cowtown Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 If you have to understand a show to enjoy it, it means the show is a failure…the idea of an intellectual drum corps show is often a rouse or an excuse to cover for a boring show – the ‘layers’ should be the extra icing on the cake, the bonus and not critical to the show itself But I thing you want something different so here is my understanding of the shows I have seen live (the only way to fairly judge a show) and my understanding is temporary and subject to change Cavies – constantly cirque-ing absurdity Bluestars – Re-bored Bluecoats – 2010.5 Glassmen – twilighted Crown – rach better than bandos trying to rock Troopers – dirty back road, exit designed for Indy Colts – yep, it’s the Colts being all Colty (a good thing) Pioneer – size matters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BozzlyB Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 I just listen to the drums and the horns, enjoy the drill, and occasionally watch the guard dance or whatever. Bingo, could care less about themes, when I watch drum corps it is 90% for the music, 10% for the visual. Drum corps shows are not meant to be "gotten" IMO, it shouldn't be like watching a movie with a story line and themes have taken us way too far down that road. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 Bingo, could care less about themes, when I watch drum corps it is 90% for the music, 10% for the visual. Drum corps shows are not meant to be "gotten" IMO, it shouldn't be like watching a movie with a story line and themes have taken us way too far down that road. I agree about the themes ,i just like or dont like if I get it fine if a corps is good i get into it..understand it or not BUTTTTTTTTT drum corps is and always has been about the visual..it decideds shows..if it were just about the music we could just go LISTEN to a sit down concert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lance Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 i don't care about the narrative the corps is trying to convey. when it comes to theater, dci is amateur hour at best for me. even for shows like phantom 2008. still, phantom 08 is my favorite music of the past 10 years. we all have different things that we look for, and doezens of different factors go into what makes a show "entertaining" for an individual. knowing the show concept/story happens to be at the bottom of the list for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lance Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 I agree about the themes ,i just like or dont like if I get it fine if a corps is good i get into it..understand it or not BUTTTTTTTTT drum corps is and always has been about the visual..it decideds shows..if it were just about the music we could just go LISTEN to a sit down concert. i'm not sure that's quite accurate. it's about the visual and the music, and always has been. right now, it's unevenly weighted towards visual when it comes to show design and scoring. i have yet to find a sit-down concert venue where you get to hear 5 or more all brass and percussion ensembles playing unique arrangements for 10-12 minutes apiece. if i find one, i'll be there for sure, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 (edited) Bingo, could care less about themes, when I watch drum corps it is 90% for the music, 10% for the visual. Drum corps shows are not meant to be "gotten" IMO, it shouldn't be like watching a movie with a story line and themes have taken us way too far down that road. True, but DCI announced an initiative before last season whereby the show designers, from a prodding from the DCI judging community. were asked to come before the judges in a meeting face to face to explain in some detail what exactly the theme for the coming season would be. The show designers were asked to explain verbally to the judge what the show would be about and to explain what it is the judges should try to understand that the show designer would hope to be conveying through music and dance. Now... in my personal opionion here... I think the car has taken a bit of a wrong turn down the Drum Corps highway, when even the judges are a bit confused here with what the show is all about and what the theme message is. I agree with you that it is not essential to understand a theme to enjoy what is presented. However, it is MUCH more enjoyable to me to have what is presented in the theme... understood. Otherwise, if a theme is not clearly understood through music and dance by many in the audience, then maybe that Corps should just go out with no theme at all. That way, this whole show theme confusion business is put to rest once and for all. But if you have a show theme, then present it in a fashion that at least 35%... minimum... in the audience understands what the show is all about and what the message theme is. Otherwise, in my opinion, the show theme is a complete bust, irrespective of the performance level exhibited by the performers in brass, percussion and guard. Edited July 8, 2011 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BozzlyB Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 I agree about the themes ,i just like or dont like if I get it fine if a corps is good i get into it..understand it or not BUTTTTTTTTT drum corps is and always has been about the visual..it decideds shows..if it were just about the music we could just go LISTEN to a sit down concert. Yeah I agree, just saying for me the entertainment value lies mostly in the music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BozzlyB Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 True, but DCI announced an initiative before last season whereby the show designers, from a prodding from the DCI judging community. were asked to come before the judges in a meeting face to face to explain in some detail what exactly the theme for the coming season would be. The show designers were asked to explain verbally to the judge what the show would be about and to explain what it is the judges should try to understand that the show designer would hope to be conveying through music and dance. Now... in my personal opionion here... I think the car has taken a bit of a wrong turn down the Drum Corps highway, when even the judges are a bit confused here with what the show is all about and what the theme message is. I agree with you that it is not essential to understand a theme to enjoy what is presented.However, it is MUCH more enjoyable to me to have what is presented in the theme... understood. Otherwise, if a theme is not clearly understood through music and dance by many in the audience, then maybe that Corps should just go out with no theme at all. That way, this whole show theme confusion business is put to rest once and for all. But if you have a show theme, then present it in a fashion that at least 35%... minimum... in the audience understands what the show is all about and what the message theme is. Otherwise, in my opinion, the show theme is a complete bust, irrespective of the performance level exhibited by the performers in brass, percussion and guard. ...taking the field with their 2012 production, "Themeless".... that could actually be a cool theme lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearz Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 Is it important to me? Not really. I don't get subtle things very well...it has to be pretty much laid out for me. Its nice to have it explained to me and I love it when I sit next to someone who has indepth knowledge of what the different aspects of a show are so I can get the inside scoop on all the stuff happening on the field, but I can be perfectly happy watching a show without knowing what its about. I guess I just enjoy the whole experience. For example, my Blue Stars. I've never watched a Bourne movie. The last 11 years have been dedicated to Pooh and Cars and, lately, Avatar. I love the show so far but since I know nothing about the movie I can't relate it to anything more than what people have explained to me. Yes, I love knowing what its about but I'd love the show anyway because I love dark, haunting themes and shows. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E. Brigand Posted July 8, 2011 Share Posted July 8, 2011 Same with Bluecoats, although I was led to believe by their theme title, that it was to be about the Orwellian book. I really see no evidence of this in their show. I'm not sure Aldous Huxley's book, which appeared four years before George Orwell published his first novel, should be called "Orwellian". 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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