Blue Devils Hater No More

[WOOHOO]

it can be but im talkin out and out making something up for judges and the public . Its done more times than you think

Even so, if it works, what's the difference?

[byline]

I do wonder, though.....and no offense at all meant to BD, who do what they do extremely well and have done so for decades.... but how many people want to have to think that much about what is going on, when they watch a drum corps performance?

I mean, it's drum corps. It's not high art. It's not the symphony. It is, at its heart, an amateur marching music idiom. (And by "amateur" I do not mean "amateurish.")

I agree, Fran. But I can tell you that having watched BD on the Fan Network, I liked what they were doing crack off the bat without knowing the details of why they're doing what they do. So even without having that knowledge and thought process, I was still able to enjoy them. So I think it's like a good film, TV show, play, music, whatever; there are many different layers to be appreciated, but you need not be aware of them all in order to be able to enjoy the work. Good art can be appreciated at multiple levels.

It's a little like all those "Looney Tunes" cartoons I loved as a kid (and still love as an adult): When I was a kid, I didn't get all the cultural references that are subtly interwoven throughout each cartoon, but I laughed at all the slapsticky stuff that I did get. Now, as an adult, I get a lot of the nods, references and homages, and I still laugh . . . but for different reasons.

[WOOHOO]

I do wonder, though.....and no offense at all meant to BD, who do what they do extremely well and have done so for decades.... but how many people want to have to think that much about what is going on, when they watch a drum corps performance?

I mean, it's drum corps. It's not high art. It's not the symphony. It is, at its heart, an amateur marching music idiom. (And by "amateur" I do not mean "amateurish.")

Not to sound like a jerk, but I'm sure the judges want to think about what is going on.

It's fine for fans to just want to sit back and not think (like in front of a t.v.), but to expect that level of complexity to win rings at the same time? It doesn't make sense.

[Tyler C.]

Some shows do have decent prop integration as it is (like this year's BAC show), but are creatively unimaginative.

Most shows, it's not even that they detract from the show, they just sit there. What's the point? I would even say that about my corps this year, unfortunately

Like the old rule for movies: If you introduce a prop, you MUST use it at some point.

[saxfreq1128]

I do wonder, though.....and no offense at all meant to BD, who do what they do extremely well and have done so for decades.... but how many people want to have to think that much about what is going on, when they watch a drum corps performance?

I mean, it's drum corps. It's not high art. It's not the symphony. It is, at its heart, an amateur marching music idiom. (And by "amateur" I do not mean "amateurish.")

And to a decent degree, its goal is (or should be) to get as many people as possible into the seats to watch a show. Paying customers pay the bills. Including, perhaps, the "great unwashed" who simply might want to enjoy what they see without having to explore the "deeper meaning" of a given performance.

But some would say that we ought to do away with the "high" and "low" divide altogether... and that we ought not to think of "high" as some upper limit to which activities like drum corps can never aspire. Corps like Crown, PR, et al regularly prove that "high" and "low" aren't really divided, on the football field: they're always there, and always both at once. Shostakovich -- "high" -- wasn't written for a drum corps -- "low." Does that make PR '96 a low art imitation of the 'high,' or does it make PR 96 a spectacular amalgamation that destroys our perception of the divide altogether? Obviously, I vote the latter.

I don't really know how you'd define "high art," but whatever it is, I see no reason why drum corps can't aspire to be something a little bit more than an amateurish rendition of some higher, better form. Drum corps is its own form. And I think corps of late are proving that no such divide really exists, and that we should come to expect more of drum corps than straightforward, "low" entertainment.

Edited August 11, 2010 by saxfreq1128

[Liahona]

I’ve been pretty hard on the Blue Devils for the past couple years. Whether it’s been musical selections I can’t stand, tuba lines I can’t hear, or uniform designs I can’t figure out, I’m more likely to speak out about what I hate about BD instead of what I like.

This year’s show is no exception, especially after they teased me with the joint offerings of a horn line on King horns AND a show of Stan Kenton music. If there’s one thing Devs do right, it’s Kenton. Imagine my disappointment when La Suerta de Los Tontos is barely even hinted at in the show, then imagine my horror when City of Glass, a composition people walked out on when it was debuted in 1947, turned out to be the centerpiece of the musical book.

Full post

“new paradigm” and “violent show”.

MEH! Sorry..don't like it that much!

[N.E. Brigand]

Like the old rule for movies: if you introduce a prop, you must use it at some point.

Originally used for plays, actually: Chekhov's gun.

[crfrey71]

Well, let's see, following Star's 1993 show, (a) Star left the activity, (b) numerous other Open Class corps folded, © a number of corps unsuccessfully tried to emulate Star's programming ideas and many long-time fans felt that "entertainment value" suffered enormously as a result, (d) DCI went through a few dicey years of declining attendance . . .

So, I sure don't hope this is a "new paradigm."

BD is good for sure. But if a whole bunch of corps try to follow what they are doing--particularly musically--drum corps as a whole will kind of suck until the next "new paradigm" comes along.

JMHO.

P.S. I really think that what BD is doing this year is only mildly evolutionary from the direction they have been heading the past few years. A revolution this ain't.

I agree with most of this. I think many people are stretching or trying so hard to find an excuse to relate this to Star 1993. Star 1993 is done, over, and finished...17 years ago (16 actually, if you count 1994).

I do not see a new style or anything close to that occuring here. I see new gimmicks. But gimmicks alone do not send the acticity into a new direction. I think colorguard is where we are going to see the next major change.

[saxfreq1128]

I think colorguard is where we are going to see the next major change.

That's interesting. How do you mean?

[GMichael1230]

Compared to the crowd response to a few other corps that night, yes. Crickets. At best a polite golf clap in comparison.

I didn't see any babies being thrown on the field, that's for sure.

That's a big difference from Crickets..see how your own frustration, disdain and unfavorable feelings toward the show taint reality ??

G