Jacob

Cavaliers 1994 - I was 10 when I first saw it live and while I was weirded out by some of the colorguard moments, it was very memorable. Going back and listening to it later, you realize how beautiful, emotional, and complex the music is - the ballad is just so powerful - something that I hadn't had from the Cavaliers very frequently (with the exception of the Peterloo Overture from their 1992 show). Closing with the Hindemith "March from Symphonic Metamorphosis" is a great cap as well!!!! They also brought us "Sensemaya" before anyone else did (15 years before Crown did it in the Grass is Greener show). Madison 1992 - City of Angels (2nd time around) - I didn't get to see this show live, but man I absolutely love it. The closer, "Funny" is so powerful - especially the introduction to the piece - wonderful change of mood and very powerful. 1990 and 1992 Blue Devils - Sure today the outfits and design may seem cheesy to some, but they are unbelievably entertaining. Musically full of so much "classic drum corps" (fast runs, driving rhythms, screaming sopranos) - I love the closer of Tommy with the soprano soloist leading into the full tutti brass hits. And as for 1992..."When a Man Loves A Woman" - enough said. Other ones that don't get enough love I feel - 2000 Boston Crusaders - first time in the top 6 - RED - super entertaining show - and their ballad that year of Con te Partiro with the beautiful double swing flags to maximize the hit. 2006 Blue Knights - especially in the marimba feature with the guard soloist and the corps revolving around her as she whirls her tempest. Those are just some. Hope you enjoy.

There are not really any championship shows that I would ever say I "hate" - but the ones that I have recordings of on my old iPhone that I use when I'm making long drives and need a playlist of several hours of music include all the champions from 1983-2008. Of the championship shows within that range, there are a few moments within certain shows that I tend to skip over - usually not because I dislike that section, but rather I want to skip ahead to my favorite part. So here are the moments within a championship show that I have often skipped over: 1983 Garfield Cadets - I tend to skip through some of the middle section of the show - mainly some of the more light-hearted and dance-like poly-meter sections. The main reason is because I feel like it doesn't fit the same majesty that the rest of the show has (of course having contrast is a great thing too because it shows the ability of the corps to handle various styles) 1988 Madison Scouts - from the middle section of the opener (starting with the fugue section) until the end of the opener. The main reason is because the lead soprano entrance always makes me cringe just a little bit on their passage with a few fracks and the 2nd and 3rd notes being not completely in tune as a section). 1991 Star of Indiana - just wish the slow ballad section could have been a little bit longer - I have always felt that it would add more to the show if the slower tempo and less intense section of the Pines of Rome could have lasted a little bit longer - letting the hornline show off some of their lushness along with the amazing technique displayed in the rest of the show. 2001 Cavaliers - the beginning of the closer with "Rainbow" thrown into the melody - it just seems so out of place surrounded by the rest of the show's themes. I'll be honest that I have not watched 2009, 2010 or 2012 Blue Devils very much - and their shows did not spark a great deal of excitement within me as a viewer, however I don't feel I've given them a fair enough shake to be able to say why I haven't gotten to know these shows better. And again - I do NOT dislike any of these shows - however, those sections listed above are just the sections that I sometimes either skip over or wish they could be enhanced or different somehow. Also, I'll be honest that I like to skip ahead to moments I like better than those, so that is why they may be judged harshly. Enjoy!

There's been a big deal made about the 99.65 record by the Blue Devils and also the highest score and finish for the Bluecoats. There are also some that I think are notable as well. 1) This makes the 7th award in a row that the Blue Devils have won for Color Guard (not sure if that's an all-time streak, but that's incredibly impressive) 2) We have had 5 different winners of the Fred Sanford Best Percussion Award in a row - consistency of variety!!! (2010 - Phantom Regiment) (2011 - Cavaliers) (2012 - Blue Devils) (2013 - Cadets) (2014 - SCV) I love the variety that is represented by the percussion award and I hope that it can continue. Perhaps it can be 6 in a row next year with the Bluecoats???? That'd be pretty cool! Enjoy - and congratulations to all the corps! What an amazing season.

After seeing every corps yesterday at prelims, one of the Drum Majors I'd consider for this is the Blue Saints drum major. He was one of the most enthusiastic and excited drum majors I've ever seen - not only doing his job on the podium but also playing a good trumpet solo and playing a part in the narrative of their show. He isn't a typical "stoic, military bearing-type" drum major, but for a small, young corps I think his enthusiasm and spirit helped the corps achieve an even greater performance level on the field.

I wasn't the only one that heard that. :-/ yikes indeed

Sorry to dredge up a 2 day old topic - put it down to me not being able to really check posts during the week because of graduate classes. I agree with you about all you've said - the 1993 show is a ridiculously difficult and amazingly well written show. When I listen to it, it flows seamlessly from one chart to the next (something as you've said with all those mixed meters is very difficult to do). The soloists were amazing, visual was good as well, and the ensemble was SOOOOOOO tight. (My favorite part in the show are the tutti syncopated brass hits back behind the soloists "riffing" down front in Strawberry Soup - it sounds like a super-tight high quality studio jazz band playing back up to some great soloist). The reason I mentioned it being a "they're back" isn't because they went away (all evidence to the contrary as they still remain probably the most consistently excellent Div 1 corps) - but I still think they tightened their idea of design from 1993 to 1994 while maintaining that crazy musical ability. 1993 is a more difficult sounding show, but there are still moments in 1994 that are crazy difficult (Night Streets I think is their second chart that year - really crazy runs in that one). What sets the 1994 show apart from 1993 is the overall package that the amazing musical quality is wrapped in is more cohesive, effective, and finessed. Their look, their sound, and their overall program just seemed more modern and polished than it did in 1993. There is a visual style in the show that is cleaner and simpler than 1993, but is incredibly effective in terms of melding the visual and the music into one intense package. Perhaps the concept of "My Spanish Heart" is easier to portray visually than "Don Ellis Portrait." The former lends itself to less "gimmicky" ideas - and even when you throw in a few obvious ones (heart shapes and red flags), they are used effectively at high points to make a statement). 1993's visual ideas always left me feeling underwhelmed - the drill design to me didn't communicate their theme and so it remained up to their great color guard who had to use brushes, canvases, and a big helping of outfit and color changes. (Not saying ANYTHING against outfit changes - they can work REALLY well - but they can also not work as well - especially in sparkly/baggy overalls - I always thought of clown pants when they put those on). The corps being able to finish in 4th place, in the pouring rain, with that high of a score, is truly a testament to the talent of that corps. Sorry I've rambled on too much here. I hope that makes sense. Feel free to disagree - opinions only for the most part. :)

Phantom Regiment 1992-1993 (8th place - 3rd place) New uniforms, guard more modern, less "FLAIR and FABRIC" - more design and power. Blue Devils 1993-1994 (4th place - 1st place) New uniforms, guard more modern, less "FLAIR and FAUX-BRUSHES" - more design and power Cavaliers 1997-1998 (7th place - 4th place) from that Firebird show which always leaves me underwhelmed, to a show that really foretold where they would be going in the next decade creatively (visually and musically). The first two I didn't mean to say nearly the same thing for them, BUT it happens to work as a description. In those 2 years, those corps went from looking like an 80's or very early 90's corps, to one that belonged in the "mid-late 90's modern drum corps era." There are many others as well - but those are the ones I can think of really quickly.

Here's a review of how I thought things went in Murf. Thursday night this year. I've been a DCI fan since I was 7 months old - no kidding - parents took me to a show and I just sat there in my mom's lap with an awestruck expression and didn't move until the corps left the field. Guess I've been hooked ever since. Anyhow - this was my first show since 2005 where I had a great seat so I was very pleased to see the corps from an excellent vantage point on the right side 46 yard line 3 rows in front of the judges platform area. So now to the review. Music City - For a first year corps and starting their season at the end of July with this being one of their first shows ever, they handled themselves very well with that pressure. There is some good teaching going on with this group. I thought that their strong point was their drumline. They got some good response from the crowd after their features and they gave a sense of confidence that you didn't get from other parts of the corps. The brass line was a nice balanced sound for the most part and produced a good volume level for a group their size. Some memorable moments include their company front in which they take the risk and double time march forwards giving a great push of momentum to the end of the show as well as their double swing flag moment in the ballad ending with the tenors holding umbrellas. Good staging at those points. I'm excited to see how far this corps can grow not only this year, but in the years to come. Jersey Surf - My first opportunity to see this corps in person. I was impressed first off by their color scheme - very unique design on their uniforms and it gives the corps proper a sense of character - a very whimsical character. That said, it was a hard match with that whimsical look and feel to have them playing Mozart. So there seemed a conflict of issues to me. It's a unique concept for the show - but some decisions should be made for the interpretation of the style of the music - are they going to be traditional and match that classical style? or should they revamp it and interpret it in a new way? To me, those questions weren't answered or communicated well because I wasn't sure how they were doing it and I think it hurts the overal aspect of the flow of the show. That said, I thought they used the syntesizers rather well in portions of the show - at one point they had a synth harpsichord sound which really fit in nicely to the texture of the mallet percussion feature. And using vocal "ahhs" was a good effect but they sometimes never lined up rhythmically with the rest of the corps. And that's a danger to writing rhythmic keyboard parts because the action of the keys can have delays with when the sound is produced and amplified - they weren't the only ones dealing with this issue either. Pacific Crest - I enjoyed their show and thought that they had some very nice moments. Their overall sound was clearer than Jersey Surf so it sounded cleaner and more precise. That said, they need to take that sound and add some finesse and musicality to it - so some subtlety with dynamics and more phrasing should help this corps continue to improve as the season ends. The drill forms were mostly clear and they had a lot of variety within the forms. I felt a timing issue/tear at the beginning of the closer for about 10-15 seconds but it recovered after the impact moment. Overall a solid corps. Troopers - I was so happy to see them back up to the quality they were when I was first introduced to DCI in the 80's. I always feel nostalgic when I see the Troopers and I think most DCI fans do too - those uniforms are so distinct and recognizable as only Trooper style. Their show this year provided me the first WOW moments of the night. I must admit, I hold a deep biased love of West Side Story, so anyone who does that automatically has favor in my book. And when iit's done well let's just say I am pleased. Troopers did it well. There were some excellent moments of staging and setup with the design - great use of silence in places to add effect. The sunbursts that the Troopers were so famous for back even in the 60's were used well here on 2 occassions I caught - and instead of it just being an old-fashioned move that they've always done so why not do it again - it really felt like a blending of old-world drum corps meets new world drum corps. And I think that's the Trooper's place in DCI right now. They've entered and embraced the "new world" of DCI while still keeping a door open to the "Glory Days" as many see them. I hope to see them in the Top 12 this year because they are capable of doing it. Spirit - I think Spirit's show concept is an excellent way to entertain the crowd - which they certainly do. However, I do not think it will be a vehicle to help them move up in the DCI standings back to a finalist where they were a few years ago. That shouldn't be discouraged - you can tell that the corps enjoys performing this show to its fullest and they know that their job is to entertain the crowd. And they succeed. Their brass line was good as a whole - but individual sections were not as strong when featured. If there were some type of connective material between the Kansas songs I think it would help them a lot - because right now it feels like they say, "Here's a song, here's another, here's another, and one more...we're done." So while the show could be cohesive because all the music is the same genre and from Kansas, in today's competitive world it needs more than that to stay with everyone else. Colts - The opening of the show is very nice - and you get the sense of the theme immediately - on the sea journeying on a boat across the ocean. Very engaging. Then past the opening I saw a great drum corps with a solid brass line, good percussion, and great guard performing something that didn't connect with that theme. And musically, all I felt like I was hearing was transitions - no music, or driving rhythmic patterns, just transitions to the next big hit. However, the last 90 seconds of the show was fabulously written - musically, visually it makes sense and definitely packs a punch. But that 90 seconds won't be enough I think to get them back in the top 12 again - but I could be wrong. Madison Scouts - To me this was the 2nd show of the night after Troopers that had cohesive design from beginning to end. It made sense and would have had great effect if....execution were up to par. Comparatively, the corps is behind most of the others in terms of performance and execution. They have a lot going on and they aren't doing all of it to their best abilities yet - so if they can clean, polish, and tweak, then I think they will begin to not just creep up, but leap up in standings. The ballad for me was the weakest point in their show - not overly exposed brass writing, but the sound that came out wasn't good compared to the rest of the show - that and the ballad lacked dynamics and phrasing that most of the rest of the show has. But I think they will get it in the end. I hope so. Blue Knights - I love the Blue Knights - what I love about them is how predictable they are going to be. I can always bet that I will watch them and see a beautiful show with some very intracate design, amazing body movement, and excellent playing - but never walk away with a memorable moment. (The only exception to that with me is their 2006 show with the mallet feature and the corps swirling around one guard member...anywho). Their show was full of the finesse and command of performance we hadn't seen yet. Some people complain that BK has no personality with their corps -I disagree. I think their personality is an understated, simple, artistic personality that sometimes hints at a darker side underneath...think the shy quiet kid who sits by him/herself reading books and drawing in a sketch pad. Not your class president or class clown, but without him/her the school wouldn't be complete. That's how I feel about BK. Blue Stars - Another nostalgic moment for me. Because I remember seeing Blue Stars as a Div III corps struggling to field 40 kids - and here they are dominating the field. What a show and what performance level!!! I felt a great sense of personality from the corps - especially the guard with this show. I was reminded immediately of the Cadets show from 1995 when they did the Homefront show. Excellent narrative line and story line throughout. What I wish they had continued however was the impact on the factories - the opener was the only part of the show that really stuck with that idea of working in the factory during WWII - then the war broke out - then it ended and we partied and celebrated but remembered those who had lost their lives. It is a very touching show - but not entirely original. It also might have been good to explore even more sounds of the factory to use throughout the show - with the synthesizers it makes for a great chance to add some extra music effect. Still - I loved the show and I was teary-eyed at times - beautiful arrangement and harmonization of TAPS at the end of the ballad. Santa Clara Vanguard - HOLY COW!!!! This was my favorite show and performance of the night. I have seen Martha Graham's original choreography for the ballet music on a video with her performing it - and I can say that SCV has not only honored her with this show, they truly embody her. What a perfect show for them. I always think of SCV as the "British Royal Guard" of DCI - where they are so stoic and intense when you see them, but they radiate a power and energy when the perform that gives you chills. They have that in truckloads this year with this simple, yet ridiculously complex show. It was hard to find errors going on - I'm sure the judges did - but I let myself sit back and enjoy it and didn't worry about that. The sound was incredible and perfect for the music - visually when I first watched it online, I didn't feel the visual effect had the demand they needed, but I truly feel they have got it in the show when all things are combined. Outstanding visuals from both the guard and the hornline. I would LOVE to see this show on top in 2 weeks - which might just happen. Carolina Crown - I have watched this show online several times and I really enjoy the contrasts that they bring to the field when they change styles and mindsets (changing sides of the street I guess to the greener side). For me, this was the MOST difficult and demanding show put on the field. And it is still not being executed to the level that Cavies and SCV are doing which is why it is currently behind them. If Crown can wrestle control of this show and make it look effortless, then there will be some good news for them in Indy. The most memorable moment for me was a crescendo in the ballad into a hit from Somewhere - started in the mallets soft and slow, then continued to build through the hornline until BLAM!!! It was probably the closest thing on earth to ascending into Heaven. Cavaliers - I've also watched this show several times online - I will admit that I am not a big Cavie fan - I'm not a hater of them, but since around 2003, I have just come to expect the same thing from the Cavaliers and I'm usually not disappointed. But because I never get anything new from them, I'm never as excited to see them as I am other corps. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by their offering this year. I think musically they have some strong things going for them now - especially percussion. Brass is better than it has been in the last 2 years - but not up to SCV's level. Visually of course they do things that are just excellent and so clean and effective. But what I think lacks is their musical book this year - their new brass arranger does some great things, but he had a tough act to follow - and Saucedo's style of writing fit so easily into the corps image and performance - now they are lacking a personality and will have to find themselves again. It reminds me of the early 90's Cavaliers - where you had some sheer excellence especially visually and percussion - but musically not as memorable. Saucedo provided them with that memorable sound and writing style - so either they try to mimic his writing or go in a new direction. I'm for the new direction - and I wish them the best because I know they will be performing their best. That's my Thursday review - I might do a Friday one too - but not right now. I hope you enjoyed it. And please feel free to disagree with anything I said. That's why they are opinions.

The end of their show will probably be another fast paced kaledeiscopic frenzy of drill, fast notes, and FFF dynamics which I love - but I always thought it would be neat to end a WSS show like the movie ends... When Tony sees Maria across the playground and shouts "Maria" - then Chino shoots and he falls in her arms and dies while she sings a phrase of "Somewhere" - then the score ends with the strains of the "Somewhere" closing melody. I always pictured in my head a company front like they have with the "Tonight" theme with Tony and Maria on opposite ends of the company front running towards each other (ala SCV 04 with the 2 principal characters) and when they reach each other - the hornline releases, a split second of silence, and a gunshot. Then they end it from there with a soloist would play as if they were Maria singing "Hold My Hand and we're half-way there...hold my hand and I'll take you there...some how, some day...somewhere......." Then backfield the final 3 phrases of "Some how.........Some Day.....Some where....." played in the middle/low brass and they carry Tony's body off the field as they do in the movie. Kind of morbid, but I get chills when I watch the movie (one of my ALL-TIME favorites) - and with the right staging, performance, it could turn into one of those magical moments - and something that I haven't ever seen done with a WSS show. Just a thought.

Curt Gowdy was simply funny for his trouble saying things correctly. I don't think Rondinero ever had his name pronounced correctly when Curt introduced him - "And introducing my partner...Mr. Steve Rondindero" or something else like that. Go back and watch the 1992 telecast if you have it. Cesario was great with lots of "quotables" my favorite being "like taking a bath in chocolate." - in reference to Phantom's 1995 Baritone section. Others I liked were Maynard Ferguson from early 80's (1983 or something like that). Rita Moreno was great as well. I really enjoyed - then Maynard Ferguson was cool to have up there in the booth. In 1997 I think on the broadcast they did a special tribute to the actual telecast for DCI's 25th anniversary.

Pacific Crest - 79.525

Here go my predictions 1st. The Cadets 2nd. Blue Devils 3rd. Phantom Regiment 4th. The Cavaliers 5th. Carolina Crown 6th. Bluecoats 7th. Santa Clara Vanguard 8th. Blue Knights 9th. Boston Crusaders 10th. Colts 11th. Glassmen 12th. The Academy No matter the turn out, I'm anxious to see the results - this is one of the more competitive seasons I can remember.

I agree with what most people have said - I think the Cadets show is probably the most difficult. From the ones I've seen it seems to be the most exposed section-wise trading around from one section to another playing independently versus lots of tutti full ensemble playing - this requires every single section of the corps to be strong. Also their tempos for the end of the opener and the closer are really pushing - I've taught a watered down version of their closer to a marching band a few years ago and even though it was watered down, it still cooked - 200-210+ beats per minute is hard to do with a small step size - and a lot of their moves at this tempo are pushing it to a 6 to 5 step and larger at times. Also, they are keeping their horns on their faces for a majority of the show adding even more demand from an endurance standpoint. The licks themselves aren't terribly hard - the 16th note passage in the opener that someone mentioned earlier isn't terribly difficult - it's a repeating pattern of slurring from one note up a whole step to another note then tonguing that upper note twice. Of course at the tempo they're playing it, it requires their trumpets to double tongue which adds a little more difficulty, but most average high school trumpet players are able to double tongue or at least know the concept well enough to learn how to do it properly. Honestly, in my opinion, the single-hardest moment in their show from a musical standpoint is the very beginning of Blue Shades - with the 2 note motive (the descending minor third) that the mellophones play. Each time I've watched the show (in person in Murfreesboro, then via webcast from Atlanta and San Antonio) someone missed that first note. They are coming in after narration so they have no pitch to go off of - and so they have to pick that note out of the air - and on mellophone once you get above a written 3rd space C on the staff, you can get just about anything to come out even when you have the right valve(s) down. Anyway - just a rambling of my stupid opinion.

It might have been my live feed, but I just didn't feel like BD's show "gelled" as well as it has on previous viewings from the live feed. The opener triplet run was an example - it just felt a little dirty.

I think you mean 1993.

1st. Phantom Regiment 2nd. The Cadets 3rd. Blue Devils 4th. Cavaliers 5th. Bluecoats 6th. Santa Clara Vanguard (I think that come Finals night, the scores for these 6 corps will be within a range of 3 points - just a hunch). 7th. Carolina Crown 8th. Blue Knights 9th. Boston Crusaders 10th. Glassmen 11th. Academy 12th. Colts

1982 BD - final minute going into the Chick Corea reprise 1983 Cadets - RPH reprise at the end 1984 BD - closer 1984 Cadets - Tonight (sop solo to end) 1985 Cadets - Opening of the show through first hit 1986 BD - closer - soprano quartet through the end 1987 Cadets - either of the Shaker Tune melody hit sections (beginning or end) 1988 Madison - beginning of Malaguena (percussion roll into the hit) and end - from the mello solo to the end 1989 SCV - Music of the Night push (from backfield hit) 1990 Cadets - Company front to the end 1990 Star - last minute of the show 1990 BD - closer (from sop solos to the end) 1991 SCV - opener 1991 Star - closer (drum feature to the end) 1992 BD - When a Man Loves a Woman 1992 Cadets - section that ends with the crazy mello run in the opener followed by a hit (rifle toss) and back to the To Tame the Perilous Skies Melody 1992 Madison - Beginning of "Funny" (the closer) 1992 SCV - Bottle Dance 1993 Star - Pretty much all of Medea (from Baritone/Euph. solo to the end) 1993 Cadets - Last part of closer with crazy mello runs 1993 BD - end of Strawberry Soup and Niner-Two (amazing sops and how they hit all those high notes at the end of the show) 1994 BD - Sop quartet in closer to the end 1994 Cavies - Symph. Metamorphoses March hit to the end 1995 Cavies - Jupiter Hymn to the end 1995 BD - closer 1995 Madison - Malaga 1996 BD - beginning and ending hits 1996 Cadets - opener 1997 BD - opening build and hit 1997 Cadets - final minute 1997 Phantom - 2nd tune - build into a 4 count silence where there's a rifle toss and on the Cd that year you hear a woman scream right before the corps comes back in with this monstrous hit - awesome 1997 Madison - beginning of the closer 1998 Cadets - Canterbury Chorale and then final minute of the show 1998 SCV - "Hear Ye Hear Ye" 1998 BD - Opening Romeo & Juliet music with chimes 1998 Cavies - beginning of Machine (closer) 1999 SCV - Blue Shades 2000 Cadets - Closer 2000 SCV - Adagio 2001 Phantom - Festive Overture - from company front to the end 2001 Crossmen - Fire Dance 2002 Cadets - Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy 2002 Phantom - Closer 2003 BD - Opening of the show all the way to the "space chord section" 2003 Cadets - beginning of Malaguena 2003 Phantom - "Canon" reprise to the end 2004 SCV - Closer (specifically "Vanguard yell" to the end) 2005 Cadets - "New World/Dancer in the Dark Ballad" 2005 Phantom - Charleston hit section in American in Paris to the end (all guard has orange out now) 2005 Crown - end of opener 2006 Crown - opener through the first hit This is a lot - but seriously these are all the sections of shows that when I listen to them, I rewind them over and over because they are my favorite parts of the show. I have done that with every single one of these listed. And I saved 2 for my top favorites because I can listen to these and get emotionally wrapped up in listening to them and forget about everything else for just a while. 1996 Phantom - Closer to the end (too much emotion in this - when they build the chord in the arc formation with the 4 entrances (sops, mellos, baritones, contras) and that resolution hits...if I had been fortunate enough to be there for that performance live I would have said to myself, "they just won!" - That's where it hits me that they are going to win is right there at the resolution. 2006 Phantom - Resurrection to the end - SO emotional and so well written - the end of this show is just perfectly written in my opinion and loses no momentum whatsoever - it just builds and builds and I wish it could have just gone on forever. The mallet run sequence that leads into the brass hit is just stellar and transitions perfectly.

I think it's "I am Your Shadow"

I watched The Godfather I and II for the first time last week...so the Blue Devil part was hilarious for me. With those movies and all the amazing scenes in them, there could be so many options with "Blue Devil mishaps" - For extra GE, the guard loses the horse head flags and replaces them with real horse heads - Problem? Angry Wisconsin farmers show up with guns in tow ready to fight it out for the lives of their horses - and the BD drum line realizes all to sadly that the "gun shots" they've been making all season don't do anything more than hurt the ear drum. 75% of the corps is gunned down while entering the field, and the remaining 25% flee to Canada.

If people are interested in candy/chocolate...there's an awesome candy shop 10 miles south on the highway (on the way to Baraboo) called the Baraboo Candy Factory. They have these things called Cow Pies that are in the shape of..well cowpies...but they are like almonds/nuts, and caramel coated in chocolate. Ohhh my goodness. Then of course they have other favorites like "Green Bay Puddles" and other totally awesome things. You all should stop by there if you have time. It's well worth it!

Out of the list on the poll presented, I'd probably have to vote for "Overture from Dancer in the Dark" by the Cadets from 2005. But it's not my favorite ballad of all-time. Canterbury Chorale - 1998 Cadets - Probably my all-time favorite ballad and one of the most beautiful visual moments ever put on the field (IMO of course). Clair de Lune - 1994 Phantom - I love Phantom for their power and passion...but it was nice to hear their take on this very light ethereal piece...so amazing. On a Hymn Song of Philip Bliss - 1993 Cadets - One of my favorite hymns played in an incredible arrangement. Simple Song from Mass - 1985 Garfield Those are in the "other" category. I love these topics - so many great ballads.

In 2003 is where I would offer some criticism to "overplaying" on the brass...mainly the contras. That said, man they could put out some sound. But, perhaps just my tastes, I think their sound was a bit forced sounding in the hit of Canon in D, and then at 2:18-2:20 during the crescendo in Wild Nights, they get VERY out of control with the dynamics. I still LOVE this show though...man it was awesome seeing it in Indy. They tore the house down!!!!!

My first DCI show was when I was 7 months old, so I don't remember it (would have been 1984 though - that would have been some good memories). My earliest memories of a DCI show is the DCI South Championship in 1990 in Birmingham, AL. I remember seeing the Velvet Knights there with the bus and the shark and all the cool stuff on the field...that was when I was 6 years old. Then I remember seeing Star of Indiana in 1993 in Evansville, IN - thinking that it was really weird, but very cool also. The red flags at the end of the show were just awesome to me...cause I wasn't old enough to know what was going on, I focused on the colors on the field and the body movement, so I wasn't as interested as I would be now - then those flags just come out of nowhere and it's like WOAH!!!! I had my parents buy me a pair of Star of Indiana drumsticks after that show just cause I thought it would be cool...they were so loud. I also got to see The Cadets that year (1993 - I don't remember which show). But I was more interested in that - more color and costumes and the show was more accessible to a 9 year old at the time than Star's show. I really liked that show when I saw it.

What was over a 4 point spread between 1st and 5th last week turned into less than a 3 point spread now. It doesn't hurt that the most improvement (score-wise) came from 3rd-5th place(s). Cavaliers: (Last week) 92.55 - (this week) 93.025 = 0.475 difference Blue Devils: 92.0 - 93.0 = 1.0 difference Phantom: 90.15 - 92.0 = 1.85 difference Bluecoats: 89.05 - 90.725 = 1.675 diffence Cadets: 88.3 - 90.15 = 1.85 difference Cadets and Phantom (not to imply anything, but those two corps last year were also the ones who saw their scores improve more than any others this time of the year)

I streamed the Indy show at home - and it looked as though that Glassmen and Carolina Crown never stopped moving at all - their drill just goes all over the place. Especially Carolina Crown. I was very impressed with Glassmen and how cool they've made an all Beethoven show (not that Beethoven isn't cool - I happen to dig him quite a lot) But I read a few weeks ago about a "deaf segment" of their show...are they still doing that because I didn't notice it. Just wondering.