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6 hours ago, craiga said:

Max and I are back in Castleton.  For those folks who don't know,  not only is this place the epitome of a remote location, but you actually drive up and over the Killington Ski area to get here.  In fact, the road actually passes beneath one of the gondola ski lifts.  Anyway,  even though it rained most of the way here yesterday,  once I came down the back side of Killington it was sunny and warm.

The corps is hard at work.   The drum line is playing on their new equipment. There seemed to be one hole in the battery but one of the med team told me they had taken the member to a local dentist.

The new uniforms are here and are in a locked room. 🔒   Also, the brand new equipment truck arrived on site yesterday. Things seemed to be firing on all cylinders.  I distributed the sunscreen,  insect repellent and lip balm some of the members had asked me to pick up for them.

Just to clarify something I had posted during my last visit...BAC does in fact have 80 brass, 9/5/5 in the battery, 15 in the front ensemble, and what looks to me like 48 guard with 2 alternates.   It is actually difficult to count them because not only are there alot of them, but they transition so quickly from rifle to sabre to flag and back again. With 30 guard vets, I don't need to tell you what level THEY are at....again.

As far as the show is concerned, it seems to be all hands on deck for the design team for the second straight week. They are literally all here and drive the rehearsals. 

While I don't want to get into the show specifics,  I will say that if you liked the last several years of Boston, you're going to love this. The opener is a visual and musical feast, followed by another beautiful BAC ballad, and a full on percussion feature with some elements that I have never heard before. Oh, and "Freddie Mercury" is back this year with an indescribable bari solo throughout the percussion feature.

One final note....all the props are built and being used by the members every day. They are actually in use constantly during the show.

Time for me to put the coffee on and start my day!

 

21 minutes ago, Dpsouthern81 said:

 

After two years of not going to any shows, I am MORE than excited for this year. 

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9 hours ago, craiga said:

Castleton Update 6/4/22:

As the sun rises over the Vermont mountains this morning, a few things to share....the stadium sits at the base of a mountain which years ago the members named "Bari Mountain".  Last night's rehearsal ended with a double 🌈 over it and the fact that this is Pride Month wasn't lost on the members.

 

Amazing!

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22 hours ago, craiga said:

Castleton Update 6/4/22:

As the sun rises over the Vermont mountains this morning, a few things to share....the stadium sits at the base of a mountain which years ago the members named "Bari Mountain".  Last night's rehearsal ended with a double 🌈 over it and the fact that this is Pride Month wasn't lost on the members.

Yesterday was a very productive day and saw the corps learning more drill, but also investing some time in cleaning what has already been taught.  Also,  the design team had ordered some drill changes and other enhancements so those were put into place.  For those older folks who may be a few years removed from the nuts and bolts of the process, nowadays if the drill designer decides on some modifications after an evening's rehearsal, he makes those changes on his laptop and then sends said changes to the members' phones so when they come out for rehearsal the next day they have that info.  Yes. Virginia, there IS an app for that.

I also want to mention the alumni presence here right now. Although this is not any kind of official alumni weekend, alot of people have been showing up in the past day or so, with many more due in today.  While every drum corps has its share of alumi, BAC has 82 years worth and many are gathering here with the corps in Castleton because it has become obvious  that Boston is in for a very special year.  Some are even flying in from Florida. As one 70 year old alum told me last night, "I've been waiting since 1967 to see the corps at this level".

The sun is shining and the sky is clear. Time to feed Max and myself. Excited for today!

Thanks for the updates, craiga!!! I'm jealous. June 21 can't get here fast enough!!

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Yet another update from the mountains of Vermont...6/5/22:

The corps had a great day yesterday. It was sunny and cloudless all day and in the mid 70s.  Alums continued to arrive during the day. The Inspire Board of Directors was also in session here, and held multiple meetings and working groups  focusing on financial planning. Our BOD rocks!

BAC continues to drive through the show learning process. The evening ensemble session culminated with a full performance run of Parts 1-4, which resulted in a standing ovation by the folks in attendance.  They still have to put Part 5 on the field and my guess is that will take place this week. If that is accomplished,  that would still leave Boston with more than two weeks of cleaning leading up to Detroit.  Interestingly, they seem to be adding new musical and visual elements nearly every day.  It's almost as if finals are coming up rather than the Tour Premiere show.

More than half of this drum corps are vets of the ZOOM show and nearly half of THEM are also vets of GOLIATH and/or SOS. 

I also should note that there are several musical surprises in the show, but I'll leave it at that.  The show brings you through a complete journey of emotions and I feel like they are pulling out all the stops to achieve that. I would say they've got everything in there but the kitchen sink, but as I have not seen Part 5 yet, I won't make that claim. 😀

Time to take Max for a walk around the stadium. That's it from Castleton this morning!

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2 hours ago, craiga said:

Yet another update from the mountains of Vermont...6/5/22:

The corps had a great day yesterday. It was sunny and cloudless all day and in the mid 70s.  Alums continued to arrive during the day. The Inspire Board of Directors was also in session here, and held multiple meetings and working groups  focusing on financial planning. Our BOD rocks!

BAC continues to drive through the show learning process. The evening ensemble session culminated with a full performance run of Parts 1-4, which resulted in a standing ovation by the folks in attendance.  They still have to put Part 5 on the field and my guess is that will take place this week. If that is accomplished,  that would still leave Boston with more than two weeks of cleaning leading up to Detroit.  Interestingly, they seem to be adding new musical and visual elements nearly every day.  It's almost as if finals are coming up rather than the Tour Premiere show.

More than half of this drum corps are vets of the ZOOM show and nearly half of THEM are also vets of GOLIATH and/or SOS. 

I also should note that there are several musical surprises in the show, but I'll leave it at that.  The show brings you through a complete journey of emotions and I feel like they are pulling out all the stops to achieve that. I would say they've got everything in there but the kitchen sink, but as I have not seen Part 5 yet, I won't make that claim. 😀

Time to take Max for a walk around the stadium. That's it from Castleton this morning!

As others have stated, thanks for the observations.  Former student marching in the drum line; it's his age-out year & I think he's been with them for 4-5 years?  Maybe Wicked Games was his rookie year? (Think they received an extra year of eligibility due to COVID?)  Can't wait to see them this summer - "Eat 'em up Boston"!    

Edited by keystone3ply
cx
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