The Pre-Season Parade was held in Sunny Springfield, Missouri this season with Ivory Brigade and St. Paddy's High School helping organize and run the event.

Ivory Brigade was the lead band performing their Corps song Simple Gifts. Though they are only in exhibition for the parade they perform with the same passion and dedication as they would for a field show.

Next up was the Drum Corp Order of the Phoenix performing Carol of the Bells. This haunting Christmas song is a Judge favorite. So the judges are definitely paying close attention as the group makes their way down the street. Whether that is a good thing or bad thing we shall see in the scores.

Platinum Regiment followed next performing an abridged version of Symphony No. 5 Movement 4 by Shostakovich. The technical ability of Platinum was on main display here. Though having such a tough piece for a parade song might have bitten them in the butt. When a simpler song might have let them focus more on the other parts to a great parade show.

As Platinum Regiment turns the corner you can hear the opening to REVO by Walk off the Earth which can only mean that Hornets is next. This group has performed in all 3 parade competitions so far so they are not new to the pressure that can build before that first step. This year they have chosen a great song for the parade with the upbeat song to get people moving in the cold.

After a moment of upbeat pop music we head back to classical with Spirit of Delaware performing Mars Bringer of War. We have heard this song in the last parade competition and it placed 3rd so Spirit of Delaware must have done their research to try and play to a favorite song. It started off well enough but it all seemed a little bland compared to what we remembered of it last time.

From around the corner we start to hear cheering as Sigma Regiment starts turning the corner. Known for having some strong parade chops the judges lean in with anticipation as they start Fanfare for the New. The articulation was well done and they stayed mostly in step though they just don't seem as crisp as usual. Still it was a great performance.

And now for something different. Red Lightning Regiment comes around the turn with I can see for miles by The Who. A little classic rock was a nice change of pace from the classical and pop music so far. You could tell just by watching they had one of the best Drum Majors by far unfortunately the way you could tell was he adjusted to the Corps rather than dragging them up to his level. Great song and nice performance just nothing to write home about unfortunately.

Next up is a bagpipe band playing Scotland the Brave. Or so the Judges thought until Nemesis turns the corner revealing that they were the ones playing shocking the judges for the first time today. The performance was crisp, the lines were straight-ish, and the dedication to the music showed. This will be a performance of the day.

And now for a little swing Aftershock NZ comes playing Blues in the Night. The soulful song came pouring out with great emotion. The lines were straight and the drum major excellent, though there was something missing. It was a great performance, but that missing element might just cost them.

With Aftershock NZ that was the last of the Drum Corps and the winner is....reported after the end of the competition.

Next up came St. Paddy's High School performing in exhibition with the song I'll Fly Away. Though simplistic in nature the performance was good and the lines were decent. Though they normally perform to a higher standard you can tell that just because you are good on the field does not mean you are good on the road.

With the exhibition done the competing marching bands are up next.

Aftershock NZ Performing Arts School was first up performing Icarus by the Paul Winter Consort. The crowd instantly fell in love with the lyrical qualities of the song, both soothing and interesting to be able to keep listening without falling asleep. Though the judges noticed the straight lines a bit more than the music they just weren't as impressed as the crowd was.

And now for some pop music Dumbledore's Army come playing Shake it Off by Taylor Swift. The arrangement was well done. Sometimes you can get a bad arrangement when translating pop to instrumental, but the band chose a good one. They focused equally on their music and lines and it really shows that they know how to do a parade.

Next up came Knights a new Marching Band to the parade scene playing Sleigh Ride. The song was extremely well done and the lines were good, but the judges were just a bit distracted by the Organizer sitting behind them with his fingers in his ears singing Let it Go loudly.

Atlantic Storm came next and the organizer finally decided to shut up once he saw a new band was coming. The opening of the song starts and all Drum Corps vets knew instantly that it was Malaguena. It was a great song, but it was scrutinized heavily by everyone having heard it performed before or having played it themselves.

The Marching Knights decided they didn't want the embarassment that they had last competition after winning the first annual parade decided that they wanted to practice a bit more. And that practice payed off. Their performance of I Love You Baby was an instant hit. It had the audience singing along and swaying with the beat. The lines might not have been the best thing ever, but the music was just done so well most people weren't even noticing them not in step at all and the lines being slightly crooked.

Get ready to dance as The William Penn High School Marching Colonials make their way around the corner playing an upbeat performance of On Broadway. The lines were tight and the music wasn't bad overall it was a good performance, but definitely not the best we have seen.

We will be ending the parade with Platinum Regiment Cadets performing The Klaxon. They were definitely trying to show off some technical ability with a nice march. They performed extremely well for a first time band performing even better than the Corps with a similar name.

With that the show is.... wait a second there is a last minute entry that is coming down the street now. I wonder who it is going to be...

It is The Marching Marchers who decided last minute to try their hand at the parade again. They are performing the technical piece Flight of the Tuba Princess though it sounds a lot more like Flight of the Bumblebees. Well since the judges don't know any better they decided to just grade it on that. Despite showing up last minute they are really coming on strong with the music. This is going to make a big difference in the scores.

With that the Parade is over and the Results are...

And the Drum Corps winner is Nemesis with a score of 82.68
And the Marching Band winner and overall winner is Marching Knights with a score of 86.16

Marching Knights 86.16
Dumbledore's Army 83.16
Marching Marchers 83
Nemesis 82.68
Order of the Phoenix 79.38
Knights 75.2
Sigma Regiment 74.2
Platinum Regiment Cadets 73.44
Hornets 73.04
Aftershock NZ Performing Arts School 72.84
Aftershock NZ 72.52
Platinum Regiment 72.4
Atlantic Storm 71.78
The William Penn High School Marching Colonials 71
Red Lightning Regiment 68.58
Spirit of Delaware 65.92

The crowd voted for Aftershock NZ Performing Arts School and felt they were robbed when the scoring gave them only 72.84 with the crowd expecting them to medal in the competition.

The judges loved the selection of music for Order of the Phoenix though there were a few flaws that caused them not to be selected for a gold medal the judges still wanted to recognize them as their favorite.

The organizer has picked out his least favorite performance as is tradition of him being a grump. He chose Knights hands down. He was quoted saying "First of all Thanksgiving hasn't even passed yet and they are playing Christmas music? Bah Humbug". It was later revealed that in High School the Organizer was forced to play Sleigh Ride every Christmas as it was "Tradition".

Crowd favorite: Aftershock NZ Performing Arts School
Judges favorite: Order of the Phoenix
Least favorite: Knights

lmfao....ooooh, the anticipation is killing

:-P Better not hold long it won't be preseason anymore lol

Results are posted now. I still made it before the end of preseason.

LOL nice.. love the "grumP" section

Haha...love it! Crowd favorite will work for us in a parade. At least there were no pick-pocket guards this year, only judges lol.

Ivory Brigade and St. Paddy's are to be commended for such a smooth flowing parade. Staging area was ample, bus parking was great, even the refreshments at the end of the parade route were good.

While all of the participants were awesome, our congratulations go out to Marching Knights for their MB victory and overall gold, Nemesis for their DC victory, and also to Dumbledore's Army for taking silver and Marching Marchers for their bronze medal.

Fantastic job as always Jhawk! Thank you! I was actually semi looking forward to this all week.

Wow Nemesis and Marching Knights couldn't be more proud of our wins tonight! Marching Knights went for the crowd and a little fun and it paid of and yes they knew they couldn't just waltz through this one like they thought they could last year. Meanwhile Nemesis decided to show off a little heritage for our alumni and sponsors and they ate it up! Thanks once again for hosting a great event!

While Dumbledofe's Army is disappointed in receiving second (because second is only the first loser), they would like to congratulate the Marching Knights in luthier parade performance. Hopefully next time Dumbledore's Army and Order of the Phoenix will both medal, with one being a gold. :)

Thanks for the good reviews

Apparently my Blue Deviled Eggs went to the competition, but had to detour to a restaurant on the way there to eat Blue Food... and ended up missing the show completely.

Haha cire, I can't stop laughing.

That must have been some very good tasting Blue food to make Cire & the Blue Deviled Eggs pass up the parade entirely ... That shows true food Connoisseurs are alive & well in FMA !!!

I know.. especially considering they were going to win the competition again.

Who knows if they would have won since it seemed like it was Marching Bands leading the way this time.

I would have.. because that was just how it was going to be... don't argue.. just believe. :P

lol