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Communication, whats it all about?


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I don't understand if the crowd is considered in this caption, and how is one corps better at "communication" then other corps?

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I don't understand if the crowd is considered in this caption, and how is one corps better at "communication" then other corps?

I'm not really sure anyone knows what it means, including the judges. DCA considers the sheets and philosophy to be a matter of National Security, so they haven't released any info...

:tounge2:

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I asked around on this to people who do know and this is the impression I got from the responses:

The main thrust of the communication number is whether you find yourself immersed in a program. Do you want to see more? Do you want to see what happens next? Is the corps breaking the fourth wall and reaching through to you? Do you find it exciting or engaging, or are you thinking about getting a Taco-in-the-bag from concessions along with a Kit-Kat when this corps is finished? That's the essence of the Communication numbers. I find from cursory glaces at recaps that they don't usually vary much beyond the mean of the actual GE score in practice, though. It would be very hard to justify giving a team, say, a 93/91 Effect number and then giving them an 89 in communication. If I were on the staff, I'd want to know why so I can fix that issue. It would be a clear indication something was intrinsically wrong.

Now the opposite... the message there would probably be that perhaps the show is very simplistic, but it's a really fun show to get into regardless.

Usually, if you get something like a 93/91 in Effect, you usually see a 92 Communication number, sometimes a 93, rarely a 91, and usually never anything skewed out of the range. If you can find an example, please let me know, it would make me very curious. :satisfied:

As for crowd response, yeah, it's part of the brew, but not the main thrust. With an audience you do have to take certain issues into account. Is it a general, throughout the crowd reaction or just the groupies of a given team for instance? You can tell the difference. The best crowd response I've heard this season was when Frank Ponzo cut loose at Wayne and the crowd spontaneously went "WHOOOA!!!!" at least twice. I even leaned back when i got caught off-guard.. You bet things like that that get noticed.

On that subject, I find it amusing that I think I reacted more for Bluecoats at Chester than a Bloo parent sitting behind me. No names. :satisfied:

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.

Edited by ajlisko
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I asked around on this to people who do know and this is the impression I got from the responses:

The main thrust of the communication number is whether you find yourself immersed in a program. Do you want to see more? Do you want to see what happens next? Is the corps breaking the fourth wall and reaching through to you? Do you find it exciting or engaging, or are you thinking about getting a Taco-in-the-bag from concessions along with a Kit-Kat when this corps is finished? That's the essence of the Communication numbers. I find from cursory glaces at recaps that they don't usually vary much beyond the mean of the actual GE score in practice, though. It would be very hard to justify giving a team, say, a 93/91 Effect number and then giving them an 89 in communication. If I were on the staff, I'd want to know why so I can fix that issue. It would be a clear indication something was intrinsically wrong.

Now the opposite... the message there would probably be that perhaps the show is very simplistic, but it's a really fun show to get into regardless.

Usually, if you get something like a 93/91 in Effect, you usually see a 92 Communication number, sometimes a 93, rarely a 91, and usually never anything skewed out of the range. If you can find an example, please let me know, it would make me very curious. :satisfied:

As for crowd response, yeah, it's part of the brew, but not the main thrust. With an audience you do have to take certain issues into account. Is it a general, throughout the crowd reaction or just the groupies of a given team for instance? You can tell the difference. The best crowd response I've heard this season was when Frank Ponzo cut loose at Wayne and the crowd spontaneously went "WHOOOA!!!!" at least twice. I even leaned back when i got caught off-guard.. You bet things like that that get noticed.

On that subject, I find it amusing that I think I reacted more for Bluecoats at Chester than a Bloo parent sitting behind me. No names. :satisfied:

Check the Scranton recap. Granted, one tenth outside of the Music Effect score for the Cabs wasn't much, but it was enough to call the show in this case. I saw the show as a tossup, but I wasn't judging. Personally, I have always been leery of the Communication caption. It seems redundant, and it gives too much weight to the most subjective caption on the sheet. Two judges get 50 un-averaged points out of 100, 10 of which are really just based on whether a show "drew them in and made them want to hear/see more". To me, this translates too closely to "Which show/corps do I personally prefer."

At least at Finals, there are 4 judges on Effect/Communication. I have always wondered why they don't have a double panel in all captions for Finals. It would reduce the "Judge X screwed Corps Z" argument, and it would take some of the pressure off of some judges that like to always play it safe and do the 9.9, 9.8, 9.7....etc game down the recap. I would rather see each judge be willing to make the call as they see/hear it.

One thing for sure, the panel at Finals is going to really have to think about their numbers that they submit. Scranton showed them that every Tenth of a point really counts. I hope, for the sake of the marching members and fans that they do the very best they can do to get it right, and not allow anything other that the Battle on the Field affect their judgement.

Edited by justncase
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Effect is deliberately weighted that heavy. This isn't DCI, this isn't one of the many scholastic circuits that all have very different goals than DCA has. They have a double effect panel for championship weekend which does help to keep things from swaying crazy.

Actually, everything was a wash between Cabs and Bucs, the Guard caption and visual split was what actually broke the two apart. :wink:

Before Jeff says it, the members decided to weight effect that heavily and signed off on it, it's been that way for several years. Only now that someone's finally pushing the Bucs after 10 seasons are people concerned about it? :wink:

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Before Jeff says it, the members decided to weight effect that heavily and signed off on it, it's been that way for several years. Only now that someone's finally pushing the Bucs after 10 seasons are people concerned about it? :wink:

Glad to know we never "pushed" the Bucs even when we beat them :innocent:

Even though it was voted and agreed upon, it's still a valid question. If the design team and staff of a corps doesn't know how that caption is judged, then they can't make relevant decisions to improve that score. Is communication judge A really like drum solos and curvy forms, they will likely give a higher score to a drum heavy show with lots of squiggles. If that drum heavy show is then judged by communication Judge B, who likes more horn moments and geometric drill, it will likely affect the score negatively. A caption should have some sort of defined criteria so if anyone ever questions the scoring, it can be easily defended rather than just "meh, I just didn't "get" the show"

Edited by Morphy00
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Big W, you are right on in your assessment. (good digging :smile: ). Kenweaver, not really. This was news to me but the judges told us they do not take the crowd into consideration. It's more like Big doub said. The way the corps makes them "feel".

Someone would then ask, "why isn't it just a part of the G E score"?

This to me ranks up there with putting entertainment on all the sheets. AND! putting the brass judge (who has entertainment on his sheet) in the box. Directors can you change this please!!! Sorry off soap box.

LP (Gov love :poke: )

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Hey guys, this is great, but it leaves me in the same spot as before, which is "what does a corps have to do to get an exceptional comm score", or is it the other points you get, which is relatively the same as everything else?

I see the 4th/5th place corps win top guard, or high drums, but can the 5th place corps win communication?

I say no, because its not really a caption that is judged, its just a caption that gives you the same spot as your final score.

Yes?

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