chris7997 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 Drum Majors that show NO emotion. We need/want more drum majors like David Warren and James Taylor (name?) from The Academy!! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E. Brigand Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 (edited) I'm sick and tired of post-modern shows that have no substance...like "Continuum." What is it? It's all head, no heart. Art and music should move you, tug at your heart strings, in addition to inspiring you in your head. I don't really think that show had all that much head, either. This is why I didn't like the SCV show, even though everyone thinks it's beautiful. Too much white visually...white tree, white pants, my eyes need a break! And what was it about? It was too disjointed...the beginning was the only inspiring part. But the rest of the show was just a string of sound. SCV's tree changed colors multiple times at Finals. And I thought it was pretty obviously about the passage of the seasons from spring through summer, fall, winter, and back to spring for the coda. But like you, I was less moved than most fans. Edited typo. Edited August 16, 2016 by N.E. Brigand 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TroopAlum12 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 (edited) Drum Majors that show NO emotion. We need/want more drum majors like David Warren and James Taylor (name?) from The Academy!! Yeeeeeessssss. Drum Majors are part of the performance! And often times the members will feed off the energy the DM is giving them. Again, look at the Academy... P.S. - as long as they don't give up keeping time. That is the first and foremost job of a drum major in a show: to be a human metronome. They also need to be great leaders. Some DMs don't do much more than wave their arms because they were selected for their leadership skills and not their conducting skills, and are working hard just to develop those. Edited August 16, 2016 by TroopAlum12 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 (edited) Drum Majors that show NO emotion. Too many are just robotic conductors. Even after a corps performance, I'd expect the lead DM to at least speak to their fellow mm for a great performance before facing the crowd. Edited August 16, 2016 by Ghost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TroopAlum12 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 As for scores, it is absolutely true that you can't compare scores across years in this day and age. Scores were lower across the board from last year because they seemed to purposely start lower (champions keep getting closer and closer to 100). Also, scores are relative to each other in a given year. The judges make a score of "well corps A was better than corps B by this much in GE, so they get a score of X higher than corps B," for example. Believe me. Troopers are still stuck in the same scoring and placement range as when I marched, and they're performing soooo much better. But so is everyone else around them. It's all relative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris7997 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 (edited) Yes. And sometimes, ironically, TRYING to only keep time, messes up the tempo of your players...because you aren't being as passionate and forceful with the tempo....you aren't commanding the members' attention with clear down beats. It works both ways. There does need to be a balance of course, but please...get a little bit excited and refrain from looking COMPLETELY BORED while conducting. Edited August 16, 2016 by chris7997 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shempy Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 Drum Majors that show NO emotion. We need/want more drum majors like David Warren and James Taylor (name?) from The Academy!! Nico (sp?) from BD has been a favorite of mine for this exact reason. He'll ham it up sometimes and it's awesome. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hrothgar15 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 Person behind me told me to sit all the way back in my seat at semis, instead of closer to the edge like I normally do. First time anyone ever complained. If I'm all the way back in my seat I feel like I'm not actively watching the shows. :\ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRapp Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 I'm sick and tired of post-modern shows that have no substance...like "Continuum." What is it? It's all head, no heart. Art and music should move you, tug at your heart strings, in addition to inspiring you in your head. This is why I didn't like the SCV show, even though everyone thinks it's beautiful. Too much white visually...white tree, white pants, my eyes need a break! And what was it about? It was too disjointed...the beginning was the only inspiring part. But the rest of the show was just a string of sound. The favorites were the shows that had meaning...The Academy, Crown, Cavaliers, etc. Even Bluecoats seemed to be communicating "joy" and "freedom". But these vague esoteric shows that try to impress because the judges with how "artistic" they are being with vague and unmemorable themes, cause nothing but confusion and "what is it" blank stares from their audiences. Another complaint: Not playing America the Beautiful at awards ceremony as was tradition in the '90s...for all the corps to play, with the winning conductor conducting 12 finalist corps. It is interesting that Blue Devils now feels very mainstream to me. That said, I'm all for a variety of approaches. Academy is one thing, Blue Knights is another. Both were finalists. I personally don't want everyone to do Mary Poppins shows. But I also don't think Blue Knights will medal doing extremely esoteric concepts that get little to no audience reaction. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris7997 Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 Sloppy shows with bad marching...people out of step. Lines that are supposed to be flush, but are jagged. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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