acolli17

It's a race against the weather right now.

Pioneer - dirty, drum line has potential. Ensemble tears. Troopers - huge crowd favorite so far (be careful, I'm biased). Relatively easy book, but they sound good. Ro to clean. Blue Stars - weird show theme, I know what they were going for, but I didn't really get that feeling while they performing. Crossmem - clean. Cleanest at this point in the show. Nothing incredibly memorable though. Spirit of Atlanta - WOW. They are loud. Tough show, pulling really tough things off and doing it well. Incredibly energetic. Intermission. I'll post more later.

TROOP-A-LOOP ROCKIN' THE BATTLE HYMN!!!

Pardon the Crown uniform interruption, but I just saw more pictures of Troop's uniforms. They look good in action.

I figured out why Blue Devils' shows bother me (hear me out)!! I'm excited because I've been trying to figure it out for so long. I've come to a couple of conclusions: - I absolutely love the Blue Devils' shows recently, from 2008 to 2012. - I don't like the Blue Devils when I saw them live, in those same years. - I've loved drum corps since my dad took me to the Ypsilanti show in 1995 when I was 6. But what I realize is I absolutely love the Blue Devils when I'm not trending my listening to drum corps, when I'm not in that mindset. I've really been in the mood for contemporary style music lately (Joby Talbot, Philip Glass, Zoe Keating, etc.) and then I watched a video of a kid playing along with BD's 2012 show, it fits perfectly in the mindset that I'm currently in. But it doesn't fit my corps mindset. It's just so different from what I'm used to seeing on the field, and I think this is why I'm now so excited to see them play Rite of Spring. I think Rite of Spring is absolutely perfect for them. Everyone knows about how the first performance of Rite of Spring caused riots, and how it was because the performance was so different from anything they had ever seen in that context, the people just couldn't handle it (there's a great podcast from WNYC Radio Lab that talks about this). It then goes on to talk about how a year later, at the exact same venue, the same setting of Rite of Spring was performed to tumultuous approval. I think the Blue Devils are this century's representation of Stravinsky, only in a more precise setting - drum corps. We as drum corps fans know the general style we like to hear on the field (which is why so many of us are against amplification, narration, synths, woodwinds, and everything else), so when that norm is challenged, we challenge back. Which brings me back to my original point: I love the Blue Devils' shows. But my mind has to be ready to approach them, and that so far hasn't been the drum corps setting. What's my point here? I don't really know. Maybe I'm just rambling because I got the day off of work and my mind needs stimulation. Either way, I'm just excited that I've come to this realization, and that I've realized that Blue Devils may now be one of my favorite corps, even if it's not in the moment. Hopefully some of that makes some semblance of sense. :Edit: had to fix one of the composer's names.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy with the new look, and I'm hoping it will look great on the field. But based on the picture of the bass line, it kind of seems like they haven't figured out the bagginess issue. Maybe they just need to be tailored yet, but that's my only concern with them at the moment.

Ah you're right. For some reason, I had it in my head that I went back an hour to see finals, I don't know what I was thinking.

Blue Devils hurt my ears last year. I was floored that they could be that loud with a quality sound.

I know I'm pretty ridiculously impatient about this, but I don't wanna miss it. Anyone know why the stream is still off air? Edit: Isn't Indy central time?

I actually think this will come across quite well.

I'm not sure what your point is here, but I think we're saying the same thing...

I got to attend the preview show of the current run of Einstein on the Beach in Ann Arbor last January. From a musician's standpoint, it fundamentally changed my perception of music. I was able to sit attentively throughout the entirety of the five hour work, and by the end of it, I viewed music in general in a new light. For example, probably my favorite scene was about twenty minutes long, in which a beam of giant light lay horizontally on the stage, which was otherwise total darkness. Over the course of the twenty minutes, that beam of light rotated ever so slowly from horizontal, to vertical, and then rose up off stage. There were other scenes where I'd be entranced by a man walking back and forth across the stage, and then all of a sudden I'd look up to see a giant train on the stage. Does any of this make sense? Well you're not alone. Robert Wilson, the man who collaborated with Glass on the piece, did an interview in which he talked about sitting down during one of the performances, and happened to sit down next to Arthur Miller. Miller, not realizing that the director of the play had just sat next to him, leaned over to this so-called "stranger" and quietly whispered, "I don't get it." Wilson responded, "that's ok, neither do I." I wrote a lengthy reaction post in my blog, much longer than the synopsis above, and I can show it to someone if they're truly interested (but keep in mind, it's one 24-year old's opinion on something), but I won't bother to post it here, I doubt people are that interested. That being said, while it is an amazing production, and probably the most eventful single moment of my musical career so far, I'm slightly hesitant to warm up to the idea of it on the drum corps field. I know that Crown has wonderful arranger's. But part of the reason that it was so amazing, and I was so easily able to handle the length of the original opera was that I was drawn in to performance with all senses; the sights, sounds, smells, feelings, all of it was so unique to this work. It is for this reason that, despite the oddities and lengths of the opera, I was so unabashedly enthusiastic about it. Drum corps has a very unique experience to it as well, as we all know. Will it blend? I'm not sure. To sum up my above-average length response, I am absolutely certain that the source material, when in context, is incredible. I am also certain that Crown is an amazing group of individuals, and can accomplish a lot of seemingly unfathomable ideas. I'm honestly just worried that the two categories are too spread to converge in to one production.

Reliable sources tell me Troop is fielding their largest corps ever this year.

Let me preface this with a lesser practical approach, and more "god, I wish this would happen" mindset. Put DCI Back on ESPN. In prime time. :smile:/> I know nothing about advertising, but couldn't you split commercial revenues from ad space?

I was speaking hyperbolically. I also think Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite fits the "Western" theme quite nicely.

I don't think anything can sound more western than the music from the

Did anyone else catch a hint of a new uniform in that video?

I'm shaking, I'm so excited.

I'm kind of hoping they announce the show, and include a new uniform style with it.

It's on the website! Every time I come back to my computer, I get more excited. www.troopersdrumcorps.org Granny, I know you know the website, I just posted the link in case anyone didn't.

So what's this 'exciting announcement' that has so many fans and alum teetering on the edge of their seats?

There were a lot of corps helping the Troopers, as Daave stated, both in and out of the 7. This letter, in my opinion, is intended to help those who helped them. Edit: This response is more for Bruckner8, I don't know why I responded to BRASSO.

I'm incredibly excited to hear the show design this staff comes out with. With so much experience coming from Blast! and other equally entertaining mediums, I can't help but be excited for whatever the Troopers decide to come out with this coming Summer.

It seems like there are a lot of people from North Texas. It's like that's a good percussion program, or something...

I think more people realize that than you would imagine. Besides, "he's only arranging and consulting" means that he's still arranging and consulting. Why shouldn't we be excited about that? That's like saying if I were given a role in a movie, and I found out Steven Spielberg was "only consulting and producing." I still have one of the best people at their craft as part of my team, and willing to help me become better. So, he may be "only arranging and consulting," but I'm still incredibly excited about that.