Spirit of Atlanta kept its caption heads. Percussion climbed from 14th at Prelims to 10th at Finals
Spirit's four 2027 caption heads are all returning, so the corps is betting on continuity. The archive shows Percussion was the caption furthest out of line at Prelims, and that it had closed the gap by Finals.
Spirit of Atlanta announced its 2027 caption heads on October 19 under the headline "Meet the 2027 Spirit of Atlanta Caption Heads" [1]. All four are returning.
That is a continuity bet. The score archive says how safe it looks, and the answer depends on one caption.
What the corps announced
The release names Shaun Brown (Audio), Patrick Forrester (Visual), Adam Wiencken (Battery Arranger and Caption Head) and Korey Craven (Colorguard Designer and Caption Head) [1].
Wiencken has been with the corps since 2020. Craven is entering a second season [1].
A separate design team page lists Michael Martin as Artistic Director and Brass Arranger, Wiencken as Battery Arranger, Andy Filipiak for Front Ensemble and Sound Design, and Craven for Color Guard, among others. That page does not say who is new [2].
What the archive shows
Spirit finished 10th at the 2026 World Championship Finals with an 88.588.
At Prelims, Percussion scored 17.3 and ranked 14th. The corps as a whole sat 10th with 88.7. That put Percussion four places behind the corps' own standing.
Percussion then moved to 17.8 and 9th at Semifinals. At Finals it scored 18.2 and ranked 10th, matching the corps' overall placing.
Where the other captions sat
At Finals, Color Guard scored 17.7 and ranked 9th. Brass scored 18.0 and also ranked 9th. Both sat one place above the corps' finish.
So by Finals, Percussion was no longer the outlier. It had moved from the weakest-ranked caption of the three to level with the corps.
What to watch
Wiencken's tenure runs back to 2020, so the same battery leadership was in place for the climb and is in place for 2027. That helps the continuity case. It does not prove the Prelims dip was a one-off.
The release does not say what changes, if any, the staff plans for the percussion book. The next announcement, on the show or the design team, is where that would show up. Until then, the Prelims number is the one to remember.
Sources
- Meet the 2027 Spirit of Atlanta Caption Heads · 2026-10-19
- https://www.spiritofatlanta.org/post/introducing-the-2027-spirit-of-atlanta-design-team · 2026-10-03
- Tee Up Atlanta: Tickets Now on Sale · 2026-10-03
- Corps Hall Garage Sale & Volunteer Days · 2026-10-03
- Michael Proctor Named President of the Spirit of Atlanta Board of Directors · 2026-09-30
- Aged Out Podcast 153 || Spirit of Atlanta 2026 with Adam Wiencken · 2026-09-19