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Sholeo

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    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    1 hour ago, Bneat said:

    OK - serious question here that I feel like I can ask in this forum (they're so touchy in BD forums!). And, since I am incapable of brevity...just note that I been involved in the activity in visual writing/instructing roles for a while. I'm not old-school, but i'm not fully new-school...however, I love most everything that new-school brings to the table. So, hopefully that wipes that mode of discussion away!

    And perhaps I didn't search hard enough for this existing discussion to connect to, and if so, apologies - but we only have so much time during the fay to wax poetic on forums about drums on a field. 

    So...and I say this with oodles of respect and understanding  - but, what is up with drill blanks? Now, before we go into attack mode, lemme offer the following:

    • I know this is the hottest summer on record and the performers are in the hottest part of the country and thus, it is very possible that one or two out of almost 200 individuals may be sick. I am very aware of this. 
    • If the above is true - I also know that it is NOT in the visual programs best interest to fill those holes - it's a waste of time and potentially screws up a host of other externalities for something that will solve itself.

    I also don't know if I'm talking about the same drill hole or whether it has changed....I haven't done a forensic analysis of my question to that level yet. 

    HOWEVER - I do know that dating back to the beginning of last season - there is not ONE performance of Crown's where I can't find a drill hole. Does this really matter? Well, not really - especially if it's a sick member that just keeps moving around. As a matter of fact, the corps may get credit for keeping the hole - which is in some sense, harder than with a member in it. Is this what I think will hold Crown back from a medal? No...especially since I can say the same for many of the top 8 corps. 

    So, big potatoes? No...I guess. 

    But, I know it's just the drill person in me...but, I see the hole, and I can't unsee it. EVERY impact...there it is. There it is again. Who is this person? And again, maybe it's just sick member trading spots and everything will solve itself once they get out of the armpit. But I said that least season, and by golly gee...they went into finals with a hole. And in that case, I understand why it was there, but I can't understand not making the aesthetic fixes at key moments - to me, if the problem is NOT going to fix itself, then it IS worth the time and effort. 

    I dunno - I really am asking for the real-real, because I don't know. I truly hope and believe that it is an ill member, or someone that had to sit the night out - well, that doesn't sound right. I don't hope any members are ill, for the record. But if what I'm seeing is just the one fractional individual taking a breather - I wish them the best, and hope that everyone returns to the field. IF NOT, what gives? There is no way that Crown, or any other top corps can't fill the hole. Last season, the persistence of that hole kinda encapsulated the whole season (lots of wholes/holes in that sentence) - kinda this untouchable vibe whose lack of touch-up and updating made the show...well, touchable. But, that's not this season, at all. So, I'm curious as to where this possibly insigniifcant issue lies...especially as these corps roll through the final stages of tour where Crown is CLEARLY deviating from their path last season and throwing everything (including the farm) into the final push.

    Last year, the hole was the trumpet soloist who had a boot on his foot. This year, the hole is the French horn soloist who has a boot on his foot. However, it looked to me from the San Antonio stream like that hole was filled, so we should be good.

    • Like 1

    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted · Edited by Sholeo

    I really hope Jeff Brooks is not the finals judge. Crown went from beating Bluecoats twice in a row in percussion and beating Blue Devils in percussion achievement... Just to get eighth in achievement under Mandarins. While I am sure such a young line may have off nights, such a drastic drop is more of a sign that there is a huge bias in how Brooks likes his books. I am wondering if the more aleatoric and legato passages are to blame.

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    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted · Edited by Sholeo

    1 hour ago, BWise said:

    Well here goes .. what one guy saw and heard :

    The brass sound is phenomenal .. they are loud and pretty matured.  The book is probably easier than last year .. there are less notes .. for the sake of notes. 
     

    Guard .. still growing .. content higher than last year .. they’ll get there. 
     

    Perc. New direction .. seem young .. kinda not featured per se. 
     

    GE .. much more traditional staging .. guard front and back .. separation from corps .. the drill has more set points. Less movement folds etc. Easier and less playing while moving. 
     

    No closer fielded. 
     

    To me .. the show seems to be aligning more with the judging .. they are not putting in a bunch stuff that simply has not been rewarded recently. So .. musically it’s great .. visually .. I’m not sure yet.
     


     

     

    Brass seemed more dynamic than last year (at least from the Instagram video). I thought last year they had two volumes: loud and louder. This year there seems to be some actual shaping. Compare the ballads from this year to last. This one has tons more exposure and dynamic contrast than last. Aside from the amazing trumpet solo, Benedictus was just a big hit that stayed big. This has a big hit, but then backs off to let the high brass and front ensemble shine. I think the added dimension and exposure pushes this show to something more like 2012 or 2015. Less ramming of notes, and more of a symphonic sound. Which one is seen as harder depends on what the brass judge values, but both are challenging in different ways. I also thought the percussion had a lot of windows of features. The second movement for snares and the fourth movement for basses, for example. But you are right that there is not a dedicated percussion movement like last year. (Although, that may be a good thing.) Visually, it seems more spread across the field and has a better use of props than Crown has had in a while. But there seems to be a lot of choreography to clean, which I think is where Crown has struggled. Those are my preliminary thoughts from the video. Obviously, in person, it may be different.

    • Like 5

    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    7 hours ago, ykw said:

    Yeah, like pay people to do manual labor.   Not beg 16 to 21 year-old bandos to do it for free (oops, I mean "have the Crown experience").  Do they want unpaid prop workers that they can also harvest for alternates? Is that why they have to be under 21?

    No, prop crew members are their own thing. Also, Kevin Shah posted a percussion chunk: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CtCuxO8ApBa/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

    • Like 1
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    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    From what I know, Jim Ancona (and I think the sound designer, Andrew Monteiro) were the only percussion folks not fired. A friend of a friend that marched this past year said that Ancona emailed the percussion members saying that due to Crown's (pretty #### poor) handling of the staff change, he'd be going to Boston since he was fed up with how Crown had been treating its percussion staff. He then offered expedited auditions for Crown vets that wanted to go to Boston which is why there are like six or seven Crown percussion members now there (including a center snare and center marimba).

    Boston didn't poach ####. Ancona went there because he'd rather work with friends and not have his fellow staff be treated disrespectfully.

    • Like 6

    Carolina Crown 2023

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted · Edited by Sholeo

    The corps ran through the Opener for their show this weekend. I think Mike Jackson is taking after Thom Hannum really well with writing for Crown. The beginning with the front ensemble and battery was very Broken City-esque, but when the actual hornline came in, it was a hit-the-####-drum, sexy metric modulation, big front ensemble impacts that Crown is known for. (I think there's six bass drums as well). Any worries that the new percussion team wouldn't match Klesch and Crown's style can be dispelled, although it will still be different in some areas (but so was last year). The brass worked on Part 2, as well.

    • Like 4
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    Carolina Crown 2022

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    6 hours ago, BWise said:

    Different topic Health and Safety:

    I notice a lot of Corps with serious holes I assume mostly due to Covid. And properly those Corps are not marching sick kids. 
    Conversely .. I see some (even top 4) corps marching 100% no holes. Are we to assume they are immune or are sick kids on the field? I know this is an individual corps protocol .. but it makes me wonder what is going on .. professional sports taught us you can’t ensure a bubble and really hope sick kids are not being put on the field in Texas heat. 

    Dude, Crown has so many freakin' holes in percussion alone. Tonight it was a bass drum, vibraphone, tenor, and snare. That's obviously not 100%.

    Carolina Crown 2022

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted · Edited by Sholeo

    1 hour ago, rchitectburd23BD01 said:

    How do you guys feel about the changes to the hornline music in the closer? I'm trying get use to it.The original I like better bc it's different, impressive and I've never heard anything like it before. The new rewrite is something that I believe any hornline can play.

    The new version is a lot harder, actually. The old version was just some split up sixteenths across the sections (except for first trumpets whom literally only had dotted half notes). The new version is a lot choppier, with extended runs, more room for actual shaping, and higher range demand.

    • Like 1

    Carolina Crown 2022

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted · Edited by Sholeo

    1 hour ago, Flguardman said:

    Nothing really new from the vid even though its not the whole show. They've definitely been cleaning a lot though.

    That's because the new stuff wasn't in that run. The next night, they played it with the changes. There's a new brass feature in Toccata Andromeda to look out for, among other things.

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    Wikipedia pages in danger of being deleted

    in DCI World Class Corps Discussions

    Posted

    Recently, Wikipedia admins Drmies, Acroterion, and Chestford have been flagging many drum corps articles for supposed breaches of Wikipedia guideline's, claiming that they are not notable enough. Wikipedia is a very valuable resource for many drum corps fans, summarizing the history of individual corps, and assisting fans in finding show summaries.

    What I'm not asking you to do is attack these administrators, but to clean up these pages and add much needed secondary sources. 

    (Deletion of show summaries and placements)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Blue_Devils_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps&oldid=1049289803

    https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Santa_Clara_Vanguard_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps&oldid=1039222747 

    (Open Nominations)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Glassmen_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Troopers_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Blue_Knights_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Colts_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Music_City_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Velvet_Knights_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Pacific_Crest_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Royal_Crusaders_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Sacramento_Freelancers_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    (Closed nominations)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Crossmen_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Jersey_Surf_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Columbians_Drum_and_Bugle_Corps

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