MikeRapp

Well it certainly isn't the only reflection, or even the best reflection, but it is a pretty direct, measurable reflection of fan support. I think George is pretty open about why he does it, and it is only to intrigue the fans and get them talking about the show concept. He is a pretty savvy guy, I suspect he knows it can only help interest in the corps.

It's all about philosophy. The Cadets and Bluecoats always are among the first to announce, and they do so because they want to promote the season with fans as early as possible. Others take the opposite approach, wanting the element of surprise to carry momentum into the season. I am sure some corps leaders do not want to show their hand until the last possible moment for competitive reasons. Blue devils are often among the last to announce their show concept and music, no doubt because they want to keep it as quiet as possible. I guess they don't feel they need fan support, and it seems to reflect in the relatively little amount of chatter here about their shows as compared to their stature. Compare that to the incredible amount of talk about Cadets and Bluecoats here.

It also takes a competitive compensation package. I'd say odds are pretty darned good that the leaders at BD and Cadets are paid better than those at almost any other corps.

I love what BD does. No one out-plays them. It's not as if they are cheating musicianship to get theatrics. But they are winning because of how they design and execute guard, and you cannot just go out and do what they do with first and second year talent that has no professional training. It is exciting to see so many other corps try to compete with different and unique approaches. It's fun to watch these shows evolve over the season. There is no question BD is pushing competition forward across the board. Just want to see some other approaches rewarded.

BD is the only corps that treats the guard like actors on a stage, and they recruit and train kids for years as professional dancers and actors. Some corps are catching them in musical performance but none are able to match them in guard scores. There's just no easy way to do what they do without serious talent and experience. Their guard approach doesn't translate well to the audience, because let's face it you're sitting half a football field away. But they execute their guard concepts for the judges, who are on the field and watching from 15 yards away. I personally have enormous respect for them because they have built their entire organization the right way. But it is not good for the activity to have any one corps dominate the way they are. The next four corps are all doing their thing in unique ways, but until the judges see different guard approaches as equal to BD's, I don't expect them to fall beyond the Silver position any time soon.

1. Cadets 2. BD 3. Crown 4. BK 5. Bluecoats 6. SCV 7. Cavaliers 8. Phantom 9. BAC 10. Scouts 11. Cross men 12. Academy

My guess is DCI made them take it down due to the fact that the last five minutes were video from the show.

Thanks for posting this. I had to work around the house all day today and listened to this show over and over again. That last sequence near the end may well be the best minute of music and drill of the entire 2015 season. They have such a big, big sound, and their show design is just incredible. Very obvious they have tremendous buy in with the kids, because the way they sell this show is awe inspiring. Btw there is a video out of this last show on YouTube from a go pro mounted on an age outs head that is also tremendous. Get choked up at the end when all his friends come to him and hug him and you can hear him crying. Just amazing.

That just never gets old!

I think it is crazy that no one is talking about The Cadets in this thread. The odds that they won't have a very different and much more compelling show design next year are 0%. And they will have top five talent every year regardless. The Cadets will medal next year, you can almost write it down in ink (no pun intended). The corps most likely to feel their heat is probably Bluecoats. Because I won't bet against Crown or Blue Devils in terms of show design or talent. I am hoping Vanguard makes a move. I just think they have to play more music and do less running around while not playing. It seemed like a huge portion of this years show had no one playing a brass instrument. They have, and will always have, great musicianship. Cavaliers have to move up, because they probably cannot move down. Sad, but true. I wish Acadmy could retain top talent. It would be great to have a contender in Phoenix. They seem to know what they want to do from a direction standpoint, sort of a more modern version of Phantom. Thought they would make finals this year. It's great to see so many corps scoring in th 90s. That is a sign of the true health of th activity.

For what it is worth, the Nashville show is apparently always one of the best attended of the season, and I have literally never seen or heard one word about the event. And I work in the Nashville media.

The big thing here with Bluecoats and possibly Blue Knights is that they may now see very few members move to Blue Devils, Cadets, SCV or especially Cavaliers or Phantom. That should give them a good shot at moving up, by default, although the reality is BD was very young this year so they are only going to reload. The corps that needs to be serious this offseason is Vanguard, because with the rise of Bluecoats and BK they are in danger of falling back. And you cannot expect that Cavaliers will remain out of medal contention forever. Scores are rising across the board and for good reason. You can get better but fall back in the competitive rankings.

I think most people felt this would be a bit of a down year when they started touring the new show. It shows you how great their staff is at understanding how to design a show and teaching how to execute it throughout the season. They certainly bring the energy from the sidelines and in rehearsals. I for one am so glad that (at least this year) they almost completely abandoned the trampoline-style of production and went old school. My only quibble is that their talent level probably could have handled a tougher brass book. They have an awesome wall of sound, but compared to the complexity of BD and Cadets, they were less demanding this year. Crown has become the new model for how to build a world class corps. Maybe some of the other regional organizations (Music City, SOA) can follow in their steps.

So, question: Were this the year Bluecoats unveiled Tilt, do they win the gold?

Why don't more BD fans participate here? Seems odd that the preeminent organization in the activity would have more fans than anyone else.

I completely agree. The thing is, as much as I really hoped Crown would win last night, the Blue Devils organization is the model to which every single corps should aspire. Where would this activity be today without them? I may not like the way they work the sheets, but I certainly have utmost respect for how they compete.

Great post, couldn't agree more on all counts. This year I sort of felt as if a The Cadets had an agenda, which was to prove that all these big productions were silly, and they could out-drum corps everyone else and we're going to prove it by selecting a theme that was almost a middle finger of a concept. Some of the greatest shows ever performed in this activity were performed by The Cadets, but the most memorable of those combined their absurdly efficient execution with an equally absurdly powerful concept. You have to remember that these shows are not only viewed by people, but performed by kids. Give both something to grab onto other than execution. As much as a have grown to love Bluecoats and Crown, I think Cadets have the best chance to dethrone Blue Devils because they have the depth of talent and experience to out execute BD with a great concept. I don't say this to rain on George at a low moment. I give him enormous credit because he always chooses to include the fans in their process and truly loves the activity at every level. We just need him to get onto the same stage as BD, BC and CC in show design and slug it out, even in all black uniforms.

The only thing that would comcern me were I DCI is how thoroughly and efficiently BD has figured out their show design relative to the sheets. Just seems like they are going through the motions and DCI rewards them for it every year. There is no doubt they have top drawer talent across the board, but to me all of their shows have the exact same arc and elements.

Dunno. We are seeing three other corps each carve out a unique niche for themselves that is not only appealing to the crowds, but to the kids as well. Crown is the only world class corps in the south that matters and they have a huge base of talent to draw from. Their reputation is now solidified and I doubt they will rarely finish out of the medals. Bluecoats are carving out an entirely unique place for themselves and, quite honestly, are killing it in musicianship as well. I don't see them dropping off any time soon. Their best days are ahead of them. Cadets are cadets. They will always be among the best in every caption and you know George won't let this fourth place finish go unanswered. I would not be surprised to see them win the gold next year with a show that rivals Angels and Demons. They always have that sort of opportunity in them. There is no doubt the Blue Devils organization is second to none. But the entire activity has taken a huge step up across the board.

No one is mentioning how close Bluecoats came to winning th Silver tonight. Wow.

No audio on the YouTube feed? Really?!

Did you factor out the half point penalty?

When your entire show is based on technical execution, you will be judged accordingly. That was the risk of this show concept, especially when the other four top shows have strong emotional elements where the technical aspects support the concept rather than being the entire concept. We all love the Cadets historical position in DCI. I just wish their show designs leaned more toward Angels and Demons rather than concepts like 10. Unless you are studying every nuance of their execution, this is not a show that you watch more than twice. There is no question this is the most technically difficult show in the tour this year, but like it or not it is still a show, and you have to be able to create something that gets some kind of emotional reaction if you are going to beat BD, BC and Crown.

I certainly understand having a hard time transitioning from a DCI corps to band, but come on, the future of the activity is sitting in band rooms -- and especially in band directors' offices. I had a very good marching band in high school in Toledo and not one of us had a clue about Glassmen. We had at least a dozen kids who would have been capable of marching at that level, but no one ever even came to address us from our own hometown corps. And we won marching competitions. I know that the established corps now do this as a part of their marketing, but looking down your nose at high school and college band is just cutting off your nose to spite your face. Sure it's a massive step down, and of course 90% of those kids wouldn't make it past the first day of training, but the other 10% would certainly be able to contribute.

Which is why the best thing DCI can do is help young corps grow their organization in a responsible way. It seems as if they learned a hard lesson in the 90s by pushing too hard for corps to go World Class and tour beyond their means. When a DCI finalist folds, it sends shock waves through the entire activity at every level. The mission cannot be to win medals, it has to be to build culture and educate young people. You're not going to be the Blue Devils, Cadets or SCV in a year, or even in 10 years. Make sure The Brigade and these new young corps KNOW what the mistakes are they MUST avoid. Cannot allow another Glassmen.