MikeD Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 There's a reason people pay good money to see the non-professional art of drum corps....because it's also a competition. Back in the day, drum corps was a competitive free-for-all, and it drew huge crowds partly on that account. Today, there is a well-established competitive hierarchy due to disparities between corps, and a systemic competitive inertia that further discourages changes in the placement order of contests. Oh, and look....fan interest has dropped over that same time period. If you want to "save" drum corps, figure out how to make it competitive again. If you went to almost any local show back in the day, there was a general hierarchy as well. At the class 'A' level in 71, for instance, most of the time here in the Northeast Blue Rock won, 27th was second, Garfield was third. Boston, Blessed Sac and St Rita's followed up...every so often there might be a position change or two, but usually that was the hierarchy. And, like today you had lower level corps to fill out shows, often scoring 20 points or more lower than the top corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 NOT AGAIN! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 No, it is not really a very different experience. Local corps of my day and local competitive bands of today are pretty much the same, only an average band today is much better than the small local corps used to be. Mike, I just completed my 26th year in teaching high school marching bands. I have yet to see a band that tours all summer long, rehearses like drum corps does and play to croweds like drum corps does, or lives on a bus or gym floor like drum corps does. I have yet to see a band charge what drum corps does, and I have yet to see a drum corps perform every friday night at the local football game. Please, fi you can show me these similarities, I may go along with you. Until then, while maybe the styles of music and drill may be similar, they are very much different, and any attempts to claim otherwise is pure ######## Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 That's a myth. Soccer is a traditional youth activity, and it hasn't seen a decline. And while we can argue endlessly over precisely what those unique aspects are, they do fall into two main categories....art and sport. I'd like to address the latter category for a moment. There's a reason people pay good money to see the non-professional art of drum corps....because it's also a competition. Back in the day, drum corps was a competitive free-for-all, and it drew huge crowds partly on that account. Today, there is a well-established competitive hierarchy due to disparities between corps, and a systemic competitive inertia that further discourages changes in the placement order of contests. Oh, and look....fan interest has dropped over that same time period. If you want to "save" drum corps, figure out how to make it competitive again. honestly, soccer has really only grown in appeal in the last 20 years to where it is now. In the 70s, soccer was not nearly as popular Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. D. from da 313 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Was wondering where the monthly DC died thread was. But yous guys fooled me and blew the dust off this oldy and moldy thread. So, the question is "how do we save Drum Corps"? You can't. Good night!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 No, it is not really a very different experience. Local corps of my day and local competitive bands of today are pretty much the same, only an average band today is much better than the small local corps used to be. Howzabout members who choose to join and bands that compete..... Coming from a non-competing band (for #### good reasons from the director) please don't lump MB = DC... And considering some of the comments you've directed towards the less competitive GSC corps from your day it's not being very complimentary to MBs today who do compete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 (edited) When we're discussing the entertainment value of corps, entertainment is a matter of opinion, but I'd like to share a true story from outside the drum corps world to illustrate a point. A few years ago I attended a concert by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The BSO performed a new piece that sounded like a combination car wreck and the harp falling down a flight of stairs, and compared with what critics said, I'm being complementary. At intermission, a woman was raving about the performance, stating how she had never heard it performed better and it was her favorite contemporary work. The problem? The performance we had heard was the premiere and the dress rehearsal was closed to the public. The piece was performed once more the following evening then pulled from the remaining scheduled performances. The piece was difficult, it was well performed by one of the finest orchestras in the world under the baton of a highly esteemed conductor, but was it effective to anyone other than the woman who may have been sincere, or may have just wanted to hear herself speak? Most of us who post know drum corps well (or think we do). I've been following corps for nearly forty years and I know what I am going to see when I go to a show. I knew why "Angels and Demons" won last year, I know why Blue Devils won in 1976, I know why PR's Spartacus won in 2008 and I know why Star of Indiana won with Respighi in 1991 rather than Disney tunes in the mid-80's, but I also know what judges are looking for and what I am looking at, but I'm not sure someone who has never been exposed to drum corps would understand or would be entertained at some shows. I've been at shows and I've taken people to shows and they know what they are seeing is good, but they don't know exactly what they are seeing, and can be puzzled and may or may not be entertained. Since we are taking about a three to four hour commitment, not to mention ticket price, parking fees, and refreshment costs, they may not be getting the bang for the buck, so to speak. I know people who have attended shows are glad they attended, but they don't return. We probably all agree that performances should not be inaccessible like the piece played by the BSO and believe that difficulty and excellence are not all that matter. We probably also agree that drum corps need not be the marching and instrumental equivalent of an "Up With People" concert, but the BSO's programing practices can be an example. In most performances, a contemporary piece is paired with a standard piece. Beethoven and Mahler may be paired with Harbison and Shoenberg with great success and a filled Symphony Hall. Audiences are exposed to contemporary sounds and entertained by old standards that are always freshly interpreted. Corps should make efforts to have this balance, and some do. PR, Crown, and Cavies did it with great success last year and audiences responded. Since we're talking about corps that placed 3-5 in finals, judges responded too. Similar efforts should be made when selecting who will perform in what show. Show organizers should make efforts to make sure that the corps that audiences love appear in shows along with potential winners at finals. If a corps has both the entertainment value as well as a chance at a ring and title, all the better. I understand entertainment value is not everything competitively and I also understand that excellence is not perceived as entertainment to many, and I'm not suggesting we dumb down corps, but having performances that have an appeal to an audience outside the drum corps world is essential to survival. We need to fill venues. We need to have shows that attract young people who may want to march and their parents who most likely will make it happen. We have to fill seats with people who are just curious. Shows in New England, once a hotbed of drum corps activity are filled, sometimes to capacity, but the conversations in the stands range from what 27th, Bridgemen, and Madison did back in the day when we're not talking about Lipitor, Plavix, and blood pressure. I'm on the younger end and I'll be fifty in the fall. We need new and younger audiences who will come if it's worth the while. This could be essential to survival. Remember shows need to make enough money to pay prizes and performance fees and corps need these to survive. Edited May 1, 2012 by Tim K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowtown Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Simple really, a lot of acrylic, some very special permission slips and a large storage space We’ll save A Drum Corps forever !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Tubas cost way more than soccer balls. Just sayin. LOL, don't forget the mini traffic cones to lay out the field and goal. And lot less training/lessons needed to run around than play an instrument. Adding to the other youth group comments as saw some thing first hand in an area just beside the city. Our old church had to stop the scouting program because of lack of adult help. Parents wanted to help but in a lower income area things like earning enough money to pay for food come first. So you can't help with the kids if you're pulling that weekend shift at teh Uni-Mart making bread money. Consider the number of city corps BITD and the state of the cities pre-1960s to today and you might get an idea why a lot of areas that used to have local corps never will again. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Mike, I just completed my 26th year in teaching high school marching bands. I have yet to see a band that tours all summer long, rehearses like drum corps does and play to croweds like drum corps does, or lives on a bus or gym floor like drum corps does. I have yet to see a band charge what drum corps does, and I have yet to see a drum corps perform every friday night at the local football game. Please, fi you can show me these similarities, I may go along with you. Until then, while maybe the styles of music and drill may be similar, they are very much different, and any attempts to claim otherwise is pure ######## Note what I said: "No, it is not really a very different experience. Local corps of my day and local competitive bands of today are pretty much the same, only an average band today is much better than the small local corps used to be." Of course summer touring is a difference if you look at today. I did not tour all summer long, and in my GSC days, rarely even a weekend. This thread is talkig about 'saving' drum corps and some are pointing out the days when there were hundreds of corps. THAT is what I am comparing. BTW...bands today do often charge to belong; no, not as much as a touring corps, but it is not free for lots of bands. Local smaller corps that I am referring to were weekend preforming groups back in the day, just as bands tend to be today. I have been teaching bands since 1971...the overall experience the kids in competitive bands get today is very similar to the local-style corps experience of my day. To claim otherwise is pure ########. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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