wk2w

Wow. Thanks, Geoffrey. I just won the bet!

Like I said, it sounded like Dick Cheney just walked into a DNC convention. That's the first time in 20 years I heard a reaction like that. No sour grapes here. I'm just telling you what I heard.

I'm sorry. I try and try to stay out of this, but I can't help it this time. When the score was announced for the winner at Indy on Saturday night, it sounded like Dick Cheney just walked into a DNC convention. People were leaving the stands in droves. The people around me were either booing, shrugging their shoulders or just clapping politely. I have always liked BD. How could you not? Obviously the judges were very happy with their show. But, whether it was the fact that Crown didn't win, or the fact that BD won by that much or came so close to the record, most of the crowd was extremely unhappy.

My first date with the girl who is now my wife was 20 years ago to see the Pat Metheny Group - she loved it. A few weeks later, we were in Allentown to watch corps - I loved it. To this day, we still get to a lot of corps shows (and Finals), we never miss PMG shows and, until his departure, never missed Maynard Ferguson shows. Now if I could just get her to watch Family Guy......

Before someone gets the wrong idea........ I've watched plenty of Cadets rehearsals over the past two years. They don't beat the crap out of the kids. Yes, they work hard, but there is no punishment ever dished out. Practices are run efficiently and there is no wasted time. Members move quickly back to their spots on their own. Some members even take it upon themselves to practice or do physical training on their own time. Often times, sets are repeated again and again. But, during the week of finals this year, the staff had trouble finding fault and the sets were only run a couple of times. The staff consistently passes out constructive criticism to help the corps improve. More often than not, the staff is praising and complimenting the corps for "great effort" or a "wonderful day of rehearsal". You really get the impression that the corps members demand more from the staff - not the other way around. It's definitely not day care, but it's not Navy Seal training either.

Thanks. Yeah, you're right. She's got mad skills!

What part of the show was that? Was the girl working her way to the end zone; or behind the pit and next to the horn line?

Nearly every member who spoke at the banquet thanked Jeff for his drill. They really loved it. I have no idea how they marched it, but they really loved it.

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Good point! Someone replied that Crown has a way of doing that to a crowd - that is very true. They are masters of the ballad. They also understand that you can't be loud unless you're also quiet. When you combine that with good control and good intonation, you're going to gain the crowd's undivided attention. I really think that Crown's ballads are one of the major components of their success. When their show is over, you really feel like they've taken you somewhere. That's good design.

When my kid first tried out for a top 12 corps a few years ago, she was told that she wasn't quite ready. But, they gave her plenty of recommendations for other corps as well as a ton of instruction to make her better. I would think you experience should be similar.

This year - Boston.

It's painful to say but I've spoken to several members of another corps who said that Crown staff was very rude last year and some of the BD members did not exhibit very sportsmanlike behavior this year. The behavior of Crown staff really bugs me since I have liked Crown from the beginning and always hope they do well. It's very evident that they work very hard and deserve all the adulation they receive. There is absolutely no reason for them to act this way.

Thanks.

Before you close the thread......... Man, that was some great stuff. Loved the design and loved the drill. Music was great no matter what they played. And, after all there was indeed a connection between Martha Graham and that music. They had every right to play it, and they played it very well! A great show is a great show.. No one can ever say that they didn't pull it off this year.