On the 50

Yeah, you're right about 1989 - temporary brain hiccup. In '92 they went back to full shells before switching to Premier in 1993 when Jeff Prosperie took over.

Those pics are from 1983, although the 1984 unis for the drumline were very similar - just different gauntlets. Seems like I remember someone saying that the purple sleeve was supposed to symbolize a missing, or "phantom" limb. I guess you would have to ask Cesario, since it was his design. The split-shell, or "HV" snares debuted in 1981 and were used through 1984. In 1985, the first year with Pearl, there were holes drilled around the drum between the lug casings. Normal shells in 1986, then the HV shell came back with Marty Hurley in 1987 and lasted through 1991.

[quote name='Hulka' date='May 22 2009, 04:46 PM' post='2527934' A Cavalier tenor from '02-'04 aged out with Phantom in '05 on tenors. A Cavalier snare from '06-'08 is marching his age out with Phantom this summer. That tenor player is Mike Hodges, who has been Phantom's tenor tech since 2007.

16 tubas - sweet!

Actually, there is no difference in file size with anamorphic content. The DVD spec is 720x480 (non-square pixel aspect), which is a 4:3 projected ratio. When 16:9 (1.78:1) content or movies (1.85:1 and 2.35:1 are common) are encoded anamorphically, the image is "squeezed" horizontally to fit in the 720x480 DVD spec. Hence the term "anamorphic." There is a flag in the data portion of the disc to tell the DVD player that the video material is anamorphic. The player then "unsqueezes" the image horizontally to achieve the proper aspect ratio on-screen. If you were to watch the video as it is encoded on the DVD without unsqueezing, everything would look stretched vertically and in a 4:3 picture. The advantage of encoding anamorphically instead of letterboxing (where black bars are encoded at the top and bottom of the picture) is that all of the available pixels in the 720x480 raster are available and used for actual video content. If the encoding is done at the original aspect ratio with letterboxing, up to 40 percent of the available pixels are simply encoded as black bars. So, anamorphic encoding yields a better picture for original widescreen content, but it does not take up any more space on the disc. File size is determined by the bitrate of the encode and the length of the program. The decision to reduce costs by going with a two-disc set for Top 12 instead of a four-disc set as in the past left no room for the additional camera angles. The additional audio tracks (judges, commentary tracks) take up very little space and could probably have been included with little effect on the video quality. The (good) decision to do anamorphic widescreen, however, has nothing to do with the missing features.

The story I heard (I was marching in 1984) was that SCV was supposed to participate in either the Opening or Closing Ceremonies (don't remember which), but when the Soviet bloc boycotted the games, there were budget cuts. SCV was one of the casualties.

I have three extra tickets for the Southeastern Championship in Atlanta on July 26. They are Section 115, Row 31, Seats 4-6. These are excellent seats in the center section. Asking $50 each or $125 for all three and NO TICKETMASTER FEES! Will ship UPS/FedEx. PM if interested. Shawn

Mason was Caption head and arranger (battery and pit) for Phantom from 1998-2002. The 2000 line was his best, IMO. One of the cleanest lines in the lot that I've ever heard.

Tickets are sold.

I have an extra ticket in the Friends of DCI block for each night of Div. I Championships. It is on the 48 yard-line. Given the limited view of drill anywhere in this stadium, this should be at least excellent for sound. Asking price as follows (face value in parentheses): Quarterfinals $45 ($50) Semi-finals $70 ($75) Finals $110 ($125) I will sell them as a set for $200.00 Again, the tickets are Sec. 19, Row 23, Seat 13. PM if interested.

All seats are individual chairs, except for the top row. This according to the info DCI distributed with the ticket order. The stadium was renovated several years ago, and the bleachers were replaced with chairback seats.

Actually, it was Stillwater, Minnesota. And the food poisoning was caused by meat in the spaghetti that had gone bad. Turns out the freezer where the meat was kept had gone out at some point. Not everyone in the corps ate the spaghetti; some had gone to Burger King (?) that was close to the school. The initial speculation was bad water. I was the second person in the corps to become ill. I was interviewed on the floor of the ER waiting room (all the beds were full) by a local TV news crew. I heard that it aired that evening, but never saw it. Not exactly the way you want to get on TV!

It looks like the footage was shot in a "standard" 4:3 format, but for some reason the video player is stretching the image as if it were shot in anamorphic (16:9) format. Those are the regular 14" snares, and no, the bass drums are not elliptical. Shawn

Um, the 1986 recordings were digital. Every year since 1982 has been digital. Now, at the time, Ken Kobold was still recording Prelims, and I'm pretty sure he was using analog (reel-to-reel) equipment 'till the end. Maybe SOMEDAY, DCI will make those recordings available. While the relative merits of digital vs. analog recording can be debated ad nauseum, the fact is it's a digital world that we live in. Modern digital recording technologies, such as 24 bit/96+kHz sampling and Direct Stream Digital are darn impressive in the right hands. Of far greater importance, I believe, in recording drum corps are things like microphone selection, number, placement; weather conditions (wind wreaks havoc); venue and mixing. Someone also correctly pointed out that the amplified pits of today make it practically impossible to get a good BALANCED recording of a drum corps competition. (Note to the pit EQ guys: balance for Row 15 and we'll all be happier.)

I have 4 Super Premium tickets for Quarterfinals for sale - Sec. E, Row 27, Seats 17-19 and Row 26, Seat 19. In reality, Seat 20 in Row 27 may be unsold, and Seats 17-20 in Row 26 will be vacant until the last 3 or 4 corps. So there will be plenty of room to make seating adjustments. These seats are inside the 48 yard-line, unless they've shifted the field since 2002. Friends of DCI section. Asking face value - $40 each. If interested or have questions, e-mail me at shawnmcbride@charter.net.

I noticed this as well. It is almost a note-for-note transcription. It's a great piece, but if you are going to do "Jim's New Life," get permission and call it that! As I understand it, John Williams does not grant permission to arrange for his works anymore. If he hears this show, somebody is getting sued! However, the show was much better in Atlanta than a few weeks ago. It will be interesting to see if they can move up. Shawn

That isn't Scythian Suite at the end; it's the Tchaikovsky "Serenade for Strings" - the opener in 1983. Shawn

Phantom marched an 18x40" concert bass from the mid-seventies until 1984. Remember this was in the day of 13 minute shows! Also, this was before the pit (mostly). So, when they could have a concert bass in the pit, it made no sense to march one anymore. In 1984, we had six basses: 22, 24, 26, 28, 32, and 40". Nowadays, some folks use a 26 or 28" on the bottom.

I still have two of the five sets available for Championships. Excellent seats in the lower deck - great for sound. Center section, near the 50. Same location all three nights. Will sell on per night basis if desired.

I have 5 sets of tickets for Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Finals for sale. They are excellent seats in the lower level, Premium section: Quarterfinals and Semifinals: Sec. 132, Row 17, Seats 13-17 Finals: Sec. 110, Row 17, Seats 13-17 I am asking face value, which is $145 per set ($30 for Quarters, $40 for Semis, $75 for Finals). If interested or if you have questions, please e-mail me at shawnmcbride@charter.net.

I must admit, when I first saw the show at DCI Semifinals, I didn't care much for it. The first seven minutes or so seemed all slow and soft - not your typical drum corps show. I hate it when a corps teases you - you think they are going to blow your face off, and they don't. Later, after seeing the show on video and listening to the CDs, I realized just how incredible this show was. It was so far ahead of its time. Just think, that show was 12 years ago now, was performed totally with 2-valve G bugles, had a minimal pit by today's standards, unamplified, etc. And the drum corps activity STILL has not caught up with that show! It was from the year 2020 or something. I thinks it's ironic that Cadets will likely win DCI this year playing Medea, even though their show, IMO, can't touch Star '93. I was fortunate to see Brass Theater the following year in Worchester, MA during Championship week. Talk about incredible! As good as BD was in 1994, if Star had stayed in DCI, they would have been the best again that year. Isn't it amazing that we're still talking about this corps and this show after all this time?

Hi, Is the single ticket still available in 1RR? Thanks! Shawn McBride

SCV was at the Show of Shows in 1986, which that year was just before Championships in Madison. I remember finishing behind Sky Ryders for the first time ever and watching SCV's victory concert. Would love to be in Rockford for SoS this year! Shawn Shawn McBride PR '84, '86