Cappybara Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Not to single you out...but I call BS on this comment...A well supported sound for projection will have plenty of good tone quality from the right musician...especially from a brass instrument...perhaps if you were playing an oboe then I'd agree with you...I could pick out umpteen solo's over the years to illustrate this very point...if the musician is being mic'd for the EFFECT then that is a different matter completely... You could say that for G bugles or a trumpet but a mellophone? Mellophones can get loud, yes (I played one for a little bit after being a woodwind player most of my time in school) but they still cannot reach the levels you get with a mic. That solo sounded beautiful because of how clear and calm it was. It would come off weird during the ballad if it sounded loud and powerful. Just my opinion of course. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 You could say that for G bugles or a trumpet but a mellophone? Mellophones can get loud, yes (I played one for a little bit after being a woodwind player most of my time in school) but they still cannot reach the levels you get with a mic. That solo sounded beautiful because of how clear and calm it was. It would come off weird during the ballad if it sounded loud and powerful. Just my opinion of course. I thought it sounded unnaturally loud, and artificially colored. A solo can project from an ensemble of DCI size, with a sweet, unforced tone. It takes a strong player to do it, but that is one of the things drum corps should be doing - developing strong players. Instead, we see more solos becoming duets (i.e. mellophone/sound board operator). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quad Aces Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 You have it backwards. The solo's quality suffers when it is not amplified because the soloist is focusing too much on being loud. Tone quality suffers. Can you imagine SCV's solo in the ballad not being amplified? People probably wouldn't be able to hear it or the tone would not be nearly as pure. I'll take tone quality over a personal grudge on electronics and amplification. Wow - how did soloists do it all those years before amplification was legal? Now that it's legal, that's the only way solos can sound beautiful anymore? I can point you to a whole bunch of recordings of shows pre-electronics being legal that would beg to differ. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quad Aces Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 The OP brought up a point that I never thought of before (forgive me if it has been discussed before - I believe it may not have been). There apparently was nothing against DCI rules that said the Cadets' narrator can't pre-record his voice and use that recording during performances this year. He was in fact a soloist - one of the vocal variety. What is then to stop a corps from pre-recording their brass (or percussion) solos, even if the pre-recording is done by the same performer that walks out to their soloist dot on the field, thus getting a beautiful studio-quality version that can be perfect every show without any "live fracks" on any given night? People have said on these boards that Crown shys away from solos because of a bad experience with them one year (or something like that - I'm paraphrasing). I don't know if that is true, but it has been mentioned here for what that's worth. Doesn't this solve this problem? What's the difference between Cadets' (vocal) soloist being pre-recorded and another corps' horn or percussion soloist being pre-recorded? Certainly takes away the performance jitters aspect of having to nail the solo in front of thousands of live fans every show. Or, is there a rule already in place that prevents this from happening? If so, what's the difference between a vocal soloist and a brass soloist or percussion soloist? The voice is an instrument too, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornTeacher Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 There exists a factor which, in the instrumental world, is called orchestration. I would assume that this factor is every bit as crucial in the drum corps world as it is in the orchestral, concert band, or jazz worlds. It is the job...no...the responsibility...of the composer/orchestrator to write the music in such a way that all layers can be heard, and thereby provide the most successful performance. Am I going to orchestrate a flute solo while I have a full complement of brasses screaming at a fortissimo level? I could...but it would hardly lend assistance to a successful performance of my composition. Yes, the sound of a mellophone is, by it's very nature and science, less piercing than that of a Bb trumpet or soprano bugle. Would it behoove me to orchestrate a mellophone solo in a section where there are less other brass playing, or playing at a soft level? Of course. If I want a solo to be strong, bold, in-your-face, then I would choose to orchestrate it for being performed on an instrument which is better able to produce what I desire to be heard. And no...I don't have the luxury of "no big deal...we'll just amp up the sound for that instrument" to fall back upon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Wow - how did soloists do it all those years before amplification was legal? Now that it's legal, that's the only way solos can sound beautiful anymore? I can point you to a whole bunch of recordings of shows pre-electronics being legal that would beg to differ. Well obviously G bugles could. Please point me to unamplified mello solos and I'll reconsider my stance. No need to get all flustered over my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 There exists a factor which, in the instrumental world, is called orchestration. I would assume that this factor is every bit as crucial in the drum corps world as it is in the orchestral, concert band, or jazz worlds. It is the job...no...the responsibility...of the composer/orchestrator to write the music in such a way that all layers can be heard, and thereby provide the most successful performance. Am I going to orchestrate a flute solo while I have a full complement of brasses screaming at a fortissimo level? I could...but it would hardly lend assistance to a successful performance of my composition. Yes, the sound of a mellophone is, by it's very nature and science, less piercing than that of a Bb trumpet or soprano bugle. Would it behoove me to orchestrate a mellophone solo in a section where there are less other brass playing, or playing at a soft level? Of course. If I want a solo to be strong, bold, in-your-face, then I would choose to orchestrate it for being performed on an instrument which is better able to produce what I desire to be heard. And no...I don't have the luxury of "no big deal...we'll just amp up the sound for that instrument" to fall back upon. Well that is very true... in a concert setting. However in drum corps you have to take into account drill position as well and it doesn't seem that corps are smartly placing soloists as to maximize their sound. Hence why I believe they sound much better with mics. Take BAC for instance. Initially, their soloist was at the very end sideline without a mic and you couldn't hear a thing. The rest of the ensemble wasn't even particularly loud. They eventually had to add a mic for the solo to even be audible. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornTeacher Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 (edited) Barbara Maroney. Bonnie Ott. Need better examples? You asked. Edited September 9, 2014 by HornTeacher 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quad Aces Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Well obviously G bugles could. Please point me to unamplified mello solos and I'll reconsider my stance. No need to get all flustered over my opinion. HornTeacher beat me to it. Here's an interview with Barbara Maroney from 1983/1984 Cadets. Her and Bonnie Ott are pretty legendary. And no, it wasn't solely (at all?) due to playing on a G bugle. Don't worry, you didn't ruin my day or anything with your opinion - just friendly debate! http://www.middlehornleader.com/Maroney%20Interview.htm 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quad Aces Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 (edited) Double post. Edited September 9, 2014 by Quad Aces Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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