Spirit of Atlanta...

[JKT90]

westcoastblue - Nailed it! Someone send his post to SoA's board

I was digging the classical movie, jazzy style they started to create too...

[mjyaub]

After seeing everyones show, albeit on video, I don't think Spirit can do anything. The judges see no growth. That is probably why the scores are low and stay unchanged. It is unfortunate that the staff designed such a turkey of a show. It must be sad for the vets in the corps that have been a part of the growth and progress since 2010. Marching and performing your heart out will only last so long. It is a competition in the end and everybody wants to win. This is not T-ball where there are no losers.

[Lincoln]

NM

Edited July 10, 2014 by Lincoln

[HornTeacher]

I thought integration DID reach the south a while ago?!?

[phan771]

I am not writing them off quite yet, either, but the show has some real problems:

Trying to find that at least one real special and UNIQUE moment in the show- it is not there yet.

The intro performed perfectly will still be ho hum, been there done that.

Overall visual program and especially the guard had made big strides the past four or so years, this is a step back. Though there does not have to be a theme necessarily, something has to tie the show together. And let me state that though I hear news of a big magnolia tree being added, I am afraid it will be just that, a big magnolia tree and not something that excites or gets points. I hope they are not relying on that to be their magic pill. Though some moments have a sort of "southern" sound or reminiscence, again, it is not throughout nor special. GE is about coordination, pacing, excellence, and communication. The later comes easiest when the former are written into the show so that at least we react even when things are not clean. Loud arrivals and tosses seem to be the extent of their effect rep. The first half has the most communication and best pacing. The second half seems like a completely different show and I find I just loose all interest.

Okay, some positives:

The brass are again the strong suit of the corps.

The guard costumes are a beautiful color.

The baby blue on the unis looks great on the field (don't like the retro look however. much preferred

the recent uni. This one doesn't say "take me seriously as an up and coming unit".)

There are some strong soloists.

The batterie has some good moments.

The pit writing is tasty.

"Willow Weep" sells well and the hit is their best moment. (wish guard contribution was stronger there).

Lastly. About this "southern identity" thing. I have enjoyed watching the corps grow the past four or so years and was a big fan of the niche they had carved for themselves. That is so hard to do in modern drum corps times. They were not like anyone else, kept enough swing or jazz to connect to old Spirit, finding show themes that would allow them to do that. They found a way to play classical and film music so that the source music had more depth and room for creativity. The complete "southern theme" well is extremely shallow. I assume that is why they moved away from it, and look what it did for them. Make no mistake, again in this modern top 12 drum corps world, you don't just move up every year no matter how good you are. Look at what is on the field this year alone. Wow! The depth keeps getting better and better. You have to get in and stay in. You have to be unique. You have to be patient if moving up is your goal. You have to keep staff and members. Some one mentioned that the corps should go ahead and go full out already with the southern theme. Problem is, what is that exactly and can you keep going to that well? So, is it "Gone with the Wind"? , "We Shall Overcome"?, "Porgy and Bess"?, "New Orleans/Mardi Gras/Bourbon Street"? All that in the same show? Its has all been done, over and over and over, marching band and corps, and by SOA, over and over and over again. Had heard as others have mentioned that the board was putting pressure on the program coordinator to go retro. Well, I guess he gave in. Does anyone remember what happened to Madison when the board and old alumni thought they knew what was best? When Phantom's board and old alumni thought they knew what was best? SCV's board and old alumni thought they knew what was best? Most recently, when Cavies board and old alumni thought they knew what was best? Thank God each of those corps has survived, but not without paying with some serious consequences (and these were top 6 corps for decades). Unfortunately,

the members paid the price. The modern day drum corps members simply want to do something they think is cool. Stop trying to relive your old memories through recreating something retro with todays' members; they fell in love with today's drum corps brand, not the 1980's brand.

Wow, westcoastblue, you have thought about this for a while. Bravo! Well said and not petty or brash. If I can add to this just a bit . . .

There are a few other things to consider when working with a 10-17 place corps hoping to be "in" every year. You have much shorter

rehearsal days than most corps above you. You have little wiggle room for big changes (half a tune, 40 pages of drill, restaging many guard sets, etc.).

You do not get the creative benefit of the doubt when things don't read well. You are not allowed to innovate. Five or six years of climbing

guarantees nothing; Blue Stars, for example, who are now working back up again. Spirit will not take them this year. It takes more time to clean all dots because as the summer progresses, the wider range of talent in corps 10-17 really starts to show up.

I wish SOA and all those hoping to get in to the final show all the best . I equally hope the members have a great summer. I hope boards and alumni think about the current members much much more than themselves.

Edited July 10, 2014 by phan771

[Lincoln]

I thought integration DID reach the south a while ago?!?

NM. Not sure if you are joking or not.

Edited July 10, 2014 by Lincoln

[HornTeacher]

Yes, Linc...I was joking. But I'll also admit it was extremely bad form on my part. My sincerest apologies if I offended you.

[Fran Haring]

Saw Spirit at the Chester, PA, show... from a fan's perspective, I enjoyed their performance!!!

However..... isn't there always a however? LOL... the last segment of their show seemed to run out of steam. For whatever reason, it felt disconnected from the rest of the program. Not quite sure I can pinpoint why.

[Lincoln]

Yes, Linc...I was joking. But I'll also admit it was extremely bad form on my part. My sincerest apologies if I offended you.

Not offended, but tried to rewrite my post to emphasize what I was trying to say so it was clear and just plain gave up.

[Rifuarian]

Some one mentioned that the corps should go ahead and go full out already with the southern theme. Problem is, what is that exactly and can you keep going to that well? So, is it "Gone with the Wind"? , "We Shall Overcome"?, "Porgy and Bess"?, "New Orleans/Mardi Gras/Bourbon Street"? All that in the same show? Its has all been done, over and over and over, marching band and corps, and by SOA, over and over and over again.

Guessing you're referring to my post here, apologies if you are not. The American South has a pretty vast and diverse musical culture. Most of the musical genres indigenous to the US originated there, there's a rich folk music culture, and more than a few classical and wind band composers have come from the South. And then there's all kinds of music that, while it did not originate in the South, is inspired by it. It seems like you, SOA, and many others seem to think of "Southern" as just the stuff Spirit played in its glory days. And if it that's what Spirit thinks its indentity is then of course that will be limiting. But that's not a problem with being the "Southern" corps, it's a lack of imagination and awareness on the part of designers, alumni, and fans. The same logic could be applied to Troopers and Pioneer. "Americana" and "Celtic" are only limitations if you allow them to be limitations.