October 28th, 2013 12:27am
On Saturday, October 26th, FMA brought us the top 12 Division 2 Drum Corps in the nation to compete in one final event, the Fantasy Marching Arts Championship! After a fantastic night of performances, with every corp giving it there all, here are the recaps of Season 29 Division 2!
In 12th place, with a score of 76.915, "Madison"! Their show is entitled, "What a Tangled Web". This show had a huge spider in the center of the field, with string that ran outwards in every direction that represented a spider web. Their visual performance was strong, but what cost them a top 10 or higher finish was their percussion and color guard. Congratulations on making finals! Points out of 11th place: .03
In 11th place, with a score of 76.945, "Lo Siento"! Their show is entitled, "Belshazzer's Feast". This show told the story of a great feast. With a huge table on the front sideline with glorious amounts of food(Fake food for USDA and FDA safety regulations, and to keep the audience from running on the field to devour the food) and had an egyptians themed colorguard uniforms. What kept this band from a top 10 finish was their effect scores. Which could be attributed to the judges staring at the table. Points out of 10th: .135
In 10th place, with a score of 77.080, "Prince Hall-Royal Arch"! This show is entitled, "Metamorphosis". The show had multiple props on the field that changed all throughout the show. Even the corp had uniforms that had multiple layers to fold over to different colors. Their hats, rifles, and drums had LED lights that flashed and changed colors as well throughout the show. The captions that kept this band from placing higher was their music and visual ensemble scores. Dirtiness really hurt them. Also as a surprise announcement, at the end of the show the drum major announced that they will be playing the same show for Season 30. Points out of 9th: .125
In 9th place, with a score of 77.205, "Marching Royal Dukes"! This show is entitled, " Medusa". Which included a colorguard member with a full costumed attire, standing on stilts that made her 12ft tall. For effect scores, each time a member in the corp looked at Medusa, they were frozen in place. What kept this band from placing higher was their music performance. Visuals were clearly their strong point. Congratulations on your 9th place finish! Points out of 8th: .210
In 8th place, with a score of 77.415, "Tonal Heart"! Their show is entitled, "A Mystic Heart". It told an inspirational story of love as the couple struggled through their relationship. The colorguard had huge flags that when placed together, made a huge heart in the middle of the field. Their music was performed well, but what kept this corp from placing higher was their visual performance. Newly added visuals and sets were not clean. Congratulations on your 8th place finish. Points outs of 7th: .270
In 7th place, with a score of 77.685, "Virginia's Finest"! Their show is entitled, "In the Spring". Which included no less than 15 trees that throughout the show grew leaves that fully blossomed during the closer. The guard had LED lights that spread throughout their uniforms as the show moved forward. Even tho this band was the best of the bottom 6, they were no match for the top 6 corps, which were on a completely different level. Congratulations on your 7th place finish. Points out of 6th: 2.325
In 6th place, with a score of 80.010, "Phanfare Regiment"! Their show is entitled, "Cityscapes" which include props of buildings for the different times of day that people go the cities. Multiple uniform changes throughout the show, including tuxedo's and pajama's. This show was well designed, and balanced but just wasnt performed well enough to place any higher. Congratulations on your 6th place finish! Points out of 5th place: 3.985
In 5th place, with a score of 83.995, "Greenville Cadets"! Their show is entitled, "Rise". This show told the story of oppressed slaves of the Roman Empire. The corps was completely decked out in Roman military attire, with the colorguard portraying the enslaved. During the show, it starts out with 1 upriser, that quickly spreads, until the corp is completely overthrown by the enslaved. Their effect scores was there, but their individual musical, and visual scores were what kept them from getting any closer to the other 4. Congratulations on your top 5 finish! Points out of 4th: 2.100
In 4th place, with a score of 86.095, "Kingsmen"! Their show is entitled, "Gearworks." This show included many different size and types of gears spread out across the field. As the show progressed forward, each individual prop connected to another, that created a massive machine at the 50 yd line that has moving parts.(with color guard members moving them inside). Their design and overall performance was a step up from the rest of the competition below them, but even with their strong well balanced across the board performance, it just wasnt enough to finish with a medal. Congratulations on your 4th place finish!
In 3rd place, with a score of 87.245, "Cannelton Sound"! Their show is entitled, "America". Musical selection was the National Anthem and more. This show told the story of how America was formed. Including the colorguard dressed as the founding fathers at the beginning of the show, then changing into military camouflage uniforms. There was a massive 30 yd wide flag that they unfolded. It was a beautiful, impactful show that left the audience feeling patriotic. All hats came off! Musicianship wasn't in question! It was beautiful!. But even with the props, and uniform changes, the judges didn't like their visual effect. That was their biggest downfall, and cost them a chance at Gold! Congratulations on your 3rd place Bronze Medalist Finish!!! Points out of 2nd: .005
In 2nd place, with a score of 87.250, "Hoosier Regiment"! Their show was entitled, "Generic Show", and that is exactly how this show went. No voice overs, no props, nothing groundbreaking, or pushing the boundaries of marching band. This corp stuck to their roots. Clean drill, clean feet, and clean music. How they achieved such a high visual and music effect scores, we may never know. With no real design, or theme to the show, i believe that is what kept this corp from a 1st place finish. Congratulations on your 2nd place Silver Medalist finish!!
Points out of 1st: 1.825
In 1st place, with a score of 89.100, "The Golden Knights"! Just wow! Their show entitled, "Platinum" had the crowd completely into it. This show included props of diamonds, gold, silver. and platinum. This show was the cleanest of the day! Superb marching. Superb musicianship. If it wasn't for their clean music and visuals, this band wouldn't have won tho. The judges were not impressed with their effects. To be honest, there wasn't much effect at all, just pure cleanliness. Congratulations on winning Gold! This corp really lived up to their name!
***Pending Investigation***
There has been 2 corps, that will remain unnamed, that have filed accusations upon The Golden Knights. Their accusation states that their was payment (Ex: Daimonds and Gold) to secure their victory.
***Status***
Upon investigation, FMA has cleared The Golden Knights of all accusations. Apparently, jealousy fueled the false rumors!
All in all, congratulations to every Corp this season. Thank you all for performing your hearts out, and giving your fans performances of a life time! It was a great ending to Season 29, and we look forward to your success next season!!