrange pop music. Not just for that corps, but for drum corps of their high caliber. Billy Joel for the field. Different. I liked the arrangements quite a bit. Also, I don't remember who did it, but one corps slipped in some Led Zep to their program this year.
Was wondering how many other big-time corps have gone that direction. Seems gutsy to me, because you know your competitors won't be taking risks. You can count on your competitors probably taking the well-traveled high roads of Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky, Gershwin, John Williams, Corea, or some other composer (living or dead) known for harmonically and rhythmically challenging compositions. At the very least you know someone's going to have a high-noter Latin ensemble, and Malaguena or Spain will be played at least once. Sometimes both in the same year. Sometimes in the same show!
Anyone else remember a DCI arrangement of contemporary pop? What other pop artists do you think deserves the DCI treatment? Jimi? Sting?
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Another point of interest is that the snare line is the only section in the KAC that is made up of true alumni. No guests. It was decided early on to try and maintain this policy as long as the quality of the line was upheld. Otherwise I'm sure we could have marched 50 snares.
In other news, we've yet to put a foreign face on Mount Rushmore!
70s era Kingsmen snares = my super heroes. Dropped my stick twice in my PAS solo back in the late 80s out sheer anxiety. I didn't realize until I got up to perform that Rob Carson was a judge. Felt like I'd already failed, because I wasn't going to play anything he hadn't seen when was 12 years old.
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So do we know who was on the snare line? Just thinking what it was like back in the day with Hardimon, Float, Rob Carson, and the rest of the gang. No disrespect to legends like Thom Hannum, but those old Kingsmen lines just seem like Ground Zero for modern DCI battery!
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Crown was definitely a crowd pleaser. Nice to see something different. The show broke all the right "rules" about show design and presentation. If someone had told me the music choice beforehand, I would not have anticipated such an enjoyable arrangement -- or such strong execution.
A few passing moments reminded me of old Velvet Knights shows. Crown's show was never flip like that, but light irreverence is always endearing when surrounded by so many Russian/Prussian-composer-driven shows and sour puss facial expressions. Hey, look at that, a competitive DCI corps is having fun on the field. ;)
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1 - It's hard to make top 12.
2 - Finals are in August, not June.
3 - Everybody's going to get better next year.
These are solid points, if not obvious to average DCI fan. The point of contention was not what you wrote, but to who you directed your comments to and why.
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As I said last spring regarding Academy's shot at finals:
Look, Ma--I'm a prophet! :P The Academy isn't Star of Indiana, and I really wish people would stop thinking of them as such--or worse, that they're suddenly not all that since they didn't break into the Top 12. Actually, forget Star; how many corps come anywhere close to striking distance of finals their first year in Div I?
Folks, Academy is on the right path. Take a look at the recaps; if they just continue to stay the course on the horn line and drum line and fix the problems with the guard, they'll make finals, and soon. If Spirit and Glassmen aren't concerned, they should be, and soon.
Bottom line: Academy had a terrific 2007, and has absolutely no reason to be ashamed of or disappointed.
Brilliant post. If the guard had more experience, they could've put out a more challenging routine and dramatically improved their score. Don't know if that would've made up a whole point, but it would've been a tighter race for No. 12.
And, yep, Star started with a seven-figure donation. Bill even drove the bus the first year. Academy will have to fill the bathtub with an eye dropper, but they seem to have the right plan.
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Living here in Phoenix and witnessing the first ever D1 corps in this town, I've been reflecting on the changing face of DCI. I've been distant from DCI for over a decade (or nearly two) and I can't believe how much has changed. When I last checked in VK was a perennial Top 12 corps, the Madison Scouts were contenders, Indiana Star was a supernova powerhouse, JSU was known as Spirit of Atlanta (?), and we had other great corps to look for such as Suncoast Sound.
Everything's been redistributed and reset, it seems.
As a freshmen in high school in 1983, my entire percussion instruction crew marched BD -- snare and tenors, respectively. They had another BD snare instructing a nearby school. Across town there seemed to be a strong Vanguard presence. By college I knew several dozens of locals who were marching competitively in D1, spread thin it seemed among the best four or five corps. We've sent a lot of talent off over the years. We had a few attempts at startups in the past, like the Musketeers in the mid-80s, but I don't think they ever made it beyond two seasons at DIII. They never attracted the veterans like the Academy.
Watching the Academy this year, it was easy to see their strengths (not a lot of turnover from previous years) and weaknesses (still a lot of inexperience as a group as they grew to D1 proportions). They don't have the advantage of feeder corps, but they do have the advantage of some decent high school programs, a growing WGI presence, and the ability to offer a competitive corps experience to the 5th largest city and 12th largest metropolis in the country. Combine that with strong ties to the two local universities and now, apparently, instructional ties to BD and Vanguard, it appears to me like they're likely to keep their veterans and really grow this thing into a strong corps.
Assuming the Academy and other new West Coast corps like Pacific Crest keep their D1 footing, what kind of ripple effect do you think this might have at the top? It's hard to imagine BD and Vanguard not being DCI giants, but they've had unfettered access to the best West Coast talent for 30 years. That seems like it might be more of a challenge in the future, and with the continued success of the Blue Knights, it would appear there are some increased quality options to people on this side of the country.
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I've been lurking on these boards for some time, but only recently felt compelled to post because of comments such as the first post of this thread. The Academy may be new to D1, but Arizona is not. We've been sending kids to the best corps around the country for years, and if not for the extreme July and August temperatures, I would imagine Phoenix could easily support a regional championship on par with Denver. Anyone who was at the Tempe show knows the stands were packed in spite of 103 temps to start the show, and virtually no one left in spite of a 40-minute rain delay.
I've personally been a DCI fan since 1983, and although personal circumstances prevented me from marching, many of my friends marched at the highest levels. Some of them even went on to instruct, such as the all-Arizona percussion instruction team for the Blue Knights in the late 80s.
Sit next to parents of any corps, of any competitive high school marching band, of any sports team at any level -- any competitive venture of any kind -- and you're bound to hear those comments. Those kind of comments aren't any more egregious because they came from members of the new corps on the block, nor are they any more acceptable if made by members/parents of the most tradition-rich corps. It's just a sign of competitiveness, and good for anyone who supports their corps.
Having lurked for awhile I've seen a few people who felt the need to put Academy fans "in their place." I'm not offended, but I don't find those posts as instructive as I see them as a form of hazing from some who appear threatened by a new corps who simply had the nerve to be competitive right out of the gate. All I would ask is for those posters to consider they don't have their finger on the pulse of the Academy as a corps, as an organization, or as a fan base. Criticism like that on a board like this should probably be directed at individuals at not under an all-consuming, all-defining banner.
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If the stadium in Indianapolis works next year, I'm hoping for the next open date (2014?) DCI will consider the new stadium with the retractable roof in Glendale, AZ. At the very least I hope San Diego, any stadium in the Bay, and Denver are up there in consideration. The new stadium in Dallas will be done by then, too. Having these competitions in the West every now and then will be critical to the long-term success of the organization, especially with corps like VK trying to climb back into it and the Academy wanting to become a relevant D1 corps.
2008 show ideas
in DCI World Class Corps Discussions
Posted
Who is this Chuck Corea fellow you write of? Is it Chick's evil twin?