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Showing content with the highest reputation on 12/15/2012 in all areas

  1. Agree with Don. There are over 100 people involved with the corps, and only around 20 involved in the Edge. Why doesn't he just pass the torch so the over 80 people who won't be with the Edge can still do what they love to do.
    2 points
  2. Teal Sound are no more. Chronically bad management over the last few years has saw to that.... not instructional staff they were great, I'm talking about top level admin staff. The attempt to resurrect the corps via Facebook a few months ago was nothing more than a scam led by someone known only to well to the Drum Corps community. If anyone contacts you about money be it fees, sponsorship or what ever..... don't part with a cent.
    2 points
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    2 points
  4. We in the winter guard world have watched students from Newtown, Ct. perform at many local Ct. and WGI events for many years now. A few years back, I even took my group to compete at their home show. Today the world visits Newtown, Ct., but not for the same reasons. Thank you, Newtown HS for many years of great performances. We all mourn with your community today.
    1 point
  5. Hey all, I was wondering if anyone had any experience writing program notes to accompany drum corps shows? In particular, what are important things to highlight? I have some experience writing them for orchestral pieces, but when there's also these strong and important elements of visual and storytelling, I get a bit lost. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
    1 point
  6. Teal is gone. Lets move on.
    1 point
  7. The Summary file is done. Click on the Dropbox link below and download the Excel file. CorpsFinancialAnalysis_v1 You might consider right-clicking on the link and opening it in a new tab (Windows users). Note: The Summary spreadsheet Totals and Averages do not include DCI even though DCI's numbers are shown.
    1 point
  8. 1) Blue Devils-last years show was so unlike anything I have ever seen in dci. Best staff. 2)Crown- great show but see above. 3) Cadets-they know they need more to compete with above two 4)Boston-they place ahead of their best placement of 5th 5)SCV-not yet 6)Bluecoats-still looking for that magic of two years ago 7)Madison-almost back in top 6 8)Cavies-ouch 9)Crossmen-great corps on the rise 10)Academy-finally 11)Spirit-greatness in the making 12)Blue Knights- 13)Blue Stars-
    1 point
  9. You know, Don, this IS a significant development. I'm troubled. But, I'm enough of a realist to accept that a weekend only activity simply can't take 125 performers and equipment 300 miles in exchange for (maybe) $3000. That can't last. We no longer have motorcycle racing before huge crowds, on wooden boards. But, we STILL have motorcycle racing. Just one parallel. Something else IS out there.
    1 point
  10. It was a actually reported by Fred Morrison the director if the corps. On a side note I got the skinny on the remaining charts and they sound like super additions. I can't spill the beans. It will be interesting to see how they put it all together
    1 point
  11. We are in close contact with DCE. Renegades are going to Europe in September, and will be performing at DCE.
    1 point
  12. and i took a lot of heat for saying this was going to happen. it's really to bad. i wish that david will change his mind or turn the corps over to somebody that can carry on. but wishing is for fairy tales. good luck empire on the final frontier.
    1 point
  13. Obviously sad, and now confirmed, news. What matters is The Empire Statesmen continue in some form or another. The formula they have used will ALWAYS work. All my best to Dave Bruni and the hundreds of Empire Statesman who worked so hard to entertain us the "old fashioned" way. I look forward to the next chapter.
    1 point
  14. True, of course that means we can only talk about corps from this year and next year in this forum. It would be pretty boring to limit discussions to only this time frame.
    1 point
  15. sounds like it will be fun. DCI should charge to run it on the Fan Network. they'd make money
    1 point
  16. I’ll be as diplomatic as I can. I have A History of Drum and Bugle Corps books Volumes 1 and 2 which I enjoy. I haven’t read the books from end to end but often peruse the books as reference and to reminiscence. Volume 2 contains Alberta/British Columbia page 100-101, Quebec page 112-119, Chatelaines page 214-217, Offensive Lions page 310-311, all written by Daniel Buteau. Volume 1 contains Drum and Bugle Corps in Quebec page 355-364 written by Daniel. At least Quebec has more than 2 pages for Alberta and British Columbia! Perhaps you and I can help find the missing pieces of the puzzles.
    1 point
  17. While I agree with your statements (and I might even watch prelims online rather than go to Rochester again), it is sad for that activity since I believe the majority of the marching members are on the field because they get a thrill out of performing to a live audience. Hard to keep your corps membership up when you are playing to a crowd of 2000 on finals night even though there might be thousands more watching at home. It just isn't the same from the performers perspective.
    1 point
  18. FWIW, I saw them all at the Alamodome in July that year. Blue Devils had what was, to this day, the loudest musical moment I've ever heard in my life. During the big blow section at the end of I've Got Rhythm/Fascinating Rhythm, when the drummers are running around the rack, it was so loud that you couldn't hear the corps anymore. All you could hear was a wall of distortion. It was absolutely amazing. And BK deserves special mention - their opener in 2002 is an all-time classic, and maybe the best "angry" song a drum corps has ever done. I don't think we in the crowd knew what to expect from them after the '01 show, and they blew everyone's socks off. Mike
    1 point
  19. As far as I know, there are absolutly no plans for any type of return of Teal Sound. I believe all the equipment and assesets have been liquidated.
    1 point
  20. High mark time AND French Horns!
    1 point
  21. nothing 5 zillion yards of black curtain can't fix...I mean it's worked so well at LOS :rolleyes:/>/>
    1 point
  22. I think crowd reactions are quite loud and instantaneous these days, as witnessed by the video snippets accompanying a project I recently completed. I believe the perspective of our memories changes with time. I remember the snow being worse when I was a kid, the Christmas windows in downtown Chicago being better, the pop music artists being more distinctive from each other, and I'm pretty sure I was thinner and had thicker Dennis DeLucia-like hair. It's possible that a greater use of on-field subtleties encourages audiences to get more intellectually involved in the shows and react with more "ooooos" and "ahhhhs" than sporadic yelling, but I still witness a lot of loud screaming from those around me. In an age when kids have so many more distractions, I'm glad there are still some who are willing to give up their summers and much of the rest of their year to continue to give us indelible memories that elicit all sorts of reactions, enthusiastic and emotional.
    1 point
  23. Based on new staffing, repertoire and preliminary talent levels 1. Blue Devils 2. Cadets 3. Carolina 4. SCV 5. Phantom 6. Cavaliers 7. Bluecoats 8. Madison 9. Boston 10. Knights 11. Stars 12. SOA 13. Crossmen 14. Troopers 15. Glassmen 16. Colts 17. Academy 18. Oregon 19. Crest 20. Jersey 21. Seattle 22. Mandarins 23. Pioneer
    1 point
  24. Would it be fair to characterize you as a fan of the G-7? It's not beyond imagining that BK, Spirit, or Xmen will place 7th or better sometime in the next few years. They all have before -- BK not so terribly long ago. (And Spirit beat Cavaliers at least once over the summer.) Would you "care" about them then? As for Boston "same as always" in 8th, they've only held that placement once, you know.
    1 point
  25. Let me answer a few of the questions about the Cavaliers, without attempting to represent the organization, nor revealing anything I think they would prefer kept quiet. It's just that I think some of my information will be helpful to those of you who are following these comparisons with interest. Excluding instructional staff, the corps, as I understand it, pays only one or two part-time administrative assistants. Jeff was paid about $48,000 his last full year when the org decided he needed to be appropriately compensated after 35 years of, essentially, volunteer work as corps director, etc. He left the next year (unrelated to his compensation). ALL other administrative roles within the organization have been volunteer for the last 60+ years. Some expense monies are paid, but no salaries or independent contractor fees to speak of (again, this does not include instructional staff). Thus, the "lean" operating expense ratio. This year, one person has been hired to be the Fundraising, Alumni Relations, and Marketing Director, at a fairly nominal rate. Prior to that all fundraising, alumni relations, and marketing work was done (and much of it is still done) by the alums and a few other volunteers. The total instructional salaries, by the way, are below the rest of their peers in the activity as well, for the most part. Whether they are alums or not, they tend to work for less for the Cavaliers than they could get elsewhere. This is changing a bit, more recently, and will increase if need be to remain competitive, within reason, I suspect. The tour expenses line item is mainly food (a bit over $100k per year). Don Warren, Adolph DeGrauwe, Don Heitzman, and the other primary management stalwarts who have been "at the helm" for decades do not accept payment. This includes those in charge of equipment, transportation, food, medical, book keeping, souvenir sales, tour managers, webmaster, etc. Again, some modest expense reimbursement is about it. This may have changed a bit recently, but not significantly, I suspect. Most importantly, as GRATEFUL as they are to Rosemont, the Village does NOT contribute as much as the general public assumes. In fact, the money is probably less than 15% - 20% of the total operating budget of around $1.2 million. They provide vehicle storage, some office space, refueling when in town, and some much-needed cash (and the cash does not come from the Village, it comes from hotel/motel fees or something akin to that). Grand total of all cash and in-kind given by Rosemont is, again, 15% - 20% of the budget. The observation about the Cavaliers small "safety net" of excess earnings is quite valid. Thus their continued gratefulness to Rosemont since things are very, very lean without the Village. The reason we alums raised almost $600,000 in donations during the 2008 60th anniversary year was to help provide some "padding" in the event of an emergency. The first $100k was given to the corps to use as they pleased (for operating as it turned out). The rest is being put into an endowed ("savings") fund and managed by an outside investment entity. Currently that fund has, more or less, $200k in it with about $300k in pledges still coming in over the next several years (as planned). Hope this adds some clarity. I don't think the Cavaliers consider any of this info I just gave to be privileged. If so, they can kick my butt at the next alum function I show up to. This is, as the 990s begin to reveal, an AMAZING organization with some of the hardest working adminitrators, instructors, board members, alums, parents, and volunteers I've seen in my 35 years of working with non-profit organizations (as a consultant and as a participant). While this type of set-up does make things potentially "thin" without the paid infrastructure of some of the other elite corps, it has worked well thus far. I suspect, however, that the Cavaliers will begin to become more like some of the mid-level corps (who all probably have MUCH more paid staff than the Cavaliers) as the demands of modern drum corps increase. And, the reality is, many of the long-time stalwarts of the Cavalier management/volunteer team are now well past retirement age and they won't be able to continue this level of dedication forever. The group of younger volunteers in unlikely to devote the same kind of time as the Adolphs and Don Warrens, nor should they be expected to. It will be an interesting transition, but one that is already underway and beginning to transform seamlessly. Go Go Green Machine (the nickname applies to more than their marching!).
    1 point
  26. I post the above again so we can fairly compare the "efficiency" of Cavaliers' operation in the same format that we consider DCI's and the other corps so far. Cavaliers Total Expenses v. Program Service & MGE Expenses 2009: Total Expenses = $1,153,734, PSE = $1.046,875 (90.7%), MGE = $106,859 (9.3%) 2010: Total Expenses = $1,213,648, PSE = $1,105,288 (91%), MGE = $108,360 (8.9%) 2011: Total Expenses = $1,227,237, PSE = $1,108,916 (90.4%), MGE = $118,321 (9.6%) Wow. Based on what we've seen so far, and from an "efficiency" standpoint, DCI, YEA!, and BD can learn a lot from Cavaliers about how to run a lean and mean organization, IMO.
    1 point
  27. No. A. DCI has no jurisdiction over the operations of individual organizations. B. If neither the school district, legal authorities nor the "victim" have chosen to pursue the matter, what would DCI's grounds be?
    1 point
  28. First let me say that I am amazed to find many replies to the original post break the posting guidelines set by DCP and in the interest of promoting a positive rather than negative environment, should be removed. Many of the posts have included personal attacks on a member, have made threatening remarks regarding the member, and have attacked the Teal Sound organization as well as DCI. When posting, unless you know all of the facts (not just what you read in the newspaper), or unless you were the person directly involved then your comments are harassing and without merit. In my 60 years of life experience, 40 of which I spent as an educator, I have found that those who profess to know all the answers and shout it out loud for everyone to hear, are most often the ones that have skeletons that are hiding in their own closets. Or, there are many that make nasty comments and spread gossip as a result of jealousy over those who are well-liked and successful in the profession. My question for those that go out of their way to post negative comments about things they really know nothing about is what example are you setting for the youth of this organization or your own band program? We are all human and as humans we have all made and will continue to make choices that are not good ones and yes, as someone pointed out, we suffer the consequences of those choices. Learning from and living with the mistakes we make is only half the battle. The other half is how we emerge from the aftermath. In other words, how we live our lives afterward. Teal Sound used a proactive approach to announcing its staff. It appears they felt that it was better to be open and honest rather than be accused of hiding something. Obviously, the organization recognizes the talent and expertise that each of the staff brings to the table and is ready to move forward. I can think of a lot better conversations to have regarding the upcoming season, can't you?
    1 point
  29. I won't argue against that point at all. It's totally valid. But let's face it - this guy is going to have to walk around with a target on his back.
    1 point
  30. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone....I remember reading that somewhere.
    1 point
  31. As a father of a 13 year old girl, This makes me sick to my stomach. Stay clear of this corps.
    1 point
  32. Now I remember why I forgot Phantom. They won The Music In Motion Championship. Then they got voted out of DCI. Thus not allowed to compete. However they put on a standstill performance finals night in the parking lot.
    0 points
  33. Now I remember why I forgot Phantom. They won The Music In Motion Championship. Then they got voted out of DCI. Thus not allowed to compete. However they put on a standstill performance finals night in the parking lot.
    0 points
  34. david has 2 problems from what i understand. #1 dwindeling crowds. he can't keep all the travel and expense with ever smaller crowds. # 2 electronics. i thnk that is self explanatory. it just changes things way to much. but with attendance going down all the time, well empire NEEDS the crowds. in any case this is a sad day. we already have sky, cru,and many other corps gone. so when people say DCA is growing and is healthy, let's just say that's denial. things are not well in DCA. and the sad thing is............i remember when DCA started. and the promise it gave senior corps.
    0 points
  35. ask DCI. They are currently running an Indoor Drum Corps circuit that tours nationally. Unfortunately, some of the events are outside due to lack of venue, but they are working with what they have.
    0 points
  36. Is the trip to Europe still on ? Renegades are NOT listed to perform at DCE Championships. Full list of performing corps @ DCE Championships -> http://drumcorpseurope.org/article.php?news=11335
    0 points
  37. There is a special place in hell for those that do and talk about doing such things to children.
    -1 points
  38. amazing isnt it? not like its an independent group either or someone over 18....you think this is bad WGIs dirty little secrets are worse...one just went to jail for 2 years..unbelieveable!!!!!
    -1 points
  39. They say "all sin" is the same in the eyes of the Lord, but I can gaurandamntee you that the refill I helped myself to without paying the .29 tonight at the gas station (because the attendant was literally asleep at work), is much different than trying to have sex (or maybe having sex), or talking about having sex with a child or a student. These violate the sanctities and oaths of our profession. They are inexcusable acts and EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT to be upset by them. PERIOD.
    -1 points
  40. When one considers the investment it requires to own and transport 6-12 full concert keyboards for use by the front ensemble, (as well as various other aux perc equipment) why hasnt anyone seized the initiative and simply gotten rid of them in favor of electronic keyboards? If they need to be amplified, why not cut out the middleman and simply use a few Korgs or Yamaha keyboards out there set to xylo and marimba sound (and whatever else)
    -1 points
  41. Posting just in the hope to wake some people up... I can't believe we've been on the same picture since before I left for europe on 9/17 and I still can't give more clues to the 4th person until someone names #3 my goodness...
    -1 points
  42. -1 points
  43. lol what a hornets nest this opens... let's just say "easier said than done"
    -1 points
  44. I agree. I've said it for years for DCI. Look, if you pay enough for WGI, you get all 3 days of finals weekend. you can only fit so many in UD Arena, and Dayton may possibly less personally appealing as a citythan Rochester is. but I pony up to watch if I can't go, and so do many others. I haven't heard WGI once trot out the excuse "it will hurt attendance". because honestly, those people weren't going anyway
    -1 points
  45. $35-50 that way is better than none at all
    -1 points
  46. You could have it all if you followed the Japanese format: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzDM56JUvg8 Finding a similar venue might be problematical, though. It's a good idea, though. Good luck.
    -1 points
  47. I don't have much experience as far as indoor marching brass goes, but I have a hesitation about your approach. It seems like you have a very specific vision for where you want this to go. However I'm not sure that specific vision is appealing to all the different programs out there. For all I know, DCI does not require a specific ratio from brass to percussion to guard. The ensembles themselves seem to find a good balance. If right off the bat you'd make it a rule to make the ensembles conform to a specific sound, I don't think it will go far. Start broad, let different ensembles try different things. Give the judges the responsibility of keeping the quality high. What if an ensemble wanted a marching snare soloist for a performance of Bolero? Or a guard duet to tell a story (without loosing musicians to acting responsibilities)? Or a piano soloist? Imagine if every ensemble came in and performed something musically thrilling, visually stunning, AND had something different to offer. For instance, So and So High School in Scholastic A is known for crazy fast wind players and cool visuals, while So and So Community College is known for face-melting brass and clean beats. But I guess that's not what you're going for. This really is just my first reaction, but I'd fear your vision would just turn into concert band on the move, and what's the appeal? Kids who have done marching band all fall are doing concert band... those two activities alone cover everything this activity seems to offer. ... OR... maybe go the opposite way. (I do love new ideas and why not dream a little?) As I think about what would be different about the activity, it kind of makes me wonder what COULD be different? What if it wasn't even strictly marching? What if you gave this ensemble the floor, and said, "The rules are, you must perform this much time of music, and present ______) Involve drama departments? Even Choirs. More or less, we're getting into the realm of "Competitive Musical Production" lending the activity to infinite creativity. I know that I'm just throwing out crazy ideas that are probably of no value to you, but my point is, if you're going to do something, why not do something big, something new? Well, now that I have strayed away to a distant land to which nobody will follow, I think I'll end by just saying this. How will this change people? (educate, build up, inspire) If you have an answer to that question, I figure you're on the right track...
    -1 points
  48. Interesting that they are choosing to close up shop when they've never had problems fielding a corps. I guess the Edge will be the primary focus moving on.
    -1 points
  49. So, let me get this straight... Because drum corps in outdoor stadiums is dying, the activity is moving indoors. But because there are few indoor venues that fit the vision, they're back outdoors again? And being back outdoors forces them to creatively "work with what they have"? And this is expected to bring success? Gee, I wonder if this approach would work with the activity we have now? :blink:/>/> (Not directed at you, soccerguy, more at the idea and circular logic of the mentality.) Sorry, back OT...
    -1 points
  50. I'm confused why people are talking about horn lines from decades ago in this discussion. While the original post is pretty vague, this being the current WC DCI forum might not be the best place to talk about Madison's great horn lines from the 70's, or Suncoast Sound's great horn lines of the 80's. Perhaps folks wanting to discuss that can go over to http://www.drumcorpsplanet.com/forums/index.php/forum/59-historical-junior-corps-discussions/ to talk in the historical forum. Or maybe I'm misconstruing the intent of the post and they were asking for all-time "underdogs" (which, FWIW, is kind of silly to talk about corps who have won the High Brass trophy over the years - clearly Madison Scouts winning Brass Line of 1975 is not overlooked or an underdog).
    -2 points
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