2002 Seattle Cascades
Performance excerpt of the 2002 Seattle Cascades.
The production began with chimes announcing the hour workers had to wake up to face the new day in a very short snippet from “On the Town,” followed by blazing yellow flags representing the rising sun. “Profanation” from Bernstein’s “Symphony No. 1” was a spectacularly daring work for any corps to approach, much less a corps that was in Division III just two years earlier. Still, the corps showed maturity far beyond its time in the big league, even incorporating a healthy amount of body sculpturing that had to tax the relatively inexperienced members. The down-to-earth elegance of “Simple Song” from “Mass” showed that the corps could also take long breaths and let the audience breathe as well, demonstrating that the creative staff understood the objective of not cramming in every dramatic, technical thing the corps could do within the time frame of the show. “Prelude, Fugue and Riffs” is where the humor and insouciant mannerisms came in, with soloists pushing each other out of the way and the color guard generally acting in an impish manner. This piece also served as the percussion feature, with some quick-paced unison mallet work in front of “walking bass” contras. Various segments of the horn line were featured individually, with a lone contra that didn’t get back into position with the others being forcibly shoved into line by a member of the guard. “Make Our Garden Grow” from “Candide” put the finishing touches on the show carrying Cascades’ unique imprint and one of the special joys of the season. This week only, you can save on 2002 World Championship Audio and Video Performance Downloads on the DCI Fan Network. Buy the 2002 Seattle Cascades Video Performance Download. (Available this week only for $3.99. Regular price: $4.99.) Buy the Audio Performance Download bundle of all 12 Finalists from 2002. (Available this week only for $15.99. Regular price: $19.99.) Offer ends Monday, April 4 at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Michael Boo was a member of the Cavaliers from 1975-1977. He has written about the drum corps activity for more than a quarter century and serves as a staff writer for various Drum Corps International projects. Boo has written for numerous other publications and has published an honors-winning book on the history of figure skating. As an accomplished composer, Boo holds a bachelor's degree in music education and a master's degree in music theory and composition. He resides in Chesterton, Ind.
