Newsgroups: alt.drumcorps
Subject: Re: Original Corps Compositions (was: Drumcorps S
From: fath1@husc8.harvard.edu (Michael Fath)
Date: 26 Aug 92 09:37:14 EDT
Organization: Harvard University Science Center

In article <1992Aug26.013447.13553@beaver.cs.washington.edu> dci@cs.washington.edu (Donald Chinn) writes:
>In article <1992Aug25.174042.25128@stortek.com> pae@blackcat.stortek.com (Phil Earnhardt) writes:
>>This Sun Coast program, and their Florida Suite program, were both mostly
>>original compositions. Question: what are the other pieces composed for drum
>>corps? Which are people's favorites? Are original compositions A Good Thing
>>for the activity, or do they tend to be too expensive/obscure/etc?
>>
>>--phil
>>pae@blackcat.stortek.com
>

I also think that original compositions are a "good thing" for the same reason
as Donald -- they show that the activity has matured.
>
>There is one piece that I can think of.  It was in the 1987 Cavaliers
>program.  I forget what the name of it is.  I think it was written by
>one of {Maslanka, Nelson, Holsinger}.

None of the pieces from 1987 Cavaliers was original.  That year they did
Festival Variations (I have forgotten who wrote this!)
Variations on a Korean Folk Song - John Chance Barnes
Litergical Dances - David Holsinger

None were written specifically for corps.

Other pieces that come to mind are:

1989 Cavaliers - middle section called Images Diableque was a highly altered
form of A Child's Garden of Dreams by Muslenka and is for all practical purposes
an original composition.

1991 - Crossmen!!!   The Four Elements was an awesome piece written by their
brass instructor

1983 - Cavaliers - opener Jade was by Michael Boo

1984 - Suncoast Sound - opener 6 OS was by Robert Smith and the Requiem was
also original.  Both part of their great Vietnam show.

Lots of drum solos all throughout the 1980's including SCV's solos in 1983
(great steel drums) and 1984 (their solo that never raised above mezzo piano).

>As to whether original compositions are a good thing, I think so, because
>it indicates that the field is maturing into its own art form, rather
>than simply regurgitating other people's ideas in a new format (this is
>not to say that that is bad, though!).
>
>As to obscurity, if a new drum corps piece were written with the classical
>or wind ensemble idiom in mind, then it probably would be "obscure", as this
>seems to be the trend in those idioms (although, in any period in the
>development of classical music, much of the music was probably considered
>"obscure").  It's hard to predict obscurity in a style such as that of
>Florida Suite.  Now, wouldn't it be interesting to have a drum corps branch
>of the jazz idiom?!  The mind boggles.
>
>I felt that Prof. Cambell's little introduction to the percussion section
>in the PBS broadcast to be very informative and interesting.  I suspect that
>drum corps is fairly close to the cutting edge of percussion techniques,
>but I could be wrong (drum corps is probably not on the cutting edge when
>it comes to keyboard instruments).
>
>-- Donald


-- 
MM   MM FFFFF 	Michael Fath		fath1@husc.harvard.edu
M M M M F	Dept of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics
M  M  M FFF     Harvard Medical School         
M     M F       Boston, MA 02115				**Enjoy life!