Fran Haring Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 (edited) OK.... sorry 'bout the title of the thread..... I'm not very good at the nautical references.....LOL After the drive home to Baltimore, a few thoughts about Saturday night's Spring Preview concert: (The older I get, the more I need to write stuff down right away, before I wake up and forget where I was!!!! B) Also, my apologies in advance if I don't mention every corps participating.) First of all, I knew it was going to be a good day from the time my ride up from Baltimore started..... I cranked up the 40's Channel on XM satellite radio, and the first tune on was "ChiriBiriBin," the theme song for the incomparable Harry James. If you've never listened to this tune, check it out some day.....IMO, Mr. James delivers one of the most amazing displays of trumpet playing you'll ever hear. Dude could flat-out get it done!!!!! But I digress....on to the show stuff: Buccaneers Alumni, from my back-stage perspective, were the biggest and best they've been in several years. Full, balanced sound, nicely done. And Jay Landis looks pretty good in a tuxedo, if you ask me.... however, no one did. :P Is there a more famous ending to a drum corps tune than the finale of the Yankee Rebels' "Requiem for an Era?" Perhaps not. A truly timeless piece of music. The NY Skyliners competition corps had more people on stage this year than at last year's Spring Preview, and that's a good thing.... they could still use a few more horns and drums, but the ones they had sounded pretty solid from where I was standing. The Skyliners Alumni corps, despite the fact that they were missing a few people, blew the house down Saturday night! Watching and listening to that great "old-school" snare line is always a treat. Heck, new-school, old-school, doesn't matter... that is simply one of the best snare lines you'll ever hear, on any level of the drum corps activity. Also.... I love the "Victory at Sea" chart (used by Sky's competition corps during the 1970's, now being played by the alumni corps). One of Hy Dreitzer's finest moments, IMO. The Buccaneers competition corps, defending DCA champs, are "locked and loaded" and ready to roll again in 2006. To be honest, for part of the show I pretty much could only hear the percussion battery, which was set up on stage, with the pit and hornline in front of the stage and in the side aisles.... but from what I heard (the battery was absolutely outstanding) and judging from the comments from other audience members, the Bucs have put together another great performance package. The Buccaneers once again are going to be tough to beat, IMO. I'd like to thank Jerry Ware and the rest of the Buccaneers organization, and the Twin Valley High School folks, for giving me the opportunity to emcee their Spring Preview again...like I said earlier, it was a very good day. Hopefully, we can give it another shot next year! Fran Edited May 14, 2006 by Fran Haring Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 any word on Surf? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomMoore Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 Thanks, Fran, for being part of our evening once again. You brought a wonderful flair to the proceedings as always. Nothing like a Buccaneer blue Hawaiian shirt to get us in the mood to kick off the voyage on the high seas! It was, indeed, a great evening, and the Buccaneers would like to thank all who made it possible, especially our friends in the Twin Valley School District and, most especially, the fans in attendance. Thanks also to the participating corps for providing such an enjoyable evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Ellis Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 Everyone associated with the show were very nice and courteous. None of the "attitude" that you sometimes see at other shows. The people from the Reading Buccaneers Alumni and Corps were great and the facilities were top notch. The room had great acoustics and after warming up in the gym and another music room behind the staging area, when I actually played in the auditorium it was a treat. To the gentleman behind the curtain, thank you for baby sitting my water during our performance and handing it back to me once we were finished. Even though it was a little gesture, it struck me as so nice! Fran, always a pleasure! And, Larry did a great job leading us. This time he actually had the time to practice and prepare. Robbie Ellis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted May 14, 2006 Author Share Posted May 14, 2006 any word on Surf? Big corps once again, even though I was told they were missing several players...... what I heard from side-stage sounded good! In particular, a really strong, deep sound from the lower brass. Fran Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted May 14, 2006 Author Share Posted May 14, 2006 Oh yeah.... I noticed that Skyliners Alumni have a pit percussion section now, with a couple of mallet players and a set of tympani. Nice touch! We might have to set up a Westshoremen Alumni-Skyliners Alumni Pit Challenge...... LOL Fran Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuZiK11 Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 who was the guy taking pictures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Ellis Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 who was the guy taking pictures? Harry Heidelmark from DCA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuZiK11 Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 anyone know how we can get those pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Priester Posted May 14, 2006 Share Posted May 14, 2006 (edited) [ Edited May 14, 2006 by Ray Priester Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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