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Corps staffers gather: What would you tell them


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Don't use electronics/different instruments/props, etc. just for the sake of using them. Use them effectively, and efficiently.

The corps are getting better at this, every year... but there are still some "Hey, look at us and look at what we can use!!!" moments.  LOL

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I would say, just keep up the good work! You are so inventive and creative! Sometimes you swing and miss. Sometimes you hit a home run! Singles every now and then ain't bad either. You never know until you try. Keep on trying! 

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2 minutes ago, Jurassic Lancer said:

I would say, just keep up the good work! You are so inventive and creative! Sometimes you swing and miss. Sometimes you hit a home run! Singles every now and then ain't bad either. You never know until you try. Keep on trying! 

Some find them quite trying.

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Just do you, and don't half-### it.

Don't add stuff just because everyone else is doing it. Each corps is finding a unique niche and identity, both musically and visually. Embracing that identity will be key for keeping your corps recognizable as we venture into the era of costuming. 

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12 minutes ago, xandandl said:

Some find them quite trying.

I am sure that's true. I think it is worth it.

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6 hours ago, xandandl said:

Interesting observation.

But a cool drill move is supposed to align with the music of the moment in any show, no? Even drum breaks now have to be more musical.  Any artistic statement made apart from the musical component of the show is not serving the show as a whole. Cesario's  statement today to the faculties about designing shows to which the audience and corps can relate without the designer and instructor prioritizing to make a name for oneself would seem to give the cohesion and accessibility priority over artistic statements. 

Depends on what you consider an "artistic statement". Replace that with the phrase "program concept" and I agree. Program concepts should be relatable/accessible and all design components should relate to the program concept.

Edited by jpaul
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I would let them know there are many great shows with amazingly talented kids, but, my peeve is with uniforms and let's call them what they are, not costumes which is usually used in a derogatory way, but uniforms. Perhaps some would think I'm a bit of a prude saying I think too many color guard uniforms are too revealing and too tight fitting, and perhaps I am, but I also have worked with high school students in varying capacities for many years, and body image is a real problem. I hate to think of a talented young person, especially a talented young woman, feel there is no place in drum corps for someone who does not have a perfect body. Let's leave the perfection to maneuvering flags and rifles, musical skills, dance skills, and the other skills needed for drum corps, not perfect looks and body. The form fitting uniforms worn by musicians do not always flatter those who wear them either. Some who are taller and thinner look as if they have missed a few meals, those who have a fuller build look uncomfortable, but that's a different issue.

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Stop wasting so much time on something that only works about 10% of the time.  This season has more vocalist than any previous year.  We sit in the stands listening to off key warbling that adds nothing to show.  And in almost every case the struggle to achieve a balanced sound only comes a couple of weeks before finals.   We tried the experiment if failed. Move on.

Edited by bluesman
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1 hour ago, bluesman said:

Stop wasting so much time on something that only works about 10% of the time.  This season has more vocalist than any previous year.  We sit in the stands listening to off key warbling that adds nothing to show.  And in almost every case the struggle to achieve a balanced sound only comes a couple of weeks before finals.   We tried the experiment if failed. Move on.

This increased reliance on more, and different forms of, electronics concerns me more than anything else. It brings a constant potential to "BITE YOU IN THE AZZZ." When a human performer stumbles down, he/she gets back up, picks up the equipment and blends back in as seamlessly possible. Flub a note, he/she recovers on their own. One good power surge, outage, or connector coming loose and your performance is effected for a longer time, and the failure itself more noticeable.

Another concern I have is with piping in these fake, deep, and rich chords, particularly at the conclusion of numbers. This will quickly get out of hand. I mean . . . . BIG DEAL, someone turned a dial to 11. 

Edited by Fred Windish
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1 hour ago, Tim K said:

I would let them know there are many great shows with amazingly talented kids, but, my peeve is with uniforms and let's call them what they are, not costumes which is usually used in a derogatory way, but uniforms. Perhaps some would think I'm a bit of a prude saying I think too many color guard uniforms are too revealing and too tight fitting, and perhaps I am, but I also have worked with high school students in varying capacities for many years, and body image is a real problem. I hate to think of a talented young person, especially a talented young woman, feel there is no place in drum corps for someone who does not have a perfect body. Let's leave the perfection to maneuvering flags and rifles, musical skills, dance skills, and the other skills needed for drum corps, not perfect looks and body. The form fitting uniforms worn by musicians do not always flatter those who wear them either. Some who are taller and thinner look as if they have missed a few meals, those who have a fuller build look uncomfortable, but that's a different issue.

The whole current model of drum corps living, tour, and training has removed from the occasion most, particularly females, teens dealing with issues of obesity, thyroid, and less than streamline physique. We've bought too much into the Cali/Texas teen movies of high school cheerleaders and the anorexic look of dancers and ballerinas/male ballet dancers. Drum corps is supposed to be an activity  SERVING youth formation not stick figures. A reason BodybyDrumCorps website, sadly even highlighted on the DCI official page during the off season, is popular is due to the false idea of what true personhood is. Shame on you DCI webmasters.

Edited by xandandl
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