Minnesota Brass

[gregory11]

I wonder do they pick up any RCR members once DCI season is over?

[Fran Haring]

What W said earlier.

This simply might fall into the "stuff happens" category.  I certainly hope so.

 

[Morphy00]

There unfortunately isn't one answer as to why the corps is smaller this year. It truly fits into the "stuff happens" category. As I talked with fellow hornline members at the end of last season, the reasons why people weren't planning on marching this season were all over the board. Some were getting married, some were starting new careers, some were going to DCI, some were starting families, some just wanted a summer off to relax and then some didn't want to march because all of their friends has decided not to march, and undoubtedly there were likely some that didn't have fun or had issues with the staff. My reason? I had marched 19 years and wanted to see what "normal" people do with their summers. 

MBI has historically (in the last 10 years) had a good sized contingent of long-term vets the come back year after year so recruiting hasn't been a large focus. You can usually pull in a few bodies over the course of the season, whether HS kid, veteran or jr corps kid when they get off tour. This year however, it ended up being a perfect storm of vets not returning that I think even the best skilled recruiting corps would struggle with. I think regardless of score or placement at finals, the corps itself will emerge a stronger entity after this season through bolstered recruiting practices, improved alumni relations and a little introspection on what the corps wants itself to be. 

 

Note: I do not speak for the corps. Any observations are my own.

Edited July 10, 2017 by Morphy00

[BigW]

" I had marched 19 years and wanted to see what "normal" people do with their summers. "

 

I figured as much, Dave. Sometimes, a lot of folks decide they need to get off the Merry-go-round all at once, and one can only recruit so hard and find so many bodies to ride and replace.

[Jeff Ream]

On 7/9/2017 at 3:43 AM, N.E. Brigand said:

OK, thanks for those thoughts. I guess I just wish more people knew about DCA.

solid marketing could help wonders

[Jeff Ream]

On 7/9/2017 at 11:45 AM, BigW said:

I don't know the issue with MBI, but I do know from experience with Westshore that sometimes, a corps can have a situation where a lot of long time members just decide they need to get out/take a season or two off for whatever reason(s) that year and they can't replace all of them.

fact.

[BigW]

Just now, Jeff Ream said:

fact.

*fistbump*

[Jeff Ream]

On 7/9/2017 at 2:31 PM, N.E. Brigand said:

Perhaps that suggests that corps need to always be cultivating new streams for talent, in case one of them (temporarily) goes dry.

in theory that works, but not always in reality. if a large group leaves, no matter how hard you recruit, you may just not get enough to fill all the spots back up. 

[N.E. Brigand]

5 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

in theory that works, but not always in reality. if a large group leaves, no matter how hard you recruit, you may just not get enough to fill all the spots back up. 

Yeah, I understand. It was just a shock to see the corps MBI was fielding Saturday night. (Although I suspect that a number of people here already knew about it. So much less news on this forum than on the DCI side!) I'm all for shaking up the rankings, but I want it to happen due to more corps moving up a level, not by other corps slipping.

 

[N.E. Brigand]

51 minutes ago, Morphy00 said:

There unfortunately isn't one answer as to why the corps is smaller this year. It truly fits into the "stuff happens" category. As I talked with fellow hornline members at the end of last season, the reasons why people weren't planning on marching this season were all over the board. Some were getting married, some were starting new careers, some were going to DCI, some were starting families, some just wanted a summer off to relax and then some didn't want to march because all of their friends has decided not to march, and undoubtedly there were likely some that didn't have fun or had issues with the staff. My reason? I had marched 19 years and wanted to see what "normal" people do with their summers. 

MBI has historically (in the last 10 years) had a good sized contingent of long-term vets the come back year after year so recruiting hasn't been a large focus. You can usually pull in a few bodies over the course of the season, whether HS kid, veteran or jr corps kid when they get off tour. This year however, it ended up being a perfect storm of vets not returning that I think even the best skilled recruiting corps would struggle with. I think regardless of score or placement at finals, the corps itself will emerge a stronger entity after this season through bolstered recruiting practices, improved alumni relations and a little introspection on what the corps wants itself to be. 

Note: I do not speak for the corps. Any observations are my own.

What a helpful post! Thanks for sharing this. It gives us a much better understanding of what happened.

Without meaning to be the least bit critical--rather, we should be grateful for all the wonderful shows MBI has done--it does seem that there's yet another lesson for corps in here. it sounds like with so many members in the corps all of about the same age, or shall we say, same cohort, that, as happens in many a company or activity, burn-out was likely. Old hands get worn out, and a time comes when the next "generation" needs to step up and take the lead. As you say, what happened this year may result in that! But ideally an organization that wants to sustain continual excellence will consider ways of spreading the "burden" among more participants.

Well, I'm grateful for the wonderful shows that MBI has offered through the years, I'm hopeful that even this season they can surprise us, and I look forward to more great shows in the future. (And best of luck with your "normal" summer!)