Any BINGHAMPTON reviewers?

[stansea]

How did it go tonight?

Wish I'd been there.

[Patrick_D]

Empire is actually just less then 2 points behind with a 88.313. Bucs had a 90.2(don't remember the rest of the decimal points).

Edited August 5, 2007 by Patrick_D

[AlbionNY Drum Line]

One i got emailed, not sure if they want their name or not so, posting with out name

"I went to "Sounds on the Susquehanna" last night. It was a great show. Here are my reactions. In order of appearance.

White Sabres. Having a tough time. Looks like their 8 or 9 color guard have it pretty much together but the rest of the corps is weak.

Crusaders. Haven't seen them in 2 or 3 years and was very pleasantly surprised and impressed. New uniforms are decent. They could use some tailoring for a sharper appearance. More importantly they have grown the corps to the size that can sell their program which is very good. I've always been a fan of the Russian music they've chosen. Biggest color guard of the night. About 40 brass that are on the verge of really selling the show. And a very impressive percussion section. Seems like they are on the right track on many levels.

Buccaneers. This is one great drum corps. All elements are strong. Where last year they, in my opinion, outsmarted themselves and made their show boring, this year they have a program that combines their size, talents and drum corps savvy into something that is probably once again unbeatable. Personally I enjoyed the opener that has a "chant" (can't think of what else to call it) in it. I know Santa Clara did it a couple of years ago but it really works. Their brass wails. Another favorite for me was the Rhapsody in Blue (not your father's Rhapsody in Blue) especially when the color of the banners changes in the finale.

Statesmen. Tremendous corps. My favorite from them was the brass arranging and performance. Over the past couple of years I, as many, have been getting tired of the stationary soloists in front of the corps but at least this year, with the Maynard Ferguson program, it makes perfect sense. Solos are great and tasteful for the most part, especially the one performed on the multi thousand dollar gold plated Monette trumpet.

Brigadiers. Another great performance. I am sensing that the Brigs' fortunes are on the upswing. They were solid in all areas. Great sounding horn line. Obviously they are conserving $ by doing a 'retro' show musically but it works. Maybe could have been a pinch closer to the Statesmen in the final outcome.

After this I am really looking forward to seeing these corps again and the rest of them in Rochester next month."

[alliecg27]

Looks like the judging is trying not to discourge the rest of the circuit this close to finals. The rest of the circuit is of course a tad bit further behind the Bucs than the current spreads indicate, actually....

I'll never take anything away from Bucs because they do have a fantastic show, but I sincerely doubt that the judging panels would do such a diservice to the rest of the circuit by giving them feedback that doesn't reflect their honest opinions. It wouldn't make sense to do that in any case because they have to make the scores reflect their honest opinions at some point, and it would be significantly more beneficial to do so now, when there's a chance to fix any issues, than at prelims.

Edited August 6, 2007 by alliecg27

[Dale Bari]

Looks like the judging is trying not to discourge the rest of the circuit this close to finals. The rest of the circuit is of course a tad bit further behind the Bucs than the current spreads indicate, actually....

Well, heck! Stop the presses! Headline: "DCA doesn't need to hire judges any more!"

VOReason's completely objective, unfallible mind and senses can replace all of those stuffed maroon shirts, who feel so sorry for anyone not wearing Buccin' Blue that they try very hard "not to discourage the rest of the circuit so close to finals".

Hmmm... Maybe I've got the angle all wrong. How about this one:

Forget the NBA referee controversy! Forget warrantless wiretapping! VOReason has blown the lid off the greatest heretofore hidden conspiracy of the decade. Some nefarious dark lord (Dick Cheney, perhaps?) has been tampering with the judges, making those poor saps in maroon keep the margins with Bucs just close enough to the rest of the challengers, luring them to their doom. His goal? To crush the Cabs, Bushwackers, and Statesmen's souls by waving that tantalizing scent of "dark horse" championship under their noses, only to crown the Blue Team with the greatest winning margin in DCA history!

Too bad, Grand Conspirator, your cover's been blown. Slink back to the shadows, fiend! Move over Woodward and Bernstein! Make way for VOReason!

Oh, please! How about the spreads are just about exactly where the judges put them. If the Bucs lap the field, so be it. If it comes down to a dropped saber or a blown release deciding it by 0.1, so be it too. If you're such a great judge, let us see your papers. Then, maybe - just maybe - we'll bow down to your "superior" skills.

NOT!

[alliecg27]

Well, heck! Stop the presses! Headline: "DCA doesn't need to hire judges any more!"

VOReason's completely objective, unfallible mind and senses can replace all of those stuffed maroon shirts, who feel so sorry for anyone not wearing Buccin' Blue that they try very hard "not to discourage the rest of the circuit so close to finals".

Hmmm... Maybe I've got the angle all wrong. How about this one:

Forget the NBA referee controversy! Forget warrantless wiretapping! VOReason has blown the lid off the greatest heretofore hidden conspiracy of the decade. Some nefarious dark lord (Dick Cheney, perhaps?) has been tampering with the judges, making those poor saps in maroon keep the margins with Bucs just close enough to the rest of the challengers, luring them to their doom. His goal? To crush the Cabs, Bushwackers, and Statesmen's souls by waving that tantalizing scent of "dark horse" championship under their noses, only to crown the Blue Team with the greatest winning margin in DCA history!

Too bad, Grand Conspirator, your cover's been blown. Slink back to the shadows, fiend! Move over Woodward and Bernstein! Make way for VOReason!

Oh, please! How about the spreads are just about exactly where the judges put them. If the Bucs lap the field, so be it. If it comes down to a dropped saber or a blown release deciding it by 0.1, so be it too. If you're such a great judge, let us see your papers. Then, maybe - just maybe - we'll bow down to your "superior" skills.

NOT!

That was fantastic. Thank you for saying what I think anyone else who read that was thinking in a substantially more illustrative way than I certainly was able to.

[ech2os]

Drum Corps scoring as it relates to the fans perception reminds me of a conversation I have had ad nausuem with a buddy of mine who is an obnoxious Florida Gators Fan (I know, redundant). We talk about The Directors Cup.......every year Stanford seems to win the Directors Cup. Now Stanford Stinks at Football and is not much better at Basketball......but they clean house at Volleyball and Golf. Two collegiate sports that aren't exactly at the forefront of popularity relative to Football and Men's Basketball. So the analogy is that just when you think UF must have won the Directors Cup, ( I mean they won Football and Men's Basketball National Champtionships)......they didn't.......cause there are more sports that make up the Directors Cup than the popular ones. So you can have a great hornline and great drumline, but that isn't all there is to winning the Directors Cup (DCA Title). Ask Hawthorne how much their smoking drumline and 64 horns did for them a few years ago when they finished 4th. So yes......I guess its completely conceivable that Reading isn't beating everybody by 10 points.

Edited August 6, 2007 by ech2os

[Skylinersop16]

Time to bring out our smiley friend

:feednotroll:

Review - I didn't see the entire show but I will be happy to throw my review out there.

White Sabers

This corps is trying hard and I can see that. The performance was weak for the brass and percussion but the color guard held strong throughout the entire show IMO. Pretty much the whole show sounded like they were struggling through it but the closer came out nicely. I can tell that it has been worked in rehearsals because I could feel the emotion that was not present in the rest of the show. Keep pushing and you will have a decent spot in Rochester.

Rochester Crusaders

I did not see the performance but I did recognize all the music they were playing. That always makes me happy. :)

Reading Buccaneers

Reading has pretty much blown me away for the last couple of seasons. I will admit that their style does not entertain me but they are very good. I did like Adagio a couple years ago and this year I like the Gershwin piece. Always very clean. The one complaint I do have is that the battery tends to drown out the hornline. Other than that, a great show.

Empire Statesmen

I thought the show was great. There were some obvious holes in the drill and some formations that didn't line up but I thought it was great. I think they did a wonderful job and it was a fitting tribute to Maynard.

Brigadiers

I liked the beginning with the one member in the original uniform playing the echo effect. I thought that was a great way to start the show. Spanish Fantasy is always entertaining and I was happy with all of the show musically. Visually it seemed a bit too hectic at times. There were some sets where members appeared to be running and not keeping up very well. I kinda thought they deserved to be scored a little higher.

Not really an in depth review I know. I'm not good at this standpoint since I'm usually on the field this time of year.

[kylejsoccer]

One i got emailed, not sure if they want their name or not so, posting with out name

"I went to "Sounds on the Susquehanna" last night. It was a great show. Here are my reactions. In order of appearance.

White Sabres. Having a tough time. Looks like their 8 or 9 color guard have it pretty much together but the rest of the corps is weak.

Crusaders. Haven't seen them in 2 or 3 years and was very pleasantly surprised and impressed. New uniforms are decent. They could use some tailoring for a sharper appearance. More importantly they have grown the corps to the size that can sell their program which is very good. I've always been a fan of the Russian music they've chosen. Biggest color guard of the night. About 40 brass that are on the verge of really selling the show. And a very impressive percussion section. Seems like they are on the right track on many levels.

Buccaneers. This is one great drum corps. All elements are strong. Where last year they, in my opinion, outsmarted themselves and made their show boring, this year they have a program that combines their size, talents and drum corps savvy into something that is probably once again unbeatable. Personally I enjoyed the opener that has a "chant" (can't think of what else to call it) in it. I know Santa Clara did it a couple of years ago but it really works. Their brass wails. Another favorite for me was the Rhapsody in Blue (not your father's Rhapsody in Blue) especially when the color of the banners changes in the finale.

Statesmen. Tremendous corps. My favorite from them was the brass arranging and performance. Over the past couple of years I, as many, have been getting tired of the stationary soloists in front of the corps but at least this year, with the Maynard Ferguson program, it makes perfect sense. Solos are great and tasteful for the most part, especially the one performed on the multi thousand dollar gold plated Monette trumpet.

Brigadiers. Another great performance. I am sensing that the Brigs' fortunes are on the upswing. They were solid in all areas. Great sounding horn line. Obviously they are conserving $ by doing a 'retro' show musically but it works. Maybe could have been a pinch closer to the Statesmen in the final outcome.

After this I am really looking forward to seeing these corps again and the rest of them in Rochester next month."

First i would like to say thanks to joe for forwarding this review on to everyone. The review for the most part was very enlightening while i dont agree with much of it i do agree with some.

[msjbass]

Skylinersop16

You said :

White Sabers

This corps is trying hard and I can see that. The performance was weak for the brass and percussion but the color guard held strong throughout the entire show IMO. Pretty much the whole show sounded like they were struggling through it but the closer came out nicely. I can tell that it has been worked in rehearsals because I could feel the emotion that was not present in the rest of the show. Keep pushing and you will have a decent spot in Rochester.

I, for one, take this as nothing but constructive criticism. Some people may or may not like our show, but you are correct in stating that we are trying hard. We are busting our butts every practice just like every other corps out there. We've had many challenges this season, and that is not a secret by any means. We feel we are making adequate progress. It feels AWFULLY close to what happened last year. I do NOT speak for my corps - these are my views only. I just wanted to let you know I appreciate your review. It's better than the totally negative one-liners we've been getting.

Thanks