Secrets and Corps in the Valley

 Western Corps Connection

Sunday, July 2, 2023

San Bernardino Valley College

San Bernardino, CA

Bro and I woke up and had hotel breakfast.  We ate outside where it was nice and cool.  We decided to enjoy cool weather for as long as possible before going Inland.  I blogged for a little while until it was time for us to go to the movie theater to see "Indiana Jones: Dial of Destiny".  

Popcorn at the ready!

Our fancy reclining seats even had seat warmers!  I didn't really need that, but I thought that was a great idea for those of us that get really cold in the theater.  Afterward, we ate a late lunch at Chiji's, and I enjoyed this Watermelon Patron.

Refreshing!

We drove to the college, and discovered that the gravel lot where we usually park was under construction to be a parking structure.  While this was good news for future years, we couldn't find a lot that had spectator parking.  We asked somebody that was guarding an entrance for a lot, and she instructed to go around to some other place, but we couldn't find wherever she was telling us to go. We ended up going into a driveway that turned out to be the same lot where we tried to go into before, but it was the back way and she couldn't see us.  Oh, well.  Why can't these places think of the parking for the spectators when they book these places?!?

The DCI marketplace was right there, and I bought a BD anime shirt.  We also looked through the Academy's clearance bin, but didn't find anything we liked.  The organizers had put out some chairs and tables in the shade, so we sat there while I told Dodie where to park, and just basically told Rudy that parking was a mess, because he always parks somewhere else at this venue and I don't know where that is.  Dodie arrived very shortly after, and we sat in the shade while Bro walked to watch the corps warm up.  I entered the gate and bought a program while Dodie did her shopping.  There still wasn't a Mandarins booth, and I figured that they wanted to save their merch until their own show because they are celebrating their 60th anniversary.  But then they're already missing out on money from 3 California shows, and with this weird schedule, they will also miss revenue from the Rose Bowl show.  We'll see what happens next week.

Our seats were in Section 3, Row R, seats 15-18, on the right 40-yard line. 

The Freelancers played a few tunes, with a lot of sopranos battling for highest note.

Freelancers 

 

Rudy joined us, and as we were waiting, I wanted to take a selfie of the 3 of us in the stands.  The woman sitting behind me tried to duck, but I told her that I would erase her so it would all be OK.  The camera app chose to erase everyone else behind us except that lady, but I could still change history and take her out of there.  

I think we're alone now

The Star-Spangled Banner was a recording of a male a capella vocal group.  Thank you for the a capella, but I would have liked to hear someone perform live instead.

I was happy to see that the repertoire I was missing in the first show was listed in this program, so I can add the missing ones here.

GOLDEN EMPIRE

Repertoire: "Serpentine" -- Sensemaya by S. Revueltas; La Noche de los Mayas by S. Revueltas; Inframundo by L. E. T. Goransson & S. Ogarrio; Unholy by I. Salmanzadeh, K. Petras, S.F. Smith, J. Napes, O. Fedi, H.R. Walter, and B. Slatkin

I told Dodie to try to find the snake because Rudy and I couldn't find it last night.  She didn't see it either.  Good rifle work!  I like the contra feature.

Beginning of GE Show

IMPULSE

I didn't hear that opening chord, but I wasn't paying attention.  Hey, the drum major got a new aviator bomber jacket!  Nice!  Music was much better today.  Good guard work today!  

Cool patches!

Rifle Toss

I like those jumpsuits

VESSEL

Repertoire: "The Dark (K)night" -- Original compositions by R. Dulaney, F. Smith IV, and B. Nungaray

I don't know why I didn't notice yesterday that they only have 2 color guard.  I must have been busy counting drummers.  They sounded better today.

Vessel Drummers

Bro joined us at this point so that he could see the cute kids.

BLUE DEVILS C

I like all of their flags, and the bird wings are fun.  Rudy giggled about the little trumpeter now having green hair.  

Battle!

Color Guard

Love those drum wraps!

GOLD

OK, maybe those are arrows?  So I totally lost track of the puppet master in all of the hullabaloo.  Nice dance solo up on the platform.  Dodie really liked this show.

Puppetmaster

I like all of that red

Brass

BLUE DEVILS B

Spirit fingers!  I like those black flags with the gold edges, even though I don't know what they represent.  Great music again.

Beginning of BD-B Show

Electricity, Electricity

Tesla Coil

Cool flags, whatever they are

<Intermission>

Earlier, I noticed that was an elevator behind us.  I used the steps of the stands to go to the restroom, but found my way to the elevator so that I didn't need to fight the crowds when I came back, nor did I need to go up stairs.  

I found the secret elevator!

Not wanting to erase history again that night, I asked my companions to take a selfie with me overlooking the field.

Smiles because it's not sunny anymore

PACIFIC CREST

Dodie asked me if there would be mermaids in this show.  I didn't want to say anything because my blog hadn't been published yet, and she also said earlier that she didn't want any spoilers.  The PC alumnus behind me said that this is a show about the birth of Aphrodite.  Aha, as she rose up out of a rock!  "I LOVE YOU ROBERT!!!!!"  OK, I don't know who Robert is, but the woman whom I erased before was very loud and offered to yell out for whomever had a kid in the corps, because her kids already aged out. Rudy wanted to join in, and when she counted down, a bunch of us joined her.  Then we laughed and wondered how embarrassed Robert felt at that moment.  I liked the show much better today.  I like the flag work at the end, as well as the gossamer silks.

Gossamer Silks Being Flung

ACADEMY

Repertoire: "Sol Et Luna: Until Our Next Eclipse" -- Act I: Sun & Moon by R.E. Adamsons & F.E. Smith; Act II: Cant' Help Falling in Love by L. Creatore; Act III: Fate Written in the Stars by R.E. Adamsons & F.E. Smith; Act IV: Rocket to the Moon by T. Bergerson

I tried to get a picture of the show with the full moon per Bro's suggestions, but the moon had risen a little and it was too high to get a good one.  The horns need cleaning, but the music is nice. Oh, that's not "And So It Goes".  Oops.  

Super Moon

Super Moon overlooking Academy
before entering the field

Mandarins' prop?

A is for Academy!

MANDARINS

Ooh, I like that drum major salute!  Dodie didn't think they could move around much in their white robes.  I told her to give it time.  I can't get over those solos/duets/ensembles!  

D: "Wow.  Just wow."  (She hadn't even read my blog from yesterday, but she had the same reaction!)

Setting Up the Show

Red and White

Red Drums

BLUE DEVILS

Nice opening with the solo sabre.  The guard is soooo good!  I love the way that the soprano quartet starts things off in the last piece so the whole horn section is wow.  

BD Drums

Dance Break!

Hey, they changed their uniforms!

Scores

Open Class:

6) 49.50 Blue Devils C

5) 52.20 Impulse

4) 53.80 Vessel

3) 55.70 Golden Empire

2) 61.55 Gold

1) 61.90 Blue Devils B

World Class:

4) 64.15 Pacific Crest

3) 65.35 Academy

2) 73.20 Mandarins

1) 79.15 Blue Devils

We took the secret elevator down and said goodbye to Rudy.  Dodie walked with us to the lot, and when she clicked on her key to find her car, we realized that she had parked right next to us.  Duh, Dodie!  :)

Bro drove us home and I checked scores from the other competitions that night. BD still has the highest score.  There they go again!

Next up: Back in the Bowl