OrlandoContraAlum
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Posts posted by OrlandoContraAlum
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link? Those open rolls...OMG!!!
PM Sent
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Herein lies the rub. My comments about BD, and my entire argument regarding BD, is that for them drill is NOT the core of the visual program. I feel it is for virtually every other corps in DCI, but not the Blue Devils. For the Blue Devils, drill, dance, body movement and control, and everything else are all given EQUAL importance and blended together until they are part of a unique amalgamation that can only be labeled as "Blue Devils visual style." And that is what makes them fundamentally different from every other corps, from design all the way through instruction and execution.
Also, there seems to be an expectation from the fans that DCI's visual judges should treat drill as first and foremost in visual judging. But I don't think the sheets are written that way. Joe Crowdmember tends to value drill design and execution far above all other elements in their visual opinions, but it does not necessarily have the same weight/priority that the judges are looking for.
I am just going to shut up and just let you talk. Another excellent point.
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:huh:/> I just watched this earlier today and I thought he was playing very difficult stuff on the move quite a bit... same could be said for most every year. I was just rewatching 2012 and 2009 for Crown and they're playing very hard stuff on the move, often while running.
(Not making a statement about Devils or anyone else, 'cause I haven't checked that out, though I'd love to see a VOD cam of a BD show. Same goes for everybody!)
I'm not saying that he doesn't play difficult parts on the move, just that the most difficult parts are not on the move. Just like Devs do, and a lot of other corps. I just get tired of the old "Devils never move" argument, especially this year, when they are moving far more (and faster) than they have in prior years. I would like to see anyone who thinks that Dev's vis book is easy go out and march it. Don't play, just do the drill. I am guessing that most couldn't.
For what it's worth, I am very glad that Crown won, I think the best show, that was performed the best on finals night, did win. I also think that BD absolutely deserved the Silver, and their show blew me away (in different ways) than Crown's. The two shows were like peanut butter and chocolate... two great tastes, that taste great together!
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This drills down to the core of what the BD have figured out. Keep the judgeable drill simpler so you can execute the visible portions. Don't play the more difficult passages of your brass or percussion books while on the move (like Crown and Cadets do). Yes, there are a variety of different elements going on all the time, but these are the smoke and mirrors of the Blue Devils program. Because all the elements are different, they may look really cool, they may act and emote very well, but how on earth is a judge supposed to score the execution on it? How are they supposed to look at ten people doing ten different things and determine if they are doing any of them right? In this manner they are hiding their mistakes. Do they have a few difficult drill moments here and there? Sure. But look closer. They aren't playing music when they execute them. They've been doing this sort of thing now for the last four years at least. I'm still trying to figure out how they get awarded the points they do for the difficulty of their program on an equal level to Crown and Cadets when they are doing this. The fans can see what they are doing, why can't the judges? And in the end it still wouldn't matter as much to the bulk of the crowd if they still did alll this and won, IF they would just make an effort to entertain the way they used to instead of morphing into the obscure modern art form they have become.
I invite you to watch the performer-cam from Crown's victory run and come back here to say that they (Crown) are moving during the most difficult passages. You won't, because you can't. Crown, Phantom, BD, Cavies BITD ALL did this... it's part of good design.
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Just wanted to pile on the kudos to this excellent post.
Also, to merge Dr. Strangelove with Zero Wing? Epic.
All the internets for you.
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...and that is very risky during high-traffic times such as semi-finals because there's a good chance you won't get back in. I would reconsider my advice in that case and not use Chrome, unless they've plugged their memory leak issue. Drumcat was on top of it.
Agreed, although I have been fortunate enough (in prior years, at least) to be able to get back in. I usually try to recycle Chrome during INT (since they are my hot-dog corps anyway...)
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Some people swear Chrome works better than Firefox with FN. It may depend on the add-ins the individual user has running in Firefox--Firefox has been freeze-prone for me live-streaming FN only this year. If it freezes, try pausing, counting to three, and click play. If you click stop or close the window, you may not be able to get back in for a while--that has happened to a lot of people this year. The other thing that definitely works better for me is not trying to stream it live, but lagging the playback behind--it's been much less prone to freezes that way for me. I agree that hard-wired Ethernet is better than wireless if you have a choice.
One note about Chrome (at least on Windows) is that it tends to have a memory leak. Not a huge problem for general browsing, but if you are trying to maintain multiple tabs or other apps, it could be a problem. Specifically when you are watching a multi-hour stream. I have found (and drumcat mentioned this to me last year as well) that I will have to refresh or completely close and re-open Chrome at least once during the long (regional and Semifinal) webcasts. YMMV, of course.
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I think the compelling points to be made on behalf of 2008 is that while there are good points to be made for years where the top 3 are great, I think the 2008 Carolina Crown ( " Finis " theme ) in 4th that year was far and away the best 4th place Corps I ever saw and heard. These were 4 great Corps that year. Crown finished top 4 in all major Corps sections at Finals, and even this 4th place 2008 Crown's Percussion section was better than his year's Carolina Crown Percussion section, imo. Crown in 2008 was better than the 2013 Cadets or SCV one of whom will probably finish 4th this year. I guess it might be best however to reserve final judgement on this until after Saturday. Crown scored 96.80 for 4th place at Finals in 2008, less than 1.4 points out of first. I don't believe this years 4th place Corps will be as close to first place at Finals as Crown was in 2008. And Phantom's 2008 show was electrifying lets not forget,and yet they won by less than a tenth over a super talented BD at Finals. These are a couple of the reasons why I make the case that the top 4 of 2008 are collectively better than the top 4 of this year. But lets see what we observe these next few days, before casting final comparisons.
That's a pretty sound argument right there...
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Moz, you hit on a pretty important point. Some folks here LOVE to "rally 'round the flag". It's a pretty big deal. It's ALSO just another in a long list of things that some people like to use as (honestly, meaningless) wedge issues. Without venturing too far into areas that could get the thread closed down... The US Flag is a symbol. It means a ton to a great portion of our population. But, at the end of the day, it is just that, a symbol. Any sort of desecration or disrespect does nothing to undermine the principles of our great nation.
I, personally, would never use the flag of the United States as something with which to make a political point or argument, but I 100% stand by those that would, even if I vehemently disagree with them. Those that have sacrificed, those that have served under that flag and fought and died to defend it, have my greatest respect. That said, any member of our society is protected, by those very same rights that others have fought for (including my own family) to do WHATEVER they want with our flag.
So, back on topic, while I can appreciate the OP's point regarding basic respect, I can't fathom how this has become such a popular thread on this forum. With that, I will take my leave from this conversation. Good night, all.
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Both days worth of shows are now posted on Fan Network. No synching problems either. Great video and audio quality
And amazingly, all of the wailing, gnashing of teeth and rending of garments came to an end, yet people were too consumed with #####ing about Buffalo to realize that when the actual team is in the house, the videos are pretty ###### good.
SMH at some of the folks here...
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All of that said, in my opinion, this year has the best top 4. And I love pretty much every top 4 mentioned here so far.
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While all 4 are very, very good, I would put 3 other years as at least equal to the top 4 of this year:
1989 SCV 98.80
PHANTOM 98.40
CAVALIERS 97.20
BD 95.90
While I will grant you this one, as these were all great shows, 99 and 08 are a little off (IMO, of course) as I am not a fan of a couple of shows in each top 4. Obviously, just my opinion. From a competitive standpoint, it's hard to beat 1980:
1. 90.6 BD
2. 90.25 27
3. 90.05 Bridgemen
4. 89.8 Spirit
4 Corps separated by a total of .8, and 4 very, very good shows.
Honorable Mention (again, IMO) goes to 1984:
1. 98.0 Garfield
2. 97.9 BD
3. 97.4 SCV
4. 95.6 Phantom
Sure, bigger spread from 4 to 1, but some iconic shows (WSS, La Fiesta, On The Town, 1812)
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If you think this place gets nasty, pop on over to the DCP Facebook page. It's weird, here everything is mostly anonymous. Over there though, everyone can see your name and pictures, but people are much nastier. Boggles the mind
I was thinking the same. It got so bad over there that I left the group. Just got tired of the negativity and the attacks. I have better things to do with my time.
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I can't speak for anybody else, but my personal dissatisfaction comes from the fact that I didn't have half of these issues with the product they put out last year. Nothing changed on my end except for me upgrading my internet connection package. Twice. As far as a refund? I'm not asking for one. I can still watch the shows, even if the live feeds locked up on me. I still feel the $69 was worth it.
Fair enough, and you have been one of the more reserved commenters here. Not only in this thread, but in others, people are so full of rage. If you (the global you) have really had so many problems, have you contacted DCI Support? If not, and you are just raging on a web forum, then I really don't know what to tell you. If you have contacted them, and still feel that the service hasn't been a value, then by all means don't subscribe again.
Now Dash, in your case specifically (that you are having problems this year that you didn't last year), I think it may have something to do with Mat (drumcat here) leaving his gig at FN. He was there for some time, and was always very prompt and helpful when assistance was needed. Perhaps what some folks are experiencing this year has something to do with new folks running the show?
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For sure I'm going to get the Finals broadcast and pay again next year. How else are people not in a drum corps heavy area supposed to get shows? It's amazing how entitled some people have gotten. 10 years ago, there wasn't a way to watch the Regionals online live as they happened. 20 years ago DCW or DCN was the only way to find out about shows or scores. Now we can sit in our homes in front of the TV with a beer in hand, and friends over, and watch every regional and most of Finals week for less than the price of 1 good ticket to Finals week. Yeah, it's not perfect, but would you rather have imperfect feeds of live and on demand shows, or no shows at all to watch? I like on the West Coast, so when July hits, I don't get any live drum corps for the rest of the season. So Fan Network is really all I've got, since DCI has really started policing YouTube.
Also, Tom Blair's crew will be handling the cameras and audio for Finals. So it will be the same as Finals has always been.
And if you want to make sure you have a strong broadcast for Finals, take an Ethernet cable, and plug your computer straight into your modem. Or put it in a spot where your router is strongest. That's what I do, and I rarely have even a hiccup in broadcast speed, besides last night. Which wasn't handled by DCI, but a stupid stadium crew, just like the last few years. This is just the first time it's been broadcast to Fan Network, but the jumbotron views always sucked in Buffalo
Again... this.
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i dont think it is a gamble at all
tom blair and the lead team will produce it / should be identical in quality to the cinema event
expect a high quality production!!!
Yep, this.
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It is a sad statement when average folks with iPhones can post better show videos than what we paid for this season.
Do those folks with iPhones also post pretty good quality shows from 1974 until the current day?
Do those folks with iPhones also provide pretty ###### good multi-camera broadcasts?
Look... DCI didn't actually provide the feeds from the two Boston shows and Buffalo (there may be more that they didn't cover, but I know that they didn't do these 3). I just watched the Allentown VOD, and they were awesome. As were San Antonio and Atlanta (once they fixed the sync issue). If you folks don't realize the value that a $70 sub gets you for a year, I can't change your mind. All I know is that, back in the day, we would have to shell out at least $100 to see our finals performance, and only our finals performance. We never go to see shows throughout the year.
Seriously, the manufactured outrage is getting pretty tired, don'tchathink?
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This thread is hilarious. A while back there was a thread that I started giving Jersey Surf props for taking a day off of tour to do cleanup work in Jersey. It got a few views and comments, but nothing NEAR the (faux) outrage of this thread. DCP are some funny peeps.
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Hard to believe that NOBODY is holding the Buff production crew responsible for this travesty! I arrived at 6 and watched the line to enter grow until, at 7PM-when the gates opened- it was all the way to the field house! No problem, surely they will open a sufficient number of gates to get everyone seated - NOT! the only way in was via the 3 entrances at Gate 2. As Cadets stepped off the line was still almost to the field house and the bottleneck showed no signs of relief. Not being physically able to stand for long periods, I relied on my normal tactic of waiting for the lines to dissipate. After all we did have $40 reserved seats so why should there be a problem? We ultimately settled into our seats in time for SCV, having missed what I understand were great performances by Cadets and PR.
Can someone explain why this mis-management occurred? DCI should be offering a 25 - 30% rebate at the very least to say nothing of the aggravation that hundreds of fans must have felt! Anger was the prevailing emotion last night, has everyone developed amnesia?!
Not a DCI show, this was a Music in Motion show (G7). Demand your refund from them.
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I pay $70 a summer for that? No...
Bandwidth I understanding paying for, but with the tens of thousands of subscribers they say they have, they sure as heck can afford some half decent cameras and a real mic array to use for the webcasts. That is just stupid.
Don't know where you are getting "tens of thousands", as the only (semi) official number I have ever seen here is 5K.
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Honestly? I don't care. I LOVE LOVE LOVE all of the top 4, along with quite a few others. So, for me, this season is a win. There are MANY shows that I will watch/listen to for years. The top 4 is (IMO) the best top 4 since 1980. Added to that are many, many shows in the "lower" tiers that are absolutely enjoyable. We all win, this year. (Again, IMO)
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I don't recall Raiders having financial issues last year though with all the financial issues that happened last summer, I may have forgotten. Jersey Surf had a fuel fundraiser that some claimed was rescue and of course there was a great deal of back and forth regarding Teal Sound. I know Raiders did make it as far as Indy. From what I can see they run a rather barebones operation without a lot of frills. If people can donate, they should since they are a worthwhile organization.
While I know we cannot all give to every corps, I would love to know what percentage of drum corps fans donate to their favorite corps. I'm guessing that the number is not huge. If we want to keep drum corps alive, we have to support the activity, especially the Open Class corps and some of the World Class corps that cannot rely on souvenir sales or a large alumni base.
Actually, it was a water fundraiser. The town in which they were housed for Finals week had some water main break or some such, and they (Surf) had to rely on bottled water for everything, cooking, cleaning, water for the kids during rehearsal. Obviously, providing water for nearly 200 people in that regard is expensive, and there was no way they could have planned for it. They did the fundraiser to avoid creating debt. Bob Jacobs and crew run a pretty tight ship over there...
On topic, the Raiders are a great organization that gives opportunities to kids who probably could not get the "drum corps experience" in any other way. If you have the means, please consider a donation. Thanks.
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:thumbup:/> :thumbup:/> :thumbup:/> :thumbup:/> :thumbup:/> :thumbup:/>
Box 5, that!
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I've already pre-ordered the webcast for $49 (I have Fan Network already). The cost of pay-per-view these days is not cheap and I think the $49-$69 price point is in line with that. I think DCI is smart. They up-sold me an extra 50 bucks this season, rather than me just waiting to watch finals the next season on Fan Network and making nothing from me for that.
I just spoke to a few of my non-drumcorps friends and told them I'm having a party August 10th!! Since they all liked my super bowl party this year, I just told them that I'm having another party...LOL If anyone on here lives near Norwalk, Connecticut and would like to join us Saturday let me know PM! I can't wait to stream finals that day on my HD TV and Stereo!! It will be loud...you can trust that!
DCI please don't let me down with any technical glitches!!!
Liahona, you are in Norwalk? I am in Litchfield, work in Stamford. I pass through your town daily.
Mmmmm... This Crow Sure Is Tasty
in DCI World Class Corps Discussions
Posted
Pretty much this exactly, except I will go so far to say BD's entire show. As a fan, I did NOT like the show, at all, the first time I saw it (Stanford?). Just like last year, it grew on me and is one of my favorites this year.
I agree 100% with what you said about Crown's narration.