MagicBobert Posted May 30, 2006 Share Posted May 30, 2006 12! Indeed. ^OO^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triple Forte Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Any reviews from Memorial brass ( cadets / crossmen ). I have seen the cavies review -cool. Any others ?BD ? MAdison ? Crown ? Glassmen ? Boston ? Bluecoats ? Vanguard ? this one I am very interested in. all others ? As promised here is my Memorial Brass review. The USSBA all-star jazz and concert bands did a fine job. I am ALWAYS amazed at how good these units do with just one day or so of practice together....... Ok......combined hornline Star Spangled Banner.......AWESOME....(Yeah there was an early entry by a couple of baritones.....but that was quickly forgotten) Crossmen color guard......very well done in dance, flags, swords and guns........a little better than the Cadets CG actually........ Crossmen 2006: Well.......their show is called Changing Lanes and it is about going out for a cruise in a car. The opener moves along pretty well and quick with a few Metheny sounds towards the end. The ballad was really nice......going to sound great with more work. Now....the director did a great job explaining the show and especially the stuck in traffic flipping the car radio dial part. Sounds as if the Crossmen will be jumping in to amplified voice with this section. Weather reports, news, latin music station and other feedback and static radio noises are expected to be heard during this section. The Closer is awesome and really drives home in the end. I will agree with someone who said that the way the Crossmen were set up on stage was sort of aweful. You could barely see and hear the upper brass at times..... Cadets Color guard....good job and they looked a bit younger than guards in the past..... Cadets 2006: The Cadets are picking up right were they left off last season according to George H. The opener sounded more Cadet-ish to me than a lot of the stuff they played last year. The ballad was interesting and their featured singer blended with the horns. She is really just singing chords......and there are still some major inntonation issues between her and the hornline. The last number is fast and furious and they are currently ending the show with the same erie twilight zone chords...... Thats about it.......oh......and the song that bought the house to its feet the quickest (By a long shot) was when the Crossmen played Birdland..... I also happened to see the Crossmen and Cadets in the Memorial Day parade in Hawthorne on Monday. Both corps sounded nice outside.......and I was actually amazed at how dark and warm of a sound the Crossmen hornline produced..... Also.......the Crossmen had the best military bering out of all the corps in the parade... Triple Forte Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slitzen62 Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 (edited) Hey folks!!! Thanks for all of the comments and critiques of the concert. We definitely had some issues on the stage on Sunday - that's the way it bounces sometimes. Trying to find the best way to balance on that stage is tricky at best. One way - no drums.....another way no high brass, etc....uugghh - drove us crazy. Sometimes you get it...sometimes you miss!! We missed here and there - but we hit more than we missed!!! We were pleased with the performance, but not totally. The first time out is always fun, but we know it has lots of room to go. I also want to thank everyone who had such nice comments about the corps and have made me feel very welcome. It means everything and it does make a difference. All we wanted to do is set the stage for a great summer. I can't tell you how much it meant to the kids to get the kind of reception that they received on Sunday - wow!!! If we can get that on the field every night - wouldn't that be fun!?!?!?! :P I hope you all can come along for a great ride this summer as we change the lanes and put another great Crossmen show on the field. The Cadets were a blast to see and I am proud to be part of an organization that can put on a show like that on Memorial Day weekend...even if we only had two days to get ready!!! Let's see how we can do with 4 weeks to get ready for the first show!!! Thanks again and keep the comments going - and yes - everyone is entitled to their opinions. Some folks take critical comments way to seriously - even when they hit the nail on the head sometimes. No offense taken as long as when things get better, we hear that as well. I hope we give everyone a chance to say that this summer - that is our job and responsibility!!! I have no reason to think that our staff won't take care of business this year. What that means - you guys seem to know better than we do Please support all of the corps this summer and have a blast following this season. It's going to be fun!! :) Edited June 4, 2006 by slitzen62 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Seattle Cascades also had a successful Memorial Day Camp weekend. The show is coming along quite well. And once things come to fruition and binded together with other concepts, this is going to be great! Their rehearsal/concert was held at Memorial Stadium (just under the Space Needle), so there were a lot of non drum corps people who were coming in and out throughout the day, observing the corps. Throughout the weekend, the corps had a chance to perform at a benefit auction, and an alumni reunion, so that got the members pumped up! I think what really got them going was the audience reaction to them playing loud in a 4 by 4 small closed room (can we say LOUD!!!)--They brought tears to the eyes of the alumni (and some members in the arch) as they played the corps song "Imagine" this weekend. This weekend was a glimpse of what is to come on tour for this years corps. They experienced drum corps at its fullest this weekend. Anyone who has heard the hornline through the winter/spring series of camps, will tell you--this hornline has come along way since auditions, and I was quite impressed with the intensity sections were putting out. I felt that they were finally starting to open up and get a dark warmer sound, that we have been trying to produce through our series of winter/spring camps--they finally delivered. Obviously they still have much work to do, but they are certainly on the right path. This has the potential and in my honest humble opinion, will be better than the 2003 hornline that I had the pleasure of marching in. The drumline this year is much improved over past seasons, and they were smokin in the "Bartok String Quartet" as well as their drum solo "Ra!" by Joseph Schwanter. I don't think I have ever heard them playing this clean at this point, not even when I marched. This is a stronger group of guys who have some chops, and I can't wait to see what else the percussion staff throws their way--this book is definitely the perfect fit for this line, and the percussion staff has done an outstanding job writing for them. I found myself going to the front side line a lot, just watching the pit. They have some interesting melodic lines in the "Bartok String Quartet" and I really enjoyed hearing how those counter acted with what the hornline was playing, yet how they also lined up with what the hornline was playing. The "Dance Movement" of the show can use some attention, but I think the ingredients are in place to make this work (especially with the world drum percussion feature leading into it and out of it). You've got to come out and hear "Lux Aurumque" by Eric Whitacre--this piece has been a big work in progress, as it is very difficult to get the right sound to make it sound warm and open. After much work on the piece throughout the weekend, the introduction to the piece was quite breath taking, except for the minor intontation problems in the high brass and lack of support at times from the low brass. I think this year will be another successful year for the Cascades colorguard as well. Already, the members are performing very well with character, even with the minimal amounts of choreo. that they do have. Very first impact of the show in the "Bartok String Quartet" is an ensemble rifle toss, and the colorguard is spread across the field in a mass colorguard formation--I get goosebumps watching that set. When it is clean, that is going to rock! The drill this year has a lot of velocity (and is spread out a lot in many cases), and definitely has it's challenges for the members, but they are responding quite well. Just as we were learning the drum solo this weekend, the members were a little bummed, that we actually had to stop, just to start the concert. The hornline will haul (you know what) and will cover a lot of field during this "Ra!" drum solo. I think this is the type of drill that this corps has needed the past few seasons. Lots of ground being covered by ALL sections, as we take the audience from darkness into light. I'm not sure if the corps will post a Memorial Day video like they did last year, but the 2006 Cascades is definitely a departure from last season. I'm excited about the energy that all sections of this years Cascades is putting out! I don't think we could have asked for a better Memorial Day weekend... Well maybe less rain, but that really didn't stop us from doing what we had to do. "Redemption" is going to be a great show, once all the elements are finally in place. I hope you are able to see our definition of Redemption at a local/regional show this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayM Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 12! Gotta be careful with that number. I think BD has been claiming for the past two seasons that they are going to win their twelfth championship. I guess they figure if they say it every season it might eventually happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Anchower Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 I saw the Scouts performed at Bratfest in Madison. They went on after the klezmer band "Yid Viscious" and before a local jam band. I'd estimate there were a couple hundred in attendance. Duuuuuuuuuuude................how'd I miss this??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrshowfan Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Hola amigo, its been a while since you rapped with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madalumni Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 Duuuuuuuuuuude................how'd I miss this??? Maybe you were at home, totally baked, or maybe your car was out of comission again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madalumni Posted May 31, 2006 Share Posted May 31, 2006 I saw the Scouts performed at Bratfest in Madison. They went on after the klezmer band "Yid Viscious" and before a local jam band. I'd estimate there were a couple hundred in attendance. The accoustics weren't the greatest as they performed in front of a festival stage and the audience was directly in front of them, so I won't make detailed comments on sound quality. Mike Cesario did a wonderful job of announcing, really trying to get the crowd into it. The Scouts began with a parade version of 76 trombones. They played through the show in three sections - opener, ballad, and what Cesario called the finale. I personally enjoyed the show. Highlights for me included: *The drum book is agressive. There is a theme repeated all throughout the show where the snares are playing what look to me like 4 or 5 stroke rolls at a decent tempo. Very in your face. *I found the ballad to be gorgeous. It seemed to move the audience nicely. nice flugel and barritone solos *the ginastera seems to work well. *the closer is classic madison. totally got the fairly timid crowd riled up (a lot of non drum corps types I think) The Scouts then proceeded to play ice castles and U Wisconsin's varsity. the latter piece was political genius whoever thought of that. Madison is definitely Bucky Badger's town and many in the audience were doing all of the hand gestures and stuff that goes with varsity. Chatted with a couple of guard members at the ice cream stand after the performance. Great bunch of guys. they said the drill is fast and a lot of fun. can't wait to see these guys on the field. eric Were they in uniform? And if so, what do you think of it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildabeast Posted June 2, 2006 Share Posted June 2, 2006 Mandarins in May Look under "Video Update: Memorial Weekend 2006". Quicktime required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.