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Death of the Cymbal Line


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...PLUS, at standstill/encore presentations, the cymbal line is the ONLY thing to watch! (well, for us non-drummers anyway) ...

I have a video somewhere that my dad shot of our standstill in Arvada, Colorado in 1989. It's kinda grainy but the cymbal line is on the left side the entire time. Pretty friggin amazing...

:rock::worthy::worthy::blink::blink:

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PLUS, at standstill/encore presentations, the cymbal line is the ONLY thing to watch! (well, for us non-drummers anyway) And watching SCV's makes always makes the kids in the stands say, "That was ####### intense!!!"  :worthy:

If you pick up the Tour of Champions DVD, the "studio recording" of the corps is most entertaining when watching the 4 guys from SCV. Standstill in street clothes (OK, none of them are wearing shirts) and these guys are just as intense as ever. I am honestly suprised they don't come away from that show bloody for the number of times the cymbals are silenced by the pull back to the chest (and the requisite intensity of the move as performed by the SCV line).

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I hated not seeing Spirit not marching a cymbal line this year. They had the best line out there for the past few years. Crown also had a good line.

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Ah - a subject dear to my heart!

I LOVE: Pioneer (amazing slice/dice moves!), Crossmen ("X"), Seattle (the propelers on 'da plane'), Pacific Crest, Memphis Sound, Colts (who won I&E), Southwind (close 2nd), and anyone check out Impulse? They had funky cymbals with holes! Really cut through the horns. SCV plates hold legendary status in the drum corps activity - intensity, passion, and dedication to their craft for one.

I actually made a point of interviewing cymbal lines at Allentown and throughout Finals Week. They are a dying breed - imagine my shock when I asked for the Bluecoats cymbals and were told they were gone. Spirit? Gone. Madison? Gone. Glassmen? Gone.

The line I will miss the most is Spirit however. I found one of their 04 members in Magic - with their former tech. Others had to move on to other corps. There was something really magical about Spirit 04 - especially at I&E. Here was my report on them...

SPIRIT CYMBAL ENSEMBLE

Running late, they were initially supposed to go on at 1:38. Then it was moved to 2:38. It was unfortunate because many Spirit supporters, thinking it was the later time, missed probably one of the most brilliant displays of cymbal ensemble work I’ve ever seen.

As introduced by S.O.M.E. announcer John Calabrace, it was described as “A Latin Tragedy which tells of a boy who goes to a party and accidentally dies. He is carried off by the Angels of Death. Please enjoy the show.” This last line got a quick chuckle from the crowd. But the laughing quickly turned to jaw-dropping silence and then crazed enthusiasm. For the next couple of minutes it was non-stop, don’t-blink-or-you’ll-miss-something cymbal work.

They opened with some quick “Slice & Dice” moves, and then some humor from “The Latin Boy” who, obviously the one in charge, barked corrections in Spanish. After some teasing, they got into the business of running cymbals crashes. At times, there were some truly indescribable moments. The highlight was the five gentlemen, blindfolded, standing in a circle facing out, shoulder to shoulder and ripping lightening fast crashes, not with their own plates, but their neighbors: Over their head, under their legs, right side, left side. In a pattern that seemed almost random, the crashes got faster and faster. Until the “Latin Boy” died.

The next portion of their show turned somber with almost sacred music. One cymbal was bowed. Another had chains circling inside two plates. In pin-dropping silence, they picked up their fallen comrade and exited the stage. It only took another second, but the audience was on their feet giving them the first full-blown standing ovation of the day. Hats off to the defending cymbal champs – Spirit Cymbal Ensemble – who took it home once more.

I'm creating an article called "The Great Cymbal Crash of 05" would love to get thoughts and reactions on what appears to be a downward spiral.

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with pits being able to cover any needed cymbal parts you really don't need cymbal lines anymore and can have 1. more brass, or 2. more guard.

This lame point keeps being brought up so I guess I'll ask the same questions again.

Why do we have 7-10 man snare lines? 2 snares standing still in the pit would be cleaner and would not have to worry about marching effecting the playing.

Why do we have a marching bass line? 1 man playing some toms or even a half moon of basses in the pit would free up 4 more horn spots and would be a lot more in time.

Why do we have tenors? They are somewhat harder to hear on the field anyways. In the pit you could hear them and play a lot more musical.

As for the front to back timing issues brought up by my new vision for the battery; With the introduction of amps, we could put the pit in the back. That would be an excellant source of time for the brass and with amps you would still be able to have them contribute greatly musically.

Let's take it even further. Why have so many brass who are running around and wasting their breath on moving all while risking messing up their sound with the movement? Maybe if we made them stand still or even sat down it would sound better.

My whole point is this. Why do we even march at all?? We just do because that is the activity. Yes we have a pit to cover the stuff you cannot really move with. But for everything else, if it can be marched, it should be. Because that is just the nature of this activty.

Edited by G-Cym
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I don't think cymbal lines are dying, just look at most of the corps outside of the Top 12. The Top 12 are amazing and may be where drum corps is headed, but look outside of the Top 12 for drumcorps history and tradition.

Things you'll find by watching the others:

Cymbal Lines

10 year vets

12 year olds marching

Beat up buses

Fun shows

Kitchens consisting of coolers and a Ryder truck

Make shift, make do - instruments, uniforms, transportation, equipment

Passion for the fun of the activity

G bugles

Not a judgement, just an observation.

BTW- SCV cymbals constantly rock! Part of being great and an empire is being there year to year. Watch them warm up sometime...you WILL be fired up for the show.

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I agree. On that note. If any pecussion caption heads out there are looking for a cymbal tech, I just aged out of Crossmen and have all marched cyms fro Glassmen. I would love to help out a line next summer. :)

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