MikeD

Sorry, but IMO you and those with this are trying to create something out of very little. You can say all you want about "more and more", but IMO that is just plain wrong. I did not claim you are full of BS...I showed where your petition is factually wrong, or just plain opinion, that's all. How that makes your argument "easier" is beyond me. Mike

I doubt there would be an increase or decrease because of amps...I don't see them havig any effect, in and of themselves. I am guessing Crown may have had an increase because of their higher placements putting them more in the public eye as a potential favorite, but I don't know. Just a guess. I bought stuff from both BAC and Crown because I loved both corps last year...and I also bought stuff from Regiment for the same reason. Amps made no difference to me. Mike

Irrelevant. Just because it "used to be" something doesn't make what it is today bad. Drum corps used to be all sorts of things, and over time it has grown and changed. You said pits are on average one member less. Not sure if it's true, but if so, there is that rationale. I hope they do NOT shrink them. Pit stick heights are indeed lower IMO, from those I saw last Friday. Creativity does not exist in only one way. There are creative shows using amps and creative shows not using them. IMO the public outcry is FAR less this year than last. I have no idea where you get that from. Where do you get this "more and more offended"? Just because a few think the way you do? Anecdotal stories about legacy fans... Last year at Giant's I sat in front of a guy from St Lucy's who stopped marching in 1966, and while he said he was not all that thrilled with Crown's singing, he understood things change, and he still loved coing to DCI shows. We talked about it a bit during breaks between corps. This past Friday I was speaking to a guy who started marching in St Joes Patron Cadets in 66...stayed with them when they became St Ritas...and aged out in SCV in 1973. We gave each other our opinions as each corps competed...not a single mention of amps or narration. Disagree. Kids flock the the souvie booths and buy stuff from their favorite corps and videos from DCI...parents give their children far more than they take for themselves when it comes to disposable cash. Mike

Well, I saw shows in both small and large venues, and I did not have those awful balance issues you seem to have had. This year, of the corps I saw the pit balance was very good...and playing styles seem to be more natural. As I said in a review, Cadets need to fine tune their vocals...both the opening narration and the drumspeak...IMO. But...the concept for each is good. Mike

He wasn't taking it back..these threads are conversations...he saw something interpreted incorrectly and corrected the mis-interpretation. I've never read/heard any directors Email or speak of the things that you and Jeff seem to be saying. Until such time as I see direct evidence, I just can't give it much credence.... for me...you of course are free to do what you wish. Mike

He said that because of the show they are doing they felt they had to use it. If they had picked a different show, or when they choose next year's show, they might not need it. Pretty clear to me. I would guess that the availability of amps made an impact on the choices they made, another positive for amps...and it shows MORE, not LESS, creativity...IMO. Mike

Hmmmm...must be getting late...I read that as "loaded with beer" :P Mike

Making use of the rules in place doesn't mean you have to implement every single facet of every rule. Darren made that quite clear, esp in his followup. Example...Crown is not singing this year. Maybe they will again, or maybe someone else will...it's legal, but it's not mandatory. Example...BAC is not narrating...BD is. Again, it's a rule in place that provides for the option if so chosen. Example...Coats are using amps, for this year's show...As Darren said, they may not next year. Who knows? That's the gist of what he said, IMO. Not that just because it's legal to do X that every corps has to do X every year. You don't have to do anything to "appease" me. You and Jeff can post whatever you want. You said the person was full of lies when they accused the person who asked them to sign last year's petition of "assault and battery" (since apparently it was you! :P ). Well, maybe they made that up, and maybe you and Jeff made up the comments on the div I director. Since you can't divulge the info, as far as I'm concerned it just sits there as an interesting piece of information with no verification. IMO that director should not be used as 'evidence' on a petition if you can't back up who it is if called on it. However, that's just MHO too. Obviously you think otherwise...and it IS your petition. Mike

And he said in the same post.... Yes, it's there as an option, and yes, for their show the Coats felt they should use it. And when accused of saying they had to use A&E, in the same thread, Darren said this... So yes, IMO he did NOT say anything close to what you think he said. Mike

j/k???? No, all too true! :P ...and gettin' older by the minute! Mike

IMO.... You should not be using a director that can't be named in a petition like that. Just MHO. As for the allegations of cash kickbacks, again IMO it's not something that should be published if you can't name the person making that assertion. It just comes across as make-believe to me without the evidence to back it up. The Coats guy himself (Darren) said he never said what you and Dave accuse him of saying, and when I read his post, I agree with him. Looks like we disagree as usual. :P Mike

That is pure opinion...and IMO not remotely true. As long as the petition is just spouting opinion....Both corps who used it last year used it well, and once the balance issues are resolved, the Cadets use this year will be fine too...have not heard the western corps. I'd love to see the genesis of this...plus, according to Jeff the pits are down a person on average. I'd rather they stay the same size, myself. They are able to play across a wider dynamic spectrum. I never had a problem hearing the brass...you can't use RECORDINGS as evidence of balance issues. If that is true...assess a penalty. The only one I've read to date that said that is a person who was standing on the field. I never heard any brass coming through the amps from the stands. You can't know why scores show to show went up. Different slates, different competition. Maybe they'd have been higher if the amps had not failed. There is just no way to tell WHY something happened score-wise on a given show. How many said amps were a factor? Did they purchase amps? At least one of them specifically stated that finances were NOT a factor. Another alluded to internal issues and rehearsal location problems. Just making this stuff up is not going to help the case here, IMO. Who are the two? Jeff Fiedler already covered that, and if the second was Darren from the 'Coats, he is 1) not the director and 2) did not say anything close to that...he refuted that assertion himself. Corps receive sponsorships for all sorts of things. Have for decades. As far as I know, they still pay for their stuff. Again, pure opinion by those who hated the idea from day one. Irrelevant, IMO. Good luck. Mike

There are guidelines...mic placement geographically-speaking, who can be micced (no brass)...etc...what other guidelines are you looking for? Mike

What happened to Holy Name Cadets? :) Mike

TWO? Who is the second director who they think said that? I hope they are not referring to Darren from the Bluecoats, as 1) he is not their director and 2) he never said anything close to that. Mike

What "increased furor"? I see far less than last year's hysteria here in DCP. Mike

The percussion just finished a kick-butt percussion feature, inc a wonderful tenor feature (shades of 2000)...the drum-speak is after that a bit...if there had BEEN no great drumming I might agree, but in this show I absolutely do not agree at all. to maximize the drum-speak, it WILL have to be crisper though, for me. But conceptually it fit right into the rest of the show, IMO. Mike

Hoping the rain rain rain would go away and come again some ohher day, I trekked up to Secaucus....and lucked out. the show, while delayed a bit, went off just fine. I was on the 40 yeard line, near the back of the lower deck...hence...I had the upper deck over my head blocking some of the sound. So..take this for what it is worth... Surf....yet ANOTHER great show...only three plates this year...are they new? They did not seem as featured as those of the past few years. Stars and Stripes/1812 combo was excellent...the one spot I thought they may have 'missed' an opportunity, design-wise, is during reh company front diagonal. They move about 16 steps on one diagonal to S&S and then 16 counts the otehr way, also to S&S...it might have been neat to do the first 16 count move as is and then on the next 16 direction change switch to the 1812...because the next section is a neat combination of the two. Outside of that...a more 'traditional' show than the past few years, with regular unis, but an outstanding effort by the kids....best of luck, as always. Raiders...JCSS...need more trumpets, obviously. Some very nice charts...the battery part of the percussion is especially good, as always. One spot the entire horn line is bunched up at the sideline doing a park and blow...I'd make sure the trumpets get down front on that...they were in back and were lost. If it's possible I'd also keep the trumpets closer together...they have some huge splits in the drill, which makes for some sound problems. I think this show is a great one for them...in their reach yet not simplistic. Great job by admin and members. Spirit...Broadway...I love the guard uni and the first flag. For me personally, "They're Playing Our Song has always been a show/tune I don't like...seems kind of lame to me. The arrangement and members get the most out of what is there...but I would not have picked that tune to open my Broadway show. The Webber balled...the Playbills are a nice idea that needs a bit of tweaking....much of the balled is a tune from "Sunset Blvd", yet the highlighted Playbill is "Phantom of the Opera" (only a fragment is played from that show). I'd just switch them two around on the field. If they want to bring out that Phantom fragment, lower the Sunset Blvd prop and pick up the Phantom, if need be. It just bugged me..though it's not a big deal. "Luck be a Lady Tonight" from Guys and Dolls has great potential...right now it doesn't sound "New York" enough...it needs more accenting and more pizzazz to sell, but the chart is there, so IMO they'll get it there. BAC...initiwl coment...gorgeous guard...and excellent as well. Love the salmon colored costumes...the opening Bach needs some more nuance and drama, but that will come...It's a wonderful arrangement. Candide is not the 'tradtional chart...but it works. One spot in the show the brass/battery are close to the sideline and the guard just fills the field...a VERY nice moment. I think this show will work for them. Crossmen...I really like the show this year, better even than last. "So Far Away" is their ballad this year, and I personally like the tune better than last year....it needs a LOT more shaping to really sell...the high point I thought might be scored a bit low for the trumpets, not permitting them to really "laser out" a cutting edge sound, but it is certainly lush..and a great tune. Always wanted to do the Meatloaf piece with a band, so I'm happy to see and hear it...very nice chart whoch is going to work well for them once the performance level is raised up. Classical Gas...everyting old is new again...first heard it by 27th back around 69. Very nice chart by the Crossmen. I've always liked the tune, and their version is a good one. One thing about black unis...just about any guard costuming will stand out, and the Crossmen picked some VERY nice guard costumes. Crown...A gorgeous hornline...even more "Regiment-ish" this year than last....that line may keep them up where they were last year...or even higher. The battery did a very nice job, with some demanding music. Guard...wow...one of my favorites of the night. While not controversial this year, I think this show can carry them a long way. Cadets...I bet the staff had an "oops" moment when listening to the opening narration....balance with the rest of the corps was waaay out...could hardly hear the narration at all. Also, the guy's voice is in the tenor range...can he drop it down top at least the baritone range? My one overall tiny negative is that I might like just a bit more 'down'...the show is so fast paced and frenetic...percussion feature..shades of 2000 with the tenors! I did not mind the vocalising..but it does have to be crisper. This show certainly is different, but I think it has potential to stack up agsinst anybody...something I haven't thought the past few years. Edit: I understand how people look at the door prop and go eeewwww at this point. For me, it looked like a black tarpapered unfinished outhouse. If it were me, I'd paint the black part the shiniest glossiest black I could...to make it look almost like marble or something...to signify deep space. Definitely not a flat black. Or...maybe turn the black around the doorframe into painted "marble" columns...I had this marbleizing kit I used on some columns in my basement that looked real neat. All in all, a great show, IMO. More "straight-ahead" drum corps, with Surf wearing regular unis and Crown not singing, and BAC not narrating. But...just a good as last year for all three, and hopefullt even higher placements to come. Mike

Well, there is one joke that crashed and burned! :P It was supposed to be a play on words...Eerie and Erie....oh well! Mike

Ah, I had no idea. Maybe someone was making a joke...but the hotel WAS very nice, if memory serves. ($1 to Chairman Kaga)...at least to someone not yet 17. That was SOME great group to bounce around with! :P I guess you got some first hand experience with Tony Schlechta saying we should be thrown out of the show for forming a Peace Sign...and those folks reactions! I remember the horn line rehearsing standing in the ocean to keep cool! My parents told me they actually showed just about the entire show on TV! Too bad there isn't a video os THAT show! I always wondered how we got that gig...it seemed so random to me! A VERY funny guy. Hugh did a great job as corps director. Mike

Sorry, we never competed in Erie... Mike

The dark grey was a powder blue, both the skirts and the fringe on the blouses, if my memory serves ($1 to chairman Kaga). They came within a tenth or so of winning a national championship back in the 50's...not an all-girl champ...but against corps like Garfield, BS, Cavies, Madison, etc...not sure if it was VFW or Legion. I saw them quite often through the 60's. A very nice corps, to be sure. They were stil doing pretty well into the mid 70's....check corpsreps if you are interested. South Jersey was a hotbed of all-girl drum corps, for some reason...the Haddonfield Royaleers all-girl were one town over from Audobon. Mike

I don't know who footed the bill, but we stayed on the Miami Beach strip in a REAL nice hotel...somehow the Fountainbleu springs to mind. I remember walking from the hotel to the bus to the show site wearing big bags on our feet to keep from scuffing our white bucks before inspection. :P I seem to remember it being astroturf at the time myself, though I guess it is real grass now. Mike

I marched there twice in the Cadets....1970 VFW Nats were held there, and in 1971 on our way to Dallas for VFW's we stopped over in Miami to play a Dolphin/49'e pre-season 1/2 time, and spent a week at a private school in the area rehearsing for VFW's. 1970 we had no rain on us (VERY hot though!). At our 1971 performance it POURED on us at the 1/2-time. There was a picture of our timpani section on the front page of the main Miami paper the next day with sheets of water just bouncing off of the timps. Every day at rehearsal we would watch a dark cloud with sheets of rain make it's way into the area, move slowly towards us, deluge on top of us, and then recede into the distance. It turned hot and dry into hot and humid! :P Mike

When did they win the GSC? http://gardenstatecircuit.homestead.com/files/Home_Page.htm Mike