mellophonium Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 So what should we complain about next? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saxfreq1128 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 (edited) I was absolutely APPALLED when I saw/heard BD using mics for the soloists!! (FYI I didn't see any of the corps that used them last year). For any DRUM & BUGLE CORPS to use microphones to amplify brass soloists is so outrageously LAME it's almost beyond words. It's a "flip of the bird" to the legacy of the activity. Yes, the acoustics of a football stadium are a huge challenge for a primarily acoustic musical ensemble. HELLOOOO??? THAT'S THE POINT OF THE WHOLE ACTIVITY!! It's the surmounting of this challenge with (mostly) acoustic, human powered instruments that is what makes this activity great! What this is, is a total show design COP OUT!. It's a function of lazy designers who want to take short cuts. My opinion - if you can't stage the soloists or balance the rest of the ensemble so that the soloists can be heard, or if you don't have soloists that can project well enough, THEN YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE SOLOISTS!! What's even more appalling is that Blue Devils probably have the best soloists in the activity, and therefore are the least in need for amplification!! How long will it be before we have clip-on wireless microphones on the bell of every player? I thought it would be the legalization of woodwinds that would mark the beginning of my retirement as a DCI spectator. However if amplification continues its invasion into the brass section, I may not wait around for the reeds before I start planning something new for my mid-August vacation. I think people have already covered a lot of that ground in this topic, man. And you might wanna fact-check that mics-last-year situation... Personally I think the mic'ing of soloists is kind of corny, but I also think it's corny to get so heated over corny things. Yeah, it's kinda wack; so what? As the OP and others have gracefully suggested, we needn't agree with all of the artistic decisions comprising a show to dig that show. The jump from mic'ed soloists to the doom of the activity as we know it is a bit reactionary and unattractively histrionic. Relax. Edited June 29, 2011 by saxfreq1128 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralTsoChicken Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 I think people have already covered a lot of that ground in this topic, man. And you might wanna fact-check that mics-last-year situation... Personally I think the mic'ing of soloists is kind of corny, but I also think it's corny to get so heated over corny things. Yeah, it's kinda wack; so what? As the OP has gracefully suggested, we needn't agree with all of the artistic decisions comprising a show to dig that show. The jump from mic'ed soloists to the doom of the activity as we know it is a bit reactionary and unattractively histrionic. Relax. Holy crap, someone with "sax" in their name who doesn't agree with the poster who doesn't want reeds in DCI. Never saw that one coming! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lance Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 So what should we complain about next? no marching timpani? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photographer Jim Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 (edited) To what extent is the strong amplification (read: excessively loud) of the pit making using mics for soloists a growing necessity? Just asking. Edited June 29, 2011 by Photographer Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saxfreq1128 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Holy crap, someone with "sax" in their name who doesn't agree with the poster who doesn't want reeds in DCI. Never saw that one coming! Haha. (Technically I marched mello, but) Yes, as a saxophonist, I understand that my place is in the proverbial kitchen of drum corps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiodb Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 But dont expect a bash thread about anything unless the blue devils did it. The scouts, cavaliers, blue coats, crown or phantom can come out with a clarinet section wheeled around on motorized carts and flutes riding around on segways and nobody will care. But if the Blue devils do it, its a serious issue that destroys the activity. lol To refresh your ailing memory, here are a few quotes from DCP concerning Cavaliers last year: The Cavaliers' "trio into the microphone thing" I didn't get at all. The players were already up front... why not just turn the horns toward the audience and play, like soloists have been doing since...well.... forever? I love the cavaliers. brassline has some power, so I was really let down when the trio of screamers stepped up to the microphones. I don't know what they spend on their equipment, but cavies should be able to do without the mic's on the trumpet trio. if they could play any louder than 'mf' then they wouldn't need to use mics in the first place. in the 80's, you could hear the scouts' screamers just fine when they were sitting in the middle of the field and unmic'd. those guys at cavies are on the front sideline and using mics? hmm... what happened to drum corps. Please stop mic'ing brass solos. OMG. You're ruining the sound of the instruments. Unless you like reproducing the sound in a worse way. If that's your goal, you've done a masterful job. Furthermore, I witnessed the Cavies mic a trumpet trio (and man, they can really wail, great players down there) at the end of their show. Why? What did that add? Balance? We would have heard those three guys without the mic just fine. Through the microphone it changed the tone color and the blend was musically absurd (some call it distracting). I sat shaking my head in disgust as did others around me (I had no idea what corps affiliation these people had either). What immediately went through my head was that this was kind of like the enabling musicians on what should be an otherwise achievable musical outcome (playing with good balance, blend and intonation). One other comment: couldn't the trio of screechers just stand in front of the pit or forward off of the front sideline anywhere so playing into a mic is unnecessary? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardman Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Yes the horn line is loud. But the pit is so amplified that at times I felt as if I was at a rock concert. I know! I felt the SAME EXACT WAY during Carolina Crown's show... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WOOHOO Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Seeing as how they aren't in 1st at the moment, it's less offensive 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noname Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 So do Cavies and Bluecoats. Don't forget, they weren't using mics to amplify. They were using mics to add a different color to it. Also, it would be very difficult to play a screaming solo like they are, while the rest of the horns are playing as loud as they can. That's why it's done. It opens up more opportunities. Buuut let's stick with the way things were. Improvements suck. 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.