Santa Barbara Friday July 3

We spent the entire day in Santa Barbara. Rehearsal went well, with two blocks which allowed the staff to focus on the opening and closing productions. The school is in a fantastic setting with a view of the surrounding hills. The weather was very cool, in contrast to the heat of Stockton last weekend. The performance this evening was off and on. Some things better, some not. However, several of the show additions, such as the brass line/battery movement in drum solo came off well. Another couple of performance opportunities this weekend as the corps will be at the Rose Bowl on the 4th and further south in Vista on Sunday the 5th.

SoCal Trip #2

After a productive few days of rehearsal at home, the corps left for Southern California Thursday evening. The trip was uneventful and the corps arrived at scenic Santa Barbara High School around 4 a.m.

Two rehearsal blocks today and show tonight. Rehearsal today will be a challenge as our field consists of an area that includes two softball fields (including the infields). On the plus side, we are only about 20 minutes from the show site, Harder Stadium at UC Santa Barbara (and walking distance from State Street and Starbucks!).

During the last week, we have picked up a couple of horn players and guard to fill our remaining spots. However, we are down a couple of mellophone players this weekend due to health issues and are hopeful they can be resolved as the corps flys out on tour next week.

After the show this evening, the corps will be headed to Pasadena for the 4th of July Celebration at the Rose Bowl.

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!