2005 Memorial Brass Concert REVIEW

[Triple Forte]

Hi all, as promised here is a review of what I saw and heard at the Cadets and Crossmen Memorial Brass Concert last night. I found myself sitting back and taking it all in without giving a tremendous amount of thought to what I was going to put in a review. Normally I will have a pad and pen with me to make some notes.

First up of coarse was the Star Spangled Banner which was actually one of the highlights of the night. The announcer stated that the Star Spangled Banner was going to be played members of the Crossmen and Cadets hornline. A total of 10 members from both corps walked out on stage in preparation to play. Well, the next thing you noticed was that more members from the hornlines of both corps started filing down the aisles. Before you knew it the crowd was surrounded by horn players. What an AMAZING sound……true surround sound.

Next on was the USSBA All-Star jazz band. I am so amazed at the talent level of these high school kids. To play improvisational jazz is no easy task and they handled it quite well. The piano player was unbelievable!!!

Next on was the Crossmens color guard. Not to sure where the music is from but it had a kind of tribal sort feel to it. Most of their presentation was dancing. The equipment work they performed was good and the timing of the work was on par for the end May.

Next on was the Crossmen. The curtain opened and the first thing I noticed was the 12 contra bass players who were stretched across the front. This was quite impressive to me because I have been a Crossmen fan since 1987 and never remember seeing them with 12 contras. One drawback to this idea was the fact that the drumline could not be seen and a lot of the sound and melody from the other voices was lost.

The first two selections they played are not in there 2005 production. The first song was Galaxy (Song from the 70’s). The next song was a ballad whose name slips my mind at the moment. Both were played very well and sounded pretty good for non-show songs. Ok….here we go….the 2005 Crossmen. The first number starts out with the pit introducing a slow kind of overture of Classical Gas. The first big hit into the melody is nice and gets things rolling with a brisk tempo. Several times during the tune it gets pretty jazzy. Nice strong finish to the number. The beginning of the next tune (Radar Love) starts in a similar fashion. Lots of nice grooves here with the hornline leaning back and wailing a bit. In between the slower jazz sections I was a little amazed at the tempo of this tune which is a little quicker than the opener. So Far Away was the next tune (ballad). I think that Crossmen are playing ballads really well. Last seasons ballad was my favorite junior corps ballad. They really played this tune with some nice rises and falls in the dynamics. The end of the tune is similar to last year’s ballad in respect to they really lengthen the chords. Ok….here we go….Paradise by the Dashboard light. Well…..this is going to be a really fun number. It translates real well to the drum corps idiom. The end of the tune is going to bring the houses to there feet all season long. Oh…as a final number they played Russian Christmas music….nice…..

I really wish that they would have set themselves up better on stage. I will tell ya….we were treated to some nice walking basslines from the contras….thanks guys and gal. :)

Next on the bill was the USSBA All-Star concert band. The band played three selections and did a really fine job. The director was really into what he was doing and actually had the band play a few isolated spots in the first tune to give the audience a hint as to what to listen for. Its amazing what these students can accomplish in just two days of practice (Shoot…they sounded so much better than my former HS concert band after a whole school year worth of practice).

A select group of members from the Cadets hornline came out and played an entertaining version of “The William Tell Overture” A lot of fun and really well played.

Next on was the Cadets color guard. They performed to a Phil Collins tune and performed similarly as the Crossmen did. There movements and equipment work was a little more together. Good job.

Finally the 2005 Cadets. Well…..the staging of the corps was perfect. Drums on the left and horns on the right. The first tune is Kill Bill and YES they do start the show by whistling. They whistle in typical drum corps fashion….meaning they have upped the bar from what the Cavaliers brought us last season. The opener is really faced pace and definitely gives you an idea of the approach the Cadets are taking with there show in 05. Next up was Liquid (An original Jay B written piece) which is really fast moving. The drumline really cranks it out (Numbers 9 snare 5 quints 5 bass). I just happened to go out to the Eric Whitcares web page and listen to a few samples of his symphonic works and Liquid sounds a very little bit like parts from Eric’s, Equus. The next tune is my favorite from there show (So far) which is “Dancer in the Dark”. They have kind of this underlying rhythm going on (medium speed) in the percussion sections while the hornline plays the melody. This song is very lush and will please. Next was Machine which is a drumline feature. The hornline actually moved to the side of the stage to give the drumline the total spot light. This was a good idea because this drumline is awesome. The start of machine is played by the pit and is similar to Magic of Orlando’s “Building the ship section” of there 1996 show 12 Seconds to the Moon. The rest of the drum solo was fast-paced and good. Finally the Cadets end the show with Mirrors. This is definitely a return to the old for the Cadets in terms of the type of show they are presenting. Much more abstract then there more recent offerings.

Show was nice and I am glad I attended.

Sorry for the lack of detail in the review…..again I found myself sitting back, relaxing and enjoying the show on this night.

Triple Forte

[PhantomR]

great review... I enjoyed reading it.

sounds like it was a good night.

~>conner

[BCC99Man]

i went too. quick highlights cause i'm going to dave and busters (yay!) it was really loud due to the fact that the symphony hall was so small (the corps barely fit on the stage). it gave my girlfriend a headache along with another friend who's never really listened to drum corps much before.

crossmen brought the house down and got a standing ovation which lasted a good 3-4 minutes.

both crossmen and cadets colorguards performed well for this point in the season.

USSBA honors band played some interesting pieces, including kirkpatrick fanfare which i played in my concert band for school. nice piece especially since it was inspired and has little snippets of irish tune from county derry (danny boy). afterwards, the band and the cadets got together and played cadillac of the skies. it was great, but i got to hear the song earlier with just the cadets playing it, and it was ALOT louder (probably cause they would have overpowered the concert band).

cadets came on and also tore the house down. i've gotten to listen to them since the first camps, and their show has progress exponentially. kill bill is great, especially the whistling, which is really eerie and creepy (i can't whistle, so i guess i'd have to fake it if i was a cadet). then came liquid. i personally think that this will be the single best song on the field this year (altho i haven't gotten a chance to hear many other corps due to the fact that i can't find many other recordings). liquid is fast paced and in your face. like i said, i've heard it from the beginning and it's evolution is astounding. jay bocook will never cease to leave me in complete awe. the ballad, dancer, is beautiful, and holds true to the original bjork song, which it is based off of, along with machine, the drum features. i couldn't really get into their closer because it seemed like a little too cluttered and random at parts for me. however, it could be that i couldn't get a good hear for it cause of the small hall and the loudness.

it was my first memorial brass. i went because my best friend who i've marched with for a long time is now in the cadets. it was great to see him again. i can't wait to see both corps on the field this summer. best of luck to the both of them.

[DrumCorpsMom]

Here's my version:

Just got in the door from dropping the Kid off at Crossmen camp.

Last night we went to Memorial Brass in Allentown. Crossmen shocked the #### out of me. For some reason I was not expecting much and boy was I wrong! They are hot! The crowd went nuts and they got a longer ovation than Cadets. Don't get me wrong Cadets were cleaner & good, but Crossmen have a real crowd pleasing show this year. Everyone was rocking to the music & it's music you know! Radar Love will blow your mind and "So Far Away" will be the ballad everyone is talking about. It more than rivals last year's "Both Sides Now". You can almost see the drill patterns in "Paradise by the Dashboard Lights". Excellent Show - I know I am biased, but I was not prepared for how good they sounded!

Cadets started off with a sextet playing "William Tell Overture" and got into a playful stage drill, when they were rudely interrupted by the full brass line coming in from all angles playing Moondance. The crowd loved it! They played in the aisles and in the seats.

Cadets start their show off whistling "Kill Bill" - cool sounding, goes on a little long, and I personally thought it was a steal from Cavies 04- but it was well done. The rest of their music is good & clean - "Liquid" is an original composition and has some beautiful melodies throughout. They end with a little bit of Twilight Zone.

Great show! The USSB Honours Band was there & got to play Cadillac with Cadets brassline. Hoppy finally got his sax players!

Edited May 31, 2005 by DrumCorpsMom

[BCC99Man]

Hoppy finally got his sax players!

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burn

[MiamiSun76]

My 1st observation is that the ride from Baltimore to Allentown gets longer with age. While the slick toys on my new Maxima (particularly the audio-visual ones) are a gas, my arthritic joints are still suffering.

OK, about the program. 2 disclaimers. I was involved with the poor but independent version of the Crossmen (I believe the late Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm's campaign theme: Unbought & Unbossed is applicable here) a zillion years ago. Also, I am one of YEA's most cynical observers and had a real conflict of conscience over plopping down the grand sum of $12 to that organization.

Those things being said, it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, notwithstanding the 1st year brass tech from Cadets standing next to me during their performance exuding the attitude that the performance was for HIM and singing/conducting each part. (I've been a staffer and I've come to realize that I owe a deep apology for similarly annoying paying customers 25 years ago).

The most appealing segment for me was the Cadet's guard performance. This is the part of the activity that has progressed the most since The Day, and the Cadets have done more than just about anyone else. I apologize to those of my generation in their "no dancin' no prancin" shirts for liking it, but that was great ballet.

For some useless reason, I was thinking the other day about the evolution of shows and how those of us from the '60s/'70s haven't done what our forefathers did: impose the music of their youth on us. We all played classics from the '40s/'50s because that's what our instructors grew up with. Then came the Crossmen. I realized last night that their shows the past couple of years have been FM radio staples from The Day. While the arrangements are in a wonderful jazz idiom which presents the opportunity for some great solo work, the chance for Cross to advance is still illusive. The kids did a super job with what they've been given, but they're still given a "statement" rather than a competitive show.

For a competitive show, see the Cadets. It's hard for me to like them, but last night I liked them a lot. For some reason I've been irritated by their recent attempts to be accessable (see cynacism comment above). This show is simply the best since Stonehenge. The Cadets are at their best when I don't recognize a thing they are playing. I like to be introduced to new things and this year's show did that for me. It was also mid-season clean and I can't wait to see the visuals. The only part I'm anxious to see worked out is the whistling. In the concert setting with the amplified pit in, well...the pit, the horn players whistling was picked up naturally. How they're going to project it on the field will be interesting. I hope it doesn't become a distraction to this amazing show.

OK, I said something good about YEA, now back to the Ben-Gay

Edited May 29, 2005 by MiamiSun76

[corpsreps]

Great review. Two corrections.

The first two selections they played are not in there 2005 production. The first song was Galaxy (Song from the 70’s). The next song was a ballad whose name slips my mind at the moment. Both were played very well and sounded pretty good for non-show songs.

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First song was "Fantasy" by Earth, Wind and Fire

Second song was "Don't Know Why?" by Norah Jones

[Triple Forte]

Great review. Two corrections.

First song was "Fantasy" by Earth, Wind and Fire

Second song was "Don't Know Why?" by Norah Jones

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Thanks..........sorry Crossmen

Triple Forte

[Herbel]

the Crossmen guard performed to "Elias" by Dispatch

[IRMO]

Cadets started off with a sextet playing "William Tell Overture" and got into a playful stage drill, when they were rudely interrupted by the full brass line coming in from all angles playing Jethro Tull.  The crowd loved it!  They played in the aisles and in the seats. 

OMG that sounds too cool. Wish I could have seen that.

Thanks to all for the reviews...Awesome!!!