PJS53

Im with ya 2-7. First time I went to the chiropractor he looked at my back and said "you marched tymps huh?". I have to admit though we had a bunch of fun with those instruments. The worst part was getting new heads the day of a big show. As you know it took a little time for those babies to "break in" properly and meantime the tuning was all over the place. Guys who had good ears had it tough enough but those who counted the number of cranks to their next note were screwed. That could be one reason why you hear so many out of tune lines on those old recordings. My second year on tymps we got an instructor who came from a more orchestral orientation and understood the problem so we would get our new heads a day or two before the rest of the drumline.

Yes, good choice! Chavala had the birdy tweets too right?

Thanks Paul. I was guessing that might be it but the word "popped" kind of threw me off. Just semantics I guess.

Define "popped flam" please. Admitting ignorance.

Uhmm, can you run that by me again or elaborate?

Any of you guys listen to the new Tower of Power release "The Oakland Zone"? It's Garibaldi doing his thing. If you liked 'em in the 70's you'll like this one too.

Easy for you. You've got the answers! I'll take a stab at a few 1. St. Andrew's Bridegemen (ok that one was easy) 3. Greece Cadets 4. Wausau Story 6. Charioteers I'll watch for others to fill in my memory gaps.

I marched tympani (or tympano for you sticklers) in 73 and 74. Regarding the original posters question Frank was pretty much on target. We had a part in "All for the Best" with a glissando on tymp. The player next to that drum turned the crank while that player rolled thus creating a tympani glissando. I have to agree with the sound of backfield tympani I really liked the sound we got in"Somewhere" 1974. Can't think of others offhand but I always had a great appreciation for the lines produced by Sanford at SCV, Anaheim Kingsmen, and 27th Lancers.

Oops, sorry I missed that Rob.

I'm mostly a jazz guy having played in various jazz groups since aging out ot corps so I like most anything with Tony Williams, Roy Haynes, Buddy Rich, Peter Erskine, etc. in fact not too many guys I haven't been able to appreciate. I'm alittle surprised at not having seen a mention of Steve Gadd in this thread so far. A drum corps guy who made good and still applies rudiments to his set drumming. Fans of Blue Devils ought to listen to Steve's drumming on "Legend of the One Eyed Sailor" for a real treat.

Thanks to the guys who know the technical stuff re: bores etc. however it's a good question. The range for both instruments is the same, right? I personally love the cornet sound and would like to hear what it would sound like.

Re:1972 Kingsmen and Blue Stars I can agree with but I think I would give a nod to Argonne over DesPlaines. Also surprised to not see 1976 Blue Devils on your list.

I was at the Frankfort, IL show and enjoyed the heck out of the music. I admit that during the performance I was almost overwhelmed with everything happening in the show and being a drummer I watch the battery a lot and sometimes miss other things going on. However, when Cavaliers came back on to do the victory concert I really listened to the music. I liked it even better. In my opinion they have a very mature sound in the brass line. To define that I would say that the balance, dynamics, intonation, and overall quality of sound is excellent throughout the line and throughout the whole show. I suspect that this is also what the judges are rewarding them for. A friend of mine said that Phantom Regiment has a much more demanding horn book (I haven't seen them yet) and that may be true but I think the individual talent of the musicians combined with a very effective music selection is what is separating Cavaliers brass section from the rest of the corps this year.

I think you'll find French Horns in some of the Senior lines. I can't think of any Juniors who are using them. I'll be interested to see if anyone comes up with an answer on this. They sure sound sweet when they're dead on.

Just curious if anybody else had been at the show and their impressions. A friend of mine who is a very knowledgeable drum corps guy said that many were shocked that Glassmen were ahead of Phantom and that Phantom clearly had a better show. Glassmen's guard show was not yet complete and yet managed to beat PR in guard. Any other opinions?

One thing I've learned is that change (especially in drum corps) is inevitable. It's my guess that Scouts will change to non G instruments in time. They will probably resist as long as it's practical to do so. At some point they will be in a position when "fighting the good fight" of resisting change will just not mean that much anymore and they will reluctantly make the switch.

Better double check that. 2001 was first year for Cavs using non G instruments.

Hey no problem. You just have to understand you brass guys take your chances when you get on the drum bus. BTW. I marched with Scott Wagner and he is a good guy. Glad to hear he helped you out.

Many of us talk about how drum corps helped make us the people we are today. Maybe in the sense of learning music or maybe in helping mold your outlook in life. For me it was both. I learned a lot about how to practice, play,listen, and dedicate myself to drumming correctly from one of my instructors. In a larger sense he was also a big influence in what I learned about loyalty, teamwork, goal setting, and many other beneficial attributes. Maybe for you it wasn't the drum guy but I'll bet somebody sticks out in your mind as sort of a mentor. Mine was Jim Roussel. He was a great drummer in his own right and had the ability to pull together a pretty rag-tag drumline when he got there and make us believe in ourselves. Thanks to Dan G. for bringing this to mind in a couple of correspondences we had. So who's yours?

Rick, What's on the cd? Whole shows, solos, drum features, i&e?

Just curious. Have you marched drum corps before or is this your first year? If not, why are you not marching in a previous corps?

I no longer play or teach corps but have recently tried the new Suede series head on my set toms. I've heard that Remo is trying to promote these as an alternative to the Renaissance heads for tenors. I'm curious to know what kind of reaction they are getting and how do they compare to other head combinations. BTW they sounded fine but not spectacular on toms (jazz set). Didn't like them for brush work on my snare.

Purely subjective but my first thought was the Madison lines from around 74-76. I think Argonne in 72 blew pretty hot too but it's tough to say for sure. A bunch of corps in those days could blow but I think a lot has to do with the arrangements. Sometimes the shear volume may not hit the same db's but the way the piece is structured can give the perception of more sound. Does that make sense?