Reading 8/23 the Showdown before the Showdown

[Jeff Ream]

So ... if you were judging Guard, would it affect the number you assigned ... if you were judging Music, would it affect that number?

Thanks

guard i cant speak to. on music effect, if I couldnt hear the corps over it..yeah, it wouldnt help it

[Jeff Ream]

Yeah, the count offs and "whoos!". I get that.

I understand the need to hold a pulse across the field, but again, Jeff- this is an artistic and musical endeavor as well as a visual medium. What's "musical" or "musically appropriate" about duts or guard count-offs and hypes when they're thrown in willy-nilly?

The count-offs from a guard can also be absolutely as bad. Hearing "five, six, seven, EIGHT!" at the end of a big phrase over the brass? It detracts. It makes me wince.

So yes, effect-wise, that kind of stuff can be detracting to the overall effect indeed. How would one feel if they listened to a concert and had to hear duts or the conductor counting out loud at the end of critical phrases throughout a musical performance? If one claims and desires that the activity is to have high musical standards, well, they need to have them, at least to the listening audience. Otherwise, the activity actively ends up being an easy target for the people in Music Ed. who hate it and love to make fun of it as crass, not very educational, not very artistic, and low-brow.

On-field audible, sure, audience audible, no.

And I understand drill placements and modern design, but still-- if you design visually without regard to the laws of physics and the properties of how sound propagates- and the fact the speed of sound is slower than that of light- then you get people griping left and right about tears throughout a program that are never fixed completely, sound like train wrecks, and honk off everyone. It is possible to design taking these things into account and to properly teach people who and what to look for, and who to listen to. But some people don't seem to know how to do it or care, then wonder why it's a train wreck and bandage it up with noises. And then, they wonder why their brilliant arrangements and visual package aren't received as some artistic epiphany.

When it works, it's great! You gotta make sure it's workable, though!

watch this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMPfLctjXbY&feature=youtu.be&app=desktop

this is why people dhut. if you are close together, and one person dhuts, or maybe two, it can help keep things in time, as phsyics can screw you up. I'm not advocating yelling it at top volume, I'm advocating doing it in a way that isn't detrimental to the viewers, but helps keep time for the performers. Sure, people abuse it, and some people do it without understanding why.

again, reading comprehension helps.

[Jeff Ream]

ok, last 3 corps:

showtime..

Then the real battle began. Entering the field for their show “Entrapment”, the Hawthorne Caballeros shunned the traditional entrance with the legendary street beat to come on to a pre-show with pre-recorded narration, effects and music to help set the stage. The actual show begins with Frank Ponzo playing a solo in the far back corner on side 2, followed by the contras.Frank seemed a little off. As the tempo increases more voices enter, slowly milking the rise and fall of the dynamic range musically until the corps turns and delivers the initial hit with the corps accenting it with a lot of body work. I too became “Entrapped” as trying to take notes, I got sucked in until the first contra emerges in a black top with red sequins, with the other brass voices adding in musically. This is followed by a percussion break that sees more members of the brass shed the famous white satin blouses for the back tops and a big ending to the musical moment. The ballad begins with a warm low brass sound and a mellophone solo, highlighting the guard who is well integrated with red and purple flags. The build to the musical hit was well done with a strong release,but seemed too short. then the piece ends with a trumpet/mello/baritone trio. The battery picks the tempo back up featuring each section, followed by a well done contra feature. From there the entire brass section was featured with the guard on weapons in the front that was very eye catching. This built into a company front push forward that felt like it could have been bigger, but this built into another big push to the end with again a lot of body work to help sell the mood. Easily the strongest the Cabs have been in years, and the hometown fans had to wonder…

I won't lie...it's a ###### good show. My big concern was when the white tops come off, the corps proper uniforms blend in so much with the guard uniforms it's tough to tell who is who. Also, the temptress in the silver uniform...is she a character, or part of the guard ensemble? it was confusing to some around me why she at some points entrapped people, then did guard work. Frank had a rough night, which is still better than 90% of the rest of the world. I felt the battery had some issues, and one or two moments felt shaky as an ensemble.It seemed to me that Cabs came to the show playing not to lose. it was a good show but I felt they had better in them, and while I enjoy the show and would not be upset at all if they win next week, I thought this wasn't their night.

Bringing Their "Favorite Things" to the field, Cadets 2 opened up with the famous mello rip to kick off Rocky Point Holiday. A nice percussion break followed the introductory part of the piece, ( and actually checking my notes from Downingtown, it seems like less of a planned break and more like brass notes were erased) and the next segment was very percussively driven with the brass staying low key until the next musical hit. The corps continued through all of the familiar parts of the piece leading to the famous “Z-pull” drill move leading to the songs climax. The battery seemed to be overpowering the brass, but I'm going to say with ahornline that size, it isn't the percussions fault, even if there are still some holes. The front ensemble had a nice feature to start “Hymnsong on Philip Bliss”, followed by a really well done brass ensemble that had the rest of the brass work their way in behind them visually for the famous musical moment. Again, it seemed if the brass had a lot more to offer in terms of power than they did. The song ended with the corps turning backfield and allowing the piece to die out in the air. “Children’s Dance” was next featuring the strong percussion and much improved guard, but did have a few ensemble issues side to side when the brass re-entered. “Ballet Sacra” began with the corps spread across the field playing backfield, but at times it was hard to hear the brass in spots. The corps led the fans through the very familiar melodies of the famous song, concluding with a big spread field ending, but musically lacked the power it needs.

Bras wise, mellos aside, it was a really rough performance, and I hope thats fixed in the next week. There were still some holes visible. the ensemble issues happened in places they shouldn't, and I think some of it is visual design. The guard however is light years improved from a month ago, and is no longer the weak link. I was surprised the score was that close to Fusion.....I had them closer to White Sabers.

The final competing corps of the evening was the hometown Reading Buccaneers with their 2014 production “Break on Through”. With the pit percussion staged out on the field between the sideline and the front hash marks, the battery percussion and brass are boxed in behind and to the right of them as the pit begins with some nice grooves underneath the contras playing Shostakovich’s “4^th Ballet Suite”. The brass voices continue to enter in as does the battery percussion as the music builds, and being surrounded by the boxes and fabric, it makes the corps movement seem that much more intense. At the arrival of the musical hit, the neon pinks and greens of the guard uniforms truly standout as a contrast against the corps’ proper blue and black uniforms. From the hit, the corps charges into “Orawa”, first with the mellos, then the trumpets into another big hit, and the corps seemed to project from the backfield much better than they had when I saw them at Downingtown. The percussion also displayed some prowess with a lot of notes and features that stayed musical at the same time.The ballad began with the pit recapping some of the Shostakovich melody, with the snares adding in on several ethnic percussion instruments to create another nice groove. The music builds leaving you to think a big hit is coming, but they turn backfield to let the music softly fade away. For “Heat of The Day”, visually the mellos start to ‘break through” by getting in front of the pit with some playful antics showing they had indeed broken through, then taking the lead musical line as the song grows and more of the corps discovers the front part of the field, spotlighting the guard upfront and some well done percussion features. The brass re-enters on side 2 that still has room to grow little more. From there, the corps plays backfield as they do some musical recapping of the previous songs, and then the corps fully charges forward to more of “4^th Ballet”, first to the traditional sideline, then into the pit area, with the brass splitting to the sides to let the battery in and the field framed by the guard on giant flags.

Really, I thought Bucs had it. They had some hometown fire in their guts, and I knew it would be close either way, but I truly thought the Bucs had the night. if there's any weakness it's that maybe 2 spots could use some more brass power, and some more form refinement.

there ya go. Not reviewing next week as i'll be watching online

[BigW]

on an upstairs caption, if it was cuasing you to not hear parts being played, sure it could affect the score a little

Or if it detracted from the effect that was trying to be generated, if one is judging effect. Good example and one I've head here and there the past few years:

End of a pretty ballad played at the piano level segueing into an uptempo intro into the next musical segment, the dynamics still soft but the tempo increases. A very subtle effect.

And.... what you hear are count-offs from the guard and duts. They may as well just throw a grenade.

There are a lot of ways to establish that pulse change musically without having to use vocals.

Heck, even Kenton's band did at least one somewhat cheesy percussion thing to establish beat one in "Adventures in Time" in the middle of the "Seputor" movement where they're slapping the gong on beat one through most of the trumpet solo so that the band can count and come in at the right time. Better than Kenton, Steve Dweck, or Dee Barton dutting? You bet.

Edited August 27, 2014 by BigW

[C.Holland]

ok, last 3 corps:

showtime..

Then the real battle began. Entering the field for their show “Entrapment”, the Hawthorne Caballeros shunned the traditional entrance with the legendary street beat to come on to a pre-show with pre-recorded narration, effects and music to help set the stage. The actual show begins with Frank Ponzo playing a solo in the far back corner on side 2, followed by the contras.Frank seemed a little off. As the tempo increases more voices enter, slowly milking the rise and fall of the dynamic range musically until the corps turns and delivers the initial hit with the corps accenting it with a lot of body work. I too became “Entrapped” as trying to take notes, I got sucked in until the first contra emerges in a black top with red sequins, with the other brass voices adding in musically. This is followed by a percussion break that sees more members of the brass shed the famous white satin blouses for the back tops and a big ending to the musical moment. The ballad begins with a warm low brass sound and a mellophone solo, highlighting the guard who is well integrated with red and purple flags. The build to the musical hit was well done with a strong release,but seemed too short. then the piece ends with a trumpet/mello/baritone trio. The battery picks the tempo back up featuring each section, followed by a well done contra feature. From there the entire brass section was featured with the guard on weapons in the front that was very eye catching. This built into a company front push forward that felt like it could have been bigger, but this built into another big push to the end with again a lot of body work to help sell the mood. Easily the strongest the Cabs have been in years, and the hometown fans had to wonder…

I won't lie...it's a ###### good show. My big concern was when the white tops come off, the corps proper uniforms blend in so much with the guard uniforms it's tough to tell who is who. Also, the temptress in the silver uniform...is she a character, or part of the guard ensemble? it was confusing to some around me why she at some points entrapped people, then did guard work. Frank had a rough night, which is still better than 90% of the rest of the world. I felt the battery had some issues, and one or two moments felt shaky as an ensemble.It seemed to me that Cabs came to the show playing not to lose. it was a good show but I felt they had better in them, and while I enjoy the show and would not be upset at all if they win next week, I thought this wasn't their night.

Bringing Their "Favorite Things" to the field, Cadets 2 opened up with the famous mello rip to kick off Rocky Point Holiday. A nice percussion break followed the introductory part of the piece, ( and actually checking my notes from Downingtown, it seems like less of a planned break and more like brass notes were erased) and the next segment was very percussively driven with the brass staying low key until the next musical hit. The corps continued through all of the familiar parts of the piece leading to the famous “Z-pull” drill move leading to the songs climax. The battery seemed to be overpowering the brass, but I'm going to say with ahornline that size, it isn't the percussions fault, even if there are still some holes. The front ensemble had a nice feature to start “Hymnsong on Philip Bliss”, followed by a really well done brass ensemble that had the rest of the brass work their way in behind them visually for the famous musical moment. Again, it seemed if the brass had a lot more to offer in terms of power than they did. The song ended with the corps turning backfield and allowing the piece to die out in the air. “Children’s Dance” was next featuring the strong percussion and much improved guard, but did have a few ensemble issues side to side when the brass re-entered. “Ballet Sacra” began with the corps spread across the field playing backfield, but at times it was hard to hear the brass in spots. The corps led the fans through the very familiar melodies of the famous song, concluding with a big spread field ending, but musically lacked the power it needs.

Bras wise, mellos aside, it was a really rough performance, and I hope thats fixed in the next week. There were still some holes visible. the ensemble issues happened in places they shouldn't, and I think some of it is visual design. The guard however is light years improved from a month ago, and is no longer the weak link. I was surprised the score was that close to Fusion.....I had them closer to White Sabers.

The final competing corps of the evening was the hometown Reading Buccaneers with their 2014 production “Break on Through”. With the pit percussion staged out on the field between the sideline and the front hash marks, the battery percussion and brass are boxed in behind and to the right of them as the pit begins with some nice grooves underneath the contras playing Shostakovich’s “4^th Ballet Suite”. The brass voices continue to enter in as does the battery percussion as the music builds, and being surrounded by the boxes and fabric, it makes the corps movement seem that much more intense. At the arrival of the musical hit, the neon pinks and greens of the guard uniforms truly standout as a contrast against the corps’ proper blue and black uniforms. From the hit, the corps charges into “Orawa”, first with the mellos, then the trumpets into another big hit, and the corps seemed to project from the backfield much better than they had when I saw them at Downingtown. The percussion also displayed some prowess with a lot of notes and features that stayed musical at the same time.The ballad began with the pit recapping some of the Shostakovich melody, with the snares adding in on several ethnic percussion instruments to create another nice groove. The music builds leaving you to think a big hit is coming, but they turn backfield to let the music softly fade away. For “Heat of The Day”, visually the mellos start to ‘break through” by getting in front of the pit with some playful antics showing they had indeed broken through, then taking the lead musical line as the song grows and more of the corps discovers the front part of the field, spotlighting the guard upfront and some well done percussion features. The brass re-enters on side 2 that still has room to grow little more. From there, the corps plays backfield as they do some musical recapping of the previous songs, and then the corps fully charges forward to more of “4^th Ballet”, first to the traditional sideline, then into the pit area, with the brass splitting to the sides to let the battery in and the field framed by the guard on giant flags.

Really, I thought Bucs had it. They had some hometown fire in their guts, and I knew it would be close either way, but I truly thought the Bucs had the night. if there's any weakness it's that maybe 2 spots could use some more brass power, and some more form refinement.

there ya go. Not reviewing next week as i'll be watching online

niiiiiiiiiice work on this. when i saw them last i think the reprise of the show was a flat point.

[onthe50]

ok, last 3 corps:

showtime..

Then the real battle began. Entering the field for their show “Entrapment”, the Hawthorne Caballeros shunned the traditional entrance with the legendary street beat to come on to a pre-show with pre-recorded narration, effects and music to help set the stage. The actual show begins with Frank Ponzo playing a solo in the far back corner on side 2, followed by the contras.Frank seemed a little off. As the tempo increases more voices enter, slowly milking the rise and fall of the dynamic range musically until the corps turns and delivers the initial hit with the corps accenting it with a lot of body work. I too became “Entrapped” as trying to take notes, I got sucked in until the first contra emerges in a black top with red sequins, with the other brass voices adding in musically. This is followed by a percussion break that sees more members of the brass shed the famous white satin blouses for the back tops and a big ending to the musical moment. The ballad begins with a warm low brass sound and a mellophone solo, highlighting the guard who is well integrated with red and purple flags. The build to the musical hit was well done with a strong release,but seemed too short. then the piece ends with a trumpet/mello/baritone trio. The battery picks the tempo back up featuring each section, followed by a well done contra feature. From there the entire brass section was featured with the guard on weapons in the front that was very eye catching. This built into a company front push forward that felt like it could have been bigger, but this built into another big push to the end with again a lot of body work to help sell the mood. Easily the strongest the Cabs have been in years, and the hometown fans had to wonder…

I won't lie...it's a ###### good show. My big concern was when the white tops come off, the corps proper uniforms blend in so much with the guard uniforms it's tough to tell who is who. Also, the temptress in the silver uniform...is she a character, or part of the guard ensemble? it was confusing to some around me why she at some points entrapped people, then did guard work. Frank had a rough night, which is still better than 90% of the rest of the world. I felt the battery had some issues, and one or two moments felt shaky as an ensemble.It seemed to me that Cabs came to the show playing not to lose. it was a good show but I felt they had better in them, and while I enjoy the show and would not be upset at all if they win next week, I thought this wasn't their night.

Bringing Their "Favorite Things" to the field, Cadets 2 opened up with the famous mello rip to kick off Rocky Point Holiday. A nice percussion break followed the introductory part of the piece, ( and actually checking my notes from Downingtown, it seems like less of a planned break and more like brass notes were erased) and the next segment was very percussively driven with the brass staying low key until the next musical hit. The corps continued through all of the familiar parts of the piece leading to the famous “Z-pull” drill move leading to the songs climax. The battery seemed to be overpowering the brass, but I'm going to say with ahornline that size, it isn't the percussions fault, even if there are still some holes. The front ensemble had a nice feature to start “Hymnsong on Philip Bliss”, followed by a really well done brass ensemble that had the rest of the brass work their way in behind them visually for the famous musical moment. Again, it seemed if the brass had a lot more to offer in terms of power than they did. The song ended with the corps turning backfield and allowing the piece to die out in the air. “Children’s Dance” was next featuring the strong percussion and much improved guard, but did have a few ensemble issues side to side when the brass re-entered. “Ballet Sacra” began with the corps spread across the field playing backfield, but at times it was hard to hear the brass in spots. The corps led the fans through the very familiar melodies of the famous song, concluding with a big spread field ending, but musically lacked the power it needs.

Bras wise, mellos aside, it was a really rough performance, and I hope thats fixed in the next week. There were still some holes visible. the ensemble issues happened in places they shouldn't, and I think some of it is visual design. The guard however is light years improved from a month ago, and is no longer the weak link. I was surprised the score was that close to Fusion.....I had them closer to White Sabers.

The final competing corps of the evening was the hometown Reading Buccaneers with their 2014 production “Break on Through”. With the pit percussion staged out on the field between the sideline and the front hash marks, the battery percussion and brass are boxed in behind and to the right of them as the pit begins with some nice grooves underneath the contras playing Shostakovich’s “4^th Ballet Suite”. The brass voices continue to enter in as does the battery percussion as the music builds, and being surrounded by the boxes and fabric, it makes the corps movement seem that much more intense. At the arrival of the musical hit, the neon pinks and greens of the guard uniforms truly standout as a contrast against the corps’ proper blue and black uniforms. From the hit, the corps charges into “Orawa”, first with the mellos, then the trumpets into another big hit, and the corps seemed to project from the backfield much better than they had when I saw them at Downingtown. The percussion also displayed some prowess with a lot of notes and features that stayed musical at the same time.The ballad began with the pit recapping some of the Shostakovich melody, with the snares adding in on several ethnic percussion instruments to create another nice groove. The music builds leaving you to think a big hit is coming, but they turn backfield to let the music softly fade away. For “Heat of The Day”, visually the mellos start to ‘break through” by getting in front of the pit with some playful antics showing they had indeed broken through, then taking the lead musical line as the song grows and more of the corps discovers the front part of the field, spotlighting the guard upfront and some well done percussion features. The brass re-enters on side 2 that still has room to grow little more. From there, the corps plays backfield as they do some musical recapping of the previous songs, and then the corps fully charges forward to more of “4^th Ballet”, first to the traditional sideline, then into the pit area, with the brass splitting to the sides to let the battery in and the field framed by the guard on giant flags.

Really, I thought Bucs had it. They had some hometown fire in their guts, and I knew it would be close either way, but I truly thought the Bucs had the night. if there's any weakness it's that maybe 2 spots could use some more brass power, and some more form refinement.

there ya go. Not reviewing next week as i'll be watching online

Great job Jeff!

I agree that the Bucs had it on Saturday night. They could be very tough to beat this weekend if they keep the momentum moving like they are. The past couple weeks have shown why they are so successful. Gives new meaning to "breaking on through."

We'll see the best Hawthorne product we have seen in a while this weekend along with Fusion's best effort to date. Curious to see the C-2 improvement this week and what MBI has. Is Bush for real?

Can't wait.

[Jeff Ream]

I thought Bush had a lot of potential at Downingtown, but haven't seen them since. if that number is legit, C2 should be worried

[C.Holland]

I like the Bushies show. I only saw it last weekend. But its dirtier than Britney pre-child.

[Jeff Ream]

I like the Bushies show. I only saw it last weekend. But its dirtier than Britney pre-child.

then the number surprises me.

[BigW]

then the number surprises me.

ditto.