pudding

Ironic, he would pitch a fit at their show this year.

I may have channeled a bit of good ol' Brutus as I was writing this...

I think that it's less about finding satisfaction solely from numbers and placement but rather about being recognized for the excellence that is being produced on the field. When fans look at the product and demands being put out there by one corps, and then see that that corps is not being rewarded like another corps is for perceived similar or lesser demands, or for similar or lesser design, a certain righteous indignation emerges. Of course, having the strongest fan reaction is great, and having a memorable show is nice, but in a competitive activity people are wont to desire acknowledgement, both compared to others and for their own sake.

You are correct, shotgun mics are directional mics. They also have a huge range, which is why proximity isn't necessary to amplify with them.

GE Vis is more about how the visual program ties in to the advertised effect of the show: does the visual design reflect what the show is being sold as? Does the visual package marry well to the music, reflecting what we're hearing with what we're seeing? The Visual caption evaluates the visual book demand and execution independently of the music and overall effect. That is, regardless of how the visual design marries with the rest of the show, is it composed to challenge the performers? Are the performers demonstrating excellence in a variety of demands and executing them well?

It certainly seemed to work for them back in 2000-2006; the Green Machine was stunning to watch and was also highly rewarded. 2010 was also a banner year, and they used a similar visual approach. Part of the reason why I've fallen out of love with the Cavies lately is that they've strayed from the amazingly crisp and refined designs that won them titles. Recently I've felt that they are trying to reassert their identity, but they are mistaken in what their identity is. It's not just having a Y-chromosome, it's being mature and powerful, while still being under tight control. That is the Cavies I love, not this pastiche of testosterone.

When I went to bed last night, I wasn't sure what this thread would turn into. I'm glad that it's more or less what I expected. It's really obvious who did and didn't get to the end; I sort of wrote it with the idea of making it more and more difficult for people to keep reading if they weren't inclined to like "deep explanations" of shows to begin with (or for that matter the Bluecoats in general). Regarding a few points that have been mentioned, my personal taste is neither the unconnected presentation of musical material of old, nor the overly-abstract highbrow message-sending of new. I like shows to have a simple theme, to use music and visual design to communicate that theme, and sell the theme with every aspect of the show (e.g. 2006 Cavaliers, 2008 Phantom, 2014 Bluecoats, etc). I can understand "deeper" shows, but I don't prefer them, and neither I think do most fans, casual or otherwise. As for my true thoughts about 2017 Bluecoats? Well, aside from just being high energy and fun, I think that there is a study of compare and contrast (left/right, high/low, front/back, greyscale/color, black/white, hearing/seeing, etc), but beyond that there isn't much in terms of depth. Certainly not the over-analyzed nonsense of the OP.

I think everyone has their short, medium, and long explanations. Personally, my short explanation is "pro-level marching band"; gets the point across without diving into details they don't care about. My medium explanation is along the lines of "a cross between high-level marching band and visual theater". This is a bit more accurate and invites some questions if they want to learn more. The long explanation starts with "so back when militaries would use drums to communicate..."

More than "great", Prosperie is THE judge. If he gave us 4th, then we deserved 4th. My only comment is that he was in the box, and in the box certain exposed gimmicks are more easily read than more subtle nuance that can only be read on the field.

What bothers me about the Cavies visual design is exactly the disorganized, chaotic approach that people are mentioning. Yes, it takes some doing to be chaotic in a directed manner, but it has a far lower standard of excellence than a controlled and unified visual design. This is why I say that the Bluecoats have a better visual design; their floor for excellence is higher, and their ceiling is higher. The Cavaliers have hit their floor for visual excellence, but because of their design approach they may be close to maxing out.

As a brief interjection, the whole point of shotgun mics is that they pick up everything in front of them, not necessarily just things that are played "into" them. So even though the corps may be physically distant from the mics, they are still being picked up and amplified, just not as much. Which is to say, the Cavies still had a great brass sound, but it wasn't without amplification (same with everyone except I think Crossmen last night).

Your comment reminded me of 2006 Cavaliers. That stretching block they had is incredible, the first stretch into the corner, if I look at it just right I can almost picture it not as a stretching rectangle but as a stationary building that we're just shifting the camera on.

Of course. Earlier, the idea was that the soloist was beckoning the brass to come join him in his exploration of the past, represented by performing on a concert euph, an instrument that predates the marching euph.

1995 Cavaliers is definitely shoddily done (IIRC they just tacked it on Finals week or something) but I think that it's notable for being revolutionary (heh) all the way back then.

1995 Cavaliers had a rotating planet, 2013 Phantom had a 3-D book opening, and Blue Devils had a rotating box somewhere (I don't remember the year, it was recent). There are probably more examples out there.

Bluecoats' 2017 production, Jagged Line, has met with quite a bit of controversy. "It the same thing as last year!" "There's no theme!" "Dancing is dumb, why would anyone do it?" Well, these are all completely valid concerns, so I decided to dive into the Jagged Line and try and figure out what the show is actually about. What I found shocked me, and may shock you. In an unprecedented move, the 2017 Bluecoats design team actually had the cajones to do a show of commentary on drum corps itself, both acknolwedging its past, and looking toward its future. Hear me out. The very first thing we hear when the show begin is a sample of the "Prelude" from Thank You Scientist's album Maps of Non-Existent Places; the lyrics are "Leaving without a trace / Don't know when I'll be back again". That is, we are starting from a place of familiarity (the paradigm of drum corps until now) and moving into uncharted territory (innovation in design). As the full brass choir comes in, we are given a final sample of "Leaving...", signaling our departure from where we "are" and the start of our journey into "where we will go". As the percussion enters, the brass ensemble struts out from under the prop and performs a choreographed dance program. Some say that this is simply recycled from last year's program; in actuality, it is the beginnings of an examination into the "past", beginning with just one season prior. In fact, this is our first hint into the theme of the Jagged Line in general: the Jagged Line represents the schism of past and future. If you don't see it, simply look at a timeline that has been abbreviated: Things that happen on the left of the prop represent the "old", and things that happen on the right represent the "new". This is a recurring theme that will show up later. But what does it mean when the corps is on the prop itself? Back to the show: The very first impact of the show takes place with the entire corps on the prop. Is this just a visual decision in order to emphasize the Jagged Line visual theme? Or is it more? When you think back to the left/right of the prop design from earlier, the answer becomes clear: when the corps is on the prop, it represents the marriage of old and new; the intersection of tradition and innovation in the present. Thus, the initial impact is a statement that while this show is going to examine both past and future, it is going to do so from the perspective of unifying them. Immediately after the opening chords, the high brass marches down the ramp and veers straight off into the "past" side of the prop. What does their drill do? They make rectangles and do box rotations, classic drill characteristics of the 2000s decade. When the low brass on the right side of the prop joins the high brass in the standstill with body movement, the form is disinctly reminiscent of 2000 Cavaliers, and the footwork reminiscent of 2010-era Crown; when they break into individual movements, it's a taste of "breaking down" the form and movements from unity into elements; a "deconstruction", if you will. What's interesting about the next phrase of drill is that while the horns start off facing backfield, they quickly turn to face right; facing the "future". The battery drill seems to lead them to want to go to the "past", but they reverse their direction and follow the horns. Meanwhile, the guard is gathering in the "past", and using traditional guard equipment such as flags and rifles, both things that are becoming more and more scarce in modern guard design. After the impact, the quad feature; a standard of drum corps designs both old and new. This one combined both style, utilizing both modern rhythmic and melodic vocabulary (in the feature proper) and traditional, less active writing (in the ostinato). Note also that this feature is in 7/4, and then moves to 4/4; even while the written material moves from traditional to modern, the time signature moves from modern to traditional, ending on the same spock roll that was so lauded in 2015. The tubas being on the prop is the glue that ties the next section together; a truly brilliant marriage of old and new. The low brass on the right side of the prop are playing very modern, pointed rhythms, almost percussive; when the high brass enters on the left side, they are in the very high register, reminiscent of 1980s Madison Scouts. The tubas on the prop privde the grounding that marry the past screaming and the future minimalism together. This is emphasized even more when the brass snakes through the prop, literally jumping between eras as they bring their statement to a final close. Now, the ballad. Much talked-about, very controversial. First, observe that the brass and guard spend the entire movement in the "past" side of the prop. This does not necessarily mean that the ballad is meant to be a representation of the past; rather, it is an examination of the past and what made the past great. The soloist stands on the prop, again signaling that the past will be viewed through the lens of the present. There is a very clear demarcation during the ballad; the curvilinear where the brass puts their horns down. To me, this is intensely reminiscent of the visual theme of the Bluecoats 2015 show, Kinetic Noise, except inverted; where before, the frantic action taking place during the baritone solo was above the curve, where here it is below. Note that as players "escape" from the hectic choreography inside the curve, their movements "calm down"; they become pensive as they reflect on the past. As the brass choir comes to a cadence, we expect a huge hit, but no. The brass begins marching away from us, as if to say that our expectations are outdated, and we cannot cling to the past. To emphasize this, they literally turn around, gazing one last time into the venerated altar of history as they play their beautiful chorale, which, again in defiance of our expectations, gets played back to us loud and clear, a foreshadowing of the integration of old (brass) and new (electronics). On the final chord, they turn back to the front, allowing us for one last time to luxuriate in the lushness of the traditional chorale ending of ballads old. However, even as this is happening, the battery, under the prop instead of over it, beckons us toward the present (the prop), to grow till tall, heard but not seen as if to represent the irresistable pull of idiomatic evolution. I haven't spoken much about the front ensemble yet, because there hasn't been too much to say about them so far. However, note that for the percussion break, the marimbas (the featured instrument in the original One Study, One Summary) are pushed forward; this may seem odd in the context of their setup, but realize that where the marimbas have pushed to is actually where the marimbas would normally be in a traditional front ensemble setup (at least in terms of front-to-back). This is a small way to ease the transition into the very, very modern percussion break; our attention is drawn to the snares on the prop, who start as a solo but build into a full section, representing more and more people wrenching away from the past and back to the present. During the snare feature, notice the shapes that the hornline make with their drill; they are arrows, first pointing right, to the future, then for a moment heading back left, toward the past, before resolutely heading into the prop (the present), simultaneously "pushing" the guard into the future. Note that the guard equipment has changed from the traditional flag and rifle into a newer implement: a cane. As the percussion breaks down their groove, the hornline and guardline are integrated into a very, very modern dance choreography, in some ways reminiscent of the choreography from earlier but also different. At the climax of the percussion break, the hornline has formed a literal line through the prop; this is the timeline that got slashed in the image above. Note that most of the timeline is on the right side of the prop; we are nearly finished with the past, but the future has much to explore. The Zappa piece, Zomby Woof, takes place exclusively on the right side of the prop, much like the ballad took place exclusively on the left. Canny observers will note the extensive similarities in visual design approach to the very recent developments of the Blue Devils, as well as the Bluecoats themselves in 2016. Musically, no more fitting word can be applied to Zappa in general than "weird"; when gazing into the immediate future of drum corps, that word applies aptly, and the strange fivelets that the trumpets (and piccolo trumpet solo) play reflect that perfectly. The Zappa is fun, it's energetic, and it's high energy, but it can be easy to be lost in all of that hype and energy, and lose sight of the history that got us to where we are. The quads show up just in time to remind us; two on the left of the prop, two on the right, and one up on top, they march down the field to remind us that we can't just have fun in the sun with our new design toys. Indeed, as the quads finish, the snares pick up, this time entirely on the left side of the prop, as if to emphasize that we cannot forget the past; the front ensemble has returned to the groove from earlier in the show, demonstrating even here a small look into ten minutes ago. As the final percussion break finishes, and the trumpet duet takes over, the hornline gives perhaps the best homage to old-school drum corps possible: symmetrical drill, and follow-the-leader. Even as we are hearing an incredibly modern usage of mic'd guitar patch over screaming trumpets, we see a throwback to the earliest visual designs of drum corps. However, right at the end, when the block consolidates, it is not symmetrical, but repeats the arrow from the drum break, pointing to the right. The message is clear: Even as we respect the past, we MUST stride toward the future. As the form unwinds and the low brass sprints down the ramp, we see this demonstrated as the symmetrical drill returns and the brass, now completely in front of all of the mic picks and therefore playing completely acoustically, marches into a double company front, while the guard behind them chaotically throws their flags to the winds, mounts the prop, and flings their hats, creating an explosion as old and new fuse to create the perfect marriage of style. ----------

Delighted to see this. Erik is extremely intelligent and knows his way around electronics and sound design.

Kinetic Noise was the greatest usage of electronics, simply because they used electronics as an effect in and of themselves, and not as a tool to artificially boost the other artistic areas of the activity.

I'm definitely against what you say, simply clipping wireless mics to bells to reinforce sound; it's cheap, and as you say it makes the sound offensively loud. My biggest qualm with it is that it's so starkly noticeable when corps are and aren't using passive amplification; the truly acoustic sounds are so comparatively quiet, even when I know in my head that without the immediate comparison to the bloated amplified sound, it would sound loud and full. I feel manipulated into wanting more goo reinforcement, even as I dislike it, just because the natural sound of the horns sounds so comparatively weak.

In fairness, that was their victory run, so cleanliness was probably not their priority.

The Cavaliers had at least five shotgun mics on the front of their field. It wasn't terribly noticeable in general, but it was clear from their sectional features that they were artificially louder than other corps of comparable size and quality (e.g. Crown). There were also noticeable differences between when the shotgun mics were being used and when they were turned lower. Also note the stand mics on each of the props in the back of the field, and the effect mics on the ring prop. Assuming that you're referring to the Bluecoats with that "left of 50, back field" comment, realize that that's part of the intended effect; they turn backfield, but they sound more or less the same. It's a subversion of what you're seeing vs. what you're hearing.

In terms of technically excellent design (as opposed to technically excellent performance), I think that the sound design in Kinetic Noise was the best usage of electronics to manipulate sound that has ever been seen. If you didn't see the show live, then you almost can't comment on it; it's so totally different live than it is in any video form, including the Blu-Ray.

I remember hearing what brass sounded like back in 2008 when I first started attending live shows; I sat in front of Phantom's hornline in the lot and had my face peeled off, and got to luxuriate in Crown's opening hit of Finis. To me, goo is a blemish on the otherwise beautiful sounds of the brass choir, making it sound more like a tarmac than a football field. Goo can be used tastefully (2014 Bluecoats, as you mentioned, and I felt that 2015 Bluecoats were also nearly undetectable in their usage) but it seems that taste is taking a backseat to rumble this year. I would also note that in general, members can't hear what is coming out of the speakers. I aged out in 2014, so I didn't get to hear the on-field sound of the satellite speakers of 2015 and onward, but I remember in particular being in Little Rock while the Vince Oliver was working on the pitch bend patch. Usually, the pitch bend was something that we knew happened, and we could hear it a little bit reflected off of the stands, but we went into the seats while he was working on the patch and the difference was absurd; it was nearly painful to listen to (although we had stupidly decided to jump into the first row right in front of the speakers). It really was a night and day difference in terms of sound levels from behind the speakers to in front. I would probably say that most current marchers, having not seen their own show live and from the front, don't know whether they are blending with the goo or not and just trust the staff to do it right.

To be fair, Cadets also have a very straightforward show that is being performed at a very high, but slightly less high, level. I think that the biggest thing they can do is turn down the f***ing goo and let their excellent brass display itself. If there were more time, I'd transfer a few of the vocal moments to brass, but it's a bit too late for that.

I'm so glad that I've figured out how to block users.