The Academy 2019 - The Bridge Between

The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps’ 2019 production, The Bridge Between
MidCal Champions Showcase 6/21/19

[@anthonyspacing5037]

It's so much louder irl

[@phillipalmanza3058]

AnthonySpacing For real, this video doesn’t do it justice

[@IronCladMultimedia]

I do like this version of BOTW better than The Cadets. The nod to London Bridge at the end was "cute."

[@jesuspectre9883]

The "nod" to London Bridge nursery rhyme repeated not just at the end, but it was scattered throughout the entire show, without any purpose, meaning or resolution. That's a problem with the show concept and with the arranging.

[@dennisfleurant7251]

An absolutely Beautiful Show. WOW those Uniforms, Classic! They have improved in every caption. Thrilled with the Percussion line, So STRONG! Some Brass with Sass! and BOTW OH MY and that Tremendous Solo with such exposure for so long. Look forward to following you all summer on FloMarching....and see you all in San Antonio. Happy Trails to you throughout the summer. GO ACADEMY!

[@DancingYearRound]

I can always expect goosebumps from the Academy. Thanks for uploading!

[@drummerboy4445]

BOTW is the best ballad I’ve heard by far for me❤️❤️

[@HunterDavisTubaPlaying]

Go Contra! 8:30 was great!

[@raulcarrillo4467]

Don’t forget the bass trombones! Double pedal Bb ain’t no cakewalk 😁

[@TheRandomWolf]

@@raulcarrillo4467sooo badass

[@samfielder8789]

I hope this was early in the season cause the rifle line is kinda struggling

[@phillipalmanza3058]

This was on June 21st. It was early season

[@rylandcook5237]

literally the first show

[@zoeybatterup152]

Sam Fielder it’s pretty windy also

[@brianhale2977]

Every reason The Academy doesn't break into the top tier is evident here: uneven intervals, bald musical transitions that impair the emotional effectiveness of the show, misplaced instruments weakening an already second tier sound. At least the props were relevant and decently well used.

[@raulcarrillo4467]

Thanks man, appreciate the love and support. (Side note: musical critique is fine, just keep in mind most corps don’t not sound finals-ready at their first show 😉)

[@anthonyspacing5037]

@@raulcarrillo4467 was this at drums across the desert?

[@jesuspectre9883]

A show completely devoid of any meaning, on the field or behind the scenes. 15th place.

[@hmorg123]

I hope you enjoy being a jerk. If you want to drop a negative comment like that, keep in mind who might read it and be negatively impacted by it. Way to disregard all of these members efforts into making this a great show. Also, HOW DARE YOU bash the behind the scenes efforts of the members, staff, and organization. You have no idea what this show means or represents to people and what it means for this organization. This was a tremendous year of growth and change for this organization from past years. Getting the show to the point where it was took a collective effort of everyone buying into the meaning of the show and the organization. Maybe you can some of that “good old (catholic/Christian/idc honestly) friendliness” and apply that to your comments you make about other people’s artistic creations that they spend months on. I heard that if you listen closely during the ballad, you can almost hear the Virgin Mary saying “Jesu Spectre is an insensitive asshat” as the final note rings out. Take another listen, you might hear it. There is some prime content for you. I’m glad we are now on the same page.

[@jesuspectre9883]

@@hmorg123 I've made literally thousands of dollars off of religious sheep who click on Jesus clouds. You can't possibly think I'm religious. You should be outraged at my comments. You performed in a shallow, self-referential show about your corps hiring a new artistic director. It negatively affected your score. That should bother you. You spent an entire summer performing in a show that had no depth of concept relating to the outside world. That makes you a sheep who doesn't understand why you placed 15th. You performed in a show about how you have a new approach and administration. That's not a mature artistic statement. That's what the judges were telling you with your score! Wake up. Music like Bridge over Troubled Water has profound substance. Professional theatrical productions have substance. Professional dance concerts have substance. Professional shows don't choose a theme about a change to the artistic administration of the company behind the scenes in the back office. That's an embarrassingly shallow statement that not even off-off Broadway productions would stage. Professional symphonic productions don't choose a theme of a back office change in artistic direction for the organization. That's not how legitimate show concepts are developed. Not even rock concert themes are developed around that. That's self-referential and self-publicizing for the new artistic director. Yet, the show coordinator convinced you that you were performing a show about your new direction as an organization. Corps change artistic direction all the time, but that doesn't mean the show should be about that. That is not a university level show concept. By the way, it's not that hard to infuse substance into a show, on or off the field, but this show's designers refused to do so. Then the show coordinator, on the DCI quarterfinals broadcast, stated openly that shows don't need identified meaning and substance, and only "visual aesthetics" matter. That's a problem. That accounts for the lack of layering and thematic depth, lack of musical variance, lack of social context, and lack of substance. GE suffered as a result. 15th place.

[@jesuspectre9883]

@dhobbs562 Yes, oh my god, a voice of reason. It's outrageous how rushed and unprepared drum corps productions are. Designers start working on their shows around March for a couple weeks on Spring brreak, and don't revisit the show until late may! Look at SCV this year. That was a design DISASTER. They had huge red brick circle tarps, and when they put them on the field, the glare made them unworkable. They should have fixed that in the early season. Plus, the red brick tarps barely tied into the underground theme they had! They didn't even bother to make use of the red bricks by painting them live with spray paint. Just so slip-shod, so random, so last minute. The worst aspect of all of this half-based design is that the kids are being left out. They don't know design. They're rewarded when they don't question it. They don't know the foundational principles of developing shows, selecting music, selecting a visual theme, and developing a dramatic action and movement around it. No idea. That's the way the designers want it. Designers don't want anybody questioning their slipshod efforts. Look at the Cavaliers this year. They developed a premise that was pseudo-historical. It was Gangs of New York meets a rail yard. It made no real-world sense. Who were these 1920's coiffed, tailored fighters? It was West Hollywood Fight Club, and it was absolutely ridiculous. Drum corps designers are uttterly and completely lost. Look at Boston this year. The inexperienced show coordinator opted for a grisly last minute beheading special effect that didn't fit the rest of the show. It was ghastly and career-ending. If he were developing a show on Broadway, he would have been fired. The audience loved it because they're young and stupid and play video games, and are starved for clear dramatic action on the drum corps field, and didn't know it was incoherent. Worst, look at Spirit of Atlanta this year. They were capturing the zeitgeist of underground clubs, but I mean at one point, the hornline was wearing white prom dresses. And. Nobody. Said. Anything. Nobody questioned it, the members didn't question it, the audience didn't question it. That was an unmitigated disaster. Some of these designers are outright scammers.

[@hmorg123]

Clearly, there is no way to have an intelligent discussion with you. Have a great life.

[@jesuspectre9883]

@@hmorg123 You seem to want to talk like a soccer mom about how amazing the kids are, and how hard they try and how wonderful it was that they were so bonded and had such esprit de corps, and how hard everybody tried and how painful and wonderful an experience it was. Bitch please. Ain't nobody got time for that.