Bridgeport

[cabalumnidrummer]

ech2os said:

"Frank . . . . . I noticed in your signature that you marched with Hawthorne. Which one were you ? Would I have noticed you out there when I saw the alumni corps perform for the last 15 years ? :)"

Eric, you couldn't have missed him! For starters, think of the flugel horn solos he played in 'Pagliacci' in 2006, and 'Hill Where the Lord Hides' in 2007-2008. Then there are his soprano solos in 'Echano,' 'Espiritu Del Toro,' 'Pictures of Spain,' and 'Cherry Pink,' and of course int he closing 'Cabs' Signature,' etc. If you've got any of the videos, go back and check him out. You won't be disappointed!

Sadly, Frank has taken a year (?) off from the Cabs Alumni for a well-deserved rest!

[Murph]

CorpsVets

Brought Southern fixins! Brass section was wailing-backed by an effective battery and pit. The guard was hi-energy and nicely complimented the music. The crowd was clapping along to practically every song they played. When I saw the scores, I was surprised that CV was not scored a bit higher. They are in the thick of things this year! Excellent show and excellent performance!!!! If there was a crowd favorite award for the evening, it's likely that CV would have won!

If that's the case, here's something for you. http://bit.ly/DqGDI

[ech2os]

ech2os said:

"Frank . . . . . I noticed in your signature that you marched with Hawthorne. Which one were you ? Would I have noticed you out there when I saw the alumni corps perform for the last 15 years ? :)"

Eric, you couldn't have missed him! For starters, think of the flugel horn solos he played in 'Pagliacci' in 2006, and 'Hill Where the Lord Hides' in 2007-2008. Then there are his soprano solos in 'Echano,' 'Espiritu Del Toro,' 'Pictures of Spain,' and 'Cherry Pink,' and of course int he closing 'Cabs' Signature,' etc. If you've got any of the videos, go back and check him out. You won't be disappointed!

Sadly, Frank has taken a year (?) off from the Cabs Alumni for a well-deserved rest!

Hey John.......I know who Frank is. I was just being smart. :)

[cabalumnidrummer]

Sorry Eric, I missed the smiley face! Knowing what a fan you have been in the past, I should have known better!

[DCAforLife]

Here is my 2 cents:

Announcer: Funniest part of the evening. "And the scored please. WOW!"

5th Crusaders:

Not surprised due to all of the holes. Those members still went out and performed their job and I expect them to jump a bit at the next show.

4th Bush

Shocked. Bush is good. Despite size, they produce a great sound. I wonder if numbers are affecting their score and placement just like Crusaders.

3rd Corpvets

Great job. I love seeing these guys progress through the years. I have a feeling they will end up ahead of what they finished last year. Also, playing Georgia gives me goose bumps. Love it guys.

2nd Cabs

Would I say I am suprised? No. Cabs are very strong. The opener didnt exactly sell me. The ballad was awesome. Very well written. Im a sucker for nice ballads. Its going to be tough again this year for them to stay in the top 5. I believe they will still be in there top 5, but not exactly sure where. depends on what MBI and Empire have up their sleeves.

1st Hurcs

Great Job. What a knock out, drag out, balls to the wall, opener. They played this nice 16th note unison lick in the opener which is impressive. I was actually disappointed in a few areas. The can-can kinda seemed like a filler song. maybe its just me, but doesnt fit. the 3 song (Red pony?) was the weakest. Stamina? The rest of the show was good but did not compare to the opener.

I apologize for not catching the exhibition groups.

I believe that although people have named Buccs the winner, they are going to have to fight hard to stay on top. Buccs always work hard but make it look so easy and thats why they have been on top for years. Nothing is written in stone until DCA finals where the announcer will tell us all to hold on tight.

[VOReason]

4th Bush

Shocked. Bush is good. Despite size, they produce a great sound. I wonder if numbers are affecting their score and placement just like Crusaders.

Perhaps this is fodder for a separate thread, but of course the numbers are adversely affecting Cru and Bush at this time. In fact, one has to wonder if perhaps they are doing themselves a disservice by not waiting to come out competetively until they can have a semblance of commitment to fill all the holes. If I'm the Bushwackers, and I aspire to win the championship, those 20 + horns that can't commit themselves until late July/early August are of no use to me. I would go with the 25 or so folks who can commit from day one and hope to add a fully commited 15 or so next year. Bush can win with 35 - 40 horns....but not if they show in August. Edited July 4, 2009 by VOReason

[Buddyscudder]

"Loved the comment - Caballeros very predictable "spanish" show - So what would you expect Hawthorne to play - perhaps Mozart ? Kinda like saying the Skyliners Alumni should never play anything related to New York. Suggest you didn't spend enough time in your HS band to learn much."

"Sticks and stones"......... I was upfront that this was going to be a biased review. Never marched HS. That being said, your Skyliner reference is very ironic. I was taught by the great Pepe Notaro when I played french horn bugle (yes, single valve)in the Norwalk Hot Shots in the early 60's. I'm now in my early 60's and I still carry his love-hate for the Cabs. He loved to hate them. However, he did respect them. As do I. BTW, after the Hot Shots I stopped marching, save a 8 month stint with the Shepard Air Force Base D&B Corps in Whichita Falls, Texas from 68 - 69. Next stop? The Hurricanes in 2004. Yes! 35 years later! The Pepe mantra is alive and well there. Certainly not a secret in DCA.

Just would like to see the Cabs step outside the box. Uniforms don't make the music. Yes, Mozart would be nice.

We all know come Rochester things will be very tight and it should be a great finals.

To Liz, thanks for sticking up, but his response was kinda expected. Actually I was living for it.

[rayfallon]

"Loved the comment - Caballeros very predictable "spanish" show - So what would you expect Hawthorne to play - perhaps Mozart ? Kinda like saying the Skyliners Alumni should never play anything related to New York. Suggest you didn't spend enough time in your HS band to learn much."

"Sticks and stones"......... I was upfront that this was going to be a biased review. Never marched HS. That being said, your Skyliner reference is very ironic. I was taught by the great Pepe Notaro when I played french horn bugle (yes, single valve)in the Norwalk Hot Shots in the early 60's. I'm now in my early 60's and I still carry his love-hate for the Cabs. He loved to hate them. However, he did respect them. As do I. BTW, after the Hot Shots I stopped marching, save a 8 month stint with the Shepard Air Force Base D&B Corps in Whichita Falls, Texas from 68 - 69. Next stop? The Hurricanes in 2004. Yes! 35 years later! The Pepe mantra is alive and well there. Certainly not a secret in DCA.

Just would like to see the Cabs step outside the box. Uniforms don't make the music. Yes, Mozart would be nice.

We all know come Rochester things will be very tight and it should be a great finals.

To Liz, thanks for sticking up, but his response was kinda expected. Actually I was living for it.

Dude - your rap is nothing like Pepe's - he respected the Cabs a great deal.

You do the Hurcs no honor by attaching their name to your rant.

I did dig the "sticks and stones" reference though - centered the argument squarely in the third grade, where it belongs.

Mozart - great composer - one of the greatest - on the field it would be the death of 1,000 pin-######, even Don Giovanni.

As to "outside the box" - if Madison were playing these same charts, you'd be posting that they were the solution for DCI's woes.

Possible that someone else needs to climb (carefully at our age) out of that self-constructed box.

[FPonzo]

"Loved the comment - Caballeros very predictable "spanish" show - So what would you expect Hawthorne to play - perhaps Mozart ? Kinda like saying the Skyliners Alumni should never play anything related to New York. Suggest you didn't spend enough time in your HS band to learn much."

"Sticks and stones"......... I was upfront that this was going to be a biased review. Never marched HS. That being said, your Skyliner reference is very ironic. I was taught by the great Pepe Notaro when I played french horn bugle (yes, single valve)in the Norwalk Hot Shots in the early 60's. I'm now in my early 60's and I still carry his love-hate for the Cabs. He loved to hate them. However, he did respect them. As do I. BTW, after the Hot Shots I stopped marching, save a 8 month stint with the Shepard Air Force Base D&B Corps in Whichita Falls, Texas from 68 - 69. Next stop? The Hurricanes in 2004. Yes! 35 years later! The Pepe mantra is alive and well there. Certainly not a secret in DCA.

Just would like to see the Cabs step outside the box. Uniforms don't make the music. Yes, Mozart would be nice.

Sorry, but I WILL disagree with you.....

If you came out of "retirement" in 2004 with the Hurricanes after a 35 year absence, then you would know that the very next year....in 2005, The Caballeros tried to "step outside of the box" by playing an Egyptian Show titled, "Passage to the Pyramids". What happened? Only one of the worst final placement for the corps since 1969 (7th place), broke a 35 year streak of being in the top 6, and also broke a 21 year streak of scoring at least a 90.00 in Championships. So....your assessment of the Caballeros is "WAAAAAY outside the box". The Caballeros have an identity.....in case you haven't noticed it is SPANISH MUSIC. They have done this since 1946, as the director Jim Costello intended it to be, and by the way.....IT WORKS!!! Year after year, you KNOW what you are going to get with the Caballeros, and year after year, you KNOW they are going to be at least in the top 5, scoring at least a 90.00 or better. Go back and check the stats my friend....you just can't say that about many of today's DCA corps!!! HISTORY PROVES THIS!!!!

[VOReason]

The Caballeros have an identity.....in case you haven't noticed it is SPANISH MUSIC. They have done this since 1946, as the director Jim Costello intended it to be, and by the way.....IT WORKS!!! Year after year, you KNOW what you are going to get with the Caballeros,

There is something strangely comforting about going to a show and seeing/hearing the Cabs crankin' out the Spanish tunes. All the more appreciated considering some of the corps we have lost over the years. Cabs are sort of like the Big Mac of senior corps....you bite in and it's pretty much the same every time! AND...you can't play Hava Nagila wearing a sombrero...