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Welcome to Rays Inspiring Productions and Life is Better with Music!

Episode One: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the organization's mission and take a tour of the website showing off some key features created for the community. They dove into future plans for the organization and also what the next episode will be based on!

Welcome to Life is Better with Music!

Episode Two: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International returning for its 50th Anniversary Tour tomorrow June 24th after the 2020 season was canceled and the 2021 half-season. They dove into each Drum Corps to see if they have had a Show Announcement yet along with any repertoire. They looked into each Drum Corps to see if they have had any major staff changes and how that may change how the Drum Corps performs this season. Every Drum Corps had a different way of dealing with the last two seasons making this a year that is hard to estimate. With all of this being taken into account they discussed how they think each Drum Corps will perform this year with Competitive Drum Corps being back. Welcome back Competitive DCI for its 50th Anniversary Tour!

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Episode Three: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International's first few competitive performances this year from the west coast and the DCI Tour Premiere. They took a closer look at scores and how they all compare overall from coast to coast as of today's standings also saying how they feel about the outcomes so far. They also dove into a few uniforms and more show designs that have been released and discussed how they think these tie together. Clips of the first few performances were watched and they compared how the performances went up against 2019 and/or 2021. In the end, they discussed a special guest coming on next week's episode along with what you'll see in the coming weeks!

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Episode Four: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International's first week back in competition since 2019. They viewed all the shows from Coast to Coast and compared them overall with the current standings of each Corps. They also dove into how they feel standings should be from their point of view and noticed some interesting placements that sparked conversation. Clips of Corps performances throughout this week were viewed and discussed along with some clips of Colts in the Lot at DCI Muncie. Sadly the special guest could not make it this week but hopefully will hop on in the coming weeks!

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Episode Five: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International's Finals Bubble for this year and how competitive it is going to be. They viewed some clips and the scores from this last week and looked at how they have been growing and how placements are slowly changing. They also dove into DCI Mason with clips of the shows and what they viewed while watching the event in person. Sadly the special guest could not make it this week due to technical problems but hopefully will hop on in the coming week to talk about their background and how they feel the season is going as we slowly approach the halfway mark.

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Episode Six: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International's Halfway point in the season with special guest Kevin Ramirez. Kevin shared his background in the Arts field and gave his opinion on how the season has been going and what he expects to see. They talked about how they feel the second half of the season is going to go in comparison to the first half and what they expect to see. They also dove into past years and how scores went for those years in comparison to this year so far and discussed how Finals is going to be more intense this year than ever. They also viewed scores over the course of this last week along with a few clips and spoke about how these scores will possibly change throughout Texas Tour next week.

Special Guest Kevin Ramirez: Hello, I'm Kevin Ramirez, and I am an avid DCI fan. I'm from Somerset, Kentucky, and have participated in band since the 6th grade playing the Bb Clarinet. Since then, I've participated in middle and high school bands at Southwestern High School and have performed in local community bands. Additionally, I've marched for 4 years in KMEA and have participated in multiple All-Region bands and multiple All-State finals. I currently go to the University of Kentucky pursuing a degree in Computer Science with a mathematics minor.

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Episode Seven: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International's Texas Tour and how different the scores turned out to be in comparison to what they expected. They dove into how the finals bubble closed in tight and only has a very tiny window of moving room. They looked ahead to the fall season as Bands of America is starting up soon and talked about how competitions will possibly go leading up to Grand Nationals. They also discussed personal experiences with the groups they have been and will be working with throughout this Summer and Fall.

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Episode Eight: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International heading back East on tour and slowly closing in on Finals Week. They looked at scores and videos from the course of this last week and discussed how close some of these scores are. They also dove into how Corps have been placing in comparison to the last competitive season in 2019. They discussed and made a ranking list of estimated placements and captions taking the Top 12 and the first 2 out into account. The home stretch has begun!

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Episode Nine: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International heading into the Home Stretch of the season. They discussed the last week of competitions of World Class Corps as they head into Finals week and where everyone stands. They also took a look at how the season was wrapping up competitively for the Open Class Corps. Our hosts looked at some final clips of our Corps that have been having a pretty positive year and have shocked the DCI World this season. Best of luck to all of the Drum Corps this week as they end their season!

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Episode Ten: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International World Championship Prelims Scores! They looked at how close some of these scores really are and how they think they may fair as they finish out this weekend. They also discussed the finals bubble and the surprise of placements between these Corps. They took into account some previous years and what the deciding factors were for the World Champions those years and compared them to the upper 6 Corps this year with how close or far these scores seem to be. Congratulations to all of our amazing Drum Corps on their great performances tonight!

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Episode Eleven: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International World Championship Semifinals Scores! They watched these performances live and discussed how they thought the shows went in comparison to the scores given. They also talked about how far they think certain scores should be from one another and how they have been through the season. They also have a rougher estimate for finals night now after seeing our finalist group and the scores from the past two nights. Good luck in Finals to all of our top twelve!

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Episode Twelve: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Drum Corps International World Championship Finals Scores! They looked at the overall recap and dove into how they thought scores and placements should have gone that night. They also talked about how they felt when the scores were first announced. They closed out Season One and discussed what to expect for Season Two starting next week!

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Episode Thirteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss Bands of America and the shows that will be happening across the nation this year. They talked about the big shows that will have a huge deciding factor in our Grand National Champion this year. They also looked at which High School programs are going to be big hitters in certain competitions and where some programs will be performing this year in comparison to past years. They also talked briefly about Show Choir starting up for the year and what the audience should expect until the competitive season starts this next winter and spring.

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Episode Fourteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our 50-state circuits for the Marching Arts and when the rough date of finals is for each state. They spoke a lot about the comparison of Bands of America to these other state circuits and how judging and rules across the board differ from one another and change the ways in which programs can perform from circuit to circuit. They also discussed with their special guest Allison Combs a lot about the Music Education field as a teacher, student, alumni, parent, school faculty, etc., and how all of these communities should be working to help preserve music in our schools.

Special Guest Allison Combs: Allison is a Junior at University of Kentucky majoring in Music Education and Arts Administration. She graduated from Harrison County High School in Cynthiana, KY. She has participated in many ensembles at UK, including the Concert Band, Symphony Band, Marching Band, and Horn Choir. After graduating, she plans to earn her Masters and Doctorate degrees in Education and pursue a career in education and eventually administration. In her free time, she is a brass technician at Bourbon County High School and likes to bake cookies and listen to Taylor Swift.

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Episode Fifteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the Fame Show Choir Circuit and dive into what a show choir is and how they operate in comparison to other types of performing arts ensembles. They also started diving back into Bands of America and spoke about how the season may go for certain groups as they approach competitions and how they compare to past years. They also spoke briefly about the Drum Corps Associates World Championship Finals scores from this past weekend. Congratulations to our DCA World Champions!

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Episode Sixteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss more Show Choir competitions and fairs that will be coming to us in late 2022 and early 2023. They talked about the Fame Show Choir circuit and how it compares to these more state-styled competitions. They also touched on Marching Band and what we should expect in the next few weeks as they dive into Bands Of America, Marching Band State Circuits, and tons more as we go through the fall!

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Episode Seventeen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our first weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each Regional and discussed how they thought placements would go in comparison to the scores given. They also talked about some state circuits that happened this weekend and dove into how the judge panels scored these groups and how they may have done on a Bands of America judge panel. A weekend full of bands and many more to come!

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Episode Eighteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our second weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each Regional and the surprises that came with them! They also took a look at some other competition circuits going on and spoke about how they are comparing to the BOA Circuit. They also spoke about some Drum Corps news and changes going on in the activity so far this offseason.

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Episode Nineteen: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our third weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each Regional and talked about the programs that impressed them the most. They spoke about what is coming soon and about the shows they will be at throughout the season. They also looked at how the Show Choir world is doing with the fairs going on so far this year.

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Episode Twenty: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our fourth weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each Regional and talked about the judge panels and how these compare to State Circuit and Drum Corps panels. They took a look at the groups that most surprised them this past weekend and from this talked about how they think Grand Nationals is going to be for some of these top performing groups.

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Episode Twenty One: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our fifth weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each show from this weekend and talked about the bands who had their first BOA show this season. They also talked about how the first super regional went and how the future ones might go and how it may affect Grand Nationals. They dove into USBANDS and quickly went over the shows that have occurred and saw the highest scoring groups and discussed looking and comparing judge sheets to other circuits. They also looked into some Show Reveals of some of the top ensembles and spoke about how the show will fair for them.

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Episode Twenty Two: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our sixth weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each show from this weekend and talked about the bands who have been in the top of finals and how they think they may place this year. They also watched some clips of some of these top shows and compared them to past years. They briefly took a look at the USBANDS scores from this past weekend.

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Episode Twenty Three: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our seventh weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each show from this weekend and jumped into the topic of the "Finals Bubble" for Grand Nationals and who may be a contender for these spots. They also watched some of the shows they have worked with this season and discussed how these groups did in their specific circuit.

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Episode Twenty Four: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our eighth weekend of Bands of America Regional Championships. They dove into the recaps of each show quickly then jumped into watching a few shows from this season. They then dove deeper into the topic surrounding the "finals bubble" and who we may get to see a third show from and who we may not. They also spoke briefly about how they think the top 6 bands will be placed.

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Episode Twenty Five: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the past two days of BOA Grand National Championship Prelims. The shows were full of so many amazing shows put on by these hard-working performers. They both watched as many shows as possible whether it was online or in person. They then dove into lots of these shows that impressed them and that they expect to see again through the weekend. They also looked ahead to what Finals is starting to shape up to look like and who they would love to see make it and who they think is going to make it.

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Episode Twenty Six: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the past weekend of Bands of America Grand National Championship Semifinals and Finals. They dove into the overall recaps of each day and compared them. They then spoke about how they thought the placement of bands would be from prelims up to finals and how they differed from where the judges placed them. Overall, an amazing season for all Marching Bands out there and congratulations on a terrific season and we are excited to see what these programs bring next year! Congratulations to Carmel High School on being our Grand National Champion!

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Episode Twenty Seven: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the world of Music Education and focus on the controversial question of if Music Education is Fading. They dove into lots of aspects of this topic and gave their input on what they think is happening and how they think it could change for the better.

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Episode Twenty Eight: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the world of Drum Corps and if it's worth it! They dove into lots of common questions and spoke on personal experiences they have had in the activity. They also talked about a lot of stuff that isn't always on the surface with the Drum Corps process. They also gave advice on how to prepare and how to get through a Drum Corps season.

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Episode Twenty Nine: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the world of judging and what they think it takes to be a judge in the Music Community. They dove into how they think judges should look at certain aspects of being a judge and how they would judge themselves if presented the opportunity. They also spoke about how hard it is to be a judge and dove into some tough decisions they have to make.

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Episode Thirty: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the Choral Arts and dive into how it divides up. They dove into what a Show Choir is and how it differs from a Musical on stage. They also spoke about how the Choral Arts compare to the other performing arts in the aspects of performance and overall judging.

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Episode Thirty One: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss different types of Symphonic Ensembles. They also spoke about some of their favorite pieces that they have had the opportunity to perform or really want to perform. They also talked about what's coming in the near future for the podcast and what to expect during the upcoming holiday season! Happy Holidays!

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Episode Thirty Two: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our upcoming start to the WGI season and what we should expect as the season goes on. They dove briefly into each of the 3 types of Indoor Ensembles and how they perform in comparison to each other. They also spoke about how they compare to other performing arts and how they think they should perform in the setting they are in. Happy New Year! It's great to be back with everyone!

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Episode Thirty Three: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss our recent start to the Show Choir season and what to expect throughout the season. They watched parts of a show choir clip sent to them via email and dove into what they liked and what they hope to see in more clips throughout the season.

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Episode Thirty Four: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss some of our recent show reveals across the WGI performing community. They watched some shows from this past season to start building excitement for this season to take off and to get ready for what is in store from these great programs.

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Episode Thirty Five: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch a few more WGI Shows from 2022 to continue preparing for a great season of WGI. They also talked briefly about some more show reveals coming out around the community and where they will be possibly performing. They also dove into WGI show layouts and how they compare to other performing arts circuits.

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Episode Thirty Six: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch one of this year's many Show Choir shows and discuss what they enjoyed about their performance. They will watch random shows across the Show Choir competition community and dig deep into their show and reveal what they enjoyed and expect from this show as the season progresses.

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Episode Thirty Seven: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch a few shows from this year and discuss what they thought about them. They also dove into how they are excited to see how these shows grow and change over the course of the season. We greatly appreciate your patience with us taking a week off! Thank You! We look forward to diving into the rest of the season.

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Episode Thirty Eight: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch a random Show Choir show from this year and give their thoughts on it. They talked about the positives of the show and what could be better after touching on it in a rehearsal. They also looked at random competitions that have occurred to see placings and who attended that they might know. They checked in on the Show Choir Cup to see if they can see who is going to be attending but couldn't find anything.

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Episode Thirty Nine: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch a random WGI Show from each performing category. They dove into what they enjoyed about each show and what they thought could be better. They also looked at overall designs of shows and talked about what they think should be shown of in each category of WGI.

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Episode Forty: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch a random Show Choir show that is a full Ladies ensemble. They dove into what they thought was great about the show and what they think could use some more refining. They also looked at some random competition results and talked briefly about the final upcoming shows from FAME.

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Episode Forty One: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban watch three WGI shows from this season and discuss what they enjoyed. They talked about how the shows this week all had a calming feel and it's a nice contrast. They also talked about the difference between shows and how performers can tell it through how they perform whether it be through choreography or subtle movements as an ensemble.

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Episode Forty Two: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban discuss the future of the podcast and what to expect going forward. They then dove into the Show Choir Finale watching a few short clips discussing what they thought went well for the groups. They also took a look at two separate nationals results.

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Episode Forty Three: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into what we should expect as we head into WGI Color Guard World Championship Weekend. They watched clips of some of the shows to be on the lookout for and talk about who they think will win it all!

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Episode Forty Four: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into what we should expect as we head into the WGI Percussion/Wind World Championship Weekend. They watched clips of some of the shows to be on the lookout for and talk about who they think will win it all!

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Episode Forty Five: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into what we should expect as we head into Season 5! They also discussed the WGI season as a whole and watched some of the top shows from this year for them. Congratulations to all of our amazing WGI groups this season!

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Episode Forty Six: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into the journeys they took throughout music. This week they dove specifically into Mitchell's story and how Jazz had a huge part to play in his journey. If you'd like to share your story, contact us on the website!

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Episode Forty Seven: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into the journeys they took throughout music. This week they dove specifically into Gavin's story and how his experiences in Wind Ensemble/Choir had a huge part to play in his journey. If you'd like to share your story, contact us on the website

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Episode Forty Eight: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into one of the newest BOA Rules and how it affects the Bands. They also dove into all the current DCI Show Reveals and talked about how they think each show should fair this year and discussed a brief finals bubble with all the groups in play this season.

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Episode Forty Nine: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into an open mic discussion where they discuss topics across the music community. They dove into some popular Drum Corps debates that have happened from the past few competitive seasons. They also touched on some BOA topics from the past few years.

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Episode Fifty: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into an open mic discussion where they discuss topics across the music community. They dove into some popular Drum Corps debates that have happened from the past few competitive seasons. They also talked about what Drum Corps they would like to be in depending on the year and the shows that were put on that season.

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Episode Fifty One: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into an open mic discussion where they discuss topics across the music community. They dove into some popular Bands of America debates that have happened from the past few competitive seasons. They also talked about what their experiences were like in the programs they were in and the competitions they performed in.

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Episode Fifty Two: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into the First Week of DCI Shows for the 2023 season! They put out their early thoughts on a bunch of this year's shows and how it compares to previous years. They dove into some costume designs and what they thought about overall show package. They also each gave an early season prediction on Top 12 and 1st Out.

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Episode Fifty Three: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into the Second and Third Week of DCI Shows for the 2023 season! They discussed scores from the past two weeks and how Corps have either climbed or fallen in comparison to their initial thoughts in the early season. They also redid their Top 12 and 1st out now that they have a bunch of scores to compare.

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Episode Fifty Four: Our hosts Gavin Ray and Mitchell Urban dive into the Fourth Week of DCI Shows for the 2023 season! They dove into Texas Tour and how shows were scoring throughout the week. Along with this they dove into some of these caption placements that were not very expected. They also discussed how shows are slowly changing and how shows are competing against one another with these changes.