It's a Blue Devils world...

[MikeD]

I don't know how you can compare what Crown is doing this year with voice to what The Cadets were doing a few years ago. I just watched The Cadets' 2007 show last night because I wanted to hear a particular piece of music. I was almost angry that they covered up that fantastic music with that terrible narration.

Crown's use of voice this year is completely different. Not only is it not as heavy handed as what The Cadets were doing a few years ago, but the music was specifically written to have the voice integrated with it. I'm not saying you have to like the voice in Crown's show, but it is not even comparable to what The Cadets were doing a few years ago that got so many people upset.

Cadets 07 show was designed with the vocal aspects as part of the show, and I disagree with your assessment. I loved the 07 show, narration and all.

[Kamarag]

ACTUALLY ....

Parts of the ballad are indeed indeed from EOTB:Knee 5.

The fact that the ballad uses other source material doesn't invalidate using the Knee 5 poem over it. In fact MOST of Crown's material this year is from pieces other than EOTB. But the entire program -- conceptually -- is based on EOTB and so using elements from the opera *always* makes sense and *always* fits the design.

This whole "the Abyss didn't have narration so the Crown shouldn't use narration" argument is silly. There are no giant water tentacles in the ballad either.

Said this before elsewhere but it bears repeating:

Crown has done an AMAZING job of capturing the essence of EOTB throughout their program especially considering the original was 5 hours long. The voice over the ballad part makes complete sense in the context of the overall design. The fact that part of the ballad is from a sci fi movie about underwater aliens has nothing at all to with the appropriateness of the narration. In fact (for whatever reason) that music "fits" the overall program really well.

You don't like narration? Fine. Perfectly willing to accept that.

But don't try to "justify" your opinion with some half-baked argument about where this part of this piece of the music may have come from.

Actually, I don't dislike that section because "the Abyss didn't have narration". I dislike that section because the narration covers up some of the best playing Crown's brass does in the entire show, effectively ruining what might be the single best musical moment on the field this year.

Or is that also a half-baked argument?

Stop being so dang defensive about their show that you read into other people's objections. I Like Crown's show. I just happen to think that part sucks (but is easily fixed). The other vocal parts, used as a sound effect, are just as good as what Devils did with vocal effects last year. For the record, I think Crown has taken what was a very mediocre piece of music (EotB), and distilled an arrangement that is actually *better* than the original in almost every respect. It's evocative of what a couple of drum corps have done with Russian Christmas Music (the original is two-thirds crap with the last third being masterful).

Edited July 3, 2013 by Kamarag

[jasgre2000]

I didn't say it was the "same thing"

Was just pointing out that the argument about the narration being part of the "Source" material isn't really valid for the ballad

Agreed?

I agree to an extent. I think a portion of the ballad is taken from Einstein on the Beach. To be honest, I prefer the Einstein on the Beach music to what they are playing beneath the narration.

[George Dixon]

ACTUALLY ....

Parts of the ballad are indeed indeed from EOTB:Knee 5.

The fact that the ballad uses other source material doesn't invalidate using the Knee 5 poem over it. In fact MOST of Crown's material this year is from pieces other than EOTB. But the entire program -- conceptually -- is based on EOTB and so using elements from the opera *always* makes sense and *always* fits the design.

This whole "the Abyss didn't have narration so the Crown shouldn't use narration" argument is silly. There are no giant water tentacles in the ballad either.

Said this before elsewhere but it bears repeating:

Crown has done an AMAZING job of capturing the essence of EOTB throughout their program especially considering the original was 5 hours long. The voice over the ballad part makes complete sense in the context of the overall design. The fact that part of the ballad is from a sci fi movie about underwater aliens has nothing at all to with the appropriateness of the narration. In fact (for whatever reason) that music "fits" the overall program really well.

You don't like narration? Fine. Perfectly willing to accept that.

But don't try to "justify" your opinion with some half-baked argument about where this part of this piece of the music may have come from.

So I guess both narrations were "justified" in their own ways - let's just not act like one is somehow "above" the other - which is what seems to be implied here.

[c mor]

I'm sorry, the only thing that keeps coming to mind as I read this thread is the Twix commercial, right vs. left. "Totally different process."

[George Dixon]

I agree to an extent. I think a portion of the ballad is taken from Einstein on the Beach. To be honest, I prefer the Einstein on the Beach music to what they are playing beneath the narration.

Agreed. The ballad without the narration is bland - a little empty musically - since it is designed with the narration. Same as if you removed the narration out of 2007 Cadets - you'd have empty gaps throughout the program where the narration was intended.

[George Dixon]

I agree on all points. The live sung counting is awesome in Crown's show. The story told over the ballad is pretty meh - the voice actor is decent, it's just that the material doesn't work well out of the context of EotB. I do confess to liking "impossible, you say?" as the transition into the absolutely jaw-dropping closer.

Cadets 07/08 voice was just poorly done on a lot of fronts. Embarrassingly bad scripts. Questionable voice acting. Music seriously chopped up to accommodate voice. I may not love what Crown is doing in their ballad, but I do recognize that they are doing it a lot better than those infamous Cadets shows.

Gotta disagree with you on Cadets 07. Thought it was one of the best uses and execution of voice ever. Should have won - still shocked it didn't.

[Kamarag]

Gotta disagree with you on Cadets 07. Thought it was one of the best uses and execution of voice ever. Should have won - still shocked it didn't.

The idea was sound, but the execution wasn't. Cadets should have hired a professional script writer to polish the dialog, and an acting coach to help the kids that had the speaking parts. That would have helped immensely, as would have removing most of the "rehearsal" dialog that wrecked Blue Shades.

[chaddyt]

ACTUALLY ....

Parts of the ballad are indeed indeed from EOTB:Knee 5.

Not being a smart A, but I'm curious where the ballad begins and ends then. Granted, I've only seen a couple videos of their show, but having listened to The Abyss since I heard Crown was going to do it, that's all I hear in their ballad.

Is there some EotB woven in with it?

[MPutnam]

It's a Blue Devil World...

and they just let people hijack their threads on DCP.