The James W. Robinson Secondary School Ram Band has been working hard all season in an effort to defend our Season 9 Division II Championship, but today we take a look forward into Season 11. We hope to be pursuing a three-peat next season, and don't intend on putting on anything less than a great show, which is why we are proud to announce our Season 11 program: The Fire Theft. The Fire Theft will tell the tale of Prometheus, creator of the human race, who stole fire from the Gods for our benefit.

Movement 1: Also Sprach Zarathustra - Richard Strauss
In this movement, we witness the creation of man - formed out of clay, set to the music of the Sunrise portion of the orchestral masterpiece "Also Sprach Zarathustra", by Richard Strauss. But Prometheus is not content with just creating the humans; he wants to give them the gift of fire.

Movement 2: Nocturnes, Opus 27 (#2) - Frederic Chopin
Prometheus has decided to steal fire from the Gods and give it to his innocent creations. This will usher in a new era for mankind, but what will happen to Prometheus?

Movement 3: Prometheus - Franz List
Angered by the actions of Prometheus, Zeus has decided to set a trap. Prometheus knows the severity of the situation however, and he uses all of his wit to evade capture. But how long can he stave off Zeus, greatest of the Gods?

Movement 4: String Quartet No. 4 (Mvt. 5) - Bela Bartok
In the finale of the show, we witness Prometheus being captured and chained to a rock by Zeus. Soon, the eagle begins to eat his liver, and we witness the agony of Prometheus and his struggle. Eventually, he gives up, resigned to his fate.

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The Lexington Legends have also enjoyed tremendous success this season, and while a repeat Championship seems unlikely at this point, the group is extremely proud of their tremendous performance of very difficult literature. But this is about the future, not the present or the past, and the Lexington Legends Drum and Bugle Corps is ready to announce their Season 11 show: In Dark of Night.

We have all experienced the fear that comes along with darkness, and at no other time is that fear more pronounced than in our early childhood. The show is a story about a hero of sorts (in this case, a young child), who is suffering from intense fear, generated by a nightmare, compounded by the darkness of night.

Movement 1: Medea - Samuel Barber
Tossing and turning, the boy is experiencing intense nightmares. The worst of these dreams ends with his death, at the hands of his own mother, who by now has transformed into a demon.

Movement 2: Sleep - Eric Whitacre
The boy, realizing it was all a dream, goes to his mother for comfort, and she sings him a song in an attempt to comfort him. Eventually, the boy falls into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Movement 3: Symphony No. 7 (Mvt. 5) - Gustav Mahler
Exhausted by the harsh night, the boy finally is woken up by a glorious midday sun.

I am liking the "In Dark of Night". Usually these nightmare-based shows have a dark ending or use music like Toccata and Fugue, Night on Bald Mountain, etc.

I like the different approach you are taking to it.

Thanks! I like it too, I'm glad my different take on a familiar topic appeals to someone besides myself. I wasn't really sure how the show was going to end until I remembered reading that Mahler described the finale of seven as depicting "broad daylight", and I really liked the direction that pulled the show. I think it blends well. I don't mind stealing ideas from other places, but I always want to shake them up so I'm glad it stood out to you.

On a similar note, I was actually considering ending the show with the Barber until I found the Whitacre piece (which for some reason I had never heard). The show opener would have been the Bartok that my marching band is closing with, but I couldn't find a ballad that I thought tied the show together.

I think you've set it up well.

When my Druids did a nightmare based show, we used a typical set : Lullaby, Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Salvation is Created, and Night on Bald Mountain. It was called "Spirits of the Night", and featured a girl going through her nightmares. The ballad, Salvation, was about how she thought it was over, and at the end she falls through a prop bed, blah blah the guard (dressed as nightmares) get her. It wasn't necessarily conventional, but it still fit the "dark ending". Yours, on the other hand, doesn't, and I like that.

I love how the same different idea can be taken in so many directions. It just makes things that much more interesting.

Congrats on your title! Hopefully I can give you a better fight next season. Maybe you should start your marching band up again and we can go head to head!