quietcity

Yikes, mello solo out of tune

Is she with BD?

Academy horn line rough around the edges, or could just be that I hate Brahms.

It is shows like Mandarins that keeps drum corps alive and vital as an art form.

Totally serious. Bassoons and oboes could add a luscious primordial vibe, the kind that Stravinsky was so fond of.

I think they would march bassoons if they were allowed. Bassoons would work quite well with this show.

This show needs to be in finals

I am struck by the fact that SCV's abandonment of innovative whole field drill is correlated with their rise to the top of the heap. Seems they finally acquiesced to the reality of modern judging: movement and staging is what gets rewarded now. I love SCV's show this year, and so happy about their success, but I am missing the wonderful Weber drill from last year.

The platforms are meant to represent various things, like cages or towers, so I think any decoration would have detracted from this. Check out description from SCV's visual coordinator, Andy Toth:

Oui, la maison s'est avérée être un château.

Agreed! The only issues I have with this otherwise perfect show is the awkward transition from the dub step to the closer, and the rather perfunctory feel of the closer itself. I hope they beef it up some and put in that sustained mellophone wail.

I could not puzzle out what "SJW" was, and had to look it up on Wikipedia: Social justice warrior (commonly abbreviated SJW) is a pejorative term for an individual who promotes socially progressive views, including feminism, civil rights, and multiculturalism,[1][2] as well as identity politics.[3] The accusation that somebody is an SJW carries implications that they are pursuing personal validation rather than any deep-seated conviction,[4] and engaging in disingenuous arguments.[5] The phrase originated in the late 20th century as a neutral or positive term for people engaged in social justice activism.[1] In 2011, when the term first appeared on Twitter, it changed from a primarily positive term to an overwhelmingly negative one.[1] During the Gamergate controversy, the negative connotation gained increased use, and was particularly aimed at those espousing views adhering to social liberalism, cultural inclusivity, or feminism, as well as views deemed to be politically correct.[1][2]

But it is not all in jest. Cavaliers are quite knowingly engaged in social commentary. This kind of satire will inevitably rub some the wrong way and as such, I find it rather daring of the Cavies. They are willing to challenge and even alienate some in the audience in order to express a particular point of view. This is the nature of art, and one of the reasons I admire Cavies so much, regardless of their placement.

I just made a donation to SCV's food fund. You can never have too much peanut butter and jelly.

Yikes, Miss Amana has been totaled! This presents a real challenge for SCV. Time to make another donation...

I am not really a fan of the Vanguard yell at all, as I want to hear and see the show as SCV intended. But if anyone MUST do it, please please please, do NOT do it before the horn snap and big hit in the ballad. This is an exquisite musical and emotional moment, and the yell there would be artistic vandalism. Just....don't.

Good god, Bloo, that show simply transcends the genre!

oh no! Genesis forgot their props! Is there a penalty for that?

Nice sounds from Genesis. I like their look too, its classy, albeit a little color-challenged.

Funny, I have the opposite reaction. I like the Cadet uniform on an individual basis. It is rather daring and edgy, while hinting at the original. But on the field, all the erratic stripes ruin the visual impact of formations, making them look fuzzy and indistinct. The visual effect is the same as "dazzle" camouflage on warships, which is an attempt to fragment the ship's silhouettes, making it harder for an enemy to judge distance and direction. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dazzle_camouflage

Mandarins have been around a long time! I remember them from my marching days in the late 70s as one of those corps that was kind of in the background, known only though occasional mentions in Drum Corps World. Times have changed! From the corps' Wiki page: The corps was founded in 1963 as the Ye Wah Drum and Lyre Corps, an activity for youth of Asian-American heritage. Roy Wong, Frank Lim, Thomas Fong, and Yuk Fong had originally approached the Sacramento Chinese community with the intent of starting a drum and bugle corps to perform at the many festivals and parades held each year in the Sacramento area. After struggling to get underway, the corps made its debut on the Fourth of July, 1963. A color guard was added to the corps in 1964 and became a competitive unit in 1965. Entering the field as a competition corps, the group changed its name to the Mandarins Drum and Bugle Corps in 1967. The corps competed only in Northern California until making its first trip to Southern California in 1970. Since that first trip, the corps has represented its community, Sacramento, and California around the country and abroad. Mandarins appeared in the Taiwan presidential inaugural ceremonies in 1972 and '78. In 1974, they went to Hawaii to march in the King Kamehameha Parade. In 1975, they made their first trip to the Pacific Northwest and Canada. They made their first appearance at the DCI World Championships at Denver in 1978. In 1983, under the leadership of Executive Director Ray Mar, the corps began working toward becoming a highly successful competitive corps, and they have been regular competitors in DCI since 1986, winning Class A60/Division III championships in 1987, '88, '92, and '96 through '99 and the Division II title in 2001. Mandarins moved into Division I (now World Class) in 2003, and their highest finish has been 13th place, earned in 2017.

Congrats Mandarins! Can't wait to see how high up you get in Indy!

I remember a drum corps comic book from back in the 70's that has a sci-fi story called "Future Corps". Some time in the future (The year 2000, I think), the finest human corps was competing against a near perfect robot corps. The future of humanity was at stake or something. Does anyone remember this comic? I would love to find it again.

Whatever happened to pre-shows? They were a thing for a while, but seem to have faded away.

What are thoughts on new closer? From the videos, the music is great, but the ending seems tacked on and not that well integrated. I am wondering if there is more to come.