[Finals: Beverages]

Grr...it's soda-pop tonic flavored beverage.

This argument is like taking a ball bat to a bled out, decomposed, maggot ridden equine corpse. Ready....halt.

[Burning Questions]

Are the Cavaliers going to shock the hell out of everybody and win this year?

They haven't been talked about at all. People think they are largely done winning for this decade. But they're top 3 right now.

From reading the various posts on the forum, I think it's really interesting that the Cavaliers have largely been counted out on account of their design and more importantly, their hornline.

As far as design goes, I feel the concept is a hard sell.

Without offending other fans or corps, a theatrical show has a lot of obvious effects and a flow that is almost pre-integrated into the production. The hard part there is to sell the music enough to appeal to a fan base who is very familiar with the music and storylines.

This year's Cavalier show is different in that it's harder to sell the depiction of athleticism in conquering mountains, or painting the picture of the American west (without using Copland as an ol' standby). The challenge for the Cavaliers is to communicate a clear message as to what their program means to Joe the Drum Corps Fan (close relation to Joe the Plumber).

On point with the hornline, I believe the Cavaliers hornline to be the most educationally solid and most consistent (say, since 2001/2002) sound in world class. That is certainly an audacious statement, but in researching their techniques and beliefs versus the techniques and beliefs of other corps, as well as the progression to the "finished product", I feel their hornline is by far the strongest. There is an exceptional clarity that is associated with the Cavaliers hornline, from well-defined articulations to an incredible aptitude to matching sound from player to player. While the dynamic level of the corps is often a point of controversy, I feel their trade-off for ensemble development over "loud" is an educational stand that is worthwhile, and I hope it continues (and perhaps someday will afford the recognition it deserves).

So, to answer the question quoted above, I feel the Cavaliers certainly have a chance to take another championship, if they can sell the show. For me, a hornline fan, it will be hard to top the sound that the Cavaliers' hornline produces this year.

[When will Cadets catch Crown?]

Speaking from a hornline perspective, I believe Cadets to trail Crown simply due to details. Both hornlines are "loud", but after seeing both groups, I feel Crown's ensemble sounds more matched.

While this topic does not include the Cavaliers, I think it is an important comparison to say that the Green Team has the cleanest and best balanced sound of all three groups in comparison here. The Cavaliers are certainly not the loudest sound, but I presume that is because the ensemble has not yet reached the maturity in the season to explore such extreme dynamics.

So, back to the original question, I believe Crown has a stronger hornline in comparison to Holy Name, but in relation to the big picture it is hard to top the clarity that the Cavaliers achieve.

[What were the best kept secrets in drum corps history?]

an important mystery to unravel: what volume of chocolate would be required for michael cesario to take a bath? additionally, what are the measurements of the vessel that will hold said chocolate?