Best shows to educate rookie fans

[luv4corps]

Ok all you drum corps aficionados... while my FN membership remains active... and now that I'm full up with the 2012 shows... I would like recommendations from old AND new school folks about who/what to watch and why... the greatest shows from past seasons and the specifics on why you think they're great - marching styles, drill, innovations in design or music arranging, choreography, stuff like that. I have a music degree so if you want to talk, say, serialism, I'm with ya. I am generally impressed with the posts on this forum. People know drum corps. I want to know drum corps too! I know some of the more obvious ones... like SCV '89 and PR's Spartacus... but I want more... much more. And I'm aware that there are similar threads out there but I want the focus to be: educating a new fan hungry to know more about drum corps.

[Bela Bartok]

Good post! I was first shown the Cavaliers 2002 show. With all the awesome drill moves and visuals, it really is a great example.

[Will]

Here are some that I always enjoy showing new folks:

Cadets 1996 - The American West (AMAZING color guard, fun music, and great energy!)

Phantom Regiment (all these shows, in my opinion, were made great by powerful music, great color guards, and cool drill)

- 1993 - The Modern Imagination

- 1994 - Songs for a Summer Night

- 1995 - Adventures Under a Darkened Sky

- 1996 - Defiant Heart

- 1997 - The Ring

1994 Blue Devils - My Spanish Heart (WOW!!!!!!)

1995 Blue Devils - Carpe' Noctem (unbelievable hornline, guard, and percussion... no wonder they were undefeated all season...till DCI week anyway).

1986 Cavaliers - symphonic music and super cool drill

1997 Crossmen - insanely FUN and incredibly talented

[BRASSO]

Ok all you drum corps aficionados... while my FN membership remains active... and now that I'm full up with the 2012 shows... I would like recommendations from old AND new school folks about who/what to watch and why... the greatest shows from past seasons and the specifics on why you think they're great - marching styles, drill, innovations in design or music arranging, choreography, stuff like that. I have a music degree so if you want to talk, say, serialism, I'm with ya. I am generally impressed with the posts on this forum. People know drum corps. I want to know drum corps too! I know some of the more obvious ones... like SCV '89 and PR's Spartacus... but I want more... much more. And I'm aware that there are similar threads out there but I want the focus to be: educating a new fan hungry to know more about drum corps.

I have no idea what to recommend to you. What I might like, you might not, and what I might bypass, you might like at lot. Without knowing what you tend to like in music, drill, I couldn't begin to make suggestions for you. What do youtend to like in music, drill, themes ? Do you like dark shows,dark music, etc or shows that are bright and obvious themes ?...Do you prefer avant garde, esotetic music, or the more traditional ? If your tastes run to more of the dark, esoteric, and/ or original music, I'd probably not recommend 2006 Blue Devils" The Godfather", for example, but perhaps instead Star of Indiana '93. But if you like music thats emotional, loud, etc I would recommend Madison Scouts '95. But again, without knowing how your tastes run, its sort of hard. Tell us what you tend to like, and perhaps I ( we ) could make some recommendations for you. What do you tend to like in shows, music ?

Edited September 6, 2012 by BRASSO

[luv4corps]

I have no idea what to recommend to you. What I might like, you might not, and what I might bypass, you might like at lot. Without knowing what you tend to like in music, drill, I couldn't begin to make suggestions for you. What do youtend to like in music, drill, themes ? Do you like dark shows,dark music, etc or shows that are bright and obvious themes ?...Do you prefer avant garde, esotetic music, or the more traditional ? If your tastes run to more of the dark, esoteric, and/ or original music, I'd probably not recommend 2006 Blue Devils" The Godfather", for example, but perhaps instead Star of Indiana '93. But if you like music thats emotional, loud, etc I would recommend Madison Scouts '95. But again, without knowing how your tastes run, its sort of hard. Tell us what you tend to like, and perhaps I ( we ) could make some recommendations for you. What do you tend to like in shows, music ?

I'm not looking as much for what I "like" as what has shaped drum corps through the years and brought it to where it is today. It's like studying literature. I don't need to like it to appreciate the value in it. If I like it.. a lot, it is bonus and gives me an avenue to explore. Don't worry, I will find something to like from any show I watch. I also feel I don't know enough yet to know what I like, especially in the visual and general effect captions. Musically, I'm a little more up to speed. I see drum corps as an art form that is evolving and I want to be knowledgeable as I watch it all unfold.

[wishbonecav]

This is a gimme: Cadets Millenium Celebration, Troopers 1984 or Velvet Knights 1988.

"Much more" for the rookie? Millenium is super familiar, Troopers '84 is non-stop idiomatic flavor with a drill that rookies can keep up with (and a standin o for the sunburst) and VK with the red wigs/peewee herman/America/girl in bikini thing? Couldnt stop watching it if u tried.

If i had to pick ONE....and keep a new person's interest for 11 minutes?....its gotta be VK88.

AFTER that...you could pretty much show 'em what you want. You'll have made that good first impression.

One more not on the FN? Try Caballeros Alumni, Wayne NJ, 2009 on youtube. 3 minutes of lunacy and a 45 second standing o before the last note of music is even played.

Edited September 6, 2012 by wishbonecav

[Super Don-O]

I'll take a quick stab at it:

'88 Suncoast Sound (Symphonic Dances for the Contemporary Child) - this show was 20 years ahead of its time in programming and tone. Simply amazing.

'88 Velvet Knights (Magical Mystery Tour) one of the funniest shows ever put on the field.

'90 Star of Indiana (Belshazzar's Feast) - One of the finest brass performances of all time

'91 Star of Indiana (Roman Images)- Built on the 1990 show. The cross-to-cross drill move at the end is still talked about

'91 Santa Clara Vanguard (Miss Saigon) - Fabulous showmanship

'92 Crossmen (Songs for the Planet Earth) - One in a line of many Crossmen drumlines that really knew how to groove

'95 Cavaliers (The Planets) - Gorgeous musical interpretation meets Cavies visual genious

'95 Madison Scouts (A Drum Corps Fan's Dream) - Among the loudest fan reactions you'll ever hear

'97 Madison Scouts (The Pirates of Lake Mendota)- Madison + a pirate theme, what more could you want

'99 Santa Clara Vanguard (Inventions for a New Millenium) - "The Canyon" by Phillip Glass, "Blue Shades" by Frank Tichelli plus some Samuel Barber.

'00 Cadets (We Are the Future)- Not your grandfather's Disney music. Watch for the drums and hornline playing one another's instruments near the end

'00 Boston Crusaders (Red) - One of my favorite drills of all time coupled with a fantastic latin music book

'04 Blue Devils (The Summer Train Blues Mix) - Jazz jazz jazz the way only BD can do it

'06 Cavaliers (Machine) - theme taken to an extreme

'07 Regiment (On Air) - "1000 Airplanes on the Roof" by Philip Glass meets the "Flower Duet" by Delibes.

'08 Carolina Crown (Finis) - Some of the best interpretations of classical music ever put on the field

'10 Bluecoats (Metropolis: The Future is Now) - Angry, urgent, driving music. Most swagger and attitude I've seen out of any corps since Madison's heyday

[luv4corps]

Going to use my best headphones for this! Thanks for the suggestions and I'm stoked! Really appreciate the "what to watch/listen for" kinds of comments.

[RockyGranite]

Ok all you drum corps aficionados... while my FN membership remains active... and now that I'm full up with the 2012 shows... I would like recommendations from old AND new school folks about who/what to watch and why... the greatest shows from past seasons and the specifics on why you think they're great - marching styles, drill, innovations in design or music arranging, choreography, stuff like that. I have a music degree so if you want to talk, say, serialism, I'm with ya. I am generally impressed with the posts on this forum. People know drum corps. I want to know drum corps too! I know some of the more obvious ones... like SCV '89 and PR's Spartacus... but I want more... much more. And I'm aware that there are similar threads out there but I want the focus to be: educating a new fan hungry to know more about drum corps.

I'm a new fan also and I have no music knowledge, but from what I've seen and heard this last season, Blue Knights' Avian should be looked at.

The show had very hard drill which BK did okay with, complicated music which they didn't really do justice to, very good drum book which they did well with, awesome guard drill which they did very well with...but most importantly, they had a complete, cohesive show that followed their theme to a "T". It was really a performance similar to Disney's Fantasia.

Some people think this will be the future of Drum Corps.

[Captain88]

Thanks luv4corps for starting such a great topic/thread. There's continually people discovering this great activity all the time. My shows would be VK88 for their overall continous entertainment and theatrics. Madison88 listen to the end of this show on audio. It would give a new person to the activity a sense of how powerful an audiences reaction can be. 87 Garfield of how beautiful drum corps can be.