A tribute to George Zingali (video)

[jjeffeory]

On 9/5/2023 at 8:48 PM, MikeRapp said:

Many of you may have seen this. All I can say is, I envy those of you who got to experience the energy and creative commitment that George gave to his members and the activity.

 

 

Incredible gifts. I'm in tears thinking about his talent and his accomplishments.

 

[Super Don-O]

Cadets have this still up on their shop

 

https://shop.cadets.org/the-cadets-drill-shirt/ 

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by Super Don-O

[Jurassic Lancer]

Just now, Super Don-O said:

Cadets have this still up on their shop

 

https://shop.cadets.org/the-cadets-drill-shirt/ 

 

Own it 

[Weaklefthand4ever]

6 hours ago, frank4now said:

Seems like a real interesting person. Had such an impact on Drum Corp. I love the description of the creation and rehearsal of the cross to cross. I can picture all the members dialed in staying as long as needed to get it done. They must have had alot of confidence in him that it would be great.  

Matt Harloff talks a bit about George in his DCCS interviews as well. Getting all of those MM's to WANT to stay to finish George's vision is the truest testament I can think of to the man. I think it was a genuine confidence in his vision and love for the man himself and how he representented the best of the activity that drove him and those who marched and instructed under his guidance to be great. I never got a chance to march under him, but anyone who marched in the 80s felt his impact.

Edited September 8, 2023 by Weaklefthand4ever

[troopers1]

True Story:

Blue Knights were holding a drill camp at the University of Wyoming, and George was writing their drill for the first time.  There were several of us drum corps guys from Troopers, Phantom, SCV and Railmen at UW, so we all went over there to check it out. 

A really energetic BK staffer came over to talk to us, and toward the end of the conversation (trading of stories, actually), there was this exchange:

 

My Good Friend Pete:  Hey, is THE George Zingali here?

Energetic BK Staffer:  Yes, THE George Zingali is here.  (big smile)

 

Because... the BK guy was George Zingali.....

Good times.

[Weaklefthand4ever]

5 hours ago, troopers1 said:

True Story:

Blue Knights were holding a drill camp at the University of Wyoming, and George was writing their drill for the first time.  There were several of us drum corps guys from Troopers, Phantom, SCV and Railmen at UW, so we all went over there to check it out. 

A really energetic BK staffer came over to talk to us, and toward the end of the conversation (trading of stories, actually), there was this exchange:

 

My Good Friend Pete:  Hey, is THE George Zingali here?

Energetic BK Staffer:  Yes, THE George Zingali is here.  (big smile)

 

Because... the BK guy was George Zingali.....

Good times.

Some of the coolest moments for me were always when I would meet people on tour or at shows that I had heard about, and found them to just be regular cats. Some of best people have an ability to control ego no matter how great at something they really are.

[MikeRapp]

I just love his statement about the art becoming him. A true artist.

Having worked in the music business for so many years, I can relate to this experience. There comes a moment in which the emotional experience of the art becomes the experience. It’s no longer the mechanics or the how, it’s the feeling. Wanting others to experience that feeling with you is what makes art what it is, at its best.

This is why I can watch certain dci shows over and over again and still get emotional.

I work in big tech now and it’s common for people to talk flippantly about design being taken over by AI. The implication is that art is nothing more than a series of things that make another thing. But can machines feel? Can they cry? Can they cheer? Can they be excited? Motivated?

The joy of experience is what made George who he was and it’s why his work was so powerful and influential.

Edited September 11, 2023 by MikeRapp

[KVG_DC]

The more I think of it, the more I'd love to see this as show theme.  It'd be a hell of a design challenge to pull off though. To make a show that is about some of the most iconic and innovative drill moves...but incorporated into a modern enough style to compete.   

Done right, it could be "the show" that ignites a move forward in integrating drill and what we call modern staging in more intricate ways.  

[ironlips]

Working with George on the '86 show for the 27th Lancers was unlike anything I had ever experienced. He asked me to use a green highlighter to mark directly on the score which section had the melody at any given time. Understand that the lead voices jumped around like frogs on a pond in a production consisting of Sondheim excerpts: 2 bars of melo lead, 4 for a solo, baris for 2, sops for 1, back to melos...etc.

"And you want me to do this, why exactly?", I asked him. "Because you're writing the drill", he replied. "I'll just put those people in the right spots and see wherever everyone else end up...that's it."

And that's precisely what he and Marc Sylverster did.

"Hey", said Marc, "you've heard 'form follows function', right?"

Good philosophy for today's designers, I daresay.

[musicteacher]

Amen, Ironlips.  The visual designs -- to this day -- are jaw dropping, but the under appreciated aspect of George's work was. its impeccable musicality. And Marc quoting a key architectural principle shows both were far ahead of their time.