George Dixon

it's a Texas BOA ear thing me thinks- those bands use a lot of e-bass. Thing is DCI corps don't need it. the pit was wonderful - it just needed remixed to more of a DCI spectrum - with much more keyboard sound, then cymbals and metalics, wood effects and finally supporting bass. Currently the keys were getting swallowed up.

agree - she's a ringer. If she marches again next year they should feature her again.

They are laying a very good foundation in this brass program. With some Crown folks now on staff - and a good season under their belts I bet next year we see this brass line make a big leap up Now that Coats have moved into more modern/electronic music they "big band" jazz sound Crossmen/Coats were famous for is somewhat open. Crossmen should really pursue a driving jazz show next year with a lot of groove to it Well done 2015 Crossmen!!

pit balance is off - needs more keyboards - would really help their ensemble sound such a strong Crossmen show this year - I hope they build upon this next year. I think they will! This organization is really taking shape!

rear sidelines tunnel cam live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ix6VEuO09zI

front sidelines tunnel cam live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6QuZs_dgGQ

I agree. Much more dynamic and challenging. Plus they put out such a pure sound. Love it!

that is AWESOME - I really wish I was there

Vanguard Cadets were so good! Congrats to them on a great season - wow :)

and it was already 4 times as long as the BD thread before the uniform change

as if we aren't all already NUTS. "Drum Corps Nuts"

relevant yes, but the performance caption scores are halved - so you have to spread them 2x to make up for a gap in GE - which is not halved

there's a GE judge that has favored BD - the others are more Crown/Cadets so I've been calling it "balanced" as far as the top groups are concerned - but it's not (historically speaking) as favorable a panel for BD as semis the only change I predict is Cadets will medal. A couple judges last night really tanked Cadets. I'd give that a 60-70% chance of happening I wouldn't be shocked if BD wins - Crown's percussion spread is an issue. So if BD can take guard and spread drums - BD can overtake them heck it's not "outside the #'s" that Coats jump all the way up and win - things are so scrambled it is possible.

couple of things here 1. you have to halve the percussion score on the overall score impact - so the .15 change you are discussing only shifts the total score by 0.075 2. those were score gaps (in percussion) from 3 weeks ago - assuming they will translate to tonight is a stretch 3. the GE judges have more of an impact - yes, all 4 of them. Ken Turner vs. Nola is a possible plus for BD 4. cadets will be in black tonight - so that's not a factor I'd give BD a 30% chance of overtaking Crown, I'd give Cadets a 10% chance, and I'd give Bluecoats a 5% chance. That leaves crown with a 55% chance of winning, which frankly I'd round up to 60% with the crowd in their back pocket. That has an effect on the judges as well, as it should.

semis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKN-WLYpJRY

There are several

Correct. This group isn't known for dramatics.

This is a favorable panel for cadets and Crown. If those two perform well we have a good shot of Crown winning and Cadets moving back into medals. Of course the corps have go go out and perform. With a stellar performance from BD there is an outside shot of them overtaking Crown. I'd also give either Bluecoats or cadets outside shots at overtaking both corps to win, a stretch but in a year with great balance things can change nightly. I'm glad the panel is balanced nicely for finals. It's been an incredible season from the get go. I've been around the activity since the 70s and I believe this is the finest group of corps ever. Kudos to all. Crown made very wise changes to their program to add dynamic, tempo and drama. BD has a very moving show on the field with a stellar sound and stellar movement. Coats have carved out an incredible niche while successfully flowing up on tilt, not easy. This is the best Coats corps ever. Cadets could win music, drums and brass tonight. Wow. SCV is fresh and totally back. Watch out for them next season. Down the ranks but no less in our hearts, corps like Crossmen, Troopers, Academy etc are just fantastic. Great to see cascades so strong. And the show attendance! Too much good news to mention. Frankly, whoever wins tonight we all win. That said I'm pulling for a Bluecoats miracle!!!

congrats Cadets on winning BOTH brass and percussion (along with music!) tonight - wow!

well she makes a career of it.

agreed the corps were outstanding, and the quality of the feed (for me) was very good I really enjoy the variety of the shows this season - even the top 6 corps are ALL very different, heck the whole top 12

I'm thinking they'll finish in 3rd

well all agree on that one - BD got robbed and PR (I felt) should have been in 3rd of 4th

so just as an illustration of how 1 judge can swing things Prelims visual analysis judge had Cadets behind BD (who was in 2nd) by 0.2 tonight's visual analysis judge (the lovely ex-27th member Debbie Torchia) had the Cadets behind BD (who were now in 1st) in visual analysis by 1.7pts that's a swing of 1.5 points OVERNIGHT / and made a 0.75 difference in the final scores this aligns closely with her history as a judge as does George O's scoring Guard Thursday night Crown took guard over BD by 0.2 pts Friday night with George O scoring, BD was over Crown by 0.1pts - again, closely following his judging history So not as big a swing there - but still a 0.3 difference, amounting to .15 in final score As always, it is quite interesting.

Thanks for doing this!