jwillis35 Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 I went to the show in Atlanta and it was obvious to everyone around me (we talked about it after the show, before scores were announced) that the Cadets' show did not have the GE potential of the other three. Once they got it as clean as they could, there was no more GE to pull out of that show, unlike BD, Crown or Bloo. When I saw them in '90 in B'ham, they finished 2nd to SCV, but we all agreed that it was a championship show if they kept cleaning it. This was not like that. I tend to agree with you. Ultimately, guard staging and other visual aspects, while good, were just not good enough to elevate their GE. Additionally, the Shostakovitch music, as much as I LOVE IT, tends to come across dry and unemotional with many. Throw in the dark unis that hid a lot of visual mastery in the legs and you have just enough deficit in GE to wind up in 4th. My initial thoughts on Cadets this year were amazing brass, drums, and drill. I figured if they could be top 3 in brass and drums (which they were), and if their drill cleaned, that maybe the GE would get a bump. But the legs didn't quite get clean enough, which is certainly not a cut down when talking about a drill that hard. During most years this would not be getting quite the attention it is. Most would just chalk up their excellent 4th place finish to being really good but perhaps not quite clean enough to win. Demand can give and demand can take away. It's become somewhat of a talking point this year because The Cadets were in many ways the best total music ensemble all season. They won more high brass and high percussion trophies all summer, and almost did at Finals as well (getting brass only). In an activity called "DRUM & BUGLE CORPS" where the first two nouns in the name indicate the activity is about MUSIC, it's odd that the best corps on the field (arguably) in music was in 4th place. Whether we like it or not, this is where the activity is. Today we hear comments like "they didn't innovate," "not enough GE," "the guard wasn't staged well enough," or "the show was too demanding and old style." Today it is difficult to put a finger on the meaning of GE Music or GE Visual or how it's being judged, and today staging, body movement, and dance mean as much as the music, or more. Today, the corps that plays the best percussion and brass can end up in 4th. It's no longer a music first activity no matter what DCI says. It's a total show, much more like Broadway, where cast, crew, staging, lighting, props, effect, dance, movement, music, and theme all come together to form the whole. At present time only the Blue Devils truly understand this about the sheets, and they are brilliant at programming around it and yet creating a fun, exciting show while they do. I do like the activity where it is, but there are times it leaves me scratching my head. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallace Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 It seemed to me that BD, Crown, and Bloo all pulled the same last minute GE trick by adding an identifiable and relatable character that tied the show theme all together. The relatable character in the Cadets' show was the corps itself, and that rollercoaster ride of a performance was its emotional impact. However, it would seem judges preferred MMs reaching for the heavens with pained expressions on their faces to garner GE scoring this year. Who knew Velvet Knights had these new scoring sheets figured out in the eighties? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kamarag Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 It seemed to me that BD, Crown, and Bloo all pulled the same last minute GE trick by adding an identifiable and relatable character that tied the show theme all together. The relatable character in the Cadets' show was the corps itself, and that rollercoaster ride of a performance was its emotional impact. However, it would seem judges preferred MMs reaching for the heavens with pained expressions on their faces to garner GE scoring this year. Who knew Velvet Knights had these new scoring sheets figured out in the eighties? I seem to recall the Cadets adding something pretty major at the end of the season. I wish I could recall exactly what it was.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 I seem to recall the Cadets adding something pretty major at the end of the season. I wish I could recall exactly what it was.... And that major change may have bombed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallace Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 It didn't bomb. The unis were fantastic! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tobias Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 (edited) Well it was a great season. I truly hope Cadets come back with a Cadet-like show that maybe is a bit smarter in design and with more emphasis on the guard as a prominent part of the show. I do want them to keep their identity and do the difficult stuff the others won't but as others stated, highlight it, do it perfectly and then do something else. Running and gunning the entire show is an unachievable task especially in a season like 2015 but thanks for doing it this one time. It was amazing to watch the MMs attempt to perform it and performed it very well even if the GE judges weren't impressed as they sipped their cokes and wolfed down cheese doodles in the the box burping into the recorded, 'I hate it!" Edited August 25, 2015 by Tobias 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exitmusic Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Cadets 2015 was a celebration of what is physically and humanly possible to be performed in August. Unfortunately (?), DCI judging rewards the efforts of the (adult, paid, non-performer) designers at a bar in November. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris ncsu Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 I tend to agree with you. Ultimately, guard staging and other visual aspects, while good, were just not good enough to elevate their GE. Additionally, the Shostakovitch music, as much as I LOVE IT, tends to come across dry and unemotional with many. Throw in the dark unis that hid a lot of visual mastery in the legs and you have just enough deficit in GE to wind up in 4th. My initial thoughts on Cadets this year were amazing brass, drums, and drill. I figured if they could be top 3 in brass and drums (which they were), and if their drill cleaned, that maybe the GE would get a bump. But the legs didn't quite get clean enough, which is certainly not a cut down when talking about a drill that hard. During most years this would not be getting quite the attention it is. Most would just chalk up their excellent 4th place finish to being really good but perhaps not quite clean enough to win. Demand can give and demand can take away. It's become somewhat of a talking point this year because The Cadets were in many ways the best total music ensemble all season. They won more high brass and high percussion trophies all summer, and almost did at Finals as well (getting brass only). In an activity called "DRUM & BUGLE CORPS" where the first two nouns in the name indicate the activity is about MUSIC, it's odd that the best corps on the field (arguably) in music was in 4th place. Whether we like it or not, this is where the activity is. Today we hear comments like "they didn't innovate," "not enough GE," "the guard wasn't staged well enough," or "the show was too demanding and old style." Today it is difficult to put a finger on the meaning of GE Music or GE Visual or how it's being judged, and today staging, body movement, and dance mean as much as the music, or more. Today, the corps that plays the best percussion and brass can end up in 4th. It's no longer a music first activity no matter what DCI says. It's a total show, much more like Broadway, where cast, crew, staging, lighting, props, effect, dance, movement, music, and theme all come together to form the whole. At present time only the Blue Devils truly understand this about the sheets, and they are brilliant at programming around it and yet creating a fun, exciting show while they do. I do like the activity where it is, but there are times it leaves me scratching my head. But it's really Drum & Bugle & Guard & Movement corps. The Cadets aced the first two parts, but not so much the other two (comparatively). They were also a big story because they won Minnesota, San Antonio (first time in like 15 years for both), and several TOCs. And because it was sort of 1990s Cadets reincarnated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kamarag Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Cadets 2015 was a celebration of what is physically and humanly possible to be performed in August. Unfortunately (?), DCI judging rewards the efforts of the (adult, paid, non-performer) designers at a bar in November. I agree, the Cadets show was, to an extent, about what was physically possible. The problem was they were out-performed and out-executed by three other corps. It's not a shot at Cadets (I loved the show), it's just reality. DCI rewards achievement, and you can only get credit for what's achieved, not merely attempted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xandandl Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 It didn't bomb. The unis were fantastic! Nice looking uniform but not for this show and not for this corps in a stadium already draped in black. The unis made the corps look like dwarfs compared to the traditional unis which are bright and give height. Corps/guard could have used some parasols with the numbers on them during ballad and waltz, some fine tuning (and limiting) of the repetitions in the opener (some which were not native to the source music but seemed added to give a few more counts to the drill forms) and guard work which awed one with demand and simultaneous precision. It seemed hosed and over-simplified. With GE judges on record (from previous contests of this season) as rewarding the other four corps, Cadets did not over awe for GE which is what was needed if medalling was the goal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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