Kieren Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 2005-2007 - Jamie Thomson. Jamey Thompson. 2002-2004 - ? Most of the alumni I know are older, so I don't know anyone who knows who the drill writer was, but I am sure someone here can. Was he let go, or did he move on to another corps? 2003 is the only show I am really familiar with, and I thought the drill was adequate. It seems to me that while corps like Cavaliers have figured out the right number of members in each section in order to make geometric forms a possibility, PR had not figured this out as of 2003. A lot of those blocks were uneven (like the one that has three rows of 4 and one row of 3....why not just make 3 rows of 5???) Johnny Sanchez. 1999 - ? I remember seeing this show in Madison and thinking the drill was not that great. I don't know who wrote it. It could have been a down year for the corps in general. Felt like it. Tony Hall. 1998 - Guard guy, then Ryan Hildreth from what I am told. Anyone know what happened to the original drill writer and why he had to be replaced mid-year? Was any of his drill used? Brian Hildreth. 1997 - ? Unknown. But I like the drill. It's not terribly innovative, but it isn't bad. Garrett Decker, I believe. 1996 - Michael Cesario....is this right? I had no idea Michael wrote drill. It wasn't spectacular, but there are two moments that still bring me shivers: The mess-of-a-block that turns into a ###### wedge at the end of the opener, and the three arcs at the end of the show right before that chord that moved me to near tears in Orlando. Close...his brother Greg. 1995 - Steve Hegemiyer? Never heard of this guy. Any idea why he was only a one-and-done? Because it was high school drill? Really good high school drill, but hs drill nonetheless. 19?? - 1992 - John Brazzalle (sp?) - PR had a good thing with Brazzalle. 1987 through 1991 especially have a lot of great moments. I don't know who wrote Phantom's drill before Brazzalle....anyone? Brazale, not Brazzalle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Brace Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 I was under the impression that Valenzuela is an executive director and has little bearing on the direction of the corps' programs in general...is this wrong?The long-time program "godfather" is Dr. Dan Richardson. I imagine he is the one that has a big say in who gets hired and fired. P.S. It's silly to say that current drum corps has passed this corps by when they just won a national title last year. Last year is last year....it was in line with the shows prior to it...solid story told well, marched well, played well. This year. questionable storyline, not told well and not a great visual or guard program. How else do you answer a 1 to 9 finish? So, you trust the two Dan's with this? OK. Then other big changes most likely need to be made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Brace Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 I was under the impression that Valenzuela is an executive director and has little bearing on the direction of the corps' programs in general...is this wrong?The long-time program "godfather" is Dr. Dan Richardson. I imagine he is the one that has a big say in who gets hired and fired. P.S. It's silly to say that current drum corps has passed this corps by when they just won a national title last year. National titles did not have a positive effect on this corps in the past (see seasons 1997 - 2000) Just sayin' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kieren Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 Last year is last year....it was in line with the shows prior to it...solid story told well, marched well, played well. This year. questionable storyline, not told well and not a great visual or guard program.How else do you answer a 1 to 9 finish? So, you trust the two Dan's with this? OK. Then other big changes most likely need to be made. If drum corps had undergone some huge, HUGE change in philosophy this year, then i could understand such a statement. However, drum corps did not undergo a change. Phantom Regiment simply put out an inferior product. To deduct from this that the activity has passed them by is just silly. This wasn't like some of the shows of the late 90s and early 00s, drill full of 24- and 32-count moves, easy transitions, and lots of stand stills. There was a lot of velocity in this show (and in last year's as well). It wasn't very effective, I will grant you, and there were not many nice-looking transitions, but there was velocity and an attempt at keeping up with the joneses. They just, unfortunately, designed a poor drill book and this was compounded by having a poorly designed guard product. It has nothing to do with drum corps passing them by, and everything to do with bad decisions along the way. I am sure the organization will take note of those bad decisions, fix them, and plan to be back in the top 5 next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantombari1 Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 To be honest they got away from what they were doing. Great music, great story telling. Add an inferior design and color guard and you have a 9th place finish. That's why I speculated about ego's getting in the way. I can't say that this production came from the brass and percussion arrangers. (IMO) It doesn't fit their style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somethinglikethat Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 From what I understand and remember based on some of the discussions I read last year (I've been reading DCP for a while now, and am finally compelled to respond to this), I believe the new drill writer for 2008, Nick Scotella, wrote the initial drill for Spartacus. During the course of the season, thanks to the famous PR design staff and their knack for tweaking and changing things, and under the guidance of one of the visual staff, Dwight Emmert, all of the "new" and now-immortalized drill was written. From the looks of this year (And don't get me wrong, I think Regiment got shafted by a few outstanding professionals in green), I might hazard a guess and say that in the spirit of fostering the development of Scotella's fundamental skills and individual style as a drill writer, he was kind of left to fly a bit more on his own. This is all speculation, though, so don't quote me. On an unrelated note, thanks to an above poster for speaking to some name-spelling issues. That said, please excuse any of mine :) [First post!] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdaddy Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 1999 - ? I remember seeing this show in Madison and thinking the drill was not that great. I don't know who wrote it. It could have been a down year for the corps in general. Felt like it. Tony Hall. I thought Chris Church started out the season in 1999. And is it always assumed that Tony Hall will be involved with PR every year? I ask this because I read that he was heavily involved with rewrites this year but wasn't included as a staff member in the DCI program. It would lead me to believe that when the program was published, he wasn't going to help out, then he got a call midseason. I guess they should keep this guy on retainer... :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantombari1 Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 I might hazard a guess and say that in the spirit of fostering the development of Scotella's fundamental skills and individual style as a drill writer, he was kind of left to fly a bit more on his own. This is all speculation, though, so don't quote me.On an unrelated note, thanks to an above poster for speaking to some name-spelling issues. That said, please excuse any of mine :) [First post!] I'm trying to figure out where he was allowed to "fly a bit". (IMO) The drill for the most part was written for a beginning High School marching Band and not even close to World Class Caliber. Just curious on what makes you speculate that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
festive Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 Tony Hall is frequently around to help "fix" things at some point, but as a designer in his own right, the man's a genius, IMO. He's got creativity that leads to drills that leave a lasting visual impression. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdaddy Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 Tony Hall is frequently around to help "fix" things at some point, but as a designer in his own right, the man's a genius, IMO. He's got creativity that leads to drills that leave a lasting visual impression. Is he not interested in being "the guy" from the start? Or would he rather be the Harvey Keitel to Regiment's Pulp Fiction? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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