blazek

You think that Bluecoats are capable of winning an Ott this year? Even though virtually all of their brass staff went to SCV? I personally think its a big stretch, even though their brass was superb last year, no doubt, but it will be difficult to push back into that higher territory immediately after their 4 placement drop and loss of much of their best staff. I'm not familiar with most of the staff for this year, so I'm curious to hear your reasoning behind it.

Schubert's Unfinished Symphony.

Quick question, has there ever been a show where the theme centers around a super hero or specific mythos? Just a curious possible show concept that someone mentioned to me.

An Eb Cornet is still part of the larger trumpet/soprano family though, along with the Bb, C, piccolo, and the many other variants on the instrument. In terms of this activity, the Bb trumpet is still the soprano voice, but it seems that there is a schism in terminology based solely on a change of key. I guess I just don't understand why some people are condescending of one term over another, when there is good reason for both of them.

Out of curiosity, when's the last time you heard a corps play anything in B or E major?

Shouldn't they be interchangeable? I know plenty of people who still use those terms. Trumpets are the soprano voice of the brass family. Neither a change of key or the addition of valves changes that fact.

It's less about swearing to secrecy and more about them putting the finishing touches on the product they plan to present. The members have some of the music, but even they don't know what the show concept is yet. When it's ready, I'm sure they won't feel the need to keep everyone in the dark.

I think Crown taking the gold this year is more likely than Madison leaping past Bluecoats, Boston, BK, and Phantom into the top 6, considering its been a solid decade since they've placed higher than Coats or PR. Though, I'm not holding my breath that Crown will win with all of the staff changes. But, I suppose it's still possible. As for Madison, I think in time they very well could return to those ranks. One step at a time though. Also, I don't think BK dropping out of finals is a likely scenario with their success this past year. Just my $.02, I could very well be wrong on everything.

No uniform has been unveiled to anyone yet. Your guess is as good as anyone's.

The role of drum corps in our society has changed, yes, you got that much right. Strangely enough, there are other programs in most public schools that provide the whole "delinquent prevention" that drum corps was lauded for many years ago: music programs (yes, I know that the future of music as a whole is also on a precipice, but that's a different story). Sure, they may not be perfect, and they might not be summer activities, but it's still a means to bring music to young individuals across the nation. You also have a very jaded perception of the activity today, obviously. While I do not agree with all of the programming and changes happening within the administration and design, your comments toward the marching members of today is insulting. How dare you make these kind of broad assumptions over the reasons and means of the kids that work their tales off to try and entertain thousands of people every summer. You have no idea as to their motives or means to march, so don't pretend like you do. Also, learn to edit your posts, I could barely stomach your incessant grammatical errors.

It's not a "Copland Show".

A tech of mine had to march next to a hole at finals in 2000 because the kid got caught with marijuana after semi's. That kid was apparently sent home immediately.

A reinterpretation of Scheherazade by Madison could be a cool combination. It would be interesting to see how it would compare to the SCV version.

Thank you for sharing such a wonderful arrangement. There's a ton of Electronic music with respectable melodic and harmonic content that would put a lot of traditional pop music to shame. Pendulum and the Glitch Mob come immediately to mind. Just because it's electronic doesn't make it automatically wub-wub garbage that couldn't translate to any other genre. I'd personally like to hear a corps take on electronic music, and challenge them to surprise me and the rest of the audiences by not making it "sound" like it's electronic music. If a corps can make it accessible, with the right arrangements, then we might be able to see an entirely different genre open itself up to the activity. No need to overemphasize synths or weird alien sounds, melody is still what's most important to create that accessibility.

1. / 2. - Blue Devils/Cadets - They've got the most momentum coming from last year, and will probably put the cleanest shows out there again. 3. Crown - The usual crowd pleaser with a harder and cleaner book. Might push into 2nd. 4. Cavies - Loss of Gaines will have an impact, but not as much as people think. 5. SCV - Wozniak + Shaw + Rennick. A transition year, but still a solid program nonetheless. 6. Phantom - Lives on without Shaw. 7. Boston - Will possibly win the crowd over more this year, possibly pass Phantom. 8. Madison - They've got everything going for them design and staff-wise, so they'll likely break out of 10th. 9. Bluecoats - Program this past year might weaken them member-wise, and new staff might make it difficult to return to previous competitive placement. 10. Blue Knights - Even better design than before, but some staff changes may be problematic. With good recruiting, may push past Coats. 11. The Academy - Andre Feagin 12. Blue Stars - Weak program this past year might make recruiting difficult, but will not let other corps break into that Saturday Night show. 13. Spirit - Great momentum will carry over this year, but it will be difficult to get past the others. 14. Crossmen - Also good momentum, 2nd year of staff and design team will lead the corps to high places. 15. Troopers 16. Glassmen 17. Colts/Pacific Crest My knowledge of the inner workings beyond the top 17 is too limited to make any kind of real prediciton...

So, is there any reason that Chopin has essentially never been put on the field? Granted, it would take a VERY imaginative arranger to pull off something like that. But, I imagine that his prelude in E minor could be used to create an incredible, beautiful, yet somber ballad. Plus, there is a multitude of other works that might give some good material to a show. Another piece that comes to mind is Vientos y Tangos by Michael Gandolfi. Certainly not the whole thing, but there are moments throughout that would work really well on a field.

I don't understand all the comparisons between SCV '10 and Star '93... For one, Star barely used any Bartok throughout their show, and a large majority of the memorable parts of the show are all from Barber's Medea. SCV used no Barber, and I don't think the shows should be compared on the basis of "oh, they both used some of Bartok's music". I also don't believe Star should be placed on such a high pedestal, but that's a different issue entirely.

Don't give up hope yet, I have a feeling you might be pleasantly surprised. :]

It's going to be a great year. Here's my silly prediction: 1/2. Blue Devils/Cavaliers - Together they've won 8 of the past 10 Championships, it can go either way. 3. Cadets - Their program has an incredible amount of promise this year. 4. Bluecoats - I've heard that they lost a lot of ageouts last year, but I don't see them stumbling much. 5. Crown 6. SCV - I'm very curious to see how their concept lays out on the field. 7. Bluestars 8/9. Madison/Blue Knights - Both corps have a lot of steam left over from last year that will propel them in 2011 (plus high vet retention rates). 10/11. Phantom/Boston - Staff changes and younger members might lead to a stumble for both corps. 12. Glassmen - As much flack as they get, with their consistency, I can't see anyone pushing them out of finals yet. 13. The Academy - I WANT to see them in Finals, but I don't know if this'll be the year... 14. Troopers 15. Crossmen - J-Buck knows what he's doing, and everyone seems really excited for them, so I'm curious how far they'll go. 16. Colts 17. Spirit 18. Pacific Crest 19. BDB 20. Mandarins 21. Oregon Crusaders 22. Teal Sound 23. Cascades 24. Jersey Surf 25. Pioneer

East Coast Jazz '98. Adam Rapa was tearing it up back then, and he still is.