Jake W.

I'm so over this ######## "chop & bop", "no sustained melodies anymore" criticism. Yes, the bulk of musical arrangements today are denser and thicker with musical quotes interspersed throughout a given piece of music. In my mind, Blue Devil's "Through a Glass, Darkly" was the epitome of this arranging style: twisting and contorting and blending known songs well enough that it creates a new tapestry. There are two shows this year that, in my opinion, are guilty of this: Scouts & Boston. Both, in trying to turn a new leaf on some tried & true tunes, arranged them in such a way that they don't really flow in the recognizable manner in which they were designed. I'm not saying this is good or bad, I'm simply saying these are really the only two corps in 2016 for which this argument can be made, but a few people seem to be insistent that it's THE TREND to not have recognizable melodies anymore. Let's break down all of the ways that this claim is utter ########. I'm excluding the music books of Mandarins & Crossmen, which are both almost entirely original. Blue Devils' entire treatment of Velazquez's theme from "The Impossibles" is utter melodic beauty, and this ballad alone should be enough to stop this claim in its tracks. Even further, this is coming from the corps who has taken the better part of this decade turning famous pieces and songs into a morphed tapestry of music in which they are not recognizable in more than snippets. This three minute segment should be enough to please any drum corps fan's yearn for a flowing, gorgeous piece played from start to finish. Say what you want about Coats' show this year, but it is NOT chop & bop. Great Gig in the Sky and Todo Tiende in particular are lifted almost exactly from their original sources, and even the most untrained ear could be played a Youtube video of each and then immediately recognize them in Bloo's show. Both pieces are played uninterrupted, as full musical arcs. Crown, arguably the most melodic group of recent years, definitely has a denser music book this year, with pieces woven together. Still, Roxanne sticks out as a very recognizable section, and the Medea opener is note-for-note along Barber's original composition. Not that I want to delve into other years too much, since this complaint seems to be focused around 2016's shows, but they've brought us Verdi's Dies Irae, Copland's Organ Symphony, Beethoven 5, Bhatia's Interstellar Suite, Zarathrusta, Silvestri's theme from the Abyss, and the multiple Lovatt-Cooper pieces, all largely unchanged and kept in their full melodies, in the last three years. Cadets always bring us great music, unmeshed, and Pines of Rome and Mackey's Turning are both played in their entirety, melodies fully-presented, easily-recognizable to anyone who knows these pieces. SCV's presentation of Richter's music, especially Spring 1, is easily recognizable. Cavies showcase Elegy for Dunkirk in it's full, unabridged form, and integrate it beautifully. Phantom's treatment of Rombi chorale as their second ballad is literally unchanged from the original, and Young Person's is presented in it's full form as the closer. Ave Verum Corpus is their standalone first ballad that is also undisturbed in its melodic presentation by other pieces. BK's presentation of Rouse's Gorgon, while not a "melodic" piece, is EXTREMELY close to the original, and is presented fully. Blue Stars have one of the most underrated ballads of the year, and their entire middle movement is a beautiful presentation of Wagner's Lohengrin, easily recognizable to any opera fan or music major. They arranged it gorgeously and let the piece flow in its original state as a large backbone of their show. The Academy is also a stunning example of how this chop & bop theory is ridiculous. Any drum corps fan can hum along to the Prokofiev pieces throughout the show, and Unchained Melody as the closer is easily discernible to every fan in the audience over 35. Again, this show alone could prove the naysayers wrong this year. Troop's treatment of Fix You is wonderful and anything but chop & bop, and their interpretation of the Corigliano is incredibly true to the original work. Colts do have a bit of a chop & bop, thickly-arranged show, with not a lot of pieces getting their full due, but the Kamen at the end is allowed to blossom organically and just be played as itself. OC arranged the heck out of Queen's "Who Wants to Live Forever", and it is played, as an arc, in its entirety, to make a gorgeous and haunting ballad. Spirit's show, while probably more chop & bop than many alumni would care for, undeniably presents "Can't Help Falling in Love With You" in it's full melodic form. Crest uses Imogene Heap's "Aha!" and let it work as the bulk of their opener, again, easily recognizable. Speaking of Imogene Heap, "The Moment I Said It" is scades' unaltered ballad --- there is nothing other than that, and it works beautifully. The Ticheli as their opener is also unaltered and is easily recognizable to anyone who has played it. Finally, when Pioneer uses Firebird, if you can't hum along to that...well, one might be called upon to question your drum corps knowledge! So, really, I'm so over this insane claim that corps aren't presenting full melodies and enjoyable music in their 2016 productions. There's legitimately so much evidence that says this isn't the case.

Sorry, it's actually not "marching" and playing...it's VISUAL and playing. Like it or not, (your words) "emoting", "clapping", and small ensembles....well, that's all still playing and making music. You can make the case that a lack of *full ensemble* playing should correspond directly with lower GE scores, since a significant lack of full ensemble playing would translate to a lack of musical difficulty, but you *cannot* make the argument that these things shouldn't be judged on the music sheets. When the Bluecoats drumline starts the show by clapping rhythms they are, literally, making music, and are judged accordingly. Again, the caption is visual, not marching, and "Sliding" (done in unison, with skill) and "dancing" (again, detailed, in unison, and with precision) flat out falls under this caption, and there's no arguing that. The caption is not "marching", otherwise color guard wouldn't factor into the visual caption in the slightest. Yes, we see an evolution towards including more than just marching in that visual caption, but that's because the top corps have raised the bar of difficulty over the years by demonstrating multiple skills and demonstrating them WELL. So, your statement of "little credit of marching and playing" is inaccurate. Terrific marching NEEDS to be demonstrated throughout a show, and it is rewarded, but groups who demonstrate terrific marching *AND* other precise, clean, musically-written visuals are further rewarded. And to the second part of your statement, terrific playing is literally the only thing that is rewarded in the music caption. Bad attacks, terrible intonation, poor balance, all of these are just as important as ever. There is music and playing happening for 100% of every show (save for some built in pauses for audience clapping; however, many less of those than in the 80s & 90s), I think your issue is coming from whether it's a full brass ensemble playing all of that time (which is not the case anymore). However, it's ridiculous to say "playing is given very little credit", when that's literally the ONLY thing that is given credit in the music caption.

I'm definitely not saying that absolutely every aspect of DCI is perfect....that is far from the case...nor am I talking about the non-profit organization of DCI as a whole; I was addressing drum corps. Specifically, the 22 world class corps who DO compete in DCI, but I was not speaking to the organization itself or the way its ran. My point was that there are purists from every single decade who had purists before them who said the same things. This is nothing new. The shows of the late 80s were decried by the MM's & alum of the early 80s, whose style when THEY marched was decried by alums of the 70s. The *VAST* majority of alumni follow and love the activity. My point was that for every rabid dinosaur (and there aren't too many, they just seem to be vocal from time to time) who denounces the current trends in DCI and bemoans that he'll never be able to enjoy a show again and will thus stop attending them (as if we should feel bad for that person), there were the same handful who gave the exact same verse when HE marched, whatever period that may have been in. I don't mean that the DCI non-profit organization is perfect; my point was that it's truly ASTONISHING to me that the people who perpetuate this cycle had the same things said about the era they marched, and yet here drum corps stands, competitive, talented, and full of passion as an activity.

Ah yes, the proverbial sky is falling, and DCI, in its quest to mimic WGI & BOA, only has a few short years left on life support before not a single derriere will fill a stadium seat to watch these esoteric & unengaging works of blah. Choppy music, brass never places, too much dancing, and other tired arguments I can't recall immediately. Meanwhile, BD is performing among the most tear-jerking, full-phrased ballad in their recent history, stands are completely full at all shows, 21 of the 22 world class corps are marching full or nearly-full memberships, young people are auditioning in droves, corps are pushing boundaries and expectations, and *ALL* 22 world class corps have varying levels of spectacular audience-loving moments in their shows this year, down to and including Pioneer's burning of Joan of Arc at the stake. Today's drum corps have no obligation to cater to the entertainment of corps alumni. When they do, we get situations like Spirit where "old school" and "throwback" shows are deemed a good idea, and growth is bad. Corps alumni do, however, have an obligation to view their corps in a current perspective, leaving (and treasuring!) nostalgia in the past, and supporting competitive and healthy growth for their corps in an activity that changes so rapidly --- just as they wanted their predecessor alumni to do when they marched. Cries of timpani and xylophones being stationary are no different than cries of too much dancing today. Fads come and go; the good ones will stick around and turn into expected changes that must be incorporated. The bad ones inevitably always fade. Why do the people who perpetuate these arguments not realize that the sky has been supposedly-falling in EVERY decade of DCI competition history? Every few years, the activity evolves in ways that makes it seem different people who marched even just a short time ago. This has been happening for 40 years. No different than those who marched in the 70s decrying and bemoaning the evolutions made in the 80s. The vast majority of alumni embrace this and still adore the activity years and decades later...while a small few seem to think that their magical spot in the evolution timeline of DCI (anything a decade before was "old school", anything a decade after is too modern to ever support or watch) is the way things have to be or need to be. Sorry, but corps are more talented than ever, even small shows have the stands packed, and if you're not entertained or moved by any of the 22 shows this season, then it's simply because your mind is closed to it.

I have! Thanks for dredging that post up; it's always healthy to keep naysayers accountable, especially in this lovely activity where we all have so many passionate opinions : ) It's a great show, much better than I thought it would be, and already has some truly nice moments: the "color wheel" of flags and the ballad hit are quite lovely and well-written in particular. I will say, the MM's are truly living up to the preseason hype that this would be a corps that plays and moves spectacularly. No sane person would doubt that they are a corps whose members will be performing at a Finalist level in August. But, unfortunately, I still believe that this show is not the vehicle to secure them as a Finals lock, despite their current placings. Their lower GE scores have got to be worrying the staff a bit, especially since they're scoring so much more solidly in music & visual. There's a lot of season left, and when everyone around them competitively cleans and cleans to similar levels, I don't think Crossmen's 2016 show design will hold the weight of the others. If they maintain their current status by the time the end of the season rolls around, it will be because of stellar execution (which is admirable as well!). To be honest, the brass book lacks a lot of depth and continuity (yes, there are some "challenging spots", but they're not organic within the music, and are oddly placed). The concept is vague and wandering, at least at this point. I don't see the same room for growth that the corps around them have. It's not that it's a bad show, because it's a fine show, I just think that if Boston, Stars, Troop, Academy, and Scouts are all on their A game when August arrives, then Crossmen will be left quite vulnerable and could be forgotten on Friday, despite how well they are currently scoring. I'm not convinced yet that their current scores reflect anything other than they've cleaned a more straightforward show quicker out of the gate than the other corps in their neighborhood.

Jesus CHRIST The Academy came to play this year. Less than a point and a half under Scouts tonight. Mary Poppins was an absolute fan favorite last year, and I think will really stand the test of time as a memorable drum corps show, but this year's production truly has a Finals-quality sophistication about it. The Prokofiev pieces provide a lot of musical meat while fitting the mood of the show terrifically, and saving the ballad for use as long, luscious closing material has created a super unique show formula that allows them to stand out amongst everyone else in their tier. And speaking of which, GOD has Unchained Melody been arranged in such a stunning way. For an old pop song that doesn't have a lot of musical depth (but is packed with emotion, of course), The Academy has really taken the song and turned it into a layered, deep, intricate, and MEMORABLE closing segment to their show. I mean, seriously, job well done on that arrangement. It's off-the-charts good. On the flip side, the Academy curse: an apparent inability to late-season clean to the levels of the rest of the groups in their neighborhood. In their short existence, we have yet to ever see a sparkling, squeaky clean end-of-season Academy. My hope for this season to be the show that breaks that trend lies in this: already, they're showing evidence of a particular design & execution element that is rarely present in their shows --- nuance. Entertaining, almost always....detailed & intricate, hardly ever. The choreography on their first sustained impact "hold", all individualistic and all leading the eye back to the bride as she falls --- THAT'S the sort of design element we've rarely seen from this corps. The way the shades of purple & black all tie together beautifully to portray a mood throughout the show, and the intricate incorporation of the tombstone pews...I really hope that this is all just the beginning of a new level of design and performance for the corps. If that's the case, I can't imagine this group won't be in the very thick of the Finals hunt until the end of the season.

There's a video, randomly labeled Spirit of atlanta dci 2017, that was just uploaded to YT last night. They're going to be just fine this season. I was going to say it's a dated design....but that's not the case, as there's plenty of current choreography and some well-staged moments (i.e., more than just "good ol' music & marching"). So, I think "no frills" would be a better term to use than dated....no props, no voiceovers, no apparent theme other than a vague Southern flavor...and that's all quite ok. It doesn't look like they're trying to out-design their current state of competitiveness, and that's terrific. They won't be in the hunt for Finals, but the corps appears to be doing a terrific job of maintaining, which, as we've all heard, seems to be this season's goal. I think a good marker of success for this season would be staying ahead of BDB & SCVC when all is said and done at Semis, and they seem to be on the right track for that, even with a late competitive debut. Yea, the show is bare bones right now, but it all fits together nicely, seems to have been designed in a very smart way, has some smooth transitions built in already, great moments of staging and music arranging, and engaging choreography & drill. The corps seems to be full (or full-ish?), and clearly is able to attract & recruit enough talent that they sound and look like a solid World Class corps. It's a straightforward design that probably won't go down in history as anything memorable, but if maintaining a talented corps with a World Class design was their goal for the season, it looks as though they're easily on that track.

If they were going to move down to Open, which could have been a bit of an easier road than struggling with a tiny World Class corps in the first years of the 2010s, the time for that passed as soon as 2014 rolled around, when they debuted "Turn", and a new style, which turned into the very successful #newcascades movement. While still in the bottom five of World Class, earning their way back into Semis last season was a huge culmination to their efforts, and I doubt they will have any trouble playing again on Friday this year. They're improving RAPIDLY, and I expect them to be a solid Semis lock this year, hanging more with Crest & Mandarins instead of fighting hard with the 4th-6th place Open corps to get into Semis. Yes, competing in Open Class and a more concentrated tour might have been helpful during some recent years, but this #newcascades movement has truly returned them into a solid, filled-out, rapidly-climbing, World Class-caliber corps. Can't wait to see how far they go in upcoming seasons!

Holy hell those are stunning guard uniforms. Sophisticated, memorable, intriguing, and artistic. Thumbs up!

I have to admit, my reaction to this video is similar to their show announcement..."meh". Not that anyone on the Crossmen staff would ever or should ever give two shakes about what I or any other DCP posters say. You keep doing your thing, guys, and have a great season. I like that the brass book doesn't appear to be ENTIRELY an original Markworth composition, that's a good thing. Yes, I get that the music & drill will be tied together in an organic way now because of the original composition but....isn't that the goal anyway, for every corps? And in regards to Mike Hardiek's comments explaining the theme..."continuous drill moves that feed into each other, continuous themes that you see recurring, and ... continual visual motifs that the individual has to carry throughout the show"...isn't that the goal of the visual design of EVERY corps this year? Thematic consistency in their visual package and cohesive, flowing drill to match? I will still be pleasantly surprised and will happily eat all of the crow if this turns out to be a home run of a show. And, I will readily admit that I'm basing my preseason notions of this show on the relatively little info that Crossmen have released about it. And I acknowledge that they appear to have a corps with unprecedented talent, returning members, and some hefty new staff additions. But, I still maintain that at first glance, this largely-original music book with a generic theme has the potential to fall flat, especially when all other corps in their competitive neighborhood seem to be stepping up their design game, as well as using rich source material with plenty of musical depth.

I'm glad someone brought this up, because I noticed it as well and then just figured this was their normal routine and that I was the only one who'd never realized it. They're the last corps out on tour by a full week; OC & Scades both have their first show on July 1, and then every other world class corps appears within the first week of shows. BUT, the DCI website allows you to switch the tab to 2015, and it looks as if they didn't debut until mid-July last year (!!!!). No other option besides 2015. So, maybe some SOA alum or parents could shed some light on this? Is being among the last corps to hit the competitive road a standard move for SOA??

Fair enough point. In my opinion, their close score at Semis was much more reflective of what I felt was a really weak Crossmen performance. Further evidence for a low Crossmen score and glitchy performance was their much closer gap to Blue Stars in Finals (the 1.6 Semis gap decreased to .1ish), and a more moderate gap from Prelims (right over a point between Crossmen & Blue Stars). Probably my opinion only, but looking over my notes from the Semis webcast last year, I remember Crossmen having a few odd timing tears, entrance issues, etc. But, point taken nonetheless. I guess the argument I'm trying to make is that Troop has had limited success these last few years trying to move forward while also trying to make a more conservative style of design work, and I am quite excited to see them move forward this year, both in terms of show design and the overall look of the ensemble.

Seriously, these uniforms look fine, and by the end of the season, we'll all have moved on (save for a few DCPers who, I'm sure, will still be frothing at the mouth while no one's listening). Troop needs to embrace change to stay competitive. We can hope for tradition all we want, but that's not going to attract kids in their early 20s to Wyoming to march with an old school, non-Finalist corps. I give serious points to Troopers for their delicate balance between paying homage to the past and still trying to move forward. It's a balance that they are still trying to hone and will continue to hone, so let's let them just do their thing. This activity moves at lightning speed; no one can rely on purely tradition to keep up, and let's just call a spade a spade: Troopers were not ever going to crack back into Finals with designs like the 2014 - 2015 shows. They now have new uniforms, a current show design, and a meatier music book, and I think they're poised much better than they have been in recent years to be truly competitive for a Finals spot, all while still paying homage to and respecting their past. Yea, the uniforms are a little disjointed from an individual view. Already from the short clips of the parade, they look cohesive and unique as a unit, and I think they're going to be very effective on the field, creating just as much of a memorable look as the Troopers previously had. Maybe they'll be adjusted a little bit throughout the season or for next year, but they're really just fine. The uniforms seem to absolutely keep a sense of the memorable western/cowboys corps that makes them so unique, while striking a balance of modernity. YOU try to achieve that balance of weird demands! Good for you, Troop. Keep moving forward and attracting young talent, and ignore the naysayers. I look forward to this fresh new approach to the season from them.

Excellent point about the streamlined ideas when the brass & percussion writing from the same source. And, to be clear, I'm sure that Markworth is an incredible guy, I definitely don't mean to argue for or against his character or humanity. And, to be even clearer, his stuff for WGI and the percussion realm is well-lauded, and even further, his current arrangements (which is why I stressed original works) for Centerville are smart and intuitive. I still stand by my statement, though, that none of the completely original wind music books I've heard (Centerville & Bellbrook are my general experience) have been anything other than good visual designs that surpassed their lackluster music writing. And that is what has me worried for Crossmen next year; again, especially with so much musical meat in their competitive neighborhood.

I was also (am still) quite excited when they announced some Crown staff additions awhile back for the upcoming season, but I would imagine the reason most people seem to be leaving them out of their preseason Finals list is because the show sounds so...safe and uninspired, I guess. We know almost nothing about it, so that could be completely wrong and it could be a doorbuster of a production. But, at first glance, which is all we have for anyone, Troop seems to have really revamped the blander and less-complex show design issues that have plagued them the last few seasons and appears to be putting out a fresh product in a new (more current?) direction, with the Lovatt-Cooper piece in particular adding some meat in the preseason videos that hasn't been present recently. The Academy & OC (again at first glance only) both appear to be embracing their strong 2015 seasons & shows and running in even bolder and more interesting directions with their success. While the Blue Stars' staff changes have me a bit tentative, their 2016 production also appears to be a show that will continue to stretch their identity as a corps. And everything we've heard about Boston's preseason design efforts seem to have them chasing a high single digit placement rather than fighting for a Finals spot. Crossmen, on the other hand....eh. "Continuum", on the surface, strikes the mind as something that could easily end up being an unmemorable show. Maybe when it's fleshed out more it will be terrific, who knows. Add to that the fact that as of now, the music is all original, and count me extra unenthused. Again, the corps in their ballpark will be performing Prokofiev, Wagner, Mozart, Beethoven, Michael Kamen, Paul Lovatt-Cooper, Herrmann, Bjork, Queen, etc. That's a lot of depth and musical fortitude to be sandwiched with. As someone who's been around the BOA world for awhile, none of Markworth's original stuff (I stress original) for the field has ever struck me as particularly memorable, sensational, or anything that's the BEST musical vehicle for the band performing it. It's always nice, though. I understand that some good staff changes and talent retention have transpired, but if it's a dud of a show (not saying it will be), there could be too many corps with terrific programs and equally-talented performers nipping at Crossmen's collective heels. I should also note that Colts' announcement had me a bit disappointed as well. It seems more along the lines of the dozen safe, easily-forgotten, nice-but-non-finalist shows in the past 15 years or so, whereas the last two seasons they truly carved out a niche for themselves among the 22 world class corps. Narration hated or loved or anywhere in between, they were much more watched and discussed than the vast majority of their seasons prior to that. I fear that "Nachtmusik" will be more cautious and less bold, retreating back to a safer design.

Crossmen, terrific show, definitely not the best run. Could see it in or out! What a tough bubble. I haven't caught much of the Blue Stars online this year, so someone tell me: was that a dirty run or has there been that much dirt the past few weeks, too? MAN what a complex music book and visual design; if they were squeaky clean, that show would hands-down be in the Phantom/Cavies tier this year. I absolutely adored the whole production, but was quite surprised at the lack of cleanliness in the front-ensemble-to-drumline communication and the brass runs. I get it, the music book is twice as layered as anyone else in this tier, but is that how it's been? Was it just not as tight of a run for the corps?

Colts & Troop both absolutely laid it down. Colts show just POPS, visually and musically. They were on fire. it might not be everyone's cup of tea, but no one can deny that it's incredibly well-designed and nuanced and detailed from top to bottom and in every aspect. God those performers sold the show today. Everything just works and it's so engaging for the whole show. Troop absolutely has a corps that executes at a finalist level. That was made incredibly apparent just now. I think they've made this show as special and unique as it can be, but I don't think the design team created a finalist show this year. It's nice. And they've evolved it into way more than I thought it could be, and there are so many moments that absolutely sparkle, but most of the SPECTACULAR moments just now came from the stunning execution in the corps proper, not the design itself. And, of course, that's the most important part, but one of these years I want to see Troop's insanely musical and rich brass line have their cake and eat it, too. Colts performing before them really showcased a package that was brilliantly conceived AND executed, and I want to see that same design spark from Troop to match that powerful brass playing. Academy, Colts, and Troopers gave stunning performances. Not a dull moment in any of the three. Truly great ensembles.

Some quick thoughts: 'Scades ended their season very well, and there's just buckets of future potential there, from design choices to their uniform mastery of basic world class skills, etc. Legends & Genesis are set up incredibly well for their futures, but in the performance order today, it was obvious that neither corps has incorporated world class design elements yet. Both had phenomenal seasons; let's see some more depth in each design and the skills asked of the performers next season, and I think that will put each one (esp. Genesis) in the BDB/SCVC range. Crest & Mandarins both had phenomenal runs today, but I'll echo what every previous poster has stated about PC's design flaws, and also add in Mandarins to that issue. I think both executed at much higher levels than their designs allowed. Don't get me wrong, Mandarins were INCREDIBLY exciting, with a clean and aggressive battery, and spectacular visual moments, but that Key Poulan music book didn't do them any favors when all was said and done. Very little in the way of dynamics/shaping/lyrical playing was demonstrated, and let's be honest, does anyone even remember their 2013 or 2014 music books? I think this season will be similarly forgotten musically, although the show as a whole package will be very memorable. The brass, and especially that line & front ensemble combo, executed easily above the Spirit/OC level, and the visual was a treat to watch, but the music book was a Key Poulan work that was more inspired than previous years, but flat in the end. Aggressive and exciting are great accolades for it, but I can't think of much else. And while those two accolades are nice, we need to see other musical aspects demonstrated to compete with the corps above them. I truly thought they would place above BDB, though. That was a bit disapointing. Spirit had a good final run, and they should hang onto Pitts as the music arranger. After reading so much about the guard struggling all season, I actually think the guard performed quite solidly, but the guard writing and drill placement left me scratching my head a lot. The silk scarf moment at the ballad impact didn't match the passion of the brass, and I just think that was an odd design choice, as was guard placement throughout the drill. OC is just solid in every single area of execution, and I hope they beef up their design a bit next year as well. Would have been nice to see this execution matched with last year's "nevermore"! That drumline is out of this world for this tier of corps. "Midnight Garden" was a nice next step, and definitely saw cohesive elements throughout, but it just, plainly, isn't a top 12 show. Terrific 2015, OC, now upwards and onwards! My hope is that all of these corps listed retain their members and build upon (and learn from!!!!) the ups & downs of this season. ALL have just fabulous potential and deep talent pools. So many great moments in these corps, and all were performances that anyone waiting until Saturday is truly missing out on. The main issues holding back all of the lower corps from the next tier are design flaws, in my opinion, and definitely not lack of execution, performance quality, or passion. I have high hopes for all of them!