jwillis35 Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 I was fortunate enough to drive to Norwin High School on the east side of Pittsburgh, PA last night to witness part of the Music is Cool tour that the Cadets are doing and to see their evening rehearsal and final run through. Having enjoyed last evening very much I thought I would share my impressions of this wonderful show with all of you. As most of you know by now, the Cadets' 2003 field show is titled "Our Favorite Things." The show is designed to be a sampling of some of the most exciting music from DCI's past. The selections chosen for this particular show are: Fanfare and Allegro (Clifton Williams) as featured by the 1971 Santa Clara Vanguard; Malaguena, as featured by both the Muchachos and the Madison Scouts; and Rocky Point Holiday (Ron Nelson), as featured by the Cadets in 1982 and 1983 (then known as the Garfield Cadets). Since the show title is "Our Favorite Things" the Cadets have decided to incorporate the song "My Favorite Things" from "The Sound of Music" into the fabric of this show. All in all this is an excellent production that will be hard to top in terms of entertainment value and also for technical merrit and musicianship. The show opens with the corps entering the field as they normally do (in classic Cadets block form). Once on the field, the corps breaks to set up their opening form for the show and everything seems as normal. However, only seconds after breaking the block, the percussion and low brass start playing strains from "My Favorite Things." The pit joins in and so do the upper brass voices. Then the battery percussion starts into their warm up which slowly overlaps and meshes with what the brass and pit are doing. Everything that is taking place up until now is all warm up. The music unfolds nicely as it is being played backfield, eventually developing a nice swing feel that develops and builds until the corps is in a vertical company front on the 25 or 30 (I forget). Once this happens the corps is ready for action and the tuba section starts it off with theme 1 from Fanfare and Allegro. As the Tubas are starting the show, the pit is still finishing their final phrase from "My Favorite Things." Very cool intro if you ask me, but go check it out for yourself. As the Tubas finish their entrance, the mellos enter with theirs, only much faster. The baritones then enter even faster, and the trumpets finally make their grand entrance--yes, even faster. The arrangement of this tune is absolutely unique and very musical. Listen closely to the pit in this tune, and all the tunes. They are a big part of the show this year for the Cadets, and they often have the recurring motif of "My Favorite Things." Fanfare and Allegro closes with some serious speed and some excellent music that builds and builds. The power of the horns and drums is already excellent and had the crowd in Norwin buzzing. Malaguena makes for a nice break in style from the first tune. Madison fans fear not. The Cadets are not in any way trying to do it better or to try and re-create those same memroires that Madison has given us so many times. This arrangement of Malaguena is very unique and allows the Cadets to put their own signature on it while still paying homage to Madison and the Muchachos. The tune starts backfield with a trumpet soloist carrying the melody. Then the baritones turn front field and finish the theme. Some excellent staging here and some beautiful sounds out of the Cadets horn line. From there the pit takes over with a very long, fast, extremely difficult run that seems to never end. They help the music to build and build, and then the horn line hits you over the head with the main theme. The middle portion of the tune features an enxtended percussion feature with the snares, tenors, and basses trading off on amazing licks. During this section the brasses have these wonderful park and blows that serve to highlight bits of phrases from the tune. It's great stuff! Shortly after all this, 3 trumpet soloists come up front and start wailin' and the music builds to the classic hit point. It is only at this point that this arrangement has any liking to the Scouts, but if you listen to what the percussion is doing it is totally different. The ending is still very dirty and they may change some drill, but overall the effect was fantastic. This presentation gets an "A" for audience entertainment. Rocky Point Holiday is powerful musically with some stunning visuals early. However, at this stage the Cadets are a bit behind on cleaning the closer. Perhaps because they only got it blocked three days ago and have some major cleaning to do, as well as some future re-writes. During the evening rehearsal you could overhear the staff talking about what worked and what didn't. I even heard Hopkins mention to one of the staff members that if it wasn't going to generate applause or a standing ovation, then they need to scrap it. It was something to that effect. I thought it was refreshing to hear a staff speak about the audience as well as working towards solid music education goals and visual goals. The closing moments of Rocky Point will be stunning once cleaned. The corps does hit a "Z-Pull" for a while, then the form contracts into a block (while going through a lot of different moves to get there). I see some major re-writes taking place here, but the ideas are there. Overall, the Cadets look very impressive for June 18--especially considering all the rain we have had here in the east and midwest. I love this show because it is entertaining, it can compete, and it's artistically top notch stuff. Whent his cleans, look out! Will it win? Who cares. Will it entertain? Heck yes. Actually, as I got in my car and started to drive home, I was thinking to myself "geez, I am not sure I like that show. Way to much melody for what I am used to hearing." :) If you get a chance, go see this production. It is definitely worth the price of the ticket (well, at least up to $20, then I had better get a free program and t-shirt along with the ticket). Later, Jonathan Willis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeN Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 Thanks for the review! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 The show opens with the corps entering the field as they normally do (in classic Cadets block form). I can't wait to see them!! Good stuff! One small thing that shows how "time flies"...... When I was in the Cadets, we marched on single file to a single bass drum beat...no block form. My dad used to say he could always tell when we were approaching the stands as the tall white plumes in a long line would become visible outside of the field/stadium. Blue Rock was the 'block corps' at that time. They moved around in as tight a block as they could form. Mike, Cadets 70-72 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanOwenSullivan Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 So I am confused? When do the Drum Majros salute? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheProcrastinator Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 Im guess while everyone is still taking positions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerriDitt57 Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 Monday. I get to see this Monday. I can NOT wait. It sounds incredibly fun! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CavAlum Posted June 21, 2003 Share Posted June 21, 2003 Great review! One of the best I've ever read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CadetsDad Posted June 21, 2003 Share Posted June 21, 2003 I saw them last night in Sevieville and I do not remember a DM salute. It probably came in under the radar as I was watching the warmup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.