KVG_DC Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Back in the 80s when my high school pulled in DCI staff to design and clean, we had TONS of basics aimed at perfecting this stuff. It's everything from how you move your feet to how your body is angled and the line you take as you approach your dot for a set. It was also all the arm motions, foot miming, and motions we had built into the show through the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Visual Proficiency is essentially an execution caption in the Visual show. ( as opposed to the Show Design captions like GE ). Its how the marchers execute the visual moves provided to them. Things like technique, proper ( or improper ) spacing, intervals, cover, uniformity, feet, body, instrument positioning ( not as vital anymore ) arriving at position in proper timing, and at exact spot required under the design, proper head of body positioning as required,,.. if the visual routine in a set calls for it, there needs to be complete uniformity in the execution of the set, instruments need to come up and down in complete harmony and uniformity if the drill calls for it ( BD excels in this most years, imo). If the Corps is required to be running, they need to be in uniform step during the running ( its still on the sheets, but lots of even the top Corps show out of steps in the running in my observations ), there should be no " drifting " in movements from one set to the other, ie if it calls for straight marching, the marcher should not wobble in movement from left to right in getting into the position. Once a marcher hits a definate spot, they are not to move unless the visual calls for it. When the visual calls for individual ad libbing by MM's, once that sequence ends, they must return efficiently and uniformly in complete harmony with the others and then into that next required sequence. Corps have different techniques in marching style, ie heel to toe, more pronounced with SCV, than right foot step offs with Cadets, and so forth. These are fine, provided there is uniformity in its execution. What separates the top performing Corps in this caption with lower executing corps in this caption, is the easily noticeable difference in the spacing intervals, the already mentioned incorrect " drifting " by some MM's, and the improper feet, cover, distance, spacing irregularities, etc. I could mention quite a few other more subtle things the Vis. Prof. judges are looking at, but these are the most common ones anyway. This is a good definition... for 1980 The caption encompasses quite a bit more now :-) Most importantly it includes the guard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soccerguy315 Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 shouldn't surprise anyone that it includes the guard... seems like almost every caption on the sheet includes the guard... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Dixon Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 This is a good definition... for 1980 The caption encompasses quite a bit more now :-) Most importantly it includes the guard! Obnoxious All that still matters, or at least it is supposd to. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 shouldn't surprise anyone that it includes the guard... seems like almost every caption on the sheet includes the guard... Explains a bit of BD's competitive dominance for the past 7-8 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 (edited) shouldn't surprise anyone that it includes the guard... seems like almost every caption on the sheet includes the guard... Yes. Guard marchers count more on the current DCI sheets than Brass marchers, Percussion marchers. Guard marchers play no musical instruments when they are judged in the visual movements. There are upwards of 72-80 Brass Marchers, double that of the size of Guards ( 30-42). Captions however make no allotments for the disparity in the size of the sections. DCI is primarily a Visual driven activity on the sheets too.. A good example if this in real world terms :...Crown finished 6th in Percussion at Finals in 2013, but won a DCI Title for themselves. Would it have been possible to win that Title if they were 6th in Guard or Vis. Prof, but 2nd in Percussion ? No. Not a snowballs chance in Dante's Inferno. Edited August 3, 2015 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Obnoxious All that still matters, or at least it is supposd to. Not obnoxious. The poster's definition comprised only a small subset of the caption. shouldn't surprise anyone that it includes the guard... seems like almost every caption on the sheet includes the guard... well considering they comprise approx 1/3 of the performers moving on the field, it makes a lot of sense to include their efforts in the caption! visual proficiency is evaluated in both Content: depth of form body equipment responsibiities simultaneous responsibiliites use of expressive components changes in meter, pulse, tempo Achievement demonstration of training demonstration of expressive quallities clarity, timing, articulation of body, form, equipment precision with respect to challenge overal environmental challenges concentration, stamina, and recovery Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Yes. Guard marchers count more on the current DCI sheets than Brass marchers, Percussion marchers. Guard marchers play no musical instruments when they are judged in the visual movements. There are upwards of 72-80 Brass Marchers, double that of the size of Guards ( 30-42). Captions however make no allotments for the disparity in the size of the sections. DCI is primarily a Visual driven activity on the sheets too.. A good example if this in real world terms :...Crown finished 6th in Percussion at Finals in 2013, but won a DCI Title for themselves. Would it have been possible to win that Title if they were 6th in Guard or Vis. Prof, but 2nd in Percussion ? No. Not a snowballs chance in Dante's Inferno. Actually this is not the case. Crown's guard was winning their caption from the start of the season. But their contribution didn't stop the judges from putting programs with weaker guards above them for more than half the season. Oops! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 (edited) Explains a bit of BD's competitive dominance for the past 7-8 years. Not really. Their marching musicians have a broader vocabulary and greater excellence than nearly every other corps. Their guard excellence helps sure. But it's not the whole story at all. Edited August 3, 2015 by corpsband Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Not obnoxious. The poster's definition comprised only a small subset of the caption. well considering they comprise approx 1/3 of the performers moving on the field, it makes a lot of sense to include their efforts in the caption! visual proficiency is evaluated in both Content: depth of form body equipment responsibiities simultaneous responsibiliites use of expressive components changes in meter, pulse, tempo Achievement demonstration of training demonstration of expressive qualities clarity, timing, articulation of body, form, equipment precision with respect to challenge overall environmental challenges concentration, stamina, and recovery Considering that the guard didn't actually have their own scores until later in DCI's existence, I think it's fair for corpsband to acknowledge the contribution of the guard as he has here. Now it seems that the guard is more than 1/3 of the contribution though, as they have their own caption and they are integrated into the other visual captions too. Interesting how things are balanced these days... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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