Geneva Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 (edited) Today I had some time on my hands and I was recalling the sweet soprano solo that year in "Pieces of Dreams", so I went to the Fan Network and viewed the performance for the first time. What I saw was like a breath of fresh air, but first let me preface by saying this is not by any means a bash on modern drum corps. I appreciate the musical excellence of today's corps and still attend my share of shows. But what I saw made me smile. It reminded me of the straight ahead appeal which a lot ot the corps back then had with their simpler approachs. Garfield came charging off the line drum majors with high leg lift and double arm swings. Horn line honking, especially the contras. Certainly not high marks for musicality, but what a statement! The military bearing in high gear; there is no smiling in drum corps ! The rep was completely disjoint, just a collection of nice tunes. Who needs a theme? It was an interesting time in drum corps history with the transition to two valve from valve-rotor just beginning with the sopranos. You can see the sopranos carrying their previous year's model on their waists just waitng for the hand off to the guard members for the show finale with 70+ horns (shades of the future). I wondered (at least when not totally distracted by the young ladies' hot pants) how many of the guard members were actually playing . And what I had tuned in for, the solo. I was surprised at the youthful (?age 17-19) poise of the soloist. Nice lip trill and easy range. Anybody know his name? I wonder what he is doing now at age 50+. His baritone accompanist was not too shabby either. Smooth sound and nice loooong double G. Great arranging and section playing by the sops after the solos. The next tune (Chuck Mangione piece, I believe) included a hot solo by the drum major going old school an a valve-rotor horn puffing away. Yes, it reminded me of a time when drum corps was simpler, but still very effective. Making a statement was the primary mission and if that could be accomplished while staying musical, even better. Sure, there were a lot of warts with overblowing and some dicey intonation which was part of the package with G horns, but the command was beautiful to behold. Oh, and I just remembered, I was in that Denver audience! Today's drum corps stand on the shoulders of the giants of the past. Not bad for a corps that tied for the final postion in that year's championships. Edited October 5, 2011 by Geneva 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HNCadet Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 (edited) It's nice to hear comments like that from a competitor......I'm from a much earlier generation, one of the American Legion Championship years then marching thru some very forgettable years of the late '60's. In my own poll of years I wish I marched, 1977 was my first choice because of that memorable music and........the Horn Instructor and Arranger. Our own Iron Lips. I recall Frank from his first year(my last)with Garfield working with John Sasso trying to reteach a horn line that had been floundering for years after Angelica left. Bob Cardaneo was also on that staff, he marched in '66-67 with Garfield and before that Vasella. I recall conversations with Bob that he taught ALL of those girls to play and play well they did. I'm sorry I don't know who those soloists were, but they too have my admiration, though the Drum Majors were Greg Cinzio(who I marched with a decade prior) & John Hannigan. Edited October 5, 2011 by HNCadet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 It's nice to hear comments like that from a competitor......I'm from a much earlier generation, one of the American Legion Championship years then marching thru some very forgettable years of the late '60's. In my own poll of years I wish I marched, 1977 was my first choice because of that memorable music and........the Horn Instructor and Arranger. Our own Iron Lips. I recall Frank from his first year(my last)with Garfield working with John Sasso trying to reteach a horn line that had been floundering for years after Angelica left. Bob Cardaneo was also on that staff, he marched in '66-67 with Garfield and before that Vasella. I recall conversations with Bob that he taught ALL of those girls to play and play well they did. I'm sorry I don't know who those soloists were, but they too have my admiration, though the Drum Majors were Greg Cinzio(who I marched with a decade prior) & John Hannigan. I guess your last was my first, 1970????? Of course, a year later Angelica was back near the end of the season and Frank was gone, after writing an amazing brass book for 1971, the Revolutionary War show. I still see Bob's bother Jimmy (who played contra in our era!) every so often during marching band season, as he has been helping out with the South Brunswick NJ band and indoor guard for years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe S Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Thanks for the good words. It was a fun show to play, The soprano soloist was Chris Trimblet and the baritone soloist was his brother Jim. They came from the Saints and the guys could play. If my memory serves my right, I think Chris won the soprano individuals that year. The drum major/soloist was Greg "Doc" Cinzio" And YES everyone one of those ladies could play!!!!! I gotta say Frank was like the Pied Piper, He could make us jump thru rings of fire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRISP Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 When did Dennis Dewey march? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geneva Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 Thanks for the good words. It was a fun show to play, The soprano soloist was Chris Trimblet and the baritone soloist was his brother Jim. They came from the Saints and the guys could play. If my memory serves my right, I think Chris won the soprano individuals that year. The drum major/soloist was Greg "Doc" Cinzio" And YES everyone one of those ladies could play!!!!! I gotta say Frank was like the Pied Piper, He could make us jump thru rings of fire. Joe, thanks for the information. I have met Frank. I bet it must have been great to have him as an instructor. Now that you mention it, I do seem to recall him telling me that the soloists were brothers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 When did Dennis Dewey march? I know he marched in 71 and 72, two of my years, but I am not sure when he and his younger brother Mike (RIP, sad to say) left. Both of them great guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Thanks for the good words. It was a fun show to play, The soprano soloist was Chris Trimblet and the baritone soloist was his brother Jim. They came from the Saints and the guys could play. If my memory serves my right, I think Chris won the soprano individuals that year. The drum major/soloist was Greg "Doc" Cinzio" And YES everyone one of those ladies could play!!!!! I gotta say Frank was like the Pied Piper, He could make us jump thru rings of fire. A lot of great folks came from the Saints...Al Chez among them. They could indeed play! Tommy Swan taught the Saints for years...a great horn instructor back in the day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IllianaLancerContra Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Today I had some time on my hands and I was recalling the sweet soprano solo that year in "Pieces of Dreams", so I went to the Fan Network and viewed the performance for the first time. What I saw was like a breath of fresh air, but first let me preface by saying this is not by any means a bash on modern drum corps. I appreciate the musical excellence of today's corps and still attend my share of shows. But what I saw made me smile. It reminded me of the straight ahead appeal which a lot ot the corps back then had with their simpler approachs. Garfield came charging off the line drum majors with high leg lift and double arm swings. Horn line honking, especially the contras. Certainly not high marks for musicality, but what a statement! The military bearing in high gear; there is no smiling in drum corps ! The rep was completely disjoint, just a collection of nice tunes. Who needs a theme? It was an interesting time in drum corps history with the transition to two valve from valve-rotor just beginning with the sopranos. You can see the sopranos carrying their previous year's model on their waists just waitng for the hand off to the guard members for the show finale with 70+ horns (shades of the future). I wondered (at least when not totally distracted by the young ladies' hot pants) how many of the guard members were actually playing . And what I had tuned in for, the solo. I was surprised at the youthful (?age 17-19) poise of the soloist. Nice lip trill and easy range. Anybody know his name? I wonder what he is doing now at age 50+. His baritone accompanist was not too shabby either. Smooth sound and nice loooong double G. Great arranging and section playing by the sops after the solos. The next tune (Chuck Mangione piece, I believe) included a hot solo by the drum major going old school an a valve-rotor horn puffing away. Yes, it reminded me of a time when drum corps was simpler, but still very effective. Making a statement was the primary mission and if that could be accomplished while staying musical, even better. Sure, there were a lot of warts with overblowing and some dicey intonation which was part of the package with G horns, but the command was beautiful to behold. Oh, and I just remembered, I was in that Denver audience! Today's drum corps stand on the shoulders of the giants of the past. Not bad for a corps that tied for the final postion in that year's championships. My 2nd fav Cadets show (#1 is 87). It absolutely rocks from start to finish. Classic old school east coast Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe S Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 I think Dennis marched up to 76 or 77. I think he was still there in 77 ,but for sure 76 When did Dennis Dewey march? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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