The Corps with the Golden Show, part 1 The Corps with the Golden Show, part 2 Through winter rehearsals, the Cavaliers gradually got excited at the prospect of performing "007" during the summer of 2004. Kyle Adelmann: The early editions of the music were not complete musical ideas, they were bits and pieces that didn't flow yet, but the design team just wanted to hear how they would sound and get a feel for them. The impact at the end of the opener, the main James Bond lick, where we run our fingers across the brim of our hats, just put a huge smile on every vet's face the second we heard it at the November camp. Pepe Ochoa: Upon learning more about the show, we saw where the design team and staff were going. We knew that there would be a "gunfight" and that it would certainly be the talk of the show.

The Cavaliers perform indoors at the Flint Center in Cupertino, Calif. Photo by Katie Ford.
Huei-Yuan Pan: Moving from the snare line to the pit, of course, require some adjusting for me, and it was actually like going to camp for the first time in some ways. However, as soon as we were handed the music and the finger snapping started, we knew this show was going to, for lack of a better phrase, rock pretty hard. And then when we got to the third tune, we actually spent an entire camp watching various videos, listening to recordings, and working one-on-one with our staff, focusing on learning the details for producing the feel of authentic Latin percussion grooves/sounds. We didn't want to be a pit playing Latin percussion, but Latin percussionist performing live -- we just happened to be doing it on a football field. View a video of the percussion break from the second tune of "007." With the summer rapidly approaching, the Cavaliers made show adjustments during winter and spring rehearsals. Jeff Fiedler: I thought (winter rehearsals progressed) quite well. We tried a lot of weird and zany things, many of which made the field (whistling and a few others). MP3 of the whistling segment of "007" Purchase the 2004 DCI Division I World Championships CD set Scott Koter: I ran the ensemble rehearsals on Sundays this past winter. I was at the point where I could talk to the kids about the story line, and the interpretation, as it was one set of eyes and ears, making sure everything fit together. I knew that "Cuba" would be a lot of fun, and so different for the Cavaliers, and that it would generate effect. We knew that once it was stated it was going to be difficult -- we marched to the quarter note at 200 beats per minute for a lot of it. We knew that "Paris and Bond" was melodic, which we hadn't been known for in the last couple years. It was a longer melodic line, something to hang your hat on. I think the (internal) skepticism was a little bit on the introduction, which was pretty straightforward for us. (Regarding) Our use of amplificaton, we weren't sure if we were going to mike some equipment to give it some of the sound that we heard in the soundtrack. So there was some skepticism there. As far as the commercialism, I think we all knew it was going to be there. Once we heard it outside on Memorial Day, we really knew it. Jeff Fiedler: I don't recall (anticipating any widespread changes that would need to be made to the show through the season). We tend to modify things according to the plan, even when it seems like the plan might be out the window, the next plan is right there, ready to adapt (the design team and the tech staff are geniuses! They're always thinking a million miles a minute!). Read an early-season writeup of how the "007" season was progressing Monday we'll look at how the Cavaliers performed "007" through the summer of 2004 Cast of Characters: Kyle Adelmann -- 2004 Cavaliers mellophone player
Jeff Fiedler -- director of the Cavaliers
Michael Gaines -- Cavaliers drill designer (submitted drill PDFs)
Scott Koter -- program coordinator of the Cavaliers
Rick Lunn -- Cavaliers' assistant tour manager (submitted above James Bond PDF)
Pepe Ochoa -- 2004 Cavaliers guard sergeant
Huei-Yuan Pan -- 2004 Cavaliers front ensemble member
Andrew Toth -- Cavaliers color guard designer Previous Recap features: Eighty-three