jwillis35 Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 I doubt very much that Bluecoats vets with eligibility remaining will follow the brass staff to SCV. I agree with the person that stated how such an occurrence is more likely to happen in percussion. And even then, I believe Phantom Regiment still had plenty of vets return to their percussion section this past year. From what I have seen of the Bluecoats over the years, their members develop a very special connection to the corps...and the corps travels in style. They have excellent facilities, hold camps in Ohio and Texas, and they offer a brand of drum corps, music education, and travel that is outstanding in every way. I know the student I have at Mount Union is planning on going back to the Bluecoats. He had a fabulous summer! Keep in mind, too, that the corps tends to get a lot of great prospectives from all over Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and other states; not just Texas. I believe the corps will find some very qualified brass staff, and they still have Doug Thrower, and I know they will continue to produce some amazing brass and percussion. Something they always do. I wish the former staff well, and they did some outstanding work. Maybe it was time for a change. I don't know. I just know that the folks running the organization do an excellent job of keeping drum corps alive and well in Canton, OH. Blooooo will be just fine! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmo Blatch Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 Amen, John. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schickmeister Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 People moved around when we kept our brass staff, too. Exactly my point. People are going to move like always. This staff change won't effect too much. I for one am very happy for the staff. Clearly they are doing what's best for them and what makes them happy. That's why I moved when/where I did...I can relate. Good on them! Life's too short! At the end of the day, we all run around with chickens on our heads, don't we? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadets98 Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 That said, some SCV fans and alums are not going to be happy with this apparent different direction that SCV might be embarking on here with their music and with their brass playing technique that was once " unique to SCV". You mean uniquely not very good? And I'm not talking about old SCV or even 90's SCV. I'm talking about the hornlines from about 2003 to present. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmo Blatch Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Like jwillis35 mentions, the whole brass staff of a corps usually doesn't move en masse and I don't see the Bluecoats' entire brass staff moving to SCV, a few perhaps, but not all of them. I bet at least one, perhaps two, former Phantom brass staff members come to the Bluecoats this year though. Just a hunch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmo Blatch Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 You mean uniquely not very good? And I'm not talking about old SCV or even 90's SCV. I'm talking about the hornlines from about 2003 to present. Given the SCV hornlines from 2003-present and the Bluecoats hornlines 2003-present, Bluecoats win. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MGCpimpOtimp Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 I doubt very much that Bluecoats vets with eligibility remaining will follow the brass staff to SCV. I agree with the person that stated how such an occurrence is more likely to happen in percussion. And even then, I believe Phantom Regiment still had plenty of vets return to their percussion section this past year. From what I have seen of the Bluecoats over the years, their members develop a very special connection to the corps...and the corps travels in style. They have excellent facilities, hold camps in Ohio and Texas, and they offer a brand of drum corps, music education, and travel that is outstanding in every way. I know the student I have at Mount Union is planning on going back to the Bluecoats. He had a fabulous summer! Keep in mind, too, that the corps tends to get a lot of great prospectives from all over Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and other states; not just Texas. I believe the corps will find some very qualified brass staff, and they still have Doug Thrower, and I know they will continue to produce some amazing brass and percussion. Something they always do. I wish the former staff well, and they did some outstanding work. Maybe it was time for a change. I don't know. I just know that the folks running the organization do an excellent job of keeping drum corps alive and well in Canton, OH. Blooooo will be just fine! Phantom had zero percussion vets this summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruckner8 Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Phantom had zero percussion vets this summer. Every single one that marched, followed Rennick to SCV (as reported on DCP, and ultimately might be incorrect) That happens with percussion and guard, but never with hornlines. I'm not sure why...any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azmello96 Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I'm just curious whether DCI needs to have a class at the next staff weekend where they discuss the finer points of "How to Be a Professional". Step One is "don't go on social media to make announcements about your employment status before the organizations you work for have a chance to craft the communication." Speaking of professional, I would like to draw attention to the fact that when Christian Carichner left Academy for PR, the announcment on the Academy website not only told that Mr. Feagin would be the new captionhead, but also told about how great Mr. Carichner was for them. Also, on the Academy Facebook page, Richard Hinshaw (Academy Design Caption Head) congratulated Mr. Carichner on his new job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmo Blatch Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 That happens with percussion and guard, but never with hornlines. I'm not sure why...any ideas? This is a wild guess, but there seems to be a lot more emphasis on "I learned this stick grip technique from _______________" who marched/taught _____________________ in ___________, which is completely different than what you would learn if you marched ___________________ when it comes to percussion people. The same can be said for guard people. Let's be honest, the percussion and the guard are the two elements of drum corps that have changed the most in the last 40 years. What brand new tonguing/intonation/tone quality techniques have been developed and widely used over the last 40 years? Sure, some folks have their own take on sound and breath support (Arnold Jacobs, Pat Sheridan, and even a comical Doc Sevrinsen story come to mind), but for the most part, brass instructors are mostly homongenous in what they are trying to accomplish. With the masse move toward a Bb hornline in drum corps, this homogenization has become even more realized. In the past, it was quite evident to tell hornline A from hornline B. I postulate that it had more to do with the instrumentation (some used flugels and french horns) and arranging styles than it did the brass technique involved. Let's be honest, if you marched drum corps in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, the majority of your warm-ups consisted of lip slurs, long tone studies, pedal tone exercises, and articulation examples. Most of these warm-ups were standard from drum corps to drum corps and often times rote learned by people who did not play in the treble clef, normally played a woodwind instrument, or had no experience reading music. In fact, so many of these exercises were never written down, they were just taught by ear (and in some cases, by showing the correct fingering). I was once told that the immortal Blue Devils G tuning sequence was not written down but instead taught straight to the members by Wayne Downey. That Blue Devils G tuning sequence (and its Bb marching band sister) was used by everybody at some point in the 70s and 80s, and one is to assume, all without a written sheet music example...talk about homogenization! It seems to me that the percussion/guard camp is focused more on creating an individual style and trying to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. This is evident from the variation of equipment/instruments used from corps to corps. When a drumline or guard tries a new technique, its usually accepted without debate. When a hornline tries a new approach, its usually met with resistance--both from the players and the fans. That's my take on it. Please feel free to disagree with the things on which I have commented; I enjoy the dialogue. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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