Lewisburg

[BigW]

Saturday- Decided to get off the planet Earth and back to the Drum Corps planet, a much better place than the Parcel's been lately.

Ream said if I went I'd have to do a review, and be brutally honest. Like I wouldn't be? If you disagree, that's fine, if you want to throw a supertanker at me, I'll duck. I've had them thrown at me before, I'm good at evading.

Got into the groove on the way up, checking out my new (to me) Jetta wagon on its firest real road trip, the Monsoon sound system blaring out some vintage BD, some Holsinger, and Second Wave Ska. I was stoked, my ears were sharp, and I was rather curious after reading the stuff here as to just what was what with DCA this season. Who had what, and how much?

Talked to some old corps mates and friends, then ambled up to my Row 19 seat in time for the start. It was hot. I know everyone rehearsed in hell's pizza oven today- days like this would get me second degree burns on my arms BITD when the concept of using suntan lotion was a hardy-har-har kind of thing. One factor for the contest would be how much everyone would be able to rest and recover from what had to be some tough sessions in 92+ degree heat.

Things started out on a positive note with the combined Mifflinburg/Lewisburg HS bands doing a rather solid arrangement of the Carmen Dragon version of "America the Beautiful", "O Canada" (A very classy thing to do for Scout House and the impeccably correct and proper thing to do as well, a 'goodonya' from me for that), and the National Anthem. Once the kids relaxed, they sounded just fine and finished up with a nice medley of service tunes, with the vets from that particular branch standing up in recognition, always a good and positive moment for everyone.

Next up was a rather pleasant suprise for me- Scout House! I'd known about them for decades, always well-regarded, and it checks off something I've always wanted to see and was curious about.

According to their write-up, they average 60 years of age. I was really worried they'd not hold up- I mean, the sun was still glaring hard at 715PM. Evidently, I shouldn't have been so worried. They came on with their British-style arm-swinging prance step, tall flags, guidons, the whole nine yards, and provided a real quality look into the activity's past. Traditional drill- well-written and appropriate, I may add, and some wonderful arrangements.

I particularly want to call out the really nice low brass sound they generate and that the arrangments showcase. It's rather unique for corps of that period to do so, but it certainly gave the Scout House a unique and delicious flavor when I listened.

Great Flag Pre, wonderful and slick period arrangement of "Waltzing Matilda", and another lovely arrangement of "colonel Bogey" off the field.

Also neat to see the single tenors with the mush-mallets and the old-school scottish sticking flourishes done very well.

All in all, Scout House certainly was a treat I appreciated, especially knowing how hot it was and how tough that made ot for them.

Oh-- and the other crazy thing, Jim Fawber take note-- They guard the Canadian flag with a pistol! Now that was a twist on a theme!!!!

It did reinforce Fran's comments on another thread that I jumped in with him about- Performances like these aren't "filler"-- they're far beyond that kind of nasty connotation.

Now, for the competitive portion:

I sat and counted- Bush has 23 horns-- And let me tell you, I think that the corps creative staff has placed a lot of demands on those 23 people, and they're rising to the expectations and will be fine at the end of the season. They're young-- but from personal experience, they were young last year, just now, they have another season under their belts. They use a lot of field depth and spread for such a small ensemble, and I have to credit the percussion for playing some very tasty stuff musically and being attentive to working with the brass as a total ensemble- they could easily club that hornline to death, but the balance was quite good.

The book's also very well-written for them as well- Lots of solid intellectual writing that's also got some exciting and engaging moments. Some of the better Key Poulan music I've heard, in fact.

The end ran out of gas, but I'm confident the staff and performers will get those issues down and they'll have everything at a solid quality level when it's time. I really think Bush is a good case study designers and instructors can learn a lot from- that a lot can be done with not a lot of people, if you think about it had and smart, design and arrange appropriately, and educate and give people the right challenges to rise to. It's obvious they didn't sit and whine that they didn't have a ton of horns- they went and attacked the problem effectively.

The Hurcs came on next, and they impressed me last year, and I know I made some comment awhile back before the season hoping that they'd step up the program for this season. They have. This year's program based on varied sacred music selections I think is much more in the vein of the Drum Corps side of the activity, and also fills an intellectual niche in DCA, which is a good thing. I greatly appreciated the fact every corps tonight was very distinctive in their approach to the same challenge and that we didn't see a bunch of clones.

The Color Guard certainly didn't dissapoint anyone- showcased very well, elegant, and very supportive to the entire program as they have been for the past couple of seasons.

I appreciated the percussion writing and their performance- the leg line also demonstrates some real athleticism when they move on the field as well, which impressed the heck out of me.

The upper and lower brass are really stressing when they move, understandably so because of the physical demands in the drill- when they're still, they have the quality sound I know they want to have, and it's a very good sound with 40 horns.

I have to call out the trumpet and bari soloists in the 3rd movment for a Big W thumbs up - a real nice moment. Contras/Tubas have to work on getting a good creamy big sound, though- I have a feeling Ray Fallon will get a call on his Bat-Phone this week to see if he can pass on some wisdom concerning that issue.

This program has a nice musical and visual pace to it, and once the hornline feels more comfortable with the drill, and they will be- I'm certain- nothing's out of reach here by any means-- they'll be in good stead.

The ending I have a feeling has some tweaks incoming to make sure it has a more emphatic and definitive final stamp to the end of the show to give it more of a sense of completeness, which will also make a huge difference for the Hurcs.

The Empire Statesmen are another Corps that's also presenting a much improved program this season- This show taps into what they are and do best- perform jazzy charts of music that is familiar, but frame it in a way that the listener's perhaps not heard it before, which makes it fresh, interesting, fun, and exciting. Their show takes music from the "Wizard of Oz", "The Wiz", and I do believe "Wicked" as well, and makes everything gel really well! There's some nice vertical writing going on in the Statesmen's horn book-- big, thick chords that give them a distinctive timbre and flavor. The show is well assembled musically with great pacing, and the props and characters add to the story in a positive way, but aren't a crutch- the music's assembled in a way to make the story accessible if you listen with your eyes closed- a compliment to the arrangers.

The hornline's performance is far better at this point in the season than it was at the beginning of August last year. Right now, one of the strengths Empire has is the confidence they possess in their performance. The Hurcs aren't as far along in this aspect, and if they can feel as comfortable with their show as Empire does with theirs, it could shape up into an extremely tough, hammer-and tongs- fight into championships.

There's a really fine moment mid-show I have to point out and something to watch for, some smart scoring with Brass and Percussion where the respective brass and percussion voicings are split into pods on the field and featured working together. Very cool in a corps geek way, and also very exciting and entertaining. Yes, that can be done, folks....

I also liked how the snares were tuned, they had a nice, full-bodied timbre that carried up to the audience. It does take a lot of effort to get percussion instruments in fine fettle, and whomever works on that deserves a "well done!!!!" Didn't want to forget that from my notes....

Anyhow, It's 2 AM. I'll get to Reading the Cabs, and Cabs Alumni later today- unless someone gets angry with my review and tosses a jumbo jet through my apartment window whilst I'm asleep, which would be rather dirty pool ....

[bcc]

Excellent review. looking forward to observations on the rest of the corps!

RCC

[BOSMarcher]

There's a really fine moment mid-show I have to point out and something to watch for, some smart scoring with Brass and Percussion where the respective brass and percussion voicings are split into pods on the field and featured working together. Very cool in a corps geek way, and also very exciting and entertaining. Yes, that can be done, folks....

Yeah, DCI has been doing staging like that for a while. I saw some DCA groups do staging like that last year, as well. Glad to see it catching on! Thanks for the review... looking forward to the rest!

[BigW]

Yeah, DCI has been doing staging like that for a while. I saw some DCA groups do staging like that last year, as well. Glad to see it catching on! Thanks for the review... looking forward to the rest!

Just got up. I'm actually a night owl. Really, good percussion arrangers have known about the voicings for over 20 years, but I think there's more of an integration of that in a visual way at times as of late. The Cavies definitely were aware of this and used the concept in to great advantage with their ensemble sound in the early 90's when they really broke out and challenged for the championship and finally broke through.

I'll get back to the rest of the review in a bit-- still groggy.

Edited July 18, 2010 by BigW

[BigW]

Next up, the Bucs.

The show is not some warmed-over leftover knockoff from Star'91, which has been insinuated at times. They have their own ideas and angle on the Roman theme and the use of the Resphigi repertoire.

The use of the herald trumpets was one thing, and fine in and of itself-- the conch shell signal horns (incidentally also used by Samurai as well) really took me by pleasant suprise. I wasn't sure of they were using Baris a quarter-tone off to generate the effect, but they actually used the real deal to get the job done. A nice touch, showing one does not necessarily have to go digital to create appropriate or unusual sonic effects. Also a lot cheaper to buy 2 Conch shell trumpets, I'd imagine...

The hornline's capable of some very subtle and exquisite dynamic shape and control, and they do have the most physical demands placed on any hornline in DCA except for possibly Bush, but that's in large part the numbers. The Cabs and particularly the Hurcs approach and are comparable in this area, however. They can hit hard, and they do- which has been a criticism leveled at them over the past few seasons at times- and they did sound a bit forced in the beginning of the "Epiphany" movement of "Festa Romana", but overall they're doing the job well, and they have things to do and continue working on, but that's a case of show reps and a more thorough cleaning and building of confidence in their perfoamce.

A lot of people figured the field percussion might suffer this year due to some turnover- no. They're still very aggressive, tough, and hard-hitting. I personally liked the tuning of the snares, again, a more fuller timbre, and still a clean sound.

I think people overlook or gloss over the real strength of what's going on with the Bucs. And no one fell this week, by the way, nor did I find any serious "bumper-people" incidents....

The visual package that coordinates with the program is still quite good, even though it still needs to be worked on and perfected. Even in the state it's in, which is still quite decent, I'm certain they know there's a lot of work they can do to perfect it. Really, any corps will tell you that if they're being truthful with themselves and with you.

The coordination and pacing of the show is really a recognizeable cut above everyone else's, though I'll say again that the Cabs, Bush, and the Hurcs (particularly the Hurcs) shouldn't be getting destroyed here, once they clean up. Beat, certainly, not crushed. I say this not having looked at the recap, BTW. I have no clue if I agree or disagree with the panel, but I'm not a visual maven. I'm a musician, and a Horns geek.

I do know that the Bucs visual design staff do a fine job at directing your visual attention to where they want you to look and how to guide you. You're not wandering with your eyes out of boredom or hunting for something interesting. They make sure they present it at the place and time they want to present it. The show's flow is what really gives them an edge here. Their synergy between the corps elements also gives them an edge. Certain sections of the corps or programmatic aspects of their show may not necessarily be the "best" in DCA (and indeed certain aspects are not, but they're close!), but how they assemble their pieces as a total, integrated package is what's enabling them to stay ahead. I have a rather educated guess the adjudication sheets have strong verbage about crediting and rewarding a corps for things like this, correct me if I'm wrong. You win as a corps- not by having the best x, y, or z necessarily. The Bucs have understood this well, and I think everyone else is catching up and closing the gap in this regard in DCA this season.

Onto the Cabs.

Original Music? Oh, goodness! Oh, my! Oh, my faint pulse rate!!!!

Hey- don't worry, Cabs fanboys and fangirls. It's really GOOD original music that's very much in line with who the Cabs were, are, and certainly will be.

The hornline really digs in to produce a deep rich sound, and I have to give a Big W thumbs up to the Bari section, whom I think are the best in DCA, all respect to Empire's which is also noteworthy.

And two thumbs up to the Cabs' bari soloist. Their trumpet soloists always get the credit and the crowd reaction and quite justly so, but you got to call out those baritone heroes when they're heroic.

They also might have the best front ensemble in DCA. At worst, they're extremely musical, play beautifully, are expressive, and are showcased wonderfully.

The field battery is also much improved from last season's which was a good section, just not used to being together- they're far mroe confident, but still have a ways to go. The potential is there for still a lot of improvement, certainly, and I'll call out their Bass Drums for being perhaps the firmest and best playing section out of the field battery.

Which leads me to this- hey- maybe they need to get more people from the Kyoto Jokers or something! they're certainly a part of gettin' it done!

The Cabs have also been justly taken to task over the past few seasons about the visual package- a good guard, the corps marches well, yes- but what they were asked to do was always called on the carpet.

This season's visual package is markedly better than the ones from the past several seasons. Even a lead baritone goon such as myself readily recognizes this.

The crowd buys it- I bought it-- which leads me to this....

Here's how I called the show for fun. I can respectfully agree to disagree on it, I had a gut feeling the Cabs might not get the love- they're kind of a wild-card in this mix to be honest.

Bush 78.5

Hurcs 82.5

Empire 84.0

Cabs 85

Bucs 86.5.

With one exception, I wasn't that far out, and I'm certain as to why- more my brass-centricism.

1. Buccaneers 87.788

2. Empire Statesmen 83.963

3. Hurricanes 83.400

4. Caballeros 81.713

5. Bushwackers 74.813

The Cabs aren't dead, looking at the recaps now, they certainly are not. Empire's show is farther ahead, they approach the activity in a way where they make sure the horns can provide a big, fat sound and impact by taking less physical demand and using a more conservative visual package. They're going to be fine, their show will be certainly performed with great aggressiveness and confidence from here on out- it's designed to do just that and do it very well. That's part of who they are and what they're about.

The question is, can the Hurcs and Cabs clean and tweak and make sure their technically oriented shows are also presented with that level of confidence and excellence? They also have good, bright staff members and good people on the field. Empire certainly can't afford to look over their shoulder, certainly none of the corps at this show can, including the Bucs.

It'll be a sprint to the end. It'll come down to who can clean their shows and perform them in the most inspired way, particularly for the Hurcs, Cabs, and Empire. MBI is still a somewhat unknown factor and could fall into that mix.

Reading also can't rest on their roman laurel wreaths (pun certainly intended) and they need to keep doing what they're doing right till the end and not run out of momentum.

In my honest opinion, I think this year's DCA corps that I saw are a lot better than last year's in terms of presenting thoughtful shows that are also very enjoyable to watch. I get tired of the detractors. These corps are achieveing a lot with limited rehearsal hours. They're certainly not the beer-swilling bunch of goof-offs that some would like to tout them as. I think I know why certain of them do- it's because I think they view them as threats to their base of money and their fan base, and because they're floating in their own rarefied atmosphere that humans can't breathe in. DCA is doing quite well, thank you. I'd enjoy seeing any of the corps again- there was no corps that I'd deliberately get out of the stands for because I disliked the show or found it to be a yawner. I appreciated everyone for their shows and performances. I can't say that about some of the DCI units of late. Ream knows me, and knows if I thought something was even slighly off-putting or outright nauseous, I'd speak up. I didn't see any of that, much to the performing corps' great credit and respect.

And lest I forget- we did have the Cabs Alumni.

I've seen them for the past several years on the field and on stage, and I have to say one thing-- When I first saw them several years ago, they were just fine, and did a great job. They haven't taken that for granted. New arrangements/additions to repertoire, subtle tweaks on old ones to make them better, the quality of the sound and performances have kept getting better and better every time I see them! Man!!!! you guys really care deeply about what you do, and it shows. I have to respect that kind of ethos that's in place with them. They're out there for the love of the activity, not for a number, but they're still cleaning like madmen and improving!

I'm gonna call out their Mello soloist in "Rio" for a superb job. We all know their sop guys are always outstanding and get the press they deserve, but you got to show some love for this guy. Well played, SIR!

Anyhow, I got to get back to planet Earth again and off the Drum Corps Planet. It was a good night- the corps were really all well worth watching and doing some fine work. If you can get to a show, you get out there, too.

I'll see if I can swing another show before the end of the season. I don't know if I'll review it, it was a promise to Ream that I did this one for him.

And I missed Tom Peashey and Fran! Dangit! That's enother reason I need to get to another show, Hmmmm.....

Edited July 18, 2010 by BigW

[JoeDz]

Now THAT'S a review....... in parts, yet!

I needed the break to digest all of what was written in Part 1 before diving into Bucs, Cabs, and Cabs 2.

Predicted scores helps me.........kind of a GE score in and of itself........

This thread made me decide to buy the DVDs of finals again (although I'm never sure that the DVD quality will measure up to the corps' performance quality.....they haven't in some time.)

Great job W..... BTW Preston Scout House Alumni honour guard has been using sidearms for as long as I can remember; makes guarding the colours easier WHILST they half-step march....... Canadian corps are rapidly becoming my favorites.

Thanks for your time and effort.........

Joe

RIP Yankee Rebels you are missed.

Edited July 18, 2010 by JoeDz

[Fran Haring]

Great review, Big W.... see you in Scranton, perhaps?

[CorpsBuff]

Onto the Cabs.

Original Music? Oh, goodness! Oh, my! Oh, my faint pulse rate!!!!

Hey- don't worry, Cabs fanboys and fangirls. It's really GOOD original music that's very much in line with who the Cabs were, are, and certainly will be.

The hornline really digs in to produce a deep rich sound, and I have to give a Big W thumbs up to the Bari section, whom I think are the best in DCA, all respect to Empire's which is also noteworthy.

And two thumbs up to the Cabs' bari soloist. Their trumpet soloists always get the credit and the crowd reaction and quite justly so, but you got to call out those baritone heroes when they're heroic.

They also might have the best front ensemble in DCA. At worst, they're extremely musical, play beautifully, are expressive, and are showcased wonderfully.

The field battery is also much improved from last season's which was a good section, just not used to being together- they're far mroe confident, but still have a ways to go. The potential is there for still a lot of improvement, certainly, and I'll call out their Bass Drums for being perhaps the firmest and best playing section out of the field battery.

Which leads me to this- hey- maybe they need to get more people from the Kyoto Jokers or something! they're certainly a part of gettin' it done!

The Cabs have also been justly taken to task over the past few seasons about the visual package- a good guard, the corps marches well, yes- but what they were asked to do was always called on the carpet.

This season's visual package is markedly better than the ones from the past several seasons. Even a lead baritone goon such as myself readily recognizes this.

The crowd buys it- I bought it-- which leads me to this....

Here's how I called the show for fun. I can respectfully agree to disagree on it, I had a gut feeling the Cabs might not get the love- they're kind of a wild-card in this mix to be honest.

Bush 78.5

Hurcs 82.5

Empire 84.0

Cabs 85

Bucs 86.5.

With one exception, I wasn't that far out, and I'm certain as to why- more my brass-centricism.

1. Buccaneers 87.788

2. Empire Statesmen 83.963

3. Hurricanes 83.400

4. Caballeros 81.713

5. Bushwackers 74.813

The Cabs aren't dead, looking at the recaps now, they certainly are not. Empire's show is farther ahead, they approach the activity in a way where they make sure the horns can provide a big, fat sound and impact by taking less physical demand and using a more conservative visual package. They're going to be fine, their show will be certainly performed with great aggressiveness and confidence from here on out- it's designed to do just that and do it very well. That's part of who they are and what they're about.

The question is, can the Hurcs and Cabs clean and tweak and make sure their technically oriented shows are also presented with that level of confidence and excellence? They also have good, bright staff members and good people on the field. Empire certainly can't afford to look over their shoulder, certainly none of the corps at this show can, including the Bucs.

It'll be a sprint to the end. It'll come down to who can clean their shows and perform them in the most inspired way, particularly for the Hurcs, Cabs, and Empire. MBI is still a somewhat unknown factor and could fall into that mix.

Reading also can't rest on their roman laurel wreaths (pun certainly intended) and they need to keep doing what they're doing right till the end and not run out of momentum.

In my honest opinion, I think this year's DCA corps that I saw are a lot better than last year's in terms of presenting thoughtful shows that are also very enjoyable to watch. I get tired of the detractors. These corps are achieveing a lot with limited rehearsal hours. They're certainly not the beer-swilling bunch of goof-offs that some would like to tout them as. I think I know why certain of them do- it's because I think they view them as threats to their base of money and their fan base, and because they're floating in their own rarefied atmosphere that humans can't breathe in. DCA is doing quite well, thank you. I'd enjoy seeing any of the corps again- there was no corps that I'd deliberately get out of the stands for because I disliked the show or found it to be a yawner. I appreciated everyone for their shows and performances. I can't say that about some of the DCI units of late. Ream knows me, and knows if I thought something was even slighly off-putting or outright nauseous, I'd speak up. I didn't see any of that, much to the performing corps' great credit and respect.

Thanks for the kind words

Buffy (Lead Baritone, but not the soloist) and Anna (Pit section leader & Buffy's fiance).

[staycoolman]

Great review NO BS and very respectfull....not often seen

[BigW]

Great review, Big W.... see you in Scranton, perhaps?

Perhaps- if it doesn't coincide with the IndyCar and American LeMans Series race at Mid-Ohio, I'll make a serious effort to be there. They coulda really used you as the MC on Saturday. there were a few understandable but incorrect pronunciations that kinda rankled me. I used to do stuff like that back in the day for a couple Indoor shows, and I really worked to get all of those things air-tight.

Lemme tell you- I really think Cabs and MBI are the real jokers in the deck right now. I really think they could move around a lot-- it'll depend on who sees them, and how they think, and they way they think.

And... after looking at some of the recent posts on the DCA forum, I really think some people have to stop their whining. Reading is indeed at the top of the heap right now- maybe by not as much as the scores indicate- that I will agree on-- but really, when I read some of those posts, they're not making themselves look very becoming. Stop the crying, for Lord's sake. If it was YOUR favorite corps winning 8937598746 contests in a row over several years, I'd sure bet you'd be sitting fat, dumb and happy about the situation. If the Bucs lose momentum and go into a deep stall, it's wide open. They may be in control of their destiny, Fran, but sometimes you can still crash and burn. This, I do know something about.

And really for now-- the slotting issues also raised concerning leaving the hole for MBI.... No. If you judge the show as you see it, and manage the numbers, for Lord's sake, one does not need to leave a hole big enough to sail the USS Nimitz through to place MBI into the middle of it. All you need to do is do your caption do your job, and let the tenths parse themselves out. three tenths can be a big enough hole- you don't need to leave three points....

And finally, I don't think they've been seen by a DCA panel. You can't sit and over analyze that issue nor try and play that angle. You judge who is there and how they do that given night.... sheesh!