haakon I didn't mean it in a bad way, I promise! its just so different compared to what I'm used to cuz most of our competitions start in the moringing and last all day
I think it's pretty safe to say that show choir is more popular in the midwest than the coasts, but I don't know if you could call the entire midwest the "capital." Seems a bit broad, don't you think?
Actually, Häakon and I have mused about the idea of taking a road trip to the midwest, catching a bunch of festivals along the way...
I hadn't thought of it before, but being hosted by some fellow show choir junkies across the states could be really cool! (Not to mention, would save on hotel fees )
You actually have to watch everyone perform thats SO crazy!
You say it like it's a bad thing. I personally love show choir... I could watch choirs all day long. Unfortunately, I'm not too impressed with our circuit this year. I wanna buy a plane ticket and just get out to see a midwest festival.. how it's run, how the shows actually look, etc... but I don't think that's going to happen.
I can't believe SoCal competitions don't start until the evening and that you actually have to watch everyone perform thats SO crazy! I didn't realize how many differences there were
This post topic is mos def NOT about Onalaska anymore.
Female show choirs are not divided up, because there are not enough of us.
Mixed show choirs are sometimes divided into divisions, but that is based on how big their school is. That is definitely a midwest thing. And not just with show choirs, The Illinois Superstate Concert Band Contest also divides bands up by size of their high school.
Some choirs here will have so many we have resorted to using the terms of, "varsity, junior varsity, prep, 9th, 8th, 7th" those are the terms and we have so many groups there are multiple centers with different "class" groups in each. But finals just depends. And Here in the midwest girl groups seem to be sinful. None of them ever seem to come out on top. At least in Iowa. And i suggest you dont bring a musical format here either. lol so many restrictions...
Ah ha! I found another difference! You're using the term "class," as in "Class 3," "Class 2," etc. In the west coast, we use the terms "Advanced," "Intermediate," and "Novice" (as you can see represented by the database Häakon and I created).
The only time I can remember using numbers instead of names to establish rank is at the Arcadia Pow Wow, where there's "Division II" and "Division I," and the latter is the more advanced.
It's all topsy-turvy!!! " border="0" alt="wacko.gif" />
Also, it seems--by your post--that only mixed groups get divided up into different "classes." Is that so? Are there too few of any other division to divide them into classes too? On the west coast there are just as many womens groups as mixed, and we divide them into different divisions as well.
Now, by a show of hands... which regions use the term "class," and which use "Advanced/Intermediate/Novice"?
The South(east) is more similar to the MidWest than the West Coast. We recieve awards like best choreo, best vocals, best female sols, best male solo, best director, and best visuals. Also, Only competitions with 12 or more Class 3 show choirs really has finals.
The show choir in Auburn (AL) this weekend will ost about 10 Class 3 show choirs, 6 Class 2 show choirs, 10 all-female show choirs, 3 all-male show choirs, and 6 Middle School show choirs. TOTAL = 35 show choirs. Due to time constraints, there is NO WAY to have a final. However, if you knockoff the Class 2 show choirs, the all-male show choirs, and the Middle School show choirs, then it is possible for a FINALS like in Homewood or Belmont.
<!--QuoteBegin-AlexH+Jan 29 2003, 05:39 AM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(AlexH @ Jan 29 2003, 05:39 AM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->woah, west coast show choir comps don't have finals? Or do some of them have finals?<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
No, generally there are no finals (I've never heard of any besides Showstopper... and that's kind of its own thing). This is largely due to time constraints and the number of groups competing, as well as the lack of a necessity for such a setup. Brea Olinda's competition is Southern California's next big show choir invitational, and to my knowledge there are about 12 advanced-mixed division groups competing. Most likely the top five or six placing groups will get trophies. Many times there is also an advanced women's division that will compete as well, and at a competition like Brea, there would be about 8 all-female groups in attendance. The true event starts around 3 in the afternoon (depends on if the competition is on a Friday or Saturday), with groups showing up by bus and taking to the stage for their slotted warmup time. Each group gets maybe 7-8 minutes to do a soundcheck/warmup, and then they'll usually grab a bite to eat, make final preparations, change into performance wardrobe, and get back to the theater for the show that starts around 6. With 12 groups competing and with each group getting about 20 minutes each (including setup time, performance, strike, and short lag between groups), that would be a four hour show for the mixed session only (and when the girls are added to the mix, you add on another 2 1/2 hours or so). It's generally understood that everyone watches all of the shows. This means the festival ends usually shortly after midnight, and since some groups travel about 3 hours to the competition, their day is over around 3am. When you have to leave for a festival like that at noon, it certainly consumes the whole day. I have no idea where we'd be able to add in a "finals" session.
Also, another huge difference about SoCal show choir that you may or may not be aware of is that most Cali schools compete against each other several times during the year, instead of touring around to different states and competiting against several different groups. This is mostly because California is so huge yet has a somewhat isolated show choir circuit. This means that out of 8 or 9 competitions, you may compete against a good majority of the groups 5 or 6 times in the year. This may seem weird or even boring to you to see the same shows so much, but there are plenty of upsides as well. Just like sports teams that play each other multiple times, you build up statistics that are truly comparable and relevant to other choirs in your circuit. The other really nice thing about it is that you get to see the same choirs enough times to truly build friendships and bonds with people in other choirs. The website and the internet in general certainly help that, but since many students live a good three hours from each other, it's quite nice to go to competitions where you know people and can celebrate the medium together. When you're wisked off to different places all of the time where you don't know anyone, you do get to see new shows - but you also don't have much of an opportunity to really get to know people and share in the same experiences. When we announce a festival that's coming up, everyone in the SoCal circuit knows what that is, where it's at, what the stakes are going to be, and are familiar with all of the groups that are attending. It really allows you to prep and have a great time without worrying about unknown specifics. All of the choirs are given tapes by each of the adjudicators after their performances to review as well, and you use that information to better your show and come prepared to the next festival. Since you're seeing many of the same groups in subsequent contests, it's sorta like a "finalist" scenario in that you get another chance to go head to head with the big guys; the difference is everyone gets a shot. It's really great to see groups compete at the beginning of the year and then really develop their shows by the final competition around April. And believe me, the group that's the "best" at the first competition is not neccesarily the best at the last one. It keeps the stakes high and encourages you to always be improving your set - everyone is constantly working to improve.
I could probably go on forever about the differences between SoCal/Midwest show choirs (I honestly belive that both have awesome attributes to contribute, just different ones), but I'll save you the essay for now. I'm sure there are a lot of things about Midwest show choir that I'm still not tuned into, however, so if anyone would like to discuss it with me sometime I'd love to be further educated!
That's what this website is all about.
P.S. - Thanks for inviting me, Alex (Xe87)... believe me, if I could afford it, I'd be there in a heartbeat.
There are a lot of differences in the way that MidWest and westcoast competitions are run. One of course being the finals... i've never been to a MW competition that DIDNT have them. they're extremely beneficial because after your first show you get to watch the tape with a representative adjudicator, so you really get a chance to improve your show- not just win or lose. Also a little thing, most MW competitions are an all-day saturday thing, and also most take place in a school. the ones out here on the west coast are at community colleges, or performing arts centers or something. those are just a few differences.
AquaraChick has it close but some competitions give out endless caption awards, for i dont know why! And the reason we have finals is because only a very limited number of competitions are truely INVITATIONALS. the word invitational here is like, "you got the money, YOU'RE (HAAKON!) invited!". So its our little way of weeding out the "bad" even though they arent bad, b/c no show choir is bad! but every competition is different.
The Best Director award which went to Mike Esser at the Onalaska Show Choir Classic was unrelated to this particular competition, unless you consider that GCS's placings were further proof of his talent as a director. This award is a tradition at the Onalaska competition, and is not based on the groups' placings at the competition....
Most competitions in the midwest and out east have finals, but if a competition does not have enough groups, they may omit finals. Other competitions just choose to not have finals.
well i have never actually been to any competitions, but mundelein sound has swept a couple so i know that they give out "best vocals," "best choreography," "best combo," "best crew," "best female soloist," and "best male soloist." i have also heard of "best set," "best costumes," and "best visual," which obviously went to mt zion last year.
Onalaska Show Choir Classic 2003
its just so different compared to what I'm used to cuz most of our competitions start in the moringing and last all day
" border="0" alt="wacko.gif" />
