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Blue Devils 2013


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But that's just it: I don't see anything needing justification here. It's a show about Dada that wasn't itself Dadaist. Makes sense to me -- just like "Stonehenge" had nothing to do with Stonehenge and "Niagara Falls" had frankly nothing to do with Niagara Falls besides some cool water imagery. These things didn't bother me then, and they don't bother me now.

I think we need to stop evaluating BD's show like it's a Masters' thesis or a performance piece at the MoMA and accept it for what it was: a drum corps show that some people liked, many people didn't, and more importantly, a drum corps show from literally a year ago that we all just need to get. over.

Let's see: Stonehenge had nothing to do with Stonehenge; Niagara Falls had nothing to do with Niagara Falls; Cabaret Voltaire had nothing to do with Cabaret Voltaire; and that makes sense to you? Wait.... It is not supposed to make sense; it is all Dada! Wow, I get it now! Not!!!!! At least people who attempt to justify the unjustifiable amuse; otherwise DCI is in a heap of trouble.

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But a show doesn't have to be Dada to be about Dada

Makes sense. Just like a show titled "Studio 54" doesn't have to be about the disco hedonistic eccentric 1970's pop culture; a DCI show called "Studio 54" could be about Country Music in Tenn in the 1950's. Yep, that makes about as much sense as your statement above.

Edited by Stu
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Makes sense. Just like a show titled "Studio 54" doesn't have to be about the disco hedonistic eccentric 1970's pop culture; a DCI show called "Studio 54" could be about Country Music in Tenn in the 1950's. Yep, that makes about as much sense as your statement above.

Disco music is club music by definition.

When a drum corps performs a disco song, it is no longer disco: it's a drum corps cover of a disco song. Just as you could not play the Bluecoats' cover of "Creep" on the radio and call it 'alternative rock,' and just as you could not play Crown's version of Mahler in a classical music setting, so, too, would you be prevented from listening to a drum corps cover of Donna Summer in a club, because that cover would not be disco. Instrumentation matters, if nothing else.

So, to respond: A drum corps show titled "Studio 54" would not be disco, because disco music -- by definition -- is not being performed by a bunch of brass instruments on a football field. Like "Cabaret Voltaire," which was a show about Dada that could not -- by definition -- be Dadaist, the show "Studio 54" would be a show about Disco, but it would not, in any way shape or form, itself be Disco.

By the way, I'm not going to make a habit of this, because no matter what you or I say, the BD are going to do what they want -- and very, very well.

Edited by saxfreq1128
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Makes sense. Just like a show titled "Studio 54" doesn't have to be about the disco hedonistic eccentric 1970's pop culture; a DCI show called "Studio 54" could be about Country Music in Tenn in the 1950's. Yep, that makes about as much sense as your statement above.

Bad analogy. Completely different things.

Dada is an artistic movement, not a music genre. And by definition it encompasses a lot of things. Making a show that was actually Dada would have failed unimaginably, which BD doesn't like to do.

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When a drum corps performs a disco song, it is no longer disco: it's a drum corps cover of a disco song. Just as you could not play the Bluecoats' cover of "Creep" on the radio and call it 'alternative rock'...

Bluecoats played an 'arrangement' of Creep; and it absolutely and certainly was based on that original alternative rock chart not a Mozart Sonata. What you indicated was that the Devils show content did not have to agree with the Devils concept title (Cabaret Voltaire) which was the historical venue in which Dada was born. You stated, and I quote, "But a show doesn't have to be Dada to be about Dada". That is sort of like BD developing a show about the jazz club Birdland and then playing no Jazz arrangements whatsoever.

Edited by Stu
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Bad analogy. Completely different things.

Dada is an artistic movement, not a music genre. And by definition it encompasses a lot of things. Making a show that was actually Dada would have failed unimaginably, which BD doesn't like to do.

BD developed a show about the birthplace of Dada, yet they performed no Dada in the show because they were afraid of competitive failure. Really? I mean really? Just think about that for a moment and you will discover that while they did win, it was thus a show that had nothing whatsoever to do with the title Cabaret Voltaire.

Edited by Stu
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Dada and Disco both give me a headache.

But reading about Dada or Disco is as appealing as reading about tapeworms.

June can't come fast enough for me.

Edited by BRASSO
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Dada and Disco both give me a headache.

But reading about Dada or Disco is as appealing as reading about tapeworms.

June can't come fast enough for me.

um I studied Dada in school and danced Disco in the 70's. I like Rite of Spring classical, ballet or jazz. The only music that gives me headaches is ...

:tongue:

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Don Sebesky’s Three Works for Jazz Soloists and Symphony Orchestra has been a jumping off point for Wayne Downey for a long time.

Rumor has it that Sebesky’s jazz-ish version of the Rite of Spring was originally an idea for the show in 1991, which instead ended up using Bird and Bela in Bb from the same record. B&B in Bb is a work that’s showed up quite a few times since 1991, everywhere from small quotes to large segments as in 2007 and 2012. It’s a record that’s been highly influential to the corps over the years.

My guess is that this show idea has been on the table for a LONG time just waiting for the right moment. ...and the 100th year anniversary of the original Rite is as good of a time as any for it.

It’ll be fantastic. The Rite of Spring is one of the most important and influential music works, of any kind, ever written.

The Blue Devils will write drum corps history, again... as usual.

Edited by tubajoe
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BD's show is nothing like Sebesky's arrangement.

Just think and old school BD corps with lots of swing playing Rite of Spring.

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