TxBigfoot Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I described most of the show as marching centipedes. No real direction Just moving every which way with no direction. I hope we get more varied next year Give me some goal line to goal line form on a big chord would be sweet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doyle Posted August 22, 2013 Author Share Posted August 22, 2013 AMEN to that Take a look a 1983. Russian visual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2muchcoffeeman Posted August 23, 2013 Share Posted August 23, 2013 I have a huge rooting interest in the Troopers, so I was paying close attention to Crossmen all season long. Yet even as a "rival," I liked their show. To me, it was a show with several really powerful moments, even if, as a whole, the show had some issues that worked against it. To be sure, they picked a challenging theme, and I had enjoyment issues with being yelled at through a megaphone, but to the members' credit, they sold their production much more effectively at season's end than they did at the beginning. They grew and got better, which is what everyone wants. Xmen have too many assets to start acting rashly. They have history, identity, and swagger. They have a corps persona that can bend easily toward any number of musical genres -- something you can't say about Troopers. They occupy one of the most talent-rich areas of the country. Their winter camps aren't snowed out -- and they get the hell out of Texas for much of the summer. Their staff is world class; their director is DCI Director of the Year. And they have Bones. Crossmen will be just fine. I anticipate the 10-16 stratum of DCI will be where most of the action is in 2014. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbbandman Posted August 23, 2013 Share Posted August 23, 2013 Teach a band and get the gig. The rest is generally word of mouth. I got my first gig in '03 by offering to do it for a band I taught, writing on the super-cheap. Since many schools have people from elsewhere writing, having someone in-house seems to be helpful, especially for mid-season tweaks. Though the new Envision software looks interesting, I would recommend just ponying up and buying Pyware if you really want to write. Their forums are also a really great resource with no shortage of helpful people who will happily help you out along the way with learning the software. RE: EnVision software - I have used it, and found it to be more intuitive than Pyware (think Sibelius vs Finale, Mac vs PC). It was pretty glitchy on Mac at first, but they have been very diligent in their efforts to stabilize and improve the product. It also has some advantages in terms of getting the drill to the end user. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xbones7480 Posted August 23, 2013 Share Posted August 23, 2013 (edited) Bring back John Miliauskas. He was the best drill writer they've had. These are just years they made finals: ------ Pulled this info from the archives; hopefully it's accurate. -------- Drill writers for Crossmen: John Miliauskas: '92 and '93 Eric Kitchenman: '89, '90, '91, '96, '97 Ed Devlin: 2000, 2001, 2012 D. Pemberton: 2002, 2003, 2004 (2008 13th) Kevin Ford: '94 Jasen DeGroff: '95 Jeff Sacktig: '98 Leon May: '99 Tony Smith: 1980 Vinnie Monticelli: '81, '82 Ralph Pace: '77, '78, '84 --------- Percussion Arrangers for Crossmen: Bill Kauffman/Eric Landis: '77, '78 Thom Hannum: '80, '81, '82, '97, '98, '99 Mark Thurston: '84, '89, '90, '91, '92, '93, '94,'95, '96 Lee Beddis: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2012 John Cypert: 2000 ------- Edited August 23, 2013 by xbones7480 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 First of all, before we give Ed Devlin and crew the shaft, Crossmen finished .05 behind where they scored last year, so their placement of 14th at least score wise is not a huge drop, but it is of little consolation to the marching members of Crossmen and a disappointment for those who wanted to see better things for the corps. I thought they should have scored higher than they did, believing they were better than Blue Stars at semi's (what can I say, I'm more into changing the world than voodoo) though not as strong as Troopers, who may have given their finest performance at semi's since their glory days, actually I would say their best since 1985. As I look back I thought the design was fine, but the show was not always as clean as it could have been and lines were not always as crisp. Also last year's musical performance had a fire to t that seemed to be missing this year. On a positive side, it had some good creative aspects, more so than last year. I think changing staff could be a bit risky for Crossmen. I would predict that 11-19 in semi's will be battling things out next year even more than they did this year. Spirit likes being in finals, Blue Stars have no plans on going anywhere, Troopers will be roaring, Oregon Crusaders have to have finals as a goal and it may be achievable, Pacific Crest may take the next step, Colts are due for a return to finals, Academy can't be satisfied with last year and Mandarins could be ascending and maybe Surf will even surprise its critics. Competition for the one or two potential openings could be fierce. It may be better to try and improve with a staff that knows the corps and understands the competition than to make an abrupt change. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbeatty89 Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 These are just years they made finals: ------ Pulled this info from the archives; hopefully it's accurate. -------- Drill writers for Crossmen: John Miliauskas: '92 and '93 Eric Kitchenman: '89, '90, '91, '96, '97 Ed Devlin: 2000, 2001, 2012 D. Pemberton: 2002, 2003, 2004 (2008 13th) Kevin Ford: '94 Jasen DeGroff: '95 Jeff Sacktig: '98 Leon May: '99 Tony Smith: 1980 Vinnie Monticelli: '81, '82 Ralph Pace: '77, '78, '84 The 1997 program actually had three drill writers: Eric Kitchenman: Birdland Marc Sylvester: You Are My Sunshine Jeff Sacktig: Niner-Two Eric was the program coordinator and the guy who went on tour, but the other two were around for spring training. That was back when the Crossmen shared everything with the Cadets including drill writers. James Beatty 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doyle Posted August 24, 2013 Author Share Posted August 24, 2013 Just making finals is not good enough or should be the only goal 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xbones7480 Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I think the design team they have should stay. They are good people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doctortelco Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I just made a comment about the Crossmen's drill design on another thread. The Crossmen drill this year was a failure due to the fact it failed the basic premise of drill design. The purpose of drill is to present the horns. I was fortunate enough to be sitting on the 50 yard line on the upper level in Georgia Dome for the DCI South contest. My daughter looked at me after their show and said "you didn't like them". I replied "they play great, but the drill is a disaster.' I have been a Crossmen fan since I first saw them in Atlanta in 1976 (the night after they were disqualified for an overage member). So for me being a Crossmen fan I was disappointed in their drill design; I expected better. With a better design they would have made finals. Scott Smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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