Finale Nationals was supposed to have 11 judges!
Well looks like I got all my comps messed up in my head... Sorry guys hahaha! I knew one of these stacked comps had a truckload of judges...
With 5 judges my argument becomes invalid sorry guys!
Also, Jeff, I would totally agree with the stylistic appropriateness of Burbanks choreography, but what I was trying to argue was that while some judges would agree with us on that fact others would say that the cleanliness or lack there of became a distraction to the show... Either way you cut it the director made the decision to not be necessarily "clean"... Which would have opened up more time for vocal work that all or most judges would agree with... Thus showing a preference again I agree with you it was definitely not the best example. But the argument I am trying to get across is that whenever the choice is made to work on vocals specifically or choreo specifically it takes away from possible time to work on something else.
There are 5 judges. It's posted on the event page above. I wouldn't really consider 5 to be an overwhelming amount of judges. Some competitions certainly have larger panels. But at the same time, 5 isn't underwhelming either. It's a fine number.
Finale Nationals was supposed to have 11 judges!
But I think I might be on his side on this one because of the sheer number of judges. It's really hard to have all however many judges there are here all go "wow this show I personally like more" when they have different backgrounds and preferences at the end of the day I really think this outcome will be nearly impossible to throw up to judges preference.
There are 5 judges. It's posted on the event page above. I wouldn't really consider 5 to be an overwhelming amount of judges. Some competitions certainly have larger panels. But at the same time, 5 isn't underwhelming either. It's a fine number.
Regarding your quoted phrase… for the record no one has said that phrase. Lets just clear that up. I still think, in general, it's naive to discount judge's backgrounds and styles as having no influence in the way they judge. That's literally why they were picked to judge the competition, because they have extensive experience with show choir that makes them qualified to be on a panel!
For example, Prodigal (Burbank's 2012 show) had incredible vocals and incredible overall effect but their choreography was not clean so their score and placement reflected it.
Granted this isn't a Burbank 2012 topic, but just a quick comment that I don't think this is the best example considering "In Sync" 2012 did win Showmanship/Best Choreography in a 2nd place finish, got 1st at SoCal, and the only time they didn't get either 1st or Show/BC was a runner-up finish to Clinton. Hardly slouching. It's all a matter of perspective. You didn't think it was clean. Clean isn't everything to some judges. Besides, I wouldn't expect clean choreography during a rave… that wouldn't make sense or be stylistically appropriate.
So I'm just going to reply to the preference thing without quoting... But I think I might be on his side on this one because of the sheer number of judges. It's really hard to have all however many judges there are here all go "wow this show I personally like more" when they have different backgrounds and preferences at the end of the day I really think this outcome will be nearly impossible to throw up to judges preference. I say nearly because of course there could be a "Russian Judge" that puts a group in 10th that clearly has no business being in 10th according to the other judges. True these point spreads are going to be VERY tight, but the judges preference accross a panel should well "cancel out" in a way of speaking. If one prefers stories then another is bound to be addicted to classic show choir and suddenly the playing field is even.
The difference will be made in who does what they are best at incredibly and everything else well enough to keep pace. For example, Prodigal (Burbank's 2012 show) had incredible vocals and incredible overall effect but their choreography was not clean so their score and placement reflected it. Somewhere along the line the director made a decision as to what he found important. No one blames them for not being clean and no one balmes the director for his choice because when it gets down to it these high caliber groups are still made up of highschool students. There is only so much a highschool group can learn and do. So, somewhere along the line the director had to decide what their emphasis would be on. At competitions like these we learn if that emphasis was enough to make one outstanding group standout over the others.
Edit: Just so that I at least said something specific about this competition: GOOD LUCK TO AUBURN!!! Representing the south!! I wouldn't necessarily expect to see them in finals, but y'all might actually be surprised by the caliber of performance they will bring to the table! Keep in mind they beat Fairfield in prelims...
My response: isn't that every competition? It's always about what a judge prefers over what they don't prefer.
However, I find that even at competitions like this, there are still distinguishable differences in the quality of the groups (vocals, choreography, etc). Most high-caliber groups do not sound or look the same--reasons for this: vowel blending issues, consonant perfection, use of dynamics, expression, appropriateness of style, cleanliness, transitions, etc. Yall have seen the scoresheets--you know what the criteria for judging are. And no group gets perfect scores in every category. So I find that it comes down to more than a judge simply liking one show better than another--show is only one of the 4 or 5 major categories on the scoresheet. I find that judges take into account WAY more than their "preference." And thus I disagree that "judges' preference" is the only deciding factor. Competitions like this simply give judges permission to be even more picky about critiquing groups.
I think you have a point to the extent that "judge's preference" is used on here pretty often, but I also think it's naive to totally discount judge's personal preferences. Sure, judges always determine the outcome of a show choir competition, but it's incredibly more simple to do that at, say Jackson Prep Masters 2014, than it is here. Not a knock on Jackson Prep, their competition, or the South, but the immense depth of high quality show choirs doesn't make this a typical competition.
The Wheaton scoresheets are available via the event website link above. I don't think anyone is saying that the Wheaton judges are just going to pick their favorite show. But I would imagine that the scoresheets will be pretty darn close among the finalist contenders. Furthermore, the scoresheet categories are always subjective. "Vocal Interpretation/Style" might look different across the board as might "Visual Intensity of Movement." Which is totally okay. Multiple judges, multiple opinions, the feedback should benefit the choir. But there are very real examples of "judge's preferences" in determining outcomes of contests. For example, over the past several years on the West Coast we see Burbank, Burroughs, and Los Al routinely switch placements throughout the competition season. Sometimes Burroughs wins, other times Burbank comes out on top, same with Los Al. Or Show Choir Nationals 2010 & 2012.
At the end of the competition day, I'm generally pretty satisfied with results. Judges are qualified. I am not. I usually trust their decisions since they are experts. But to say that their expertise isn't influenced by personal biases is false. Everyone has biases in a lot of different ways. And it's okay. So yes, plenty of fantastic groups will be performing here at Wheaton. Judges will choose who they believe is the best choir. If all of these choirs competed again next weekend with different judges, likely a different result.
There is one and only one deciding factor at a competition of this magnitude....... Judges Preference
This is a really popular idea on SCC.
My response: isn't that every competition? It's always about what a judge prefers over what they don't prefer.
However, I find that even at competitions like this, there are still distinguishable differences in the quality of the groups (vocals, choreography, etc). Most high-caliber groups do not sound or look the same--reasons for this: vowel blending issues, consonant perfection, use of dynamics, expression, appropriateness of style, cleanliness, transitions, etc. Yall have seen the scoresheets--you know what the criteria for judging are. And no group gets perfect scores in every category. So I find that it comes down to more than a judge simply liking one show better than another--show is only one of the 4 or 5 major categories on the scoresheet. I find that judges take into account WAY more than their "preference." And thus I disagree that "judges' preference" is the only deciding factor. Competitions like this simply give judges permission to be even more picky about critiquing groups.
How does one find the "live feed" when the time comes? I am novice at such things and really want to at least enjoy seeing finals of such an epic competition. Help anyone?
I'd say to just go to the showchoir.com homepage. They'll probably have the link listed at the top of the page like they've been doing lately. (Thanks showchoir.com, that's so nice!):grin
Does any one know if Wheaton will be performing their prelims show on Friday and their finals show on Saturday?
It was mentioned a couple pages back that it's somewhat reasonable to assume that since "The Classics" are performing Friday night and Saturday night that they would do their prelims show on Friday and finals show on Saturday. Maybe some from WWS can confirm though?