jamesjones0611

It is based off of the idea of a "pit orchestra", one used for operas and musicals and such. I'd go as far as saying that the pit is the most talented section in the drum corps.

Leon May is a fantastic drill writer. I think some of the wonderful staging things he has done with Crown and Avon HS these past few years have been outstanding. Not to mention his drill for Sensemaya in Crown 2009 was out of this world!

There are plenty of any-key lines that have a fantastic wall of sound. Crown/Phantom to name a few.

No drum corps sounds phenominal. That word is really reserved for professional orchestral groups. But compared to every single other group out there, Crown's hornline was above and beyond what anyone else put out. Oh, I can see visual demand with the Cadets. But Crown's horn book was much harder than theirs.

Agree, on all counts....except maybe when you said Cadets had more demand than Crown/BD. Running around the entire show does not equal demand.

Hey all, Who all here has heard "Hell's Gate" by David Maslanka? Its a band piece that features three saxophone soloists. This piece is intense! It is right up the lane of Crown, BD, and Cadets me thinks. Its a really fast tempo, creepy, frightening tune. I'd love to see a drum corps tackle it.

Happy fowath. Show us ya *****

The level of "wrong" in this statement is hilarious. No corps had the sound pumped through the house system. Whoever told you that was lying.

Rumor has it that Crown will be touring out west with BD/SCV.

For the first half of the season, they march strictly dot. Around San Antonio (or when the visual staff decides) they switch to form, although they still aim for their dots.

Nah, Crown has marched dot since Andy Ebert took over as visual caption head in 2007.

More thoughts : * Cadets will have a high energy show, but George learns the hard way that 11.5 minutes of moving just isn't what it takes to win a world championship. It needs to have substance, which is something that the 2009 production REALLY lacked. * Crown will win brass, again. This time by even more of a landslide. * Madison will never have anyone talk badly to them in critique :) * Troop will be overtaken by Colts/Madison. * Crossmen will continue to be mediocre at best. * Blue Devils will once again show the world how well they move. Those kids can frickin' march. * Blue Knights will provide yet another yawner of a show. * Vanguard will have a fantastic hornline, and a phenomenal colorguard, but the lacking percussion section will hold them back from the top 3.

Oh, I see what you did there.

Seriously? That baritone line was crazy loud. And those mellos in Sensemaya were wailing (with good tone, mind you)

Maybe I'm stupid, maybe I don't read DCP enough (lol), maybe I'm bored, or maybe I'm all three. In any case, what are YOUR predictions for the finalist corps this year? I'll make another topic later for the entire group of World Class corps when we know who all is fielding for sure or not (?). I won't name where I think everyone will be, but I'll put some thoughts out there that I think are going to happen. * BD won't place lower than 2nd. * Cadets won't be out of the top 4. * The Cavaliers won't be in the top 5. * SCV will put up a fight for the brass trophy, although I don't think they'll end up taking it. * Phantom Regiment will make a comeback of some sort. What are your top 12 predictions? Feel free to list them in order, or just to provide some thoughts on how you think corps will fare this year. Oh, and nothing is out of the question...its October, remember?

Crown plays with a more balanced sound than any other hornline out there, and they play more in tune than any other hornline on the field. There's a reason why they won brass overall by 5 tenths finals week.

I really like some of Lee Beddis' stuff with Crown these past few years, specifically 09.

Both, actually.

Nah, Crown and SCV both march strictly dot. Although Crown makes quarter step adjustments after San Antonio, usually.

I've seen videos, and heard recordings. I wouldn't blindly make a statement like that. The top 12 in DCI all sound far superior to even the gold medalist "corps" in DCA. I have no animosity, its just honesty. IF the DCA groups sounded better, I'd be the first to admit it.

They sound like ### though, so it doesn't really matter.

Seems to work for the Cavaliers and Crown.

You are the same decaying organic matter as everyone else. Have you heard of Tyler Durden?

I agree on all points except for the fact that 1984 Garfield sounded bad. I just don't really think that hornline sounded bad at all. In fact, I think they had wonderful tone. If you want to see a modern hornline that is loud AND plays with a great sound and in tune, then look at Crown. Otherwise, there isn't really another hornline that does all the things they do.

Not at all, even in the slightest.