What direction will BD take in 2011?

[chaddyt]

"Engage vs. frustrate" is a false dichotomy. If you found yourself frustrated by BD's show then you were engaged by it. Not in the way you expect or want to be engaged by a drum corps show, but engaged nonetheless.

It was interesting watching the various crowd reactions to BD in Murfreesboro and Atlanta. First, there were plenty of enthusiastic responses . . . no golf claps from my perspective. Other audience members were displaying a silent, but palpable hostility towards what they were seeing on the field. One veteran of another major California corps sitting near me looked positively enraged. One group of jokesters, recent alumni of another BD rival, wore earplugs throughout the show. There was a good deal of befuddlement, notably from band kids and from what appeared to me to be friends/family of marchers who were relatively new to drum corps.

Note: I am in no way attempting to speak for the entire audience. These are my subjective interpretations of the reactions of the few hundred people sitting near enough to me to make such a reading possible. My subjectivity may have blinded to me what was, in fact, an over the top baby throwing reaction to BD's performance. My God have mercy on my soul.

I've never seen such a diverse reaction to a drum corps show. It was almost as fun to watch the faces of the people around me as it was the show itself (I fell into the enthusiastic category, by the way). This surely is what the designers of the show intended, especially when they chose City of Glass. I had the opportunity to watch BD warm-up before their semifinals performance (space chords up close . . . wow). Towards the end of the warm-up they played through the last few minutes of show, and were told that this music "should make people uncomfortable". If you're dubious about this, you can check out a certain tubular website for, uh, part 5 of BD's semis warm-up. Then wait about a minute and ten seconds. Anyways, all the hate, the confusion, the enthusiasm, the "negativity" . . . all of these responses were intentionally cultivated by BD's designers. So BD supporters, don't get all touchy and defensive when someone is "negative" about the show. That only means your corps accomplished its mission.

This begs the question of whether a corps should be trying to make audience members uncomfortable. I welcome the diversity this approach brings to DCI in an era of relentless homogeneity. Others surely disagree. I want BD to continue to do its own thing so long as this formula remains fresh. Then I want them to go even further. That said, for every Blue Devils drum corps has there needs to be 3-4 pure "entertainers", otherwise things might be a little too overwhelming.

I get what you're saying. I guess my frustration with the show stemmed from not knowing exactly "why" they were trying to push those buttons. I actually got a more unsettling feeling from Cavies show, and I loved it. But it was pretty darn clear that that's what their intent was.

My animosity for BD's show this year has waned considerably however, and after seeing them live in Indy, definitely found an appreciation for the level of their execution. While I still don't love their show, I think they should continue to do what they do best, and that's continue to raise the bar.

Even if they're only raising it for themselves.

[Michael Boo]

Stone Ground 7

Very good. We've got three now. What about the others?

As a reminder...

After chairs and mirrors comes flooring, but we need musical selections for each movement.

So far we've got "Norwegian Wood" and "In the Stone" OR "Stone Ground 7," (which we could use if we need a drum solo.

But we still need selections for "Laminate," "Tile," "Vinyl," "Cork" and "Bamboo."

Edited August 23, 2010 by Michael Boo

[KAW]

Very good. We've got three now. What about the others?

Today I heard Rush say there's the G8, the G20 and the Gee Whiz. Cracked me up.

[BozzlyB]

Plenty of Haterade goin' on disguised as sweet tea.

That is pretty disingenous given the number of people who over 30+ years of drum corps involvment have learned to love a certain something about the Blue Devils that has been terribly missing for at least the last few years.

[Michael Boo]

Today I heard Rush say there's the G8, the G20 and the Gee Whiz. Cracked me up.

Are you sure he wasn't talking about Cheez Whiz?

We now return you to speculation on Blue Devils' 2011 show.

[Plan9]

That is pretty disingenous given the number of people who over 30+ years of drum corps involvment have learned to love a certain something about the Blue Devils that has been terribly missing for at least the last few years.

What you describe as "terribly missing" others might describe as "strategically absent" to make room for something new, different and exciting.

"If memories are all I sang, I'd rather drive a truck!" Ricky Nelson (from his hit "Garden Party")

[Rocketman]

Look, the reality is, BD was a sub-par percussion section away from a "four-peat." Who in their right mind would change the "formula?"

I for one don't necessarily like the direction they've gone, and I've been "blasted" for suggesting they are bringing "Blast" to the field, but you cannot deny their success.

Do I want to see other corps imitate this style of programming? No. But this is a competitive activity and what wins is usually copied, without much success, by other corps.

I think the imagination levels and talent of the corps are light years ahead of when I marched in the 70's. But, since I'm the "old guy," I can't help but feel a slight bit of yearning for not necessarily music I recognize, but music I enjoy. Seems I get more of that in the bottom tier of DCI than the top.

But hey, BD is going to do what they do until someone else comes along and knocks them off their pearch. To me, this is a call for everyone else to step up their game, because you know BD will.

[Fran Haring]

Fran !! I knew you would feel this way !!

G

Yeah, G.... they lost me in 2009, but got me back in 2010!

[BDCorno]

There's no doubt the most talked about show this past season has been "Through a glass darkly" by the Blue Devils.

Here on DCP the majority of BD fans liked it and the majority of all other fans disliked it. Personally I was somewhere in the middle.... once I have digested my thoughts I will attempt a finals review.

My question is, will their staff give us another "progressive" show that's capable of winning or give us a show that's also capable of winning but keeps more than just a few hundred friends and family for encore?

I would imagine they will engage those who like their program, and frustrate those that don't. Take that to the bank!

[Fran Haring]

After chairs and mirrors comes flooring, but we need musical selections for each movement.

So far we've got "Norwegian Wood" and "In the Stone" OR "Stone Ground 7," (which we could use if we need a drum solo.

But we still need selections for "Laminate," "Tile," "Vinyl," "Cork" and "Bamboo."

Vinyl.... a medley of top pop/jazz songs that were originally released on vinyl.

Then again, maybe not.