Wow, just wow...after what I just heard I may want to retire from the activity today. I know it's early in the season, and I know it's February, but the mp3's that I just listened to were enough to make me pack up my horn and mouthpiece forever and forget that I ever even heard of this activity called drum corps.
Yes them mp3's that I heard were that bad. Timing and intonation all over the map, individuals that didn't know how to control their sound at high or low volume levels, and no low brass presence what so ever. What happened to the days of good powerful hornlines? I guess those are over.
So I am bit critical of these mp3's I just heard. One hornline has the potential to sound really nice and put you to sleep. Another has way too many notes for weekend drum corps, but these days cleanliness is measured by how difficult your visual book is and how close you get to being together instead of how good you actually sound and play together. I am not sying go back to the tick system, but if something is dirty, then it's dirty don't give it the highest marks. A spade is still a spade, not a diamond because it is harder to draw.
I listened to most of the groups that were in the top 5 last year and their progress to this point this year. In my opinion, it's not good and it needs a lot more work then the products that have been turned out for the past 2 or 3 years by these same groups. There is a reason why we didn't post mp3's yet, because we want it to sound perfect first. We recorded some but because of a missed release or someone overblowing they aren't going to be posted. we didn't record last camp, although we should have because it sounded pretty good, and there were minimal mental errors.
Again I know it's only February and most of the recording that I heard were from January, but seriously folks try to show a bit of control and some musicianship when you are playing. Some of the sounds that I just heard are downright embarrasing.
