Blue Devils B Placement Friday Night?

[PurpleKnights]

it's not rocket science

I'm not an idiot.

March the #### out of an OC-caliber show and you'll beat the mid-lower WC corps that are actually trying to work their way to finals. That's the way the sheets work. Doesn't mean people have to be happy about it.

Edited August 11, 2014 by PurpleKnights

[Jeff Ream]

I'm not an idiot.

March the #### out of an OC-caliber show and you'll beat the mid-lower WC corps that are actually trying to work their way to finals. That's the way the sheets work. Doesn't mean people have to be happy about it.

I didn't say you were an idiot. But you do seem to imply that OC shows are written to be easier. they aren't. OC is on the same sheets as WC, There's no tolerance or curve handed to the OC corps...same criteria, verbiage, number breakdown etc.

So you have two options...#### and moan on DCP, or get better.

[PurpleKnights]

But you do seem to imply that OC shows are written to be easier. they aren't.

Of course they are. All you have to do is watch them.

[Kamarag]

Of course they are. All you have to do is watch them.

They are written to be achievable by your members with the limited time and resources your corps has. That is not the same thing as "easier", which is why you'll find just as much variation in demand in Open Class as you will in World Class. The old Open Class sheets and judging philosophy absolutely favored achievement (i.e. "clean") over effect. Now with the change to World Class sheets and tolerances, the balance between achievement and effect is much tighter.

[Scadesfan]

I got some coffee this morning, and sat down to really dig into the recaps and watch all the semifinalists from the Mandarins in 21st to the Blue Devils B in 15th. First of all, THAT level of performance from those placements? AMAZING! No wonder scores were high across the board. Of course I wasn't there, and saw 4 of these 7 groups earlier in the season.

First of all, this was CLOSE, these 7 corps were all crammed into a 4.175 spread.

Overall impressions before looking at the recaps and another viewing with the numbers in mind.

Blue Devils B were fantastic, a VERY well constructed show that plays to their strengths and weaknesses, and is very accessible. They perform the visual package very well, it has some great moments, but I found the staging to be very cluttered at a few points and the design lacked some clarity. Wasn't a huge fan of the color palette, I get the Noir theme, but that's the only aspect I felt was really lacking. Overall though, a VERY nice surprise. No real weaknesses.

The Academy, again, a very well designed show that the corps achieved at a very high level and was very accessible. I found the visual design more appealing than Blue Devils B and had more clarity, but a few more little errors here and there in the visual department. A fantastic guard that contributed very well to the program, and each section of the corps was strong, none seemed weaker than the other. I felt they and Blue Devils B were very close.

Spirit of Atlanta, first of all, I wish them the absolute best. I know what they're going through is probably VERY rough. Compared to their performance on Thursday, this one seemed off in comparison. More visual issues than those around them I felt, lots of bouncing, anticipation, hitting sets at different times, ect. The visual ensemble seemed very off. They performed very well, percussion seemed to be the strong point. Brass seemed to run out of gas at points and had some entrance issues at points in the super exposed stuff. The big thing was the show, in comparison to all the corps I mention, the theme is the least apparent and the show seems the least developed. The music and visual just didn't seem to develop and flow very well, choppy.

Vanguard Cadets show was AMAZING! Theme presented very well. Brass was great and percussion very solid. Color Guard's performance and visual presence was great. That said, lots of visual issues in comparison, they looked dirtier across the board than everyone else I mention.

Oregon Crusaders had my favorite show out of this grouping, and I think the most challenging. That said, the visual program while great in composition, had some issues, namely color guard which was weakest in this grouping, except maybe for the Mandarins. I think their percussion was the best out of this grouping, their brass right up there with BDB. As far as GE, I think the show was very well constructed and sold VERY well, especially visually. Their theme came across very well.

I do NOT think Pacific Crest should have been this low. They sound fantastic and have a very solid guard. Their show theme was simple and they presented it as well as they could have. Some visual issues if I had to find some faults here, but nothing glaring.

Mandarins brass and percussion were great, and the guard was pretty good. The show did seem disjointed in the middle, it went from diamonds and steel to the human spirit without an effective transition. Great visual design, with some performance issues.

After viewing recaps and another viewing:

Blue Devils B - General Effect I can agree with, their show was designed very well for them to max out, and it sells very well. Visual and music, I don't know. The way their visual program was designed, I couldn't tell if they were performing their drill at a high level or not because of how tight it was and the guard was integrated, seemed cluttered. Was surprised to see them 15th in visual and not music. I might have had brass up another placement and percussion as well, but I felt things on the musical side were stronger than the visual side.

The Academy - GE seemed right, a very nice show and they averaged around 15th and ended up 16th right behind Blue Devils B. Color Guard seemed a bit low to me in 20th, I thought they were very solid and sold the theme VERY well. Music seemed right. I think this is the most accurate one of the pack in my eyes.

Spirit of Atlanta - This seemed DEAD on to me. Out of 11 judges they outperformed their book from ALL 4 GE Judges, 1 Visual Judge, and 1 Music Judge. They were as low as 20th and 21st in some subcaptions. If their performance levels wouldn't have been as high as they were they could have been lower. The show didn't work, and the judges laid it out there in black and white. Visual seemed right, I thought they had a rough run as an ensemble and were 21st in Analysis. Music seemed right, they sounded great even though the show was what it was. Unfortunately Spirit, this is where the show belonged when there's so many shows around you that work so much better. The performers were WAY better than the show that was given them. I'm not one to say staff changes are needed, especially after they cleaned house this year. I have the utmost respect and hope in JD Koester, maybe it was just a really rough transition year, it happens. But the numbers speak, it is there in the recaps in black and white, they deserved a stronger show.

Vanguard Cadets - This is where things started to get strange to me on the first viewing......but upon looking at the recap, maybe they got it right? Musically, a fantastically constructed show, and visually, but with some visual performance issues. Across GE they got a little more credit for the show than performance. Visually, Analysis is the only caption I really can't see, 16th? I could see composition scores that high, but performance I don't know. Color Guard was fantastic, I can see their 14th. Music captions seemed about right.

Oregon Crusaders - This one and PC are the ones that confused me after the first viewing and not looking at the recaps. 19th in GE below Spirit and Vanguard Cadets? Hmm. Not sure I understand that. The show seemed a lot stronger than Spirit and stronger the Vanguard Cadets to me, maybe not as well performed as Spirit, but I think stronger than Vangaurd Cadets in that aspect. Color Guard, this is what did it. And I agree, they're not awful, but in comparison to those around them, they're weaker. Before you get to visual, they have a 1.05 spread over Vanguard Cadets. Then you add in the fact that in guard they were .6 behind Pacific Crest, .8 behind Spartans, 1.0 behind The Academy, 1.1 behind the Mandarins, 1.2 behind Jersey Surf, 1.3 behind Spirit, 1.5 behind Blue Devils B, and 1.8 behind Vanguard Cadets, that's what did it. COMPLETELY. Music was right on in my eyes. But that guard score is what did it, and after another viewing, not hard to see why not. I loved this show, but in the end, that placement isn't as crazy as I thought. I would have had them over Vanguard Cadets and closer to The Academy, but other than that, seems about right.

Pacific Crest - GE score seems odd, 20th? Hmm. Visual scores are interesting, but there are some problems. Music, after another viewing actually seemed about right.

Mandarins - Seemed right on.

In conclusion, the scores didn't seem as crazy as I thought. In a grouping that is this close, you need to be solid across the board to be successful, hence Blue Devils B placement. All it takes, in the case of Oregon Crusaders Color Guard, is one weak section to make you drop, and in the case of Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets Color Guard, to make you go up. I would have had it:

15th - Blue Devils B, 82.55 because they were solid across the board, no weaknesses, and in a tight grouping that comes out on top.

16th - The Academy, 82.35 because they were also solid across the board.

17th - Spirit of Atlanta, 81.95 ONLY because of their performance levels.

18th - Oregon Crusaders, 81.75 ONLY because of their guard. Otherwise, I would have had them 15th.

19th - Vanguard Cadets, 80.55 because of their guard and quality of show.

20th - Pacific Crest, 80.25......not sure why. This was a strong group.

21st - Mandarins , 78.95.

DrumManTX I appreciate all your analysis, but more than that how through the full season you were embracing the performances of these Corps. We need more fans like yourself. There are too many that can't or won't take the time to pay much attention to the Corps that fall into the 14 and below placement range. And worse are those who only pay attention to the top 8 or so. Looking forward to your posts next year.

[DrumManTx]

DrumManTX I appreciate all your analysis, but more than that how through the full season you were embracing the performances of these Corps. We need more fans like yourself. There are too many that can't or won't take the time to pay much attention to the Corps that fall into the 14 and below placement range. And worse are those who only pay attention to the top 8 or so. Looking forward to your posts next year.

Thank you, it's nice to know I'm not running on like an idiot. I love drum corps, even down low there is some amazing stuff going on. I always try to focus on what I like and really appreciate what ALL of them do regardless of placement. Hell, Cascades "Turn" this year is in my top 10 favorite shows this year. Maybe it is because my ears haven't been tainted and I haven't started to learn how to find mistakes in performances as an educator yet, but it's just THAT thing in my life that I love to follow. I dunno, I just try to watch all I can and give support to everybody. There's some hidden gems down low that some people will never see, and that is unfortunate. I wanna see and hear every bit of drum corps I can.

And we will see about next year, I wanna age out if I can.

[Scadesfan]

Thank you, it's nice to know I'm not running on like an idiot. I love drum corps, even down low there is some amazing stuff going on. I always try to focus on what I like and really appreciate what ALL of them do regardless of placement. Hell, Cascades "Turn" this year is in my top 10 favorite shows this year. Maybe it is because my ears haven't been tainted and I haven't started to learn how to find mistakes in performances as an educator yet, but it's just THAT thing in my life that I love to follow. I dunno, I just try to watch all I can and give support to everybody. There's some hidden gems down low that some people will never see, and that is unfortunate. I wanna see and hear every bit of drum corps I can.

And we will see about next year, I wanna age out if I can.

Our family has been on both ends of the placement spectrum. My son began his Drum Corps experience in 2002 when Cascades made finals...a first from a NW Corps. In 2005 he joined Cadets when they won the Championship and then the next 2 years before aging out. In 2008 he joined the staff of OC to help in the rebuilding process and the transition from Open Class to World Class. Just know OC has many members now from TX as they expand their membership.

[luv4corps]

Congrats OC for marching 200 bpm and making it look good.

And by OC I mean OR CRU not open class.

Edited August 14, 2014 by luv4corps

[Jeff Ream]

Of course they are. All you have to do is watch them.

or they're performed well enough they look easier. i dont recall seeing a lot of performer over the book numbers for those corps.

anyone can write a hard show. but you don't get points for it if you can't achieve it.

[GUARDLING]

or they're performed well enough they look easier. i dont recall seeing a lot of performer over the book numbers for those corps.

anyone can write a hard show. but you don't get points for it if you can't achieve it.

AMEN DUDE! I basically sad that in another thread. +10

Edited August 14, 2014 by GUARDLING