Salem Review too or two?

[BlueCollarDrumCorps]

It was a nice cool night for drum corps which I’m sure the kids appreciated. This show was moved down the road from Woodburn to Salem (Willamette University) where the Oregon Argonauts and Flamingos started. The founder was in the audience and looked to be pushing a spirited mid-80’s. I do need to say something about stadiums in the northwest; they are small and all have a roof that pretty much covers about 2/3 of the grandstand side with little to no bleachers back field. Not much for visual but WONDERFUL for sound.

So a couple of other observations…I could not find souvie booths for the Crusaders or Thunder. Surprising since this was the opening home show. I wanted to stop in and get a few things to support the groups and donate some gas money but zilch, nada, zip, zero. I guess I’ll need to do it the old fashioned way and go on-line. And I think I mentioned this in a review last year but northwest corps love green. 3 nice variations on black pants and green accented tops. One last thing…reading the descriptions on corps shows reminded me of reading the J. Peterman Catalog….

On to the show. Disclaimer: I didn’t purposefully look for details so all numbers and sequencing mentioned below may be off.

Spokane Thunder – I think this group has improved since last year. I believe this was the opening show of the season and they did a great job. Guard seemed to be around 5 girls and they held their own and seemed confident throughout the show. The brass were well balanced with the low brass anchoring the corps. Overall a good show with attainable demand and something the kids can enjoy cleaning and performing.

Oregon Crusaders – Boy did they come out on all cylinders. This reminded me of some of the discussions on the board on show accessibility. They have a well put together show with moments throughout that will leave you smiling and clapping. OC had a swagger that I didn’t even see in SVC or BK tonight. Echo as the show is called uses back field playing quite a bit. As there was no back field, effect was not as apparent. Hornline was as strong as ever and very well balanced. Again, low brass are very strong and the trumpet soloist was not shy at all. The ballad piece again used very effective back field effects and ends with a great upper register trumpet solo. Drum break with bass drum solo was strong and a crowd pleaser. It has been done before so it makes it even more important in how you sell it and sell it they did. Strong players in the corps. As entertaining as and anyone on the field.

Seattle Cascades – I have seen a few scores on DCP and was wondering what to expect. As my screen name implies, I always have room for things that are down to earth and easy to catch and am not particularly fond of esoteric things that require a lot of explanation (except Spartacus librettos). BUT… I did enjoy the beginning of this show. I thought it got peoples attention and brought them into the show without a single note being played. They ended the show in the back right corner of the field. This was ok. I think to end in that way you need quite a bit in the middle and it is not there yet. Not enough highs and lows in this show. Sorry for not more on this but I pretty much only remember the beginning and end. Ahhh, that’s the problem.

Blue Knights – I have never been particular to the Knights repertoire but I think I could get into this. They seem to have quite a bit of demand in the show. Horn book is good and sounds as if it has lots of black on the pages. Visual seemed pretty fluid throughout the show. They certainly are moving more than I can ever remember from past shows. The slow number in the middle was the highlight for me. Beautiful and full of angst. Yep, I said it, angst. I would call it an angry ballad. BK seems to have a way of scoring these great moody slow pieces. Brass seemed as strong as SVC tonight. There is plenty of room for this show to grow.

SCV – I am judging them on all my past experiences but they seemed to be at about 75% tonight. Not quite the laser eyed controlled intensity SCV ^0^ that I am used to. Visual book stands out as more difficult than BK with more exposure; bigger sets and forms. Good to see them going this route. Horn book is good with notes everywhere. You can tell sections are strong but again they seemed reserved tonight. Never thought you’d hear reserved and SCV together in the same sentence huh? This is probably from changes in the show and getting comfortable. The pit had the typical solid performance with opportunity to shine. The drum line didn’t seem to lay it down as they normally do. Not sure if it’s the writing or execution. Guard looked solid with occasional drops here and there and there are well placed throws in the show. This show also has a great foundation and just needs some shine.

So, now onto the encore… Not sure what to make of it. OC and BK played together and it seemed to be approached as if you had them performing scales. “Let’s get it over and done with”.

OC encore was fun with Washington Post followed by Nena’s 99 Luftballons and something else I didn’t recognize. The crowd enjoyed those pieces and it was fun to see the kids in the corps really having a good time. Nothing is more rewarding than looking at the kids on the field and seeing uncontrollable smiles.

Oh yeah, did I mention? No amplified narration, oration, vocalese, singing, talking or rapping. b**bs

Bill

[chadwick]

Thanks for the review...its good to hear what is going on out west...haven't read too many reviews from those shows yet.