ContraFart

It's sort of hard to explore how a 3 time in a row silver medalist can win gold without comparing them to the winners.

It is well documented that they don't use a drill writer and everything is taught on the field. If you really think about it the only 2 times in the show where there was more traditional drill was in the opener with the moving squares ending in the Maltese cross, and the very end with the Matisse star. Everything else was staging and FTL.

The best word I heard about BDs movement was said by Rondo and Lindsay Vento and that is "strategic". Do they move a lot? Yes, and much much more than in previous years, but less than 10% of their movement is in form to form drill. They actually do not even write drill and everything is 100% staged. I guess the days of a 200 dot book are gone. Some people love that they are shattering the drill paradigm, I for one hate it, and I hate even more that the judging community seems to love it. To me it is such a departure that it's like brass judges giving a group super high scores for playing only woodwind instruments, because that is an outside of the box element.

can I get just get a Mandarins drum line hat?

Does BDs bottom line change if they finish 3rd rather than 1st? Will they lose recruits or interest? So I am not sure what business we are talking about. In the end its about the member experience. If I am the creative director of BD, I would want to make people like me shut up. I would ask, what can we do that has never been done before, and how do we do it better than everyone else? You can push forward without changing the approach.

I dont agree with the quality argument either. I look at it this way. Other corps have sort have caught up to BD in Brass, Drums CG and GE. Where BD has the stranglehold is visual. (which is another conversation). So since other corps are always competing for the Ott, Sanford and Zingali their really cannot be that much of a difference in quality of staff. I commend BD for how they pass down their legacy from the inside. I think its sort of cool. I hope that the other top 4 corps start doing that with long time greats like Doug Thrower and Matt Harloff.

This I agree with.

Would the longevity argument still work if Keith Potter and Leon May were still at Crown, or Gino and Colin never left Cadets? To me a HOF designer/instructor is a HOF designer/instructor. It only took JD Shaw and Michael Gaines 2 years to bring a title to SCV and Gaines did not even write the drill his first year. Also if you look at BD, besides Chandler, Johnson and Glyde, everyone else in high positions have not been in those positions very long. At the same time, what BD does so well is cultivate their future leaders from inside the organization. Downey got to train his successor and still stick around as an advisor. I am sure whenever Scott Chandler retires, he will do the same. Longevity can be a reason for BDs success, but its not the only reason. If adding Shaw and Gaines can win you a title in 2 years and adding all the names at BAC can bring you from 12th to 2nd in 4 seasons, then maybe its more about quality than longevity.

I am inclined to agree and I much prefer Bloo, but the judging community does not, hence my original irony.

The thing is, I agree with you 100%. I HATE how BD approaches the visual design, yet they are rewarded for it, I believe they have won all but one visual proficiency award over the past 15 years. (I could be way off on that, but I know BD has won it a ton) Bluecoats have BD matched on Brass, Percussion, GE and almost guard. Visual is the last thing I think Bloo is far away on, and that is a matter of philosophy, not quality.

i would love to see them move back to the bent leg marching. With all of the throwbacks in this years show, seeing the strait leg always seemed off to me.

I cancel it right after I pay for it. It doesn't auto renew after the 30 days

Why not go into heavy into 80s New Wave or do punk rock show?

They could go really out there and create a show based on the Leonard Bernstein Norton Lectures which were called "The Unanswered Question" They can use the musical examples from the lectures such a Tristan an Isolde by Wagner, Mozart Symphony No 40, Debussy "Afternoon of a Faun", Berlioz Romeo and Juliet, Transfigured Night by Schonberg and of course The Unanswered Question by Ives.

They got a sweetheart deal on those horns since the owner of the company is an alum. I think they also make the bugles for the Marine Corps. I think Gino will have some input on improving the horns. In 2002 with Magic, he had Dynasty send all new lead pipes for the trumpets (I think Dynasty was just bringing out Bb lines at the time)

I loved Cavies drums this year. They had the best tenor line in DCI and they just never missed. BAC, I think had the hardest overall book. They had to go from triples to quads and sometimes they just lost the clarity. But to play that book with that drill was feat to behold. BD had moments of greatness. I would have loved more complexity from their front ensemble, but I think there was intention to making the guitar and drum set the primary focus there. Bluecoats had such a groove and I thought they could be a dark horse. Crown impressed me with their arrangements and how they used space so well. I think they were the most musical line.

I love how I am just referred to as "fart" I warms my heart.

Read the rest of my posts. I was being ironic by saying that.

BAC had a tough book. I think the judge was right on tonight. I love that Crown was 3rd because they use so much space in their battery book. BD even was ok in 2nd because they had some tough riffs. I think their snare feature was the hardest in DCI this year.

There is no proof strong enough for a tried and true sailor. Thank you for your service.

Thank you. You are a class act sir.

I am actually with you. To see personal heros of mine such as Jeff Saktig and Leon May become obsolete, would break my heart. However after watching BD on high cam tonight, I really saw how not using a drill book formed their visual program and since they have won visual proficiency for as many years as I can remember, I figure the only way to beat them is to join them. BD does very little form to form drill. Do they move much more than in previous years? Yes but not as much as I thought after watching them on high cam. There is a strategy to how they move which has brought them success. I see Bluecoats and I think their movement is sublime. the choreo was spot on, their body vocabulary was near perfect. they win visual analysis, but BD still wins visual proficiency (with a 20 BTW) So how does Blue win visual proficiency? the only thing I can think of is to show more elements.

Many corps have so much room to grow with YouTube engagement. Something like that unboxing video is genius and would have so much more impact than the boxed reveals done by the uniform companies.

I have half a bottle left over from making fish house punch. I love making daiquiris with that rum. the funk makes it so interesting.

Greg Lagola never disappoints.