ThirdValvesAreForWimps

I hope someone has the good sense to field an "Unplugged" show theme and turns off the electronics and narration.

Indoor drum corps makes as much sense as outdoor ping pong. Down with the dome, down with electronics, and down with narration!

"Off stage." Really?

Electronic effects detract from the corps' performance. There; I said it!

I was at the Centerville show and the amount of points between the scores were about right for everyone. I'm not worried about the totals as long as the spreads are correct. Everyone had a good run, by the way.

Cappybara is right. One part of the design must not negatively impact any another part. It's necessary for the brass staff and the visual staff to be on the same page from Day One before the show concept is even decided. If the drill looks like a strand of DNA caught in a light socket but the horns sound bad while performing it, both elements suffer because the bad sound detracts from the visual effect.

If a drill causes the brass sound to suffer, it's a bad drill.

Let me just say over the past 35 years or so there have been plenty of spirited debates within The Cavaliers' organization -- alumni, staff, and marching members -- over the brass arrangements. I have always come down on the side of letting men play like men but there is still some resistance to this. If you have seventy strong, athletic guys, let them do what they do best and arrange the book to encourage this. We had more power and punch in the early and mid-1980s for the most part with the exception of early 1982. There was a rehearsal in 1982 when things weren't sounding good at all, in fact, where it came to a head because a visiting brass instructor, one of great renown in the activity, came to help and in two hours the brass line sounded like a whole new section. The stands were vibrating at triple forte and we went home that night excited about taking that new sound on the road. Unfortunately the regular staff told us the very next day to just do it the old way -- and we were just deflated.

Put Crown's percussion section up against The Cavaliers or Santa Clara and Crown can't make up enough ground in brass to make up for their deficit in percussion. Look, I don't dislike Crown but they are quickly becoming the 1981 Blue Devils who finished first in every caption at DCI Finals -- with the exception of a ninth place in percussion -- and took second place overall behind Santa Clara.

The Cavaliers will finish ahead of Carolina Crown by the end of the season. Like it or not, Crown's drum line isn't on par with their brass line and their brass line is pretty much as good as it's going to get this year. There isn't much more they can do. The Cavaliers' brass line is far better than any season since 2006 but it's still not where it needs to be. Even so, I'm pleased especially given the corps is very young and a lot of the brass staff are new for 2014. Also, The Cavaliers' percussion section is a most pleasant surprise. Fifth place at Finals....

Every show counts, Brasso, not just Prelims and Finals. George Oliviero was a constent lowballer throughout the seasons I marched and Gene Monterastelli wasn't all that swift either. Monterastelli could be objective but Oliviero could not. In the early 1980s, judges got away with anything which could elevate the Garfield Cadets. Have you heard tapes by Oliviero? I have. Criticism is fine. Meanness is not.

George Oliviero has spewed hate on The Cavaliers from back when I was a marching member until the present. Every time I think he reaches a new low he grabs a shovel and continues to dig a deeper hole.

"Sedici" is Italian for "sixteen." To say "sixteenth" we use "sedicesimo."

No one can stay at the top forever: Not a team, not an athlete, and certainly not a drum corps. It is much easier to get to the top than to stay at the top. Also, let's be real here: In the large scheme of things, being a DCi Finalist is a big deal. Yes, it's good to win but it's not so bad being #12 either because it means you're one of the best. When a corps doesn't have a chance to win it all, there can be several reasons. There can be new personnel, new staff, a substandard program, or a combination of all of these things. The thing to do is to keep cleaning, keep improving, and keep scoring higher. In the early 2000s, few golfers could beat Tiger Woods but they continued to sharpen their games anyway.

Simple answer: No.

The biggest difference you'll notice is the size of each corps. 150 members is now the limit vice 128. If you want to check my math, 128 original members divided into 22 new members per corps comes out to a 17% increase.

I'll gladly trade a few "wow" drill moves in exchange for more "wow" sound!

As someone who marched in 1980 I can tell you things were definitely different with respect to crowd reaction. It was definitely louder than a golf clap.

If this "pitch bending" was done with the brass line using a half-valve technique I would actually be impressed.

Too many!

if you're going to play Fanfare for the New, you better play it better than the 1979 Guardsmen -- and Madison unfortunately doesn't.

Ray Fallon, Thank you for posting your response to my entry above with class; I do appreciate it. Also, I am very sincere in what I believe and write on here and if I ever grate on anyone's nerves it is wholly unintentional. I also admire what George Hopkins did to bring The Holy Name Garfield Cadets of Bergen County from the competitive abyss to the top of the game. That was not easy. However, there is an asymptote drum corps must not approach in order to stay unique -- and on the other side of that vertical limit is where BOA and WGI live. That's not where I believe DCI needs to be because, as I see it, drum corps' uniqueness is what makes it special. Like you, I fear for the future and I understand change can be good. However, change for change's sake can lead to more detriment than benefit. I know there are less corps, less competitions, and smaller audiences than there were decades ago. I get that -- and I'm not sure how to grow the fan base but I do know this: Making drum corps look like other musical genres will not make for more fans wanting to see what it's all about. John

1980 Santa Clara Vanguard 1979 Troopers

Next time you get a chance, go onto YouTube and find a video of either Let it Be Me from 1978/1979 Spirit of Atlanta or Softly as I Leave You by the 1980/1981 Cavaliers so you can see the value of creating emotion and impact by playing an entire piece of music. Both of these pieces begin as beautiful ballads and build to ear-splitting emotional climaxes which left audiences nearly speechless.

Carolina Crown has definitely pushed the activity forward with respect to brass playing and this is a very good thing. In fact, listening to Crown today is the closest thing you'll hear to early 1990s Star of Indiana who similarly pushed brass playing forward. The rest of it, however, isn't so hot. I'm not into pre-recorded anything and the OP's take on electronics is spot on: They are not necessary nor do they enhance the show in any way. It's time for the Rules Congress to rescind the electronics rule and gracefully admit ten years of failure is enough. Drum corps is about the talent of the individual members, not that of the behind-the-scenes sound man. I'm less worried about what Carolina Crown is doing than I am what George Hopkins and others want to do because I sense a critical point where drum corps morphs into a combination of the worst aspects of Bands of America and Winter Guard International. Now I have nothing against BOA or WGI but they need to stay in their own lanes of the road. Similarly, DCI doesn't need to steer toward either BOA or WGI because in doing so, it dilutes the beauty of drum corps and takes away what makes drum corps unique as a musical genre. Drum corps is raw and basic: Brass, percussion, and visuals in brilliant combination. I'm not thrilled with euphoniums, trombones, or French horns on the field but at least they are brass instruments. Recorded woodwinds and strings are bad enough: Real woodwinds and strings on the field would be a disaster. What Carolina Crown is doing is flavor du jour and nothing more. The brass is amazing but the rest of the show, its "look," isn't so earth shattering in the long run. They will not repeat as champions in 2014 because what I hear and see from the Blue Devils is amazing without being off-the-scale weird.