Corps at the Crest
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Mount San Antonio College -- Walnut, CA
Bro went ahead of me to Mt. SAC because I needed to sing in church beforehand. Therefore, he was there for SoCal Dream, City Sound, and Gold. Incognito was not present, and they were not at the Vista show the night before. I wonder if they're going as some other corps in disguise. ;) Bro called me to tell me about Incognito as I was pulling into the parking lot. Later, he told me that he did that not so much for my benefit, but to inform the annoying people near him that had no idea what was going on. His comment to me spread like wildfire, so I guess it was effective.
I walked through the gates just in time to see Revolution from the sidelines. They have a nice sound, but need to work on some of the colorguard stuff. Somebody in the CG was dressed in a big, black cape. I don't know what that was about, but their show is called "Fade to Black", with repertoire Liberty by S. Vai, Uprising by Muse, The Motive Revolution by E. Whitacre, Turbine by J. Mackey, and Tarantella (from Ethel) by P. Kline.
My seat was at the left 40-yard line, 18 rows up. Bro was seated more toward the center, 6 rows in front of me. We were in different places because Sherry was an idiot and only ordered one ticket for the show, even though she was supposed to buy 2 of them. (Sherry tends to discuss herself in 3rd person when she's being a nimrod in order to separate herself from the oh-so-objective writer).
IMPULSE
Repertoire: "United" -- America the Beautiful by S. A. Ward, Beyond the Breaking Tides by C. W. Earl, Songs of Earth, Water, Fire and Sky by R. W. Smith, Amber Waves by A. Gould, and Copland Finale (The Red Pony) by A. Copland
I like that Copland Finale, although I wasn't really appreciative of the Indian war chant thing, which I thought people didn't do anymore, out of respect for the Native Americans. I liked the percussion feature. Somebody lost a stick, and the judge threw it off of the field. A lot of patriotic songs. Am I watching the Troopers? What's with that circle opening up a la the Sunburst?
VELVET KNIGHTS
Repertoire: "Magical Mystery Tour -- 2010 Edition" -- I. England -- Magical Mystery Tour by P. McCartney and J. Lennon, II. The Caribbean/Latin America -- The Dance and They Kiss, End Titles (from Romancing the Stone) -- by A. Silvestri, III. India -- Jai Ho (from Slumdog Millionaire) by A.R. Rahman, G. Nama and T. Shah, IV. France -- La Vie en Rose by L. Guglielmi and E. Piaf; Overture (from Orpheus in the Underworld) by J. Offenbach
I like the bit with the soprano upstaging the mello. There seemed to be a bit that was channeling the Trash Can Trio, but with 4 tall drums. So would you call that a Trash Can Tetra? At that point, people had really red wigs, including the drum major, who had switched with the main one so that he could give a flower to the CG during La Vie En Rose. That sop guy thought that one of the flowers was for him and was amusingly swooning about it. They need to clean up the music during this ballad. The CG doesn't have their uniforms yet. It appears that the show isn't finished yet either, because it stopped abruptly, and I don't remember hearing the Offenbach.
INTERMISSION
I bought a program and checked out the souvie stands. Found a grey hoodie at the SCV stand that I like a lot. Thinking about it. As I was walking back to my seat, I overheard a woman, who was looking at the Mandarins at the gate: "Is that Vanguard?" Lady, those aren't even their colors!
MANDARINS
Repertoire: "To Dream of Far Away Lands": I. The Caravan -- Meetings Along the Edge by R. Shankar & P. Glass; II. To Dream of Far Away Lands -- The Mountain of Fruit and Flowers by D. Buckley; III. The Threat of Mongols/The Himalayas -- Samudra Manthan by S. Sharma; IV. Discovering India -- Quiet by S. Chandra, Ever So Lonely by Monsoon; V. Arrival in China -- Ambush from Ten Sides by Y. Ma
Recorded music played as they walked onto the field and set up. I thought that it was going to go away with the first real note, but no. Then I thought it would go away after the transition, but no. Then there was recorded singing. AUGH! If you're not going to come here and perform live, then I DO NOT want to hear you! I like the CG pants, and actually the whole outfit, including the cool turbans. But I'm way unhappy about the recorded crap. I was excited when I saw the program, thinking how nice it is that the 'Rins had returned to their Asian roots, and now this blech. Don't get me wrong. The music is gorgeous, but this is not the type of show that I want to see at a DCI competitive event.
THE ACADEMY
Repertoire: "Strangers in Paradise" -- Prince Igor Overture by A. Borodin, Aquarium (from Carnival of the Animals) by C. Saint-Saens, Selections from the Prince Igor Opera by A. Borodin, Polovtsian Dances and Chorus by A. Borodin
Bro called me to tell me that this is the first show for the CG to wear their uniforms, which are purple. I love that opening stance! Their music is VERY well done, as Bro told me. I'm annoyed by the synthesizer, but at least she's HERE playing her instrument. The kneeling soprano lost his/her balance when the CG was dancing around him/her. I like the part when the cymbal player appears to be chopping off the heads of the saber throwers one by one. They need to catch their sabers more, not just during the dangerous work. They also need to clean up their lines, but it's still early. So I guess that my issue right now is more visual than musical, except for that synthesizer. Oh, the Aquarium piece made me want to ride Space Mountain. I miss that soundtrack.
PACIFIC CREST
Repertoire: "Maze": I. We're Off! This is going to be Easy! -- Macchu Picchu by S. Yagisawa; II. Traps and Walls -- Asphalt Cocktail by J. Mackey; III. No Way Out -- Sam's Gone (from I Am Legend) -- by J. N. Howard; IV. We Made It! -- Turbine by J. Mackey
A CG gal got her flag caught in the yellow cord of her uniform. This made me wonder why they needed to wear them at all, but they eventually untwisted them and used them like in rhythmic gymnastics. Nice, full sound. The bass drum ensemble got nice applause after their solo. I like the visual of the people getting stuck in the wrong places. What caused that big gasp by some of the people at the end? Neither Bro nor I saw anything that would warrant that, so I don't know if anyone fell down or what it was.
BLUE DEVILS
Repertoire: "Through a Glass, Darkly" -- Conflict by P. Rugolo, Mirage by P. Rugolo, Trajectories by F. Marke, Incident in Jazz By B. Graettinger, Laura by D. Raksin, City of Glass Suite I by B. Graettinger, La Suerte De Los Tontos by J. Richards
At first, when I saw the color guard uniforms, I thought, "Oh, dear." Each CG outfit had multiple neon colors. EACH of them. Yikes. But in the end, they weren't really that much of a distraction. Maybe it's because there were so many mirrors being wheeled around. 36 of them. Not small ones, but like, 7-8 feet tall ones. The guys next to me thought that maybe they were supposed to be in a ballet class because they were looking at themselves during warm-up, but I didn't feel like correcting them by showing them the program. I was not feeling sociable with the strangers. So back to the mirrors. Do they have to have a separate truck just to transport all of those everywhere? What if someone hits the mirror with whatever they threw in the air? Do they have to clean it all up before they go on so as not to get glass on people's feet? I need to check as to whether or not the CG is actually wearing good shoes for this show. I love the opening crash sound while they reveal the black and white flags. Those flags are later shown in color toward the end of the show. I also liked the effect of the drummers standing in front of the mirror, stepping to the side, and another identical drummer is on the other side without the mirrors. This show was just AWESOME. I loved the soprano jazz duet. Those sopranos are killers. I was happy that they played a lot of the theme from "Laura", since it fit the theme of my summer. The percussion feature was amazing, as well as was the big horn run. I heart when BD does jazz.
SANTA CLARA VANGUARD
Repertoire: "Bartok" -- Concerto for Orchestra and Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste by B. Bartok
The announcer messed up while saying the name of the corps, which made everyone want a do-over, but that didn't happen, so the corps got to hear "boo"s that were not directed toward them. The CG uniforms match my sparkly ruby red nail polish. :) I love seeing the corps' plumes fluttering in the wind. The drum majors' plumes are BIG and RED. I'm going to be confused on Finals Night. I thought that maybe their show wasn't finished because it ended abruptly and people didn't know if they should clap, but Bro says that the actual piece ends like that, so I wonder even more now. The complete show was not performed the night before, so it sounds like they're still working out the ending. I like those horns, especially the contrast between the high and low brass. The music is a little muddy but nice. I like the lone traditional marching snare. I don't know why they needed pianists in the pit. Can't the marimbas play that part? Visually, I liked seeing them jump up "like popcorn", according to one of my neighbors. I also liked when they were all gathered in a circle and lifted up the one CG gal. I liked all of the tension in the music. Ya gotta love Bartok.
ENCORE
This was done during the final tabulation of the scores, instead of after the awards ceremony. I like that it is done this way, since for most of these shows during the regular season, the performer for the encore is pre-determined.
Pacific Crest
"The Way You Look Tonight" for warm-up
Selections from "Maze" -- I'm liking the music for this show
Corps anthem "Ave Maris Stella" -- PC never disappoints me when they play their song. Happy sigh.
SCORES
All-Age Corps
Recognition to So Cal Dream (we think they were on DCA scoring sheets): 65.75
Open Class
5) 59.30 City Sound
4) 61.75 Velvet Knights (they had a plush shark during the ceremony)
3) 67.50 Revolution
2) 70.00 Impulse
1) 72.35 Gold (I remember when they were from Hawthorne and tiny. I'm looking forward to seeing their show on Monday)
World Class
5) 66.95 Mandarins
4) 70.05 Pacific Crest
3) 72.60 The Academy
At this point, the guys next to me said, "This should be interesting. Music vs. Mirrors."
2) 80.25 Santa Clara Vanguard
1) 83.30 Blue Devils
Bro and I drove to our parents' house afterward for some family weekend fun.
Next up: Rose Bowl
I walked through the gates just in time to see Revolution from the sidelines. They have a nice sound, but need to work on some of the colorguard stuff. Somebody in the CG was dressed in a big, black cape. I don't know what that was about, but their show is called "Fade to Black", with repertoire Liberty by S. Vai, Uprising by Muse, The Motive Revolution by E. Whitacre, Turbine by J. Mackey, and Tarantella (from Ethel) by P. Kline.
My seat was at the left 40-yard line, 18 rows up. Bro was seated more toward the center, 6 rows in front of me. We were in different places because Sherry was an idiot and only ordered one ticket for the show, even though she was supposed to buy 2 of them. (Sherry tends to discuss herself in 3rd person when she's being a nimrod in order to separate herself from the oh-so-objective writer).
IMPULSE
Repertoire: "United" -- America the Beautiful by S. A. Ward, Beyond the Breaking Tides by C. W. Earl, Songs of Earth, Water, Fire and Sky by R. W. Smith, Amber Waves by A. Gould, and Copland Finale (The Red Pony) by A. Copland
I like that Copland Finale, although I wasn't really appreciative of the Indian war chant thing, which I thought people didn't do anymore, out of respect for the Native Americans. I liked the percussion feature. Somebody lost a stick, and the judge threw it off of the field. A lot of patriotic songs. Am I watching the Troopers? What's with that circle opening up a la the Sunburst?
VELVET KNIGHTS
Repertoire: "Magical Mystery Tour -- 2010 Edition" -- I. England -- Magical Mystery Tour by P. McCartney and J. Lennon, II. The Caribbean/Latin America -- The Dance and They Kiss, End Titles (from Romancing the Stone) -- by A. Silvestri, III. India -- Jai Ho (from Slumdog Millionaire) by A.R. Rahman, G. Nama and T. Shah, IV. France -- La Vie en Rose by L. Guglielmi and E. Piaf; Overture (from Orpheus in the Underworld) by J. Offenbach
I like the bit with the soprano upstaging the mello. There seemed to be a bit that was channeling the Trash Can Trio, but with 4 tall drums. So would you call that a Trash Can Tetra? At that point, people had really red wigs, including the drum major, who had switched with the main one so that he could give a flower to the CG during La Vie En Rose. That sop guy thought that one of the flowers was for him and was amusingly swooning about it. They need to clean up the music during this ballad. The CG doesn't have their uniforms yet. It appears that the show isn't finished yet either, because it stopped abruptly, and I don't remember hearing the Offenbach.
INTERMISSION
I bought a program and checked out the souvie stands. Found a grey hoodie at the SCV stand that I like a lot. Thinking about it. As I was walking back to my seat, I overheard a woman, who was looking at the Mandarins at the gate: "Is that Vanguard?" Lady, those aren't even their colors!
MANDARINS
Repertoire: "To Dream of Far Away Lands": I. The Caravan -- Meetings Along the Edge by R. Shankar & P. Glass; II. To Dream of Far Away Lands -- The Mountain of Fruit and Flowers by D. Buckley; III. The Threat of Mongols/The Himalayas -- Samudra Manthan by S. Sharma; IV. Discovering India -- Quiet by S. Chandra, Ever So Lonely by Monsoon; V. Arrival in China -- Ambush from Ten Sides by Y. Ma
Recorded music played as they walked onto the field and set up. I thought that it was going to go away with the first real note, but no. Then I thought it would go away after the transition, but no. Then there was recorded singing. AUGH! If you're not going to come here and perform live, then I DO NOT want to hear you! I like the CG pants, and actually the whole outfit, including the cool turbans. But I'm way unhappy about the recorded crap. I was excited when I saw the program, thinking how nice it is that the 'Rins had returned to their Asian roots, and now this blech. Don't get me wrong. The music is gorgeous, but this is not the type of show that I want to see at a DCI competitive event.
THE ACADEMY
Repertoire: "Strangers in Paradise" -- Prince Igor Overture by A. Borodin, Aquarium (from Carnival of the Animals) by C. Saint-Saens, Selections from the Prince Igor Opera by A. Borodin, Polovtsian Dances and Chorus by A. Borodin
Bro called me to tell me that this is the first show for the CG to wear their uniforms, which are purple. I love that opening stance! Their music is VERY well done, as Bro told me. I'm annoyed by the synthesizer, but at least she's HERE playing her instrument. The kneeling soprano lost his/her balance when the CG was dancing around him/her. I like the part when the cymbal player appears to be chopping off the heads of the saber throwers one by one. They need to catch their sabers more, not just during the dangerous work. They also need to clean up their lines, but it's still early. So I guess that my issue right now is more visual than musical, except for that synthesizer. Oh, the Aquarium piece made me want to ride Space Mountain. I miss that soundtrack.
PACIFIC CREST
Repertoire: "Maze": I. We're Off! This is going to be Easy! -- Macchu Picchu by S. Yagisawa; II. Traps and Walls -- Asphalt Cocktail by J. Mackey; III. No Way Out -- Sam's Gone (from I Am Legend) -- by J. N. Howard; IV. We Made It! -- Turbine by J. Mackey
A CG gal got her flag caught in the yellow cord of her uniform. This made me wonder why they needed to wear them at all, but they eventually untwisted them and used them like in rhythmic gymnastics. Nice, full sound. The bass drum ensemble got nice applause after their solo. I like the visual of the people getting stuck in the wrong places. What caused that big gasp by some of the people at the end? Neither Bro nor I saw anything that would warrant that, so I don't know if anyone fell down or what it was.
BLUE DEVILS
Repertoire: "Through a Glass, Darkly" -- Conflict by P. Rugolo, Mirage by P. Rugolo, Trajectories by F. Marke, Incident in Jazz By B. Graettinger, Laura by D. Raksin, City of Glass Suite I by B. Graettinger, La Suerte De Los Tontos by J. Richards
At first, when I saw the color guard uniforms, I thought, "Oh, dear." Each CG outfit had multiple neon colors. EACH of them. Yikes. But in the end, they weren't really that much of a distraction. Maybe it's because there were so many mirrors being wheeled around. 36 of them. Not small ones, but like, 7-8 feet tall ones. The guys next to me thought that maybe they were supposed to be in a ballet class because they were looking at themselves during warm-up, but I didn't feel like correcting them by showing them the program. I was not feeling sociable with the strangers. So back to the mirrors. Do they have to have a separate truck just to transport all of those everywhere? What if someone hits the mirror with whatever they threw in the air? Do they have to clean it all up before they go on so as not to get glass on people's feet? I need to check as to whether or not the CG is actually wearing good shoes for this show. I love the opening crash sound while they reveal the black and white flags. Those flags are later shown in color toward the end of the show. I also liked the effect of the drummers standing in front of the mirror, stepping to the side, and another identical drummer is on the other side without the mirrors. This show was just AWESOME. I loved the soprano jazz duet. Those sopranos are killers. I was happy that they played a lot of the theme from "Laura", since it fit the theme of my summer. The percussion feature was amazing, as well as was the big horn run. I heart when BD does jazz.
SANTA CLARA VANGUARD
Repertoire: "Bartok" -- Concerto for Orchestra and Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste by B. Bartok
The announcer messed up while saying the name of the corps, which made everyone want a do-over, but that didn't happen, so the corps got to hear "boo"s that were not directed toward them. The CG uniforms match my sparkly ruby red nail polish. :) I love seeing the corps' plumes fluttering in the wind. The drum majors' plumes are BIG and RED. I'm going to be confused on Finals Night. I thought that maybe their show wasn't finished because it ended abruptly and people didn't know if they should clap, but Bro says that the actual piece ends like that, so I wonder even more now. The complete show was not performed the night before, so it sounds like they're still working out the ending. I like those horns, especially the contrast between the high and low brass. The music is a little muddy but nice. I like the lone traditional marching snare. I don't know why they needed pianists in the pit. Can't the marimbas play that part? Visually, I liked seeing them jump up "like popcorn", according to one of my neighbors. I also liked when they were all gathered in a circle and lifted up the one CG gal. I liked all of the tension in the music. Ya gotta love Bartok.
ENCORE
This was done during the final tabulation of the scores, instead of after the awards ceremony. I like that it is done this way, since for most of these shows during the regular season, the performer for the encore is pre-determined.
Pacific Crest
"The Way You Look Tonight" for warm-up
Selections from "Maze" -- I'm liking the music for this show
Corps anthem "Ave Maris Stella" -- PC never disappoints me when they play their song. Happy sigh.
SCORES
All-Age Corps
Recognition to So Cal Dream (we think they were on DCA scoring sheets): 65.75
Open Class
5) 59.30 City Sound
4) 61.75 Velvet Knights (they had a plush shark during the ceremony)
3) 67.50 Revolution
2) 70.00 Impulse
1) 72.35 Gold (I remember when they were from Hawthorne and tiny. I'm looking forward to seeing their show on Monday)
World Class
5) 66.95 Mandarins
4) 70.05 Pacific Crest
3) 72.60 The Academy
At this point, the guys next to me said, "This should be interesting. Music vs. Mirrors."
2) 80.25 Santa Clara Vanguard
1) 83.30 Blue Devils
Bro and I drove to our parents' house afterward for some family weekend fun.
Next up: Rose Bowl
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