From: pae@teal.csn.org (Phil Earnhardt)
Newsgroups: alt.drumcorps
Subject: Re: Who REALLY won in 1988?
Summary: Isn't it obvious? The fans won!
Date: 23 Nov 92 04:52:13 GMT
Organization: Colorado SuperNet, Inc.

In article <92325.135200MHUGHES@MIAMIU.BITNET> <MHUGHES@MIAMIU.BITNET> writes:
>>Do you categorically dislike Madison, Mike, or do you just think they were
>>scored too high in 1988?
> 
>Please, please, please don't misunderstand me.  I do NOT categorically
>dislike Madison.  I have no problem with the kids who are in Madison.  I
>have no problem with the fans who love Madison.  All I'm saying is that the
>musical design staff should strive to be more creative within the context
>of the Madison tradition, and I feel this mandates a little more exploration
>into new music.

Please please don't accuse me of misunderstanding you, Mike.  I asked a
question. Your answer: you think that they were scored too high.

>IMHO, it wasn't possible and it didn't happen.  Both BD and SCV had more
>musically challenging shows, that were executed noticably better.  Had the
>same been true of Scouts, I would have no trouble saying that they deserved
>the title.  But up to a week before championships, Madison was so far back of
>BD and SCV that any catchup would have been a miracle...a miracle that didn't
>happen.  The only way it could have happened at that point in the season,
>IMHO, would have been for BD and SCV to damn near stop practicing altogether.

Shrug. Perhaps both corps hit a wall on ways to clean and improve their show.
Also, the Scouts opener did have a lot of difficulty in its various time
signatures...they did some pretty darn neat marching on this. Also, The
Pit gave a truly outstanding performance in this show.

>No one has mentioned the *mystery-finals* of 1988.  This was the only year
>in the history of DCI (before OR since) where the relative placements of
>the top 5 remained anonymous until the announcement of scores Saturday
>night.  It was a highly questionable practice, and I don't remember hearing
>that finals were going to be run this way in advance (anyone who could shed
>some light on this, please do so).

It was certainly announced well in advance. I believe it was announced at the
end of 1987. It was certainly announced by the start of the 88 competetions.

It certainly was a questionable practice. Fans around me knew it was a crock
before it ever happened. And we did hear semis placements while the finals
show went on.

I don't think it did a whole lot of damage to DCI...it just was kind of silly.

If you're looking for a controversy, you would be better off talking about
Phantom's use of The Pit area for their horn line. DCI let them do this until
about 3 weeks before finals, when they told Phantom that there would be 
major penalties for doing it during Nationals. Now, I don't object to that
ruling, but it's timing is not great for Phantom. Interpretations of the
rule book should happen far earlier in the competetive season.

>The group of friends who I was with that night at Arrowhead (including a die-
>hard Madison fan) was unanimous in feeling that SCV deserved the title.  When
>Madison was announced the winner, all our jaws dropped.  So did most of the
>jaws of people sitting around us.  The *hysteria* that Reliable Rondo said
>immediately erupted from the crowd was nowhere in evidence from where we
>were sitting.

It was a suprise, yes. A large part of the credit can go to the unannounced
semi scores. On the other hand, there was wide-scale euphoria where I was
sitting. I have never seen so much joy at the announcement of a finals score
(until SCV's score was announced in 1989).

>"If it looks like it, smells like it, and acts like it, you call it
>what it is." .... politics.

Or maybe "sour grapes." 

>My hats off to Madison for their excellent 1988 show, which certainly deserved
>a high placement at DCI.  My congratulations to the members of the 1988 BD and
>SCV for all the work they did and acheivements they accomplished which, IMHO,
>deserved more fair consideration.

As participants and fans, we all have to come to terms with the "injustices"
of the judging system. Any subjective judging system will have what is viewed
as unfairnesses arise from time to time.

I'm far more interested in what a corps does *after* such an "unfairness"
arises. In that light, I salute the 1988 SCV for creating a context into which
the 1989 SCV could win Nationals. If they had been obsessed with their 1988
loss, they would have never made it.

One other point: long-time fans are the most demanding judges for repeat
performnces. If someone comes out with a boring show, the fans would never
give them multiple Standing Ovations during their show. In terms of raw
entertainment, Scouts have been as high as any corps in the 80s and 90s.

Next-to-last point: I feel SCV's 1988 opener of a (mellophone?) soloist with
"Music of the Night" worked poorly at Nationals...the solo was drowned out
by crowd noise. Contrast this with the 1989 opener directly into the organ
music. Now, *that* really silenced the crowd and got them into the show!

Last point: 1988 was a tremendously entertaining year. Scouts were great.  SCV
had a killer show with killer props. The Black Devils show still blows me over
when I listen to it. And Star played perhaps the Last Ever Top-12 Drum Corps
Show composed entirely of *Marches*. Garfield's Copeland pieces were again
unforgettabel and magical.

In short, I think the fans won in 1988. That's what I choose to remember from
a magical night in Missouri.

>(Here they come...(flame shield: on :))

Mumble. I have seen little in the way of flame wars in this group. Your
message wasn't a flame, and I don't consider mine one, either. Pre-declaring
follow-up messages as likely flames before they ever are composed may be less
than useful.

I celebrate the quality of messages on alt.drumcorps and look forward to a
similar quality on rec.arts.marching.drumcorps (presuming that the vote
passes).

>-Mike Hughes

--phil