I got about halfway through recording the first Box Center of the new year when my PC crashed. Even though I had saved my recording up to nearly that point, the crash corrupted the file and was not recoverable. I will attempt to record the show again tomorrow. Watch for it in your iTunes or podcast client.
The latest newslsetter from Drum Corps World is out and available for your reading pleasure. This newsletter is practically a full edition of the magazine in its own right, numbering almost 60 pages containing coverage of the DCI Champonships week events and the competitions leading up to it, as well as the DCA event which also recently took place.
Two of those DCI events, the Dublin, Ohio, Emerald City Music Games and the DCI Prelims cinecast, were reviewed by me and are in this newsletter. There was a third event, the Massillon, Ohio, Pro Football Hall of Fame competition, which I was not able to write in time for this release. I will post it either here or on Drum Corps Planet in the near future.
You can read the newsletter here.
As a bonus, enjoy the pictures I took from the Dublin show.
DCI Fan Network subscribers got a treat as the DCI Muncie show was added to the live broadcast schedule as a special bonus. Both fans in the stands and Fan Network viewers were fortunate that the show even happened as the weather tried to double whammy the show into submission, first by delaying the show start an hour due to extreme heat, then by sending a severe storm system right through the heart of Indiana, causing damage throughout the Muncie area and even sending a Cavalier staff member to the hospital due to injuries sustained when a gust of wind hit the staff scaffolding as they were dismounting it. The show did go on, though, complete with the sun shining in full force as it set behind the stands of the stadium at the start of the show. The Muncie show was the last event of the 2012 Music For All Summer Symposium, so the crowd was definitely ready to cheer for every corps performing tonight.
I will be at the 2012 Innovations In Brass drum corps competition, the first competition of the 2012 DCI season, tonight, starting at 7:30 PM. The show is at the University of Akron’s Infocision Stadium and will feature six of last year’s Top 12 corps:
Blue Stars
Phantom Regiment
Carolina Crown
Cavaliers
Cadets
Bluecoats
I will be a fan for this show, so I won’t be doing a DCP Live From the Stands live blog. I will, however, take some photos and post my thoughts on each corps after they perform. There is no retreat tonight, as the scores will not be announced until Monday’s cinecast event, so I won’t live stream the retreat ceremony on my Ustream channel, although I plan to do so at other shows I attend.
If you’ll be at the show, look for me. I’m wearing my blue Glassmen horn line t-shirt and shorts and I’m short, so I should be easy to find. 
Let the fun begin!
Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for the fun to start.
This Saturday, the 2012 DCI season officially gets underway with the 2012 Innovations In Brass competition in Akron, Ohio. I will be at the show as a fan, which means you won’t get a lot of updates from me online (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, DCP). If you will be at the show, though, I would love to meet you. I’ll make sure to post when I’m at the stadium so you know when and where to find me.
Two days later, the Akron show will serve as the first of two cinecasts in movie theaters. The 2012 Tour Premiere will feature the six corps which competed in Akron. While I saw those shows live, I love going to the cinecast events so I can meet fellow drum corps fans and enjoy drum corps in air conditioned comfort. I will be writing the Drum Corps World review for this event, so I would love feedback from those of you who also go to the cinecast. I plan to watch the show at the Montrose Movies theater in Akron, so let me know if you will be there, as well.
Keep your eyes peeled. I have an interview lined up in the next few days for the first podcast of the year. I’ll post more once the interview happens.
Matt Hartwell is a former marching member (FMM) of the Cavaliers drum and bugle corps. Matt is also someone who, like many of us, have been touched by cancer, losing both his grandfather and uncle to the disease. Matt is taking action and is taking part in the Shamrock Full Marathon in Virginia City, Virginia, on March 18th, 2012, and is looking for sponsors and donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Team In Training (TNT). Matt’s goal is $1500 in fundraising. The team’s is $6000. To help Matt and his team reach their goals, go to this website and donate. There are set amounts as well as the choice to name your own donation amount. Please help Matt and TNT KILL CANCER.
My review of the 2011 DCI Prelims Cinecast is now available in the latest Drum Corps World email blast. Just click on the link below to download the PDF file. The review is on page 8. You will need a PDF reader program such as Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the file.
Link: http://www.high-velocity-media.com/aug_22_newsletter.pdf
Magbo is discussing.
Good review. Madison Scouts are totally on the way up!