Tekneek

I don't mind a twelve and a half minute show. I'd like to see "warmups" changed back to backfield only, though, in exchange for longer shows.

I thought signing them meant something. Did he not sign them? At least he is endorsing a conversation that the rest of the directors have tried to ignore.

Finally, a Director goes on record saying that there appears to be no rhyme or reason regarding the impact of amplification on judging/scores, so why go through all the trouble and expense? Whether it passes or not, this is a landmark event for those who have making similar statements on the boards during the season. It is time for amp supporters to at least be honest about this.

Don't see the point in this. Hopkins seems to say this is a good idea simply because we are getting used to amplification and may accept it creeping into every aspect of the activity.

Have we been able to count on The Cadets being tasteful so far? They have been known to push the amount of props on the field to an extreme as well as pushing the use of amplification to an extreme. There is no reason to expect them to demonstrate any restraint with electronics either.

I've never supported this concept anyway, but George's choice of words in this proposal certainly doesn't help sell me on it at all. The bit about not liking the rain anyway turns me off completely.

If they won't eliminate amplification completely, they should at least pass this one. I can live with this as a compromise position since I can understand the improvement when limited to pit instruments both in terms of sound and technical performance. If keeping the pit amplified means we get all the extra nonsense currently going on, I'd rather it be eliminated altogether. It is great to see an actual DIRECTOR go on record stating what many of us have been saying on the boards when it comes to this stuff.

I cannot see the point of this. Next year I expect a proposal from George about the use of animals in shows.

I am officially a Blue Stars fan after the proposals they put up. No doubt they will lose because the other directors are way too attached to George's vision, but I am going to write them a letter and then follow up with a significant merchandise purchase. At least they had the balls to make the proposals official.

I will see if I can dig up a quote. I seem to recall you saying something to the effect that lots of woodwind players are missing out on drum corps because they aren't good enough to make a top drum corps using drum corps instruments. Your solution was to change the rules and let them in on their primary instrument instead of making them compete under the current rules. You don't see the problem with that? They are getting their first lesson in having to compete in something that isn't a core competency, which is a real life situation, and you want the rules changed because some of them just aren't willing to do it. That's not the lesson we want our young people learning, is it? When all else fails, just change the rules for entry?

Honestly, I am surprised that you care about competition at all, given the arguments that woodwinds should be allowed in because they find themselves unable to compete effectively on drum corps instruments. You seem to be contradicting yourself.

Freddy spent a lot of time with us in 1993 and it meant a lot to me. He never once played up the competitive aspect of drum corps with us. He was about education. Perhaps you can see the difference. He never talked about scores and placements that I personally heard. He wanted the best we could give, but it didn't seem to have anything at all to do with the competitive aspect of the activity. Maybe he had been different in the past...

Not sure what Fortune 500 companies have to do with education. Few of them train anybody to do anything these days. Education is not a primary concern to them. You are supposed to be educated enough for their needs before you get hired. I don't care about dodge ball, nor understand your point regarding it. Competition is not the only or best way to teach work ethic and it has nothing to do with Harvard Law. They don't accept those with the best work ethics, they accept those with the educational portfolio that they are looking for. They don't care how hard you worked for it, at least from what I have read and heard. So? I was talking about education and whether it should be a competition or not. Not whether drum corps should be a competition or not. I also never said people learn nothing from competition. Another bizarre thing to draw from what I typed. You have clearly brought your own interpretation of what I said which bears almost no resemblance to what I actually typed.

Doesn't always test out that way in studies, though. I suppose it depends on what you think the purpose of education is. There are all kinds of things people will have to deal with "in the real world" that aren't useful in education.

I don't think the purpose of education is to teach you how to compete. It is to provide you the tools so you will be able to compete.

Sure, but education should prepare you for the competition...not be the competition itself.

As much as you may not believe it, there are studies out there that do indicate that a competitive environment is not the ideal one for learning. If your goal is only education, I believe it is better to have the smallest amount of competition involved as possible. While some may thrive and even desire this element, overall it is not the best for real education, IMO. It's just one reason why I would like drum corps to not sell itself as nothing more than a venue for music education. It is never going to do that as well as other programs can and has so much more to offer without intentionally trying to limit itself.

Spirit '93 member here. My recollection is that what we played for this recording is exactly what it was like on the field at that time. My memory says that sometime between POC and Jackson it was rewritten.

Kingdom Hearts material could be good.

I wonder how much he "taught" these bands and corps though, since his educational credentials now appear to be questionable.

Will drum corps full of 200 members really be able to march the same kind of drills and tempos they do today, regardless of instruments involved? None of these arguments are very compelling. To be honest, I don't even understand where they are coming from. I have not watched one drum corps show in person or on video, or listened to an audio recording, where I thought it would be perfect if they could just add in some woodwinds. Knowing that a woodwind player could find a corps out there that would teach them to play a horn makes it even harder for me to buy the arguments put forward. I wish somebody could come up with a pro-woodwinds position that actually made sense to me and convinced me it was actually a good idea.

Thanks for your work. I really enjoy going through the old scores every now and then.

They will trash that marketing slogan within a few years.

Maybe I don't get your point. Drum corps is better because they tour, they do physical training, and march at faster tempos? Other than those things, marching band is vastly superior? They have to allow woodwinds in because they are being denied the chance to tour, run miles and do hundreds of push ups, and then march fast tempos?

So all these kids that go out for drum corps each fall and then march all summer are secretly wishing they were still doing marching band and are just accepting drum corps as something to do with their non-marching band time? I cannot believe, with the amount of money these kids pay to march corps, that they wish it was just like the marching bands they just graduated from or will go back to when tour is over.