bbass74

1. 88' Madison 2. 93' Star 3. 91' Phantom 4. 91' Cavies 5. 87' Garfield 6. 89' Phantom 7. 89' SCV 8. 95' Madison 9. 92' SCV 10. 91' Cadets (not the best musically but still fun to listen to)

I didn't march in Cadets or Star but marched in that era of Sylvester and Zingali and I can say that the drill reflected the music. Today, it seems the other way around and I think that's why allot of people from 80's and 90's are losing interest and just not understanding the direction DC is moving in. I've said many times in these forums and feel like I'm a broken record but I think drill designers today need to go back to basics and learn how to connect with the audience more efficiently. These principles should apply to today but I don' think they are being adhered to.

Yeah, don't like Enya either. I go to a drum corps show to be entertained, not put to sleep! :) I still think it could have worked without the singing, maybe have a mellophone do a soft solo. The problem was that she was moving while she was singing so the mic was moving towards and away from her mouth so the sound and volume wasn't consistant. That takes away from the music. A musical instrument at least can keep the same volume and is not relied on amplification... in turn, a much better addition to the piece!

Goes to show you can have a good show without singing and narration. What killed Cadets show for me was the vocalist. I didn't understand why she was singing nor did it add anything. If anything, it took away from the music.

Well, to be honest, I don't like it. I liked being able to buy the cds and know which corps was which... and enjoy the music selection. I don't like today's arrangements, there's hardley any melody. Sounds more like licks and solos, no musical theme. I know I'm not the only one who thinks this and I've said this before. On the other hand, I can name Channel One Suite, Russian Christmas Overture, Candide, etc. because that was when corps played most of the melody's from those pieces. I don't hear that anymore in corps today. I will admit that the visual aspect has grown leaps and bounds. Corps are doing things that weren't even thought of when I marched but I think what's losing is that because corps are spending so much time on visual effects and props, the music is getting lost and less time is being spent on music. I see allot of down time and holes where there's little or not music going on, or one section isn't playing for as long as a few minutes. Man, I would have loved to have that much down time when I was performing! For me, I want to be entertained, it was all about the music being played on the field with the drill. The music drove the drill, not the other way around. It seems like DC today is putting the buggy before the horse. But again, this is just my opinion on the activity. I'm sure allot of people like it the way it is now. But most of people my age and older are the ones going to shows and buying merchandise. If corps do not start appealing to the people who pay for it, numbers will start (and already have) going down, along with the dollars. I can say for certain, this last finals will be the last I go to. And honestly, the only reason I went this year was because the tickets were a gift. But unless they are local shows, I'm not driving great distances to see a show nor will I buy videos and cds because why spend hundreds of dollars on something I don't enjoy to watch or listen to....

It all depends what era of corps you're from. Since the beginning of the mellinium, allot of the corps sound the same to me. I'm sure allot are different but after going to shows every year, I can't easily tell the difference. Give me the 80's and most of the 90's and I can probably name every show from the first piece by listening to them. Can't do that from 00' +

1. Phantom 2. Cavies 3. Bluecoats 4. SCV 5. BD 6. Cadets 7. Madison 8. Blue Knights 9. Boston 10. Spirit 11. Crown 12. Glassmen

Thanks, I used a 18-55mm wide angle lens for most full corps shots and the retreat shots and a 75-300mm zoom telefoto lens for close ups, all Canon lenses and the Canon Rebel body. I took the same shot of retreat 14 years ago when I marched my last year in drum corps. I'm gonna try and find it and scan it in and post that as well, I'll send a link.

87 - Cadets 88 - Madison 89 - Phantom 90 - Cadets 91 - Phantom 92 - SCV 93 - Star 94 - Phantom 95 - Cadets 96 - Phantom 97 -Madison 98 - Cadets 99 - SCV 00 - 06 - who knows, they all sound the same. Although I liked 03' Cadets.

Obviously you haven't been in the activity very long or you wouldn't have even thought of your reply!

As much as I love Cadets for their innovation, I feel, as like I do with most of the drum corps activity, they have gotten away from the true essense of what a drum corps program is (IMO). I feel like I'm trying to watch a broadway show on the field. There's too much going on the field without any emphasis on any of it. I'm all for having themes and concepts, it's been that way for years. But I remember being able to put in a CD and knowing what corps it is and being able to hum or sing to the melody. Now, where is the melody? I can't find one thing that seperates most corps on the dvds let alone the cds other than the uniforms. Back to the original question... I don't think the two comparisons are very similar. With 93 Star, it was the music that puzzled people. Sure the drill was strange but so was the music. The music that was played is what drove that show, the intensity, the drama. With the 06' Cadets, the drill and guard moved that show, not the music. I felt like i was listening to a film score and not a show written for drum and bugle. Maybe I'm an old cat, stuck in my ways of the corps from the late 80's through the mid 90's, who knows, this is just my opinion. To me, you're asking, "will people except this new way of putting a drum corps on the field?" My answer is: I don't know, but I'm slowly losing interest.

http://flickr.com/photos/bbass74/sets/72157594236830465/ Enjoy!

I've got some footage of the beginning of the 91 season when my parents "rented" a vhs camera and shot a few of our opening shows and the other corps that were there. I haven't watched them in forever but I remember the Cadets doing Short Ride... that it sounded like a train wreck the first few shows!! :) But it ended up becoming one of my favorites that year.

when you're in your car and there's a pause in an upbeat song and you start doing dot-dot-dot-dot... when you drive by a high school and pay extra attention to their football stadium, wondering if it would make a good site for a dc show... when you have to buy some dress shoes and try a pair on and start doing obliques to see how comfortable they are.... when you get one of the dvds for your b-day and before everyone is done eating cake, you're already through most of the "extras" on the dvd! btw, all these are true for me, the last one happening last week! :)

That's like calling a Texan a southerner!!!!

Sops: 94 BD Mellos: 88 Madison Bari's and Euphs: 89 Phantom Contras: 87 SCV Snares: 2005 Cadets Tenors: 2005 Cadets Bass: 86 Suncoast Cymbals: Any SCV Pit: Any SCV Guard: 91 Phantom! Repitior: The show would last a half hour if chose all the stuff I liked but I would do Dvoraks no.9 again or a whole show based on Concierto de Aranjuez.

I never heard any poster state they want drum corps they way they want it or the way it was. They might disagree with some aspects of the way the activity is being run or the way corps are producing their shows but never have I heard them say "this is the way it should be...".

You know, I thought of several things to comment about the posters comments but since he's not coming back... why bother. Other than to say good bye and good luck! I can agree drum corps is for the members but without the fans, who would the members march/perform for? Without the fans buying corps merchandise and going to shows, how would the corps get their funding? So answer those questions and then you can tell me who drum corps is for. If a musician didn't appeal to an audience, how could he afford to keep a recording contract or afford to go on tour if they are playing for no one? Hello? It's common sense! Drum corps is for fans, like me and you. Will all corps appeal to me, no. Even in the 80's, not every corps/show appealed to me. But now, I'm noticing very few number of shows are appealing to me and the ones I do like, for the most part, do not like the entire shows. I sold my tickets to finals because I didn't like the majority shows and I'm not buying any merchandise from DCI or any corps this year because it's not that appealing to me anymore. Will DCI notice my lack of financial contribution... probably not. But if enough people follow suit, they will notice and so will the corps. So yes, the drum corps community should not take people who are announcing they are leaving the activity lightly. Although not every corps will appeal to everyone, there can be a compromise. The reason why older popular music artists are still around like U2 is because they appeal to the older audiences, as well as newer ones. Just because what Britney Spears and Outkast does is popular, doesn't mean U2 should go off doing their style of music. They do their own thing and add in new and refreshing elements. Why can't drum corps follow this same idiology? It just feels like corps are copying each other and losing their self identity, they are sounding like each other. I use to be able to point out in the cds who's who but now since the late 90's I can't tell anymore... maybe Madison if any of them.

Although I didn't go to finals, the M'boro regional show was the same. So many bandos I thought I was at a high school pep ralley! But I too had to tell a couple of groups of kids to be quiet. I would have done it more except I didn't want to continue embarrassing my guest who was new to the activity. At first, she didn't understand why you could not talk during a performance since it was outside but then even she told me between shows how annoying it was for people to be talking and getting up during the shows. I also had a similar experience at the Jackson, TN show, a small family with a 3-4 year old was talking all through the shows but didn't utter a peep between corps (go figure!). One of the ladies even had the audacity to light up a cigarrette in which I politely asked her to extinguish within a few puffs. And the little 3-4 year old was stomping the stands and banging the seat in fron of her (the row I sat in) with a pair of drum stick all the while the family thinking it's cute! I had already asked them to be quiet and thought asking them to contain their kid would have sparked a racial debate since we were of different ethnicity (it wouldn't have been the first time I was called a racist, just because I disagreed with someone of different color!). So I put up with it but it just affirmed my stance that too many people these days (young and old) just have no concept of "other people" and "common courtesy". It's amazing and just down right frustrating. Just shows how much of this country is so self centered!

It's only a matter of time!

HAHAHAHAHA! ....... Where's the punchline??? Sorry... couldn't resist! I'm glad you like the show but to me it IS their worst production I've seen to date (as far as GE) and I haven't liked allot of BD since their 99 show and even before that, it was sketchy.

when all of a sudden there rose such loud bang the drum major hitting a trash can to wake the gang.

haven't read all the responses yet but I know this would never happen. It's like asking a record label to make a custom cd of your favorite artists. What I see is like what's already beginning is downloadable video files. Like you would purchase APDs or mp3's, you can purchase your favorite corps shows by downloads. Give it a year or two. Then, hopefully you'll be able to download archives from previous years. I'd do it! Charge like $9.99 per show, that's feesable.

How about the overtone by a baritone in PR 94 right before the wedge??? At least he was heard! One of my instruuctors always told me, if you're gonna screw up, screw up loud!

Suncoast 1992 during prelims we had a quiet part of a song and then a 4 count and a 16th note tonal bass run that started on 3. Something happened and they started on 2 and then we had half note accents for the next two measures. Since the bass line came in early the battery was hitting on 1 and 3 while the pit was hitting on 2 and 4. It sounded like an echo effect and it threw off half the hornline :) ! Somehow we recovered after the first measure but dang, it's all on video! They filmed prelims but not finals. We still made it in though!