Stockton

Sunday was hot. In fact, the start of the Stockton show was delayed an hour due to the heat. As a result, we went on at 8:15 instead of 7:15. We had the advantage in that the entire field was in shade by the time we went on, also the temperatures had cooled down a bit by then.

In contrast to Stanford, the Stockton show didn't seem to bring out the same energy. Some things we worked on in rehearsal improved, however, overall the show did not seem to have the same quality as the previous evening. Consistency is something we will definitely be looking to further develop with future performance opportunities.

Today, Monday, is a day off for everyone. Then, a few days of rehearsal, and off to Southern California for our last west coast appearances. This week we will be working on completing the guard book and adding some movement for the musicians.

NorCal Weekend

Friday was a short rehearsal day, then on the buses for a few days, staring with the Clovis Show. Musically, the show went well, although visually it was not our best. However, a definite improvement over the Riverside show.

After a bit of driving, we arrived at Independence High School in San Jose, our housing for the week. Many of the older staff members remember when Independence High School was the major location for west coast winter guard, as many WGI West Regionals and California Color Guard Championships were held there.

Saturday rehearsal was a bit of a struggle, as temperatures were near record highes in the south bay. Lots of water breaks and constant reminders about sunscreen and hats.

The Stanford show was clearly the best of the season. Musically, the show continues to improve; tonight the guard took a major step forward in their performance qualities. There were a couple of ensemble issues in the opener, but the corps settled down and the rest of the show flew by. A great audience response to the performance!

Today, Sunday, one rehearsal block, and then on to Stockton for the show at UOP. This is a home show of sorts, as it is closest to the Sacramento area and we also have a good number of members from the Stockton/Lodi area. The corps is presently finishing up the clean up and loading operations, and will be on the road.

Blast from the Past

In this week's DCI weekly email updates—a pic of Mandarins first DCI A-60 World Championship win in 1987. The person on the right is the original executive director of DCI, Don Pesceone. Who's the guy on the left???

Commander's Log - 625.09.1934:

It's been a great three days of hard work back home in Sacramento after a day off on Monday. 

Tuesday—Absolute Velocity. Awesome drill changes for the end of the show, faster, tighter, louder. Guard choreography almost complete! First run-thru on actual grass since May, we've been spoiled with great facilities and stadiums for almost a full month.

Wednesday—New music edits from Scott Johnson and a new tag to the end of Absolute Rhythm. New choreography from George Armenta. What are those "jing-jing" sticks???

Thursday—Cleaning dots, cleaning music ensemble, cleaning choreography to the opener, Absolute Fanfare.

Tempos are much more solid and stable without the metronome this week, performers are more comfortable every day and trusting each other more and more, which is all resulting in some ENTERTAINING performances.

We're all anxious to get back on the performance field this weekend to show off all the hard work. See you in Clovis, Stanford, and Stockton!!!

pix from the weekend

courtesy of corpsreps.com. thanks for the great shots!

Back Home

Sunday we were in Riverside for the second show of the season. The performance was not quite at the same level as Saturday night's, although some individual segments of the show showed definite improvement. A bit of energy seemed to be lacking, and we didn't appear to be clicking on all cylinders. However, every performance is a learning experience for us, and we are now looking forward to this coming week.

The corps arrived back in the Sacramento area around 7:45 Monday morning. Today is a day off, then a full week of work here at home leading to three NorCal shows this weekend. This week we will be revising the end of closer drill, adding more guard work and choreography, adding movement for the musicians in Libertango, making some revisions to the drum solo and of course cleaning the show!

On Tuesday, a film crew from KVIE TV will be at rehearsal to film for a segment featuring the Mandarins.

All the corps members, instructional staff and volunteer support staff put in a tremendous effort over the past 10 days of training camp and then our first trip of the season to Southern California. The performers' work ethic and effort has resulted in major strides in performance, and we are certainly looking forward to another week of progress.

Show Day

First show of the season! The Stadium at Mt. Sac is a great venue, with a very high press box. The show went very well. There was a lot of energy, and a very appreciative audience—a definite spontaneous standing O in the middle of the stands at the conclusion of the show. Is there a lot of cleaning to do? Were there a few cases of jitters? Are there things that need to be improved upon? Yes. However, did the members have a terrific time performing, was the performance a positive start to the season, did the corps get a lot of kudos from the audience and adjudication community—a definite yes!

A two block rehearsal day then off to Riverside for the last show of the weekend. After the show, a long bus ride home and then… a well deserved day off!

Getaway Day

The last day of training camp at Antelope High School. The last ensemble block was devoted to timing issues primarily in the closer and a bit in the opener.

Then eat, shower, clean up and load. Buses are loaded by seniority, the only time that seniority of corps members is considered. However, with four buses, it is not as difficult as it would otherwise be.

Arrived here at West Valley High School around 5 a.m. Members (except the field lining crew) and instructional are sleeping, but of course the food crew volunteers are up. This is a terrific set up for us, a turf stadium (see photo), 2 other fields, a double large gym, home ec room and plenty of rooms for all the staff. Our host band director "TJ" Hepburn, has been very gracious, and is a drum corps alum from the 1990's (Limited Edition out of Columbus OH).

Rehearsal today, then off to the first show of the season at Mt. Sac in Walnut. We are still looking for tuba players and a guard person or two. If you are interested, please see us at the shows this weekend or drop by West Valley High in Hemet.

Thursday - Family Night

Family Night! Two rehearsal blocks, then a dress rehearsal performance for family, friends, boosters and alumni. Several hundred people were in the stands this evening. Alumni attending included former marching members representing every decade since the corps' founding in 1963, including Baldwin Wong, a charter member!

Terrific crowd response tonight, and the members were grateful for the opportunity to get the show in front of a live audience. Certainly, a number of things to work on, and the staff will be using tonight's performance as a gauge to determine rehearsal priorities for the next couple of days. However, the terrific support from everyone in attendance was gratifying.

After the performance. everyone gathered in the cafeteria for a dessert pot luck. There was plenty of food for everyone in attendance. The evening concluded with Mandarins History Night as hosted by Mandarins alumni, and brass arranger Dan Fong. Scott Jow, the corps webmaster and videographer prepared a dvd which included interviews with past members and clips of previous Mandarins shows.

Two rehearsal blocks on Friday, then eat, shower, clean up and load the buses. Plenty of water for everyone since temperatures have been rising this week. While the artificial turf of the stadium has been a boon for us, it gets very hot on the field. Hope to be posting from Southern California this weekend, wifi connection permitting.

Wednesday - Last Full Rehearsal Day

Today was our last full rehearsal day as Thursday will include our Family Day performance and Friday evening we will be leaving for Southern California.

Today was a good day for us; yesterday not so much. Tuesday's rehearsals were somewhat unfocused and scattered, and the runthrough was reflective of that. Today, every rehearsal block went well, and the runthrough was very much improved.

The corps is continuing to work on Absolute, reviewing drill and music, adding guard work. We have also managed to get most everyone in the show, as there were a large number of high school grads who had to be worked in after attending graduation ceremonies.

The corps is looking forward to this evening's performance. Hope to see all of you there.

clip of Absolute Joy

Absolute Mascots

Choreographers

Choreographers (left to right) Edmer Lazaro, George Armenta, and Suko Quan with a prototype of one of 28 large "pillows" for the Absolute Joy production.

Tuesday - Some Guests

Wayne Downey and Dan Fong dropped by during the evening ensemble block. Dan is the long time Mandarins brass arranger, and Wayne has been on board as a music consultant, reviewing drafts of musical scores, suggesting changes and giving further input on revisions as they are written.

Brass caption head Chris McCoy and percussion caption head Blair Williams have been working the music ensemble throughout the week. Wayne did offer several constructive comments for enhancing the show's soundtrack, and was very complimentary of both the written book and initial implementation.

The week continues on here at Antelope High School; had a couple of birthdays yesterday, and one of the parents brought by a birthday cake! Having three fields, including use of the stadium, has really been an asset for us. Ray Mar has indicated how lucky we are to have the support of the school administration (he actually said this during a midnight run to the grocery store for some last minute breakfast items).

Another full day of rehearsal tomorrow and then Family Night on Thursday!

Monday - Settling In

The corps has settled in to training camp after our initial weekend. The daily whiteboard gives everyone the information for the day, while our tireless volunteers work around the clock to keep the corps well fed, healthy and happy. Mr. Mar works to coordinate everyone's efforts.

We have had a couple of mishaps, a fire alarm inadvertently went off one day when our cooking was located in the vicinity of a smoke detector and one of the fields has been a bit wet due to a lot of watering (which the school folks have been very kind in addressing). We have had a couple of passersby offering encouragement - one yelled out "amazing dedication" while watching our morning basics block.

Monday was "Festive Day" as all rehearsal blocks were devoted to the opener. Made a lot of progress today; the plan to take a production a day for the remainder of the week. Reminder: come out to Antelope High School for our Family Day performance this Thursday night, June 18. Details on the news page at mandarins.org

Corps members got to sleep in today until 9 a.m. We are working in a couple of new brass players this week, but are still looking for a couple of low brass players - where are you tuba players?

More good news: our charter bus company was able to free up another bus: four buses for the SoCal swing this weekend!

cleaning Absolute Fanfare drill

Sunday - And the drill is done!

Finished the show on Sunday. We now have 10:54 on the field. The members were extremely excited to do the first "full run" this evening. Is there a lot of work to be done? Of course, and the work starts over again on Monday morning. But so far, we have been able to keep on track with the program goals set for the week.

The weather has been terrific, in the low 80's during the day, and cool enough in the evening to need a sweatshirt.

Sunday evening concluded with our members intro session. We will have small groups stand in front of the corps and arrange themselves in some type of order: by age, by birthplace, by length of hair! This is intended to get everyone talking together, as these small groups are mixed, with all sections of the corps represented.

Once that is squared away (setting the order can sometimes take a while), each corps member will introduces themselves to the entire corps: name, age, section, favorite movie (at least that is what we did last night), and a few interesting facts about themselves.

It is sometimes fun to see the seemingly quietest person become the next great standup comic when presented with an audience. The one constant heard throughout the evening was laughter. The staff on hand also participated, and certainly did not lack for laughs!

The rest of the week will be spent solidifying the show. We do have a few folks to work in as they have had graduation and other school commitments.

We have picked up a couple of brass players, but still have a few low brass spots, so come by Antelope High School and check it out.

Training Camp - Friday Night and Saturday

Friday night was spent in sectionals. Suko Quan was in to look at the opener and further refine the choreography and flag work. Music sections spent quite a bit of time on Partita. Some parts were thinned for clarity purposes, the brass section feature was added back in. The camp facility is fabulous and we are very lucky. A full gym, auxiliary gym, music rooms, turf stadium and soccer field. Great start to the week!

Saturday morning was spent on the first half of the closer; Saturday afternoon more sectional time was spent refining music. Everyone is anxious to get the rest of the closer on the field and finish the show!

George Armenta flew in from Southern California and will be with the corps for most of the week. George was with the corps last year, and we are very glad to have him back writing for us once again. He will be spending time on the guard work for the drum solo and closer, as well as offering comments on the rest guard book.

Bobby Moffett was in for a guard costume fitting; they should look terrific on the field.

Full staff meeting tonight after the last rehearsal block to review staff policies and procedures, and talk about the coming week. Okay, people did also swap some stories at the same time!

Drill will be done tomorrow.

We Have Some Open Brass Spots

As is typical for drum corps this time of year, we have had a couple of drops in the brass line (in addition to some tuba spots we are trying to fill). If you are a brass player, we’d love to see you here at training camp. Now is the time to do it! Directions to our training camp here at Antelope High School and links to email contacts are available on our audition page here: http://mandarins.org/auditions/detail.html

New Drums

Training Camp 2009 has started!

Training camp 2009 has started and is well under way. On Friday evening, guest choreographer Suko Quan was here to put some finishing touches on the first production Absolute Fanfare. Here's a short video clip on the evening's rehearsal.

Urgent — Help Wanted for Training Camp!

Parents and supporters — we urgently need your help in the kitchen crew for our upcoming Training Camp, during the period of June 13–19. If you're able to assist — even if only for one or two days — this would be greatly appreciated. Please contact the Corps Director Ray Mar for details, at (916) 395-8310.

The corps now has 133 pages of drill on the field, with the last production Absolute Velocity to be added this weekend. Rumor has it that with the concept of speed and velocity, the closer drill will be close to another 45 pages! Fasten your seat belts!

June Camp - Sunday

Sunday was spent on the drum solo drill for the Absolute Rhythm production. It is apparent that as the corps members have gotten used to learning drill, the learning process is now much faster and retention is much better than when we first started learning drill back at the April camp. The drill for this production is now complete. This bodes well for training camp next week.

Ray Mar confirmed that training camp will be held at Antelope High School in Antelope, CA. Thursday evening June 18 will be Mandarins Family Night, which will include a full dress rehearsal performance, recognition of scholarship recipients, and a dessert potluck. Check for details on the corps' web site at mandarins.org

We will provide periodic training camp updates on this blog, so keep watching this space!

June Camp - Friday Night and Saturday

Set up went fine upon arrival; thank you to Ritchie Hodge and Oakmont High School for making our stay here possible. Friday night spent on music, with a number of minor edits being made. Choreographer Edmer Lazaro was in town to work with the color guard and the production of Absolute Passion.

Saturday, the corps learned the drill to the Absolute Joy Production, and the transition leading to the percussion feature, Absolute Rhythm. The evening block was devoted to an ensemble rehearsal on this production, with the full corps on the field. The color guard also made major strides as the equipment work and choreography for this number is nearly complete.

The percussion section spent considerable time on the Rhythm production. The most substantial revision was made in the end of the number. Originally, the brass line reentered with a reprise of the Joy theme; however, the percussion feature now ends… with percussion. This change was done to allow for a definitive rhythmic statement and conclusion to punctuate the end of the number. Percussion arrangers Vince Oliver and Scott Johnson along with percussion caption head Blair Williams put these changes together.

Saturday evening concluded with the arrival of our final member from Hawaii! The corps now includes seven members from Hawaii, four of whom are returning after marching with the corps last season. 

Another full day of work tomorrow with the percussion feature drill being the main focus.

June Camp

Our seventh and final weekend camp is this weekend! Come and check out our final run-thru of the weekend, as we are putting the third and fourth productions Absolute Joy and Absolute Rhythm onto the field. Sunday's run-thru is at 3:30 p.m. at Oakmont High School in Roseville.

All performer spots have been filled except for one tuba spot and one colorguard spot. E-mail us at information@mandarins.org if you are interested.

will we finish production before game 1 of the NBA finals?

top left picture - colorguard instructor Jackie Wong stencils flags, while Tara cuts fabric for the unitards.

top right picture - Bobby Moffett and house mascot Shimmy mind the studio.

bottom picture - one down, 143 to go... at least we had cupcakes all day!

work in progress...

Production is well under way for our 2009 show Absolute. The pic above is a sneak peek at one of the 150 different costume pieces in the show this season. Measurements have been taken, costumes are in production, and flags are being painted. If you are available to help with sewing, painting, carpentry, etc., please contact our program coordinator Gregory Mar at gregory@gmartdesign.com. We're doing some work in San Francisco this week, at corps camp at Oakmont HS in Sacramento this weekend, and back in San Francisco next week. 

Family Day is Thursday, June 18th, stay tuned for more details.

First competition is Saturday, June 20th in Walnut, CA!

May 31st

This morning the corps spent time consolidating portions of the opener drill for Absolute Fanfare. The session was observed by Florin Band Director Robert Holmes and members of the Band Leadership Council.We are very grateful to Florin High School for their support.

During the afternoon sectionals, more work was done on the back half of the musical program. Vince Oliver, the front ensemble arranger, was here to work out some revisions to the percussion book.

Vince, Scott Johnson (battery arranger,) caption head Blair Williams and Program Coordinator Greg Mar have been looking at revisions to the percussion feature, Absolute Rhythm. Look for the changes to be implemented at camp this coming weekend.

The color guard spent the day on the latter half of the opener leading to staging in Libertango. A lot of progress has been made, as the opener guard book is complete and a good chunk of Libertango taught.

During the evening block, ensemble time was spent on the field working music and drill for the first two productions. This will set the stage for the next movement, Absolute Joy, to be put on the field next.

On the personnel front, it appears that most of our spots have been filled. Still need to fill a guard spot and two tuba spots however! If you are a tuba player or guard person, you could be part of this blog instead of reading it! Check out all our information here: http://mandarins.org/auditions/detail.html

Watch for our next blog update from camp, June 5–7 at Oakmont High School in Roseville.