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Brea review


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The Venue....Brea-Olinda HS, Brea, CA

The stadium: A nice high place for a HS stadium....looks like they built it in a natural bowl on the property...much higher than the average HS stands.

Vendor area (where I was with my En Garde recruiting table) was on the upper walkway running behind the concession and GE area, but that meant I only had to walk about 20 feet to see the field.

First up: Incognito....first ever performance for a new corps!

Some performance issues typical of a first-time corps, some phasing, lack of support, etc...a lot of nerves. BUT they performed a solid show and there were moments of pure brass brilliance...some VERY good attacks and unison chords. battery was more than a bit dirty, but the important thing is there were THERE. And now that the first performance is under their belt, they have nowhere to go but up. Uniform wise...black pants and an 80s BD top....I saw something on the sleeves up near the shoulders....I wonder if they got the other half of the Pacifica HS uniforms...En Garde got some and we intended to alter them so they didn't look so BD-ish. Visors for headgear, I think. I didn't count numbers ('cause I had to go back to my table), but they were one of the larger Opens....on a par with VK for numbers.

Velvet Knights...looked a little larger than last year. Playacted the N'awleans funeral procession well (I can just hear the instruction from the brass guys..."You can play like crap here...it'll be in character....so get it out of your system") The shtick about eulogizing the DM carried well and the show was enjoyable....watch the feet when the corps comes into the first big resolve in "Tocotta & Fuge in D Minor".....think Regiment! The 2nd chart was a little muddy to me, but "Thriller" was great (how much did you guys pay for THAT? Michael DID have a forclosure pending on Neverland....)...they sold it tonight like they did not at camp yesterday. (Hey listen!! A song back when Jacko was actually a black male and not the world's ugliest white woman!!) The dance sequence was perfect...all of the familiar moves from the video....I was waiting for Vincent Price's voice! Show ended with the "Stranger in the Night/Carmen (I think)" combo....closer's not in yet. This will be a good one when it's polished.

Impulse....wow....what HAPPENED here? The brass line was 19 and, really, was NOT ready to perform. The battery was strong as always, but the brass just phoned it in. Granted the Brea show was a last minute addition to the schedule and some kids may still be in school or otherwise not able to practice to the point where they can perform, but man....

Gold...I think the largest Open of the night. Wasn't too thrilled with the music, but this corps always seems to start slow and finish strong. Some tuning and ensemble issues.

Mystikal...made Impulse's situation look rosey....8 brass...sops, mellos, 1 contra...NO BARIS at all...mellos playing bari parts. Battery fairly small as well....if it wasn't for the EIGHTEEN memeber guard, I don't think they'd even have the numbers to field...and AGAIN they pick music WAY over the capabilities of the line. I wish they'd stop that and play music appropriate for the very small brass lines they ALWAYS seem to have....it's almost like watching Jester at times...but without the emotional connection.

Pacific Crest...power and skills (like you'd extect from a World class corps)...was busy at my booth, so I wasn't able to pay much attention.

Some good stuff coming out of SoCal....but some points of concern as well. I have always felt that Impulse, Gold, and Mystikal were too close together...almost drawing from the same local talent pool..tonight did nothing to make me think differently...and frankly, I don't see Mystikal surviving much longer unless they do something to address their brass member issues. Impulse MAY be the same way, but they had issues before Mystikal moved to Long Beach...Gold has been getting steadily stronger over the last couple of years, and that may be drawing members away from Impulse and Mystikal.

Harsh, perhaps, but it does nothing to ignore the very real issues confronting those corps...there may be financial issues like fuel costs that are out of their control....but it sure seems like something else is going on.

*edited to get the CORRECT title of teh VK piece....it was late*

Edited by 84BDsop
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Thanks for the post. I believe scores were not given out at this show.

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Snip

Velvet Knights...looked a little larger than last year. Playacted the N'awleans funeral procession well (I can just hear the instruction from the brass guys..."You can play like crap here...it'll be in character....so get it out of your system") The shtick about eulogizing the DM carried well and the show was enjoyable....watch the feet when the corps comes into the first big resolve in "Prelude & Fuge in D Minor".....think Regiment! The 2nd charet was a little muddy to me, but "Thriller" was great (how much did you guys pay for THAT? Michael DID havea forclosure pending on Neverland....)...they sold it tonight like they did not at camp yesterday. (Hey listen!! A song back when Jacko was actually a black male and not the world's ugliest white woman!!) The dance sequence was perfect...all of the familiar moves from the video....I was waiting for Vincent Price's voice! Show ended with the "Stranger in the Night/Carmen (I think)" combo....closer's not in yet. This will be a good one when it's polished.

Snip

Thanks Sam!!

And we never said play like crap....it was play authentic!!

Just for clarification Thriller is the 2nd chart, the "muddy" is still part of Toccata and Fugue.

This was a fun night for all the corps involved, a great chance to get the shows in front of fans without the pressure of competition (but we still treated it like one)

Walnut and Riverside next weekend should be a great time for SoCal corps fans!!!

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This was a fun night for all the corps involved, a great chance to get the shows in front of fans without the pressure of competition (but we still treated it like one)

Maybe we need to reestablish the Evaluation Show down here in the future....

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Thanks Sam!!

And we never said play like crap....it was play authentic!!

Just for clarification Thriller is the 2nd chart, the "muddy" is still part of Toccata and Fugue.

This was a fun night for all the corps involved, a great chance to get the shows in front of fans without the pressure of competition (but we still treated it like one)

Walnut and Riverside next weekend should be a great time for SoCal corps fans!!!

Comin' on the field 'Nawlins funeral march style with the second line march (celebration) of Bill Bailey. It as rough, raw, and appropriate to the theme. Done very well, IMO. The next number was very powerful and, I think stole the Open Class show. Much bigger sound than the larger Gold. The kids made me quite proud. If you liked them last year, you'll enjoy the show this year even more. The quality is much better,much earlier in the season.

I can't wait for all the props and surprises to be placed into the show. My big regret is that I can't come to Indiana to see the final product.

Go get 'em kids!

Nancy

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THANKS MOM!

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THANKS MOM!

That took you an hour....slacker! :tongue:

j/k...even though I never marched the old VK (although i DID attend the 84 open house and that WAS the first place I ever held a G bulge), I am VERY glad to see the current corps so much in the know of the old traditions.

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