Blue Devils..............85.8 - (all captions) Santa Clara Vanguard.....83.2 Div 2 Mandarins................78.3 - (Vis, GE) Pacific Crest............78.1 - (Horns, Drums) Blue Devils B............73.9 SC Vanguard Cadets.......67.8 Earthquake...............67.6 West Coast Sound.........56.5 Thanks to A Ples for emailing us these scores!
Whether Blue Devils win nationals depends on their drum line. They are aware of this too. Notice how they tune their snare drums. They're using the heads that produce a sort of dull, muddled sound. Very un-exposed. You know they're playing pretty well, but you're not sure if it's really clean or not. Vanguard uses the heads that produce a tight, crisp sound that's very exposed (Falsams I think). Blue Devils have been beaten in drums already by Vanguard [Editor's note: At this contest it was announced that SCV had won the drums caption. This later proved to be incorrect, BD has only lost drums to Cavies.] and Cavies. The positive side of their show is that they are marching really well and the horn line is superb. One of the best, if not the best, they've ever had. The guard doesn't seem to be quite at the level that they have been in past years at this time of the season though. There's a lot of talent there, their just not as impressive as past years. If they can beat on this drum line and clean them by August 16, they will probably win. If not, it's hello Cadets.
Vanguard has definitely moved up a notch this year. Maybe it's because of the new director. Maybe it's because of the kids they picked up from the Velvet Knights. Maybe it's both. What ever it is, their show is really starting to click. I think they could end up top three. The drum line, hornline and guard are all executing better than they have been for a number of years. Marching is still a little dirty, but wait until they clean it. This is the best drill they've had in a lot of years. I think this is the best drill they've had since the 70's or early 80's. The guard has a lot of potential too. They are already executing at a level better than most of last season. Carol Ahabotab (27th Lancers) will take them far this year. I noticed Denise Bonfiglio (27th Lancers) working with them at practice yesterday. She should make a big difference in their final outcome. Vanguard has a kind of overwhelming show this year. Everything is coming together at the right time. Not like that sissy Le Mer show from last year or the bizarre hypnotic pinwheel show from the year before. Firing that last director may have been the best thing they've ever done. Vanguard is back.
Recaps - July 6, 1997, Santa Barbara, CA
Thanks to Keith Higgins for emailing us these recaps! Corps MusGE VisGE Total MusEn VisEn Total Brass Perc Vis. Total | Total West Coast Sound 10.3 11.2 21.5 9.1 9.3 18.4 5.8 4.7 6.1 16.6 56.5 Earthquake 12.6 13.0 25.6 11.1 10.2 21.3 7.1 6.5 7.1 20.7 67.6 SCVanguard Cadets 12.2 12.3 24.5 10.9 11.1 22.0 7.6 6.1 7.6 21.3 67.8 Blue Devils "B" 15.0 14.1 29.1 11.6 12.0 23.6 7.2 7.4 6.6 21.2 73.9 Mandarin 15.1 14.7 29.8 12.3 12.5 24.8 8.4 7.0 8.3 23.7 78.3 Pacific Crest 15.4 14.3 29.7 12.4 11.9 24.3 8.8 7.5 7.8 24.1 78.1 SC Vanguard 16.6 17.0 33.6 12.6 12.4 25.0 8.7 8.1 7.8 24.6 83.2 Blue Devils 17.1 17.4 34.5 13.2 12.8 26.0 8.9 8.2 8.2 25.3 85.8 GE Music: Keith Higgins GE Visual: David Weinberg Ens Music: Mark Petrash Ens Visual: Tom Wuetrich Brass Perf: Key Poulan Perc Perf: Tom Tolbert Visual Perf: Chris Szabo
Bluecoats................77.1 Carolina Crown...........72.2 Boston Crusaders.........66.5 Kiwanis Kavaliers........65.9 Les 'Etoiles.............64.8 Spirit of Atlanta........63.6 Div II/III Tarheel Sun..............72.4 Jersey Surf..............66.6 Raiders..................66.2 Thanks to J Clarke Williams for emailing us these scores!
All Corps were in exhibition.
Well, sad as it is, this was my first drum corps show of the summer. I'm taking the summer off, but will probably see more shows next summer being that I'll "rejoin the world of drum corps!" Enough about that, here's how it goes:
Grant Wood City Drum Corps: This, if the show was scored, old have been the exhibition for the show. Pretty good for youngsters, some real nice drummers actually. This was a real jr. corps with kids around six playing small toy drums. There were no horns at all. That and this is more of a community YMCA type organization, so the benefits reaped here by the kids is a definite plus.
Mirage: Their write-up wasn't the right thing for them to be doing. It probably made the crowd expect more of them. Good show though. Horns had great harmonies and arrangements were fairly well written for a small corps. Drums had a good tightness but they fell apart sometimes, and cymbal players weren't together for most of the show. They did need a drum major, though. They did the show without one for half of the time. Caravan (their closer) was simply counted off and started, but soon a clearly noticeable tempo change took place. And it was one of those changes that I'm sure wasn't written in. Now, drum major corps are very brave and probably need to take more time with their music in order to become tight with each other and the tempo.
Colt Cadets: Ah, the cadets. My family of three years. Yeah, I was a baritone in the corps. Well, was I in for a shock. NEW UNIFORMS. Nicer than those when I was in! Music was good, as one could easily see. Plenty of new faces were present on the field. The only advice I could offer was that those guys take a closer look at their horns and be sure of which note is which, how it sounds, and what the fingering is. I remember being quite unsure about those things when I was in my 1st year. The show, Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory, had some good arranging and strong players. Drill was real good, but I didn't have a higher view to see the formations. I had that one seat where you can see some forms and others you can't see. Other highlights: Sopranos Mike and Bart hit a very clear high C with ease. Good one guys! And Percussionist Alex (a young dude) was right on with his part and still managed to dance with the music quite well.
Kilties: I didn't get to see much of them but they did sound as thought they came a long way in one year. That is really cool. They did the R. Smith works based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Maybe you've heard of them if you're a drum corps fan. (sarcasm) They were one of two corps to do it tonight. I like the piece, but have played and heard it so much that it doesn't do a whole lot for me any more. But the Kilties, who last year were cute, made a statement in Dubuque this year, that jives with me.
Blue Stars: ALSO did Smith's works on the Divine Comedy. This I also didn't get to see much of. Also sounded great, and the color from the field was lost this year. The Stars had their usual uniform this year, and guard had black leotards and a tu-tu. So I wasn't very impressed with the visual aspect of the show.
Capital Sound: You have to give them credit for fact that their warm up is one of the best in corps-dom! Most of you probably know that the entire corps (including directors) gets on the field and dances to a Stan Kenton tune. The show was pretty good, I wasn't sure of what it was since the program said nothing of their repertoire. But nonetheless, arrangements were excellent. The show from what I thought I heard was semi-jazz with Sit down, you're rockin' the boat (please don't yell if I'm wrong!) and a real good percussion break was also prevalent in the show. Hats off to the 'Sound!
Phantom Regiment: I, unlike other reviews I've seen, will not comment on Ms. Spears' outfit. I don't think she appreciates that kind of stuff, that is if she reads these reviews. The show was nothing less than phenomenal. Good stuff! The drill (from the [crummy] seats where I sat) was very good, even at this point. I only saw one slight curve to a straight line at the very end. Lots of good percussion ideas and great pure sounds poured out of the horns. I am all too sure that show will grow to be an emotional piece as they venture throughout the season. (Not that it wasn't already, but I didn't know what to expect the first time.) I think I like last years' uniform better but that doesn't make much of a difference to me. I loved the show and wish them nuttin' but luck in DCI!
Glassmen: Hey I didn't schedule the show, I just attended it. (These reviews are in order of appearance.) I liked this one, as opposed to their shows of past years, a real nice classical show. Drill, perc, and horns struck a chord with me this year. They pleased my ear, real nice stuff going on here this year. The ladders were, for once, a pretty useful prop. Well kinda. It did provide different heights and places for the guard work to take place. But kind of useless otherwise. And the guard uniforms and guard work didn't seem to jive with that of Bizet's music. It looked almost cheerleader-ish to tell the truth. Otherwise I would say that Top 12 looks very likely for the Glassmen. Just do a bit with the guard.
Colts: AW YEAH! When they promised a return to "crowd pleasing" show, they gave you that and a side order of FUNK, baby!! Now I'm gonna get a bit technical for a second: The drum set: (I'm also a drummer, so...) I couldn't hear the drums a whole lot but toms sounded nice. Bass drum could have a bit more attack (perhaps a harder beater) and snare was not audible whatsoever. But if they want a snare sound at all (it all sounds perfectly nice without a snare sound) they should change to a 1-ply head or take off the internal muffler. If they don't already, the drums should probably have 1-ply heads on everything. END TECHNICAL PART. Excellent and delicious warm-up, and I DID make the connection with Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida and BS&T, the group hinted at that Iron Butterfly song in one of their songs once. The soloists do very nicely, better than I've seen for a while. Arrangements stick a little too true to the BST songs. The arranging could use a bit of straying from the original works. Symphony for the Devil doesn't fit very well with the other pieces. But it is technically very well done and well pulled off. Gods Bless The Child fares well and can get to you (in a good way though) 40,000 Headmen is nice but two rather slow tempo songs (three if you want to count HiDeHo) doesn't work quite as well with Blood, Sweat and Tears as it would with music by maybe some band like Chicago. Lucretia Mc Evil is good but in my opinion should be the closing piece. Horns are much stronger than they were last year with Magnificat. Drums have a very pure jazz feel with the music and provide real nice fills that stay even true-er to jazz convictions. Nice percussive efforts with the toms on God Bless and everyone looks like they're having too much fun with it. The front ensemble having some of the most fun I think. (Especially Ms. Erica) That's all I can stand to type, see you on the field and/or in the stands!
CRA
The weather tonight was clear and very pleasant. After the show the Colts arced up on the field and did an encore performance. The hornline sounded great and LOUD up close.
Due to recent financial difficulties, the Colts opted not to pay the $2000+ required for judges, and for the first time held Music on the March as an exhibition. The absence of judges didn't bother me in the slightest. Comments are in the order of each corps' appearance.
Grant Wood All City Drum Corps:
This is strictly a YMCA type exhibition group. No bugles, just kids ranging
from their teens to about 5 years old with drums and flags--very cute. Of
course, for the most part the show was somewhat lacking in the execution
department, but that's not really the point. I was pleasantly surprised,
however, by the section of the show where some of the kids sit down at drum
kits and take short solos; two of those kids laid down some serious BEATS!
Mirage:
This is a relatively young and small corps, and, taking that into
consideration, I think that they did a good job tonight. They're playing a
mix of jazz standards this year. The arrangements are appropriate for the
small hornline, and they play with a pretty good balance between the
instruments. Their foot technique looked relatively uniform.
Colt Cadets:
Cute, as usual. The arrangements of tunes from "Willy Wonka and the
Chocolate Factory" seem relatively well done--in my opinion, a bit better
than what the Colt Cadets have done in the past. The new uniforms look a
LOT better than the old ones. I do wish that this corps would get some
drums actually out on the field, though I don't forsee that ever happening.
Decorah Kilties:
Only in their second year, I'm impressed with how well this corps seems to
be doing. They're playing Smith's _Divine Comedy_. I love the guard
uniforms: they begin the show wearing black robes with sickle-shaped flags,
and later remove them to reveal entirely white outfits underneath. Some
pretty noticeable problems in the hornline and drumline, but, hey, this
corps is young and looks like they are headed in a good direction.
Blue Stars:
The last time I'd seen the Blue Stars was when I marched corps in 1994; our
soprano line was larger than their entire hornline then. So when I saw
their much bigger corps tonight, I was very pleasantly surprised. And when
they started playing, I wasn't let down. Also doing Smith's _Divine
Comedy_, they had a great show tonight. The horns just sound really
pleasant, and are pretty clean. The drumline is fairly large (7 snares, 4
tenors, 3 basses), and plays very well. The feet look good as usual. I
don't really get a chance to follow Div. II-III corps much, but I'll guess
that this show is a shoe-in for Div. II Finals in Orlando. Perhaps a contender?
Capital Sound:
These guys looked good. I'm not exactly sure what they played, since it
wasn't printed in the program--some jazz standards and such. Marching,
guard, horns, and drums seemed all pretty good.
Phantom Regiment:
The Wagner music works well for them. The show looks very good already.
Drill is pretty clean, and the hornline has the same rich, dark tone that
they had last year. The drumline doesn't seem as good as last year's, but I
didn't see Phantom until August last year, and I'm not really a drummer, so
I may be wrong. The guard seems to be doing well. Perhaps this show is a
contender, though I'm not really sure, as I didn't think that last year's
was when I first saw it. I'll dissent with what seems to be the consensus
and say that I don't like Kristy's uniform. True, she is a very attractive
young woman, but I don't think the uniform goes with the look of the rest of
the corps. The musicians' uniforms look so dark and imposing, and the DM
uniform just doesn't fit the look.
Glassmen:
I hadn't seen a Glassmen show since 1992 that I'd liked, but I like this
year's. The Bizet music works well, and is arranged more-or-less
traditionally--which is probably why I like it (their 1995 contemporary
arrangements of sacred music just didn't click with me). I really don't
understand the ladders. The corps is vastly better than last years, with
all sections looking good. I'm especially impressed with their
drumline--they're smokin'! I'll be very surprised if this show doesn't make
top 12. I doff my hat to the G-men for this year's show.
Colts:
Well, the Colts are just TOO LOUD this year! This show shouldn't be scoring
over 60, it's so loud! Disgraceful.
Um... no. In case you haven't heard, Yes, the Colts ARE loud this year. Feel it in your b*lls loud, in fact. It's drum corps, so this is a good thing. The Colts got off to a rough start this year, but it looks like things are now starting to fall into place. You didn't think that the staff wasn't going to ever FIX anything, did you? I don't think the brassline is *quite* as good as last year's excellent line, but they're far from bad, and, Lord, can they put out some volume. And, Yes, they are no longer playing at only "loud" and "louder" volume levels. The drum line is MUCH better than last year's, thanks in large part to the almost completely new drum staff. I don't think that the guard is as good as they were last season, but they're alright. I'm down on the biker chick look, however. The BS&T music works very well (and it matches Chuck Naffier's hair!), and I'll venture to guess that this will be one of the most entertaining shows in Orlando this year. I love the new on field warmup that the brassline uses. It starts out like the old "Twin Peaks" one, but then goes into the main riff from "Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida". It's funny and LOUD!
Don't count the Colts out of Finals just yet. The corps is much better than I was lead to believe from reading all of the negative reviews on RAMD; I don't know what all the fuss was about. The Colts DO know what they are doing, and this is a great show!
Richard Mills
Division III Quest (NY)...............60.4 Phoenix (NJ).............56.0 Illusion (PA)............55.1 (1.5 penalty/short show) First Baptist (NY).......49.9 (1.0 penalty) Lucas (NY)...............48.7 (2.0 penalty) Latin Knights (NY).......47.9 (2.0 penalty) First Defenders (SNJ)....47.3 (1.3 penalty) Bracken (PA).............39.7 ( .9 penalty) Standstill Class Imperial Guardsmen (NJ)..62.1 Thanks to Bob Fields on r.a.m.d for these scores!
East Coast Jazz..........79.8 Spartans.................77.3 Patriots.................74.6 Knight Storm.............69.6 Phoenix..................67.3 Spectrum.................63.9 Thanks to Bob on r.a.m.d for these scores!
Madison Scouts...........78.4 Americanos...............52.0 Phantom Regiment Cadets..48.2 Golden Lancers...........45.8 Cincinnati Glory.........37.3 Coachmen.................37.0 Thanks to Bert F. Barnes III on r.a.m.d for these scores!
Delta Brigade............47.3 Marion Cadets............46.7 Bluegrass Brass Sr.......42.4 Edmonton Strutters.......37.2 Memorial Lancers.........34.5 Wabash Crusaders.........26.2 Bandettes ...............25.2 Thanks to Bert F. Barnes III on r.a.m.d for these scores!
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