Hostrauser's Top 100 Marches

Topics and polls that cover the overall marching band activity

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Post by ponchita » Mon Apr 21, 2008 3:41 pm

Indeed. :shock: :x :? :?

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Post by MarchGuy85 » Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:22 pm

Sweet Holy Mother of God Almighty doing the Macarena whilst whistling the National Anthem of Sweden backwards through his vocoder.

Sorry, bad Rent reference.

SOOO AWEEEESOMEEEEE.
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Marching Instructor - Serra HS, San Diego, CA

Obscure March of the Week: "New Corn Palace" by K.L. King

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Post by Flying bird » Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:40 pm

Is it just me or does "Chicago World's Fair Centennial Celebration 1933" not work?

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Post by Bandmaster » Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:39 am

Flying bird wrote:Is it just me or does "Chicago World's Fair Centennial Celebration 1933" not work?
You're right! I found the problem, the file name was too long for the field properties, so I fixed it. It works now! Thanks for the heads up.
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Search Under Alford

Post by Brich » Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:48 pm

Maybe it's in there, Bandmaster, but I didn't find The Mad Major. There's a fine performance by Eastman and Fennell of this K Alford march.

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Re: Search Under Alford

Post by Bandmaster » Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:41 pm

Brich wrote:Maybe it's in there, Bandmaster, but I didn't find The Mad Major. There's a fine performance by Eastman and Fennell of this K Alford march.
There are a lot of them NOT in there! I need to find a whole bunch more marches to make the library more complete. Hopefully someone will send this on to me so I can add it.
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Re: Search Under Alford

Post by Brich » Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:57 pm

Bandmaster wrote:
Brich wrote:Maybe it's in there, Bandmaster, but I didn't find The Mad Major. There's a fine performance by Eastman and Fennell of this K Alford march.
There are a lot of them NOT in there! I need to find a whole bunch more marches to make the library more complete. Hopefully someone will send this on to me so I can add it.
I just emailed this version to you...enjoy

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Re: Search Under Alford

Post by Bandmaster » Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:50 pm

Brich wrote:
Bandmaster wrote:
Brich wrote:Maybe it's in there, Bandmaster, but I didn't find The Mad Major. There's a fine performance by Eastman and Fennell of this K Alford march.
There are a lot of them NOT in there! I need to find a whole bunch more marches to make the library more complete. Hopefully someone will send this on to me so I can add it.
I just emailed this version to you...enjoy
Thank you very much. It has been added to the database!

I also found a few more Henry Fillmore marches and I added them too!
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Post by Hostrauser » Tue Apr 22, 2008 9:27 pm

I'm making a list and checking it twice.

Or... something.

First step for me: I will insure all of my Top 100 are in the library.

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Re: Search Under Alford

Post by JCYS » Tue Apr 22, 2008 9:35 pm

Brich wrote:Maybe it's in there, Bandmaster, but I didn't find The Mad Major. There's a fine performance by Eastman and Fennell of this K Alford march.
I am SO sorry Brich, but I gotta disagree. Fennell's version of Mad Major is absolutely terrible. Tempo WAY too slow and way too much percussion. Any self respecting British military bandmaster would resign if he played it this way.

Try one of the many British recordings of it.

JCYS

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Post by Hostrauser » Wed Apr 23, 2008 8:33 am

Maybe it's just me, but I find 99% of the American interpretations of British marches to be terribly lacking, and I find 99% of the British interpretations of American marches (ESPECIALLY circus marches) to be lacking.

There are always exceptions, of course, but there seems to be a large cultural stumbling block in march performances.

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Interpretation

Post by JCYS » Wed Apr 23, 2008 10:16 am

Hostrauser wrote:Maybe it's just me, but I find 99% of the American interpretations of British marches to be terribly lacking, and I find 99% of the British interpretations of American marches (ESPECIALLY circus marches) to be lacking.

There are always exceptions, of course, but there seems to be a large cultural stumbling block in march performances.
Its not hard to play a British march like a British band...but it won't get you points on the street...

1. Staccato means REALLY staccato. If you play it Brit short on the street some know-it-all music judge will tell you it's "clipped."
2. Marcato means marked...NOT short or seperated.
3. The euphonium line must be noticable.
4. Tubas and bass trombones are much louder and heavier than usual in most American bands.
5. Percussion is almost non-existant-particularly bass drum (in concert)...in parade they wail the heck out of the bass drum.
6. One of the toughest things...the Brits (like our US Marine Band) use cornets...the Shepard's Crook style, which gives a much "sweeter" sound than trmpets. They also use vibrato in both cornets and euphs as a matter of choice, not just as a solo timbre.
7. Marches run about 112 or so bpm. People who tell you to play Brit marches at 100 or below are, well, mis-informed.
8. Sax sound is rather lacking...hard to do when you have as many saxs as we do in our school bands. They use like 2 altos and a tenor..no bari.
9. Their brass, particularly low brass, play very loud. Like most professional players, they aren't afraid to blow.

But really, the big thing is in note length, some balance and tone, and of course, speed.

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Post by Bandmaster » Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:05 am

Jeff sent me another verson of Joyce's 71st New York Regiment march last night and I have added it to the database. So there are now TWO versions in the library. One by Texas A&M which is more the American version and one by the U.S. Naval Acadmy Band that is very much in the British style. Listen to both and tell us what you think?
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Post by Hostrauser » Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:18 am

I like Texas A&M's "interpretation" better (see next paragraph). I like the Navy's performance technique and quality better. I do not like Texas A&M's saxes sticking out like a sore thumb in the first strain.

That said, I believe Texas A&M is performing Mayhew Lake's popular arrangement of the march (which is usually heard on the street here in CA), whereas the Navy band is performing Thorton Boyer's less heard original version. I think there's just cause to keep both in the database.

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Post by Hostrauser » Fri Apr 25, 2008 10:36 am

New Marches I've found in the library that I really like (ie, they might make the 2008 Top 100 list)...

King's Glory (Evers)
The Golden Reserve (Buckley)
Cancao de Exercito (Magalhaes)

More to come... (?)

The best part about this library is that, even with as "vast" as my march collection is (and it pales in comparison to some), there's still a bunch of marches in the library that I've never heard before.

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