Scerpella Posted October 28, 2009 Author Share Posted October 28, 2009 (edited) Careful there fellow citizen. It's evidently not appropriate to have a dissenting opinion in this one and only thread.Thanks again Geno for setting me straight. I will go forward and help others find the way. Cmon Tom, you know when you come into a Madison thread there are about a dozen guys spoiling for you to toss the turd in our punchbowl! Its kind of knee jerk now actually regardless of what you say, your reputation guarantees you losing the benefit of the doubt. The only cure is for you to say kind supportive and nurturing things about all things Madison for one year. Edited October 28, 2009 by Scerpella Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom D'Bomb Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 Now we're talkin' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triple Forte Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 OK....I'm surprised how unimpressed I am about this announcement. I was expecting more I guess.Oh well, it will probably sound better than I can imagine right now. It just seems to me the Gershwin is bleh for me. Sorry. These pieces with Madison tied to them is anything but bleh. I think the Scouts will shock a lot of folks next season.....it's a been a while since we have heard these pieces....and with the Scouts energy and updated arrangements.....it should be awesome. The most important thing the Scouts need to do is to generate the Madison Scout energy.....KEY !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBadMadMan Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 Wow...15 pages this quickly! I'm kinda late to the party here, so I'll probably just reiterate what a few have probably said already. First of all, great selections! I love the idea of introducing a whole new generation of drum corps fans to a shot of history and tradition. I'm sure I speak for more than just myself when I say that to add Remembrance to the lineup would ensure that I could die a happy happy man...having 3 classic Madison tunes in one show! Probably not practical, but one can hope. Also, I agree with Dan....please oh please oh please bring back the spats!!!! Who's feet so I have to bow to to get that to happen?!?! Please please please!!! That would be sooooo balls!! As far as using some waaay back Madison classics to help define the identity, I think this is a smart move...for several reasons, but primarily because it serves to establish a baseline. When anything gets kinda "off-track" and begins to falter -whether it be a business, relationship, brand identity, etc. - it helps to simplify back to a point of familiarity. That baseline builds a foundation...a "Point A"...a "ground zero", if you will. It's a starting point that says "this is who we are and this is what we build upon". I think it's brilliant not only from a branding point of view, but also as a marketing strategy. New Coke failed to realize the increased sales that the Coca-Cola company had lost to Pepsi's marketing blitz in the 80's. But the introduction of Coke Classic was just what they needed...and it was nothing more than a re-branding of what Coke already was BEFORE New Coke. The only thing that changed was the public perception of the old formula. Kudos to the staff. I'm excited! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 It's the "effectiveness" I'm wondering about. If one of the goals is to "re-establish the Madison Scouts brand," is Rhapsody really the right tune? Particularly in the all-male Madison context? I don't claim to know what precisely Gershwin meant to represent, but to my ears the piece is more about whimsy and similar such attribute we don't typically associate with Madison. Sure it's got some bold statements which a hot horn line can tear up. But when I think of Rhapsody in Blue, I'm more in mind of the sort of treatment Crown gave us last year. You could almost argue that if Rhapsody had lyrics, it might easily have subbed into the Grass is Greener program.It's all speculation, I realize. More talented folks than me have a plan and a vision and may very well make what I just said look foolish (wouldn't be the first time). Still, the Madison rep could be served well by lots of tunes higher in octane and testosterone, which leaves me to wonder whether Madison '10 might be aiming for a version of tradition that's less ... traditional. HH Huh??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 (edited) Not once did I say those pieces suck. I was more referring to:* Firebird Suite = Cavaliers first did it in 76 and achieved their highest placement up to that time (7th). They did it again as a full show in 1988 and came in 5th, which wasn't as high as the years before and after, but still solid. They brought back Firebird in 1997 and had their lowest placement since 1984, and haven't placed that low since. * Fiddler on the Roof was source music for MANY great SCV shows. They won their first DCI title playing Fiddler, as well as winning in 1978 doing Fiddler. They had more Top 3 Fiddler shows of the 70's, and brought the Bottle Dance out to own the crowd a few other times. They went to a Fiddler show in 1992 and achieved their lowest placement at the time (7th). Coincidentally (or not), the only lower placement they had in their history was... * Russian Christmas Music = CLASSIC SCV show from 1987 got them 2nd place (and .1 away from first). Done again by SCV in 2005 and yielded their worst placement in corps history You could also throw in, I guess: * Appalachian Spring - yielded 3rd place in 76 and 77 + 83, SECOND in 82 for SCV, 1st for Cadets in 87. SCV brings it back again recently and placed 5th. Not bad by any means, but still not as successful as ALL other previous years for them * West Side Story - Cadets won in 1984 with it, as well as playing Somewhere in 1990, came in 2nd in 1994 with it, and 3rd when done last year. Again, not bad at all, but not as successful as all other previous years done by Cadets (in the DCI era). I'm not saying that ANY of these shows "sucked". I LOVE SCV 92 and 09, and like Cavaliers 97 and Cadets 09 (honestly not too familiar with SCV 05). But shows that were retreads from the 1990's to the present have typically not yielded the same success as their crowd favorite predecessors, and conversely usually yielded pretty low placement results. Obviously this doesn't mean Scouts show will be disappointing this year. What I meant to say is that when drum corps pull out their fan friendly 'classic' shows from the past and redo them, it typically yields lower results than the original. While I'm not a Gershwin fan I'm looking forward to seeing what Scouts do with it, and I'm REALLY looking forward to Slaughter. Heck, I'm looking to hear ANY Jim Prime arrangements on a DCI field again!! So these are still all top 12 shpws. Not bad. Picking some tunes that can make top 12 is a good start... Edited October 28, 2009 by jjeffeory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 what shows has he arranged? i am only aware of a few... Jim is internationally famous with credits that include Musical Director of Blast!, Musical Director and Brass Arranger for the Star of Indiana. Jim has been writing professionally for brass and percussion groups since 1977. Focusing his efforts on outdoor music pageantry, he has arranged the scores for the Star of Indiana and Garfield Cadets International champion drum corps, as well as many other ensembles throughout North America. With many published titles to his credit, he was a primary orchestrator for the Canadian Brass/Star of Indiana concert and Brass Theater tours of 1994-98. His arrangements were featured in the London stage production and PBS television special of Blast! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supersop Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 I've taken a day to mull this over. I see one of 2 scenarios playing out. 1. The tunes are used in old school/straight forward approach. Jim Mason argues with the judging community for the entire season that this is what's needed in today's DCI. Madison performs and incredible show yet still gets dumped to the bottom end of top 12 ...... met by wild booooo's at finals by a crowd who felt the corps should have placed in the top 5. 2. The tunes are manipulated to fit todays visual and theme program oriented show design formula's. The crowd hates it, Mason becomes the new Hoppy (once again) and Madison ends up in the top 5. Which is better for DCI and the Madison Scouts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supersop Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 Better yet, what is better for the Maderaid punch bowl? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Boo Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 It's tough not yielding the influence you used to. I used to yield influence? Why didn't someone tell me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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