SpenceriEuph

http://www.colts.org/news/news.cfm?news_id=834 Show announcement is in.

http://www.colts.org/news/news.cfm?news_id=834 The show announcement from the Colts is in.

Most of the rest of harmonium is more ethereal and less driving. Wild Nights seems to work best for the field. http://youtu.be/VamFzv523u0 Here's a link to the full piece. Definitely worth the half hour listen.

I assure you, at least where I come from, people don't get in this drum corps business to "not push as hard" as the top corps

Sorry, that was rude of me. I always saw it as a reference to Shostakovich's music and his defiance towards the Stalin.

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We should define "Theme" right off. As far as an underlying musical and/or visual idea which holds the show together, there hasn't been a drum corps show without a theme since the 70s. I don't think shows need "stories" by any means, but even shows like Harmonic Journey have coherency between the movements. If we're talking about "theme" by a strict definition of shared qualities between the pieces or a plot of some kind, these shows seem to be a minority. I personally tend to think of "theme" as the former.

They're a killer group. They generally sit middle of the pack most years. Last year's show was John Cage's 4'33 and The Sound of Silence by S&G. I like them. It's really too bad half the crowd leaves in the middle of their shows to get hot dogs.

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I abstain as I have a preference between the two, but to commit to it would force me to vote against 95 Madison, an act that I am simply not able to do.

Who was booing at bd 12-14? Those shows were magnificent!

Ahead of their time? Absolutely! Innovative? Of course. Influential? I think that's an interesting term people try to apply to star 93 when they want to dismiss it as modern and intellectual. No one has to this day even attempted to design a show "like" star 93. The entire show was a single coherent stream of a single musical idea (or journey if you prefer). I don't think they even got near forte until about 6 or 7 minutes in, yet there is such build and such intensity in that harmonically rich and rhythmically thick first half. I could count the number of shows that have even played snippets of that type of music on my right hand, and I have yet to see anyone tackle the art of drum corps in that way since. I grant, Star was absolutely influential insofar as their staff and the musicians who learned under them, and definitely visually, but I would argue star's 93 show was not particularly influential in the direction of modern design as a whole. The show stands on it's own merit as *opinion time* probably the most dramatic and musical experience set to the field. And on the most basic level, it continues to excite me and physically draw me to my feet in a way that few other shows still can. After all, isn't that why we continue to go back?

Can you elaborate regarding "creation from negative space"?

If I wasn't investing all my income into drum corps, I would put good money down for such a venture.

Finally, a context where this video is applicable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RLDtpXr6XQ

Hah! Don't worry. Arban is precisely as relevant today as he was a century ago (if not moreso). Pidget, The books to which I was referring were the corps' exercise books, which are generally consistent year to year (assuming the brass staff stick around) and can be found with a little digging on their website. Though I totally agree, if you want an exercise book that will help you be a brass player, Arban is the way to go.

Breathe. Lip slurs. Practice literally every day. Don't worry too much, you are by no means the first nor the last person to do this. Just practice literally every day, use your air, and do a crap ton of lip slurs. If you can get in some ensemble(s) on trumpet I'd do it. More playing=more better. Also more breathing, more air, practicing every day (literally) and lip slurs=better. Did I mention to relax? Also get the corps brass book as soon as it comes out, work it to perfection, and impress the crap out of your vis techs with your killer marching (make that happen). Lastly, move more air, do lip slurs, practice every day, and relax. From one woodwind in drum corps to another, good luck in your venture! You'll be glad you made this decision.

There are a number of Lauridsen charts that would be perfect for the field. Dirait-on and Sure on this Lux Aeterna come to mind right away for me. Ultimately, a good arranger can make a good show out of just about anything. I would pay good money to see (or play) O Magnum Mysterium on the field.

I'm no judge, but I imagine it has something to do with how they march, spin and play better than nearly everyone in the activity.

I was in a similar situation last year. The reality I faced was that at some point, you have to put all your eggs in one basket. With audition camps happening on the same weekends, if you're going out for multiple corps, you're probably going to have to decide where you're marching this summer by December or January at the latest. I was fortunate enough to, after the first camp, realize I really didn't like the atmosphere, from members to staff, of corps B, while corps A ended up being everything I wanted out of drum corps and so much more. As for actual advice, from the sounds of it, you're a good contender in either pool of auditionees. Your effort in the off-season won't go unnoticed. It sounds like, provided you put in the requisite effort, you could make either corps. If I were in your shoes I would consider my experiences from the past camps and decide which corps I wanted to be in the most. Which has the best member atmosphere? Which staff did you learn more from? Which one fits like a glove? I would cross the Rubicon with one or the other. ***Disclaimer: I'm a soulless voice from the internet. I do not know you. My advice is worth as close to nothing as any advice from the internet can get.***

I imagine he and Marc Sylvester would have stuck together as they had in the years he was alive, which would include corps like the Cadets, Blue Knights and the Colts.

Which Concerto in F?

Totally reasonable. In fact, in the hornline I marched in this year, ten of our 24 baritone players (including myself) started as woodwind or string players. In fact, only one was a baritone by trade, and even she started as a woodwind. The others came from a trombone or tuba background. Outright skill and experience on an instrument is always second to the ability to apply information quickly in this activity.

As long as they're not on the same weekend, you can audition for as many corps as you want/can afford. Personally I'd encourage auditioning at multiple places if you can make it work. It gives you a good sense of what different corps are like so you can choose, not simply based on where you end up, but where you fit the best.

I mean... if a man killing his best friends, bragging about it and using their dismembered body parts to create an army of minions is what you call "brimming with positive excitement"...