Leaderboard

Why did I think of the Moosic cops for some reason....... "And for biggest over reaction to a non-problem.....".

I still have a letter from Tony that he sent me in the spring of 1972. I had asked him about doing some publicity for that year's VFW Nationals, in Minneapolis. He wrote that I should be sure to let everybody know that there would be no ridiculous costumes, or any corps "shenanigans" allowed. Needless to say, I didn't broadcast any such info to the general public.

Flashback to 1991-1992 ... Skyliners Alumni (not a corps yet, just in the stands) vs. a Rookie Moosic cop ... setting the stage: Walter Winkelman (wheelchair bound) wanted to sit by his close friends who were in the last row by the walkway ... it was not a designated wheelchair area and the rookie took exception and tried to physically remove Winky ... at that point Winky grabbed the back of a seat and whoever was caretaking him bellowed out "NEW YORK" ... at that moment, all of us instantly rushed to his aid and surrounded the rookie ... and I mean surrounded ... there had to be 40-50 of us that were there in two seconds ... the rookie held firm until is Sargent looked at us - shrugged his shoulders - and told the rookie to stand down ... it got tense ... it would not have been a good outcome for either side ... and for sure, they would have won ... but for that brief moment civility won out and Winky got to stay where he was ... :-)

Kyle, There were a lot of people grumbling "anyone but Bush" in 1992, 1993 and 1994. I do not remember hearing anything else like this except about the Brigs. That was a different scenario though. Free agency changed the game for them.

weird. i thought they were woven together beautifully. the silence in the stadium when they performed this was always incredible (especially during the celeste patch section by nick starr ). and then -- at the end -- hearing the dissonant bass in the tubas. SO. COOL.

Yeah, I would be really PO'd if I were the stadium cleaner and did not get a trophy!

well they did cut a few out over the years

Lee: I do believe you know better than some of this! Is this another example of throwing the collective spackle against the wall in an effort to interpret what, or how much might stick? Law School 101. Hey, we get it. I work with Lawyers almost daily and I appreciate what you all do no matter what side of the aisle I may find myself. Just like the Blue Devils competitive success has not ruined DCI, neither has the Buccaneers success ruined the DCA all-age circuit. The last (2) seasons I wasn't on the field in any capacity and I will say this: the Corps in the top (10) were all solid and entertaining. Did you watch the Cabs, Minnesota and Cadets2 this season or last year from your couch? I was fortunate enough to watch them live from about the (48) yard line and I can honestly opine that those Corps as well as the others in the Top (10) have raised their games considerably. They are challenging the members with difficult programs and frankly, it's fun to watch. So yes, I have made the (5) ½ hour trip to Rochester since 2006 (we got very wet that year). I intend on going back next year too. Certainly, there is a combination of issues impacting attendance. I know several individuals in the DCA Administration and they are dedicated people and are working hard to keep up with the marketing side of things and the ever-changing culture in our society. No matter where I travel, I hear the same complaints you are raising here with most other activities: “how do we get more people involved?” “where are the volunteers?” etc.,etc. Drum Corps is not alone suffering from all of this. I'm sorry, it is not the Corps, or for that matter, (1) individual Corps causing the attendance problem! Let's be honest. Most of us participating in Drum Corps in any capacity did so most likely because we love the activity first, however, it would be foolish to suggest it's not a competitive activity and the Corps don't show up to improve on their scores each week. I know you marched in the 1980's, but you have to be aware that there was a (25) year gap in between championships for Reading (1980 to 2005). That's a long time for a Drum Corps and one that was once on top and later came quite close to non-existence. Had it not been for a select number of people who refused to allow the Corps to perish the Buccaneers may have been a memory. To me, those are the true heroes in this activity. We are witnessing those examples at work right now with Corps like the Skyliners and the Sunrisers and several others. If we are to consider your hypothesis, I'd have to wonder which Corps were responsible for those fans who decided not to attend Championships during the 1990's and early part of 2000(s)? Was it the Sunrisers, Cabs, Bush, Westshore, Empire, Brigs? I think not! Frankly, I know there are a lot of fans and former members just like me who attend primarily because they enjoy the activity. Personally, I have attended most all of the DCI and DCA Championships since the 1980's and I continue to go because I enjoy the Corps. I care a lot less about who wins and I find myself leaving stadiums on many occasions before scores are announced. Admittedly, the Bucs have been on a lengthy run. They've worked extremely hard to remain there too. However, if you have been paying attention to the past several seasons, there are a number of other Corps who are right there in the mix with the Bucs both on and off the field. Is there anything that lasts forever? For the sake of argument, should the Cabs win the next (6) to (8) Championships straight, should we blame that Corps? I think not. I happen to like those people! Have you ever visited “The Post” in Hawthorne New Jersey? If you'd like to see some Drum Corps hardware, I would encourage any and all those interested in the activity to visit there at least once! What about Cadets2, Minnesota, Fusion or another Corps I haven't even mentioned dominating future years? Shall we charge any of them with Conspiracy to Commit Ruin on all-age Drum Corps? Asked and answered Counselor! Bottom Line: I appreciate your effort to generate discussion relative to how we can improve attendance! That is healthy. Blaming any one specific Drum Corps is not! David A. Faust (*Disclaimer: my views herein do not represent those of the Reading Buccaneers. I share these thoughts freely and on my own accord and not because I was a former marching member, support staff, fan and/or family member of the Buccaneers). I genuinely appreciate all the Corps and sincerely wish success to all current and future Units alike!

In 1970 we marched in the Princeton U P-rade, billed as the "biggest sloppy parade in the world". You can just imagine the political bent of the students at an Ivy League school like that in 1970. When we got off the busses and formed up to rehearse, you would have thought we were the Hitler Jugend from the looks we got from students on campus. Our wise DM started us up doing "White Rabbit", and it was like a bright light turning on in a dark room. The stiudents started grooving and smiling, and we ended up having a great time. Flash forward to the 90's and early 2000's...the HS band I started to work with that year.did the P-rade EVERY year, so I got to be with both my son and daughter as we marched the same parade I did in 1970.

Very excited for the guys!!!

At the time, I had a kid marching in 'Coats. His Mom volunteered on the cook truck and, eventually, became a DCI Volunteer of the Year a year or two after he aged out. I saw her and tour and happened to ask her about Garfield's show. "Blah, blah, blah. That's all their show is, blah, blah. And they're using a woodblock so the kids can keep time!" She continued: "The judges are really giving them heck for the woodblock!" Turns out the judges really were giving them a hard time. There were, apparently, two judges who dinged them for the woodblock having never heard that Adams wrote it in the original. I loved the ballad in '91, and I think it took me about two years to find the meter and tempo of the Bernstein closer. Loved it. Still do. Great, classic Garfield.

Minnesota basketball cheerleaders: "Hey, fight dem dar and gets dem rebounds doncha know, yah---you betcha!" Then they do the splits............and stick to the gym floor.

Only year I was at Scranton I got chased for standing behind the railing and a corps was getting ready to perform. Not a biggie but cop kept eyeballing me rest of the weekend. Sunday night we were leaving and walked by same cop. I gave him a cheery "Thank You" on the way out.... and he looked like he dropped a load in his pants in shock. It was that huge guy on the lower level....

Scouts heading out west in 2016: http://www.madisonscoutslive.com/mainsite/2015/09/scouts-to-tour-west-coast-next-summer/

It's not the city nearly as much as it's the money, structure, and leadership that goes into establishing and sustaining a corps. Kids have shown they will go anywhere as long as the situation is right.

Especially in 1970,. the first year we formed it, while playing "White Rabbit". Tony "hic" Schlechta of the VFW publically stated at VFW Nats in Miami that we did not belong in the show. However, the rank and file members at finals gave us a HUGE applause as we hit the stands in the form...with thousands of flash cubes flashing away..that was amazing to see for me, being a member in the form.

I don't know...he looks a little old to me..plus, I think he would have been in the 2014 show if any. ...or our 1971 Revolutionary War show, come to think of it...

Not only was change needed it was vital to the survival to the drum corps activity. One can say ( and they have ) that corps did die off, MANY and that would be true BUT that had nothing to do with the formation of dCI, The local thing was dying a slow death as it was, just like many youth groups. If not for the " Change " there would be nothing today IMO

Austin already picked up one. Genesis moved N to Austin last year.

And the design of the shows had to incorporate the color presentation. And the corps had to have a national colors section.

The corps may not have been directly affiliated with the veterans organizations, but the rules of the day (and judges sheets) certainly were.

For those that were around back then, my question is this: Was the same said about the Bushwackers when they won 6 championships in 8 years starting when they were only 5 years old?

lol....true...remember everyone but the stadium cleaners got a trophy...it was crazy

Over in another forum, the drop in PR's score upon switching to Jupiter was mentioned. It was also discussed that the Blue Stars had a similar drop in scores when they switched to Jupiter from King. The authors on the other forum did not claim a correlation between the two events (Jupiter horns vs Scores), however to me it is merely more than a coincidence.

This is just a little samba,.................... oh, sorry,...............not yet?

Man... I got a nasty chill down my spine just reading this.

Well ... Arietano is still around ... maybe you could start by asking him ... :-)

Jim, that's a great point. No offense to the Lancers when they were an RCA/DCA corps... but they never made the "musical memories" that corps such as Caballeros, Skyliners, Reilly Raiders, etc. made back in the day. Thus, the Lancers are a blank slate when it comes to the repertoire for their current corps. They can play anything they want, and not risk the "wrath" (for lack of a better term) of someone saying, "Man... I miss them playing (X or Y tune from back in the day). Why aren't they playing it anymore???" Certainly, it also doesn't hurt that the current Lancers have a great horn line... and their drum line isn't too shabby, either.

It's not hated enough to be loved in 20 years.

Understood,......and have felt it first hand,............Thunderbirds were virtually inactive for a couple years until a major local event caused us to try a "one and done" for the whole year in 2013,...........it was tremendously successful, but we also kept our commitment to old and new participants of one and done,..............late that year a group of younger participants asked about starting on mission to a compeditive corps again,.............many members were supportive of the idea, many not. In hindsight, we have realized that the corps was bigger than the current board, staff and even many members, it was not about us, it was about the Thunderbirds, and even those that came before us that are now gone..............day to day control and egos needed to be put aside, and let this new idea for an old, established organization happen. Guess what?,..............it is happening, and it is all good! The Erie Thunderbirds are alive, well and growing! Jim, if you recall a conversation we had outside the hotel in Rochester several championships back, Thunderbirds wisely stopped refering to ourselves as an alumni corps long ago so that we could appeal to a younger age group,..... it has worked, well beyond what we even imagined..................

I have played in an Alumni corps for over 15 years, the friendship is great, we do concerts, parades, field shows, standstills etc. I think the people in charge have to find venues for them to participate in and show up. We have fun, we entertain, and most of us are senior citizens but we put it out there. There are several Corps available to play with, all positions, all kinds of levels of performing, find one and go for it. You will enjoy it.

Open Class, Class A, Mini Corps, I & E, Alumni...... These are constantly changing or sliding in characteristics. There is something for everyone, and as folks pass through the all-age experiences, one area may enjoy a boost of focus for a while. The natural aging process certainly puts a limit on how long one can perform (Brigs had a 1955 horn player still performing at mini corps) I salute DCA for having such an open field for individuals and ensembles to continue enjoying this great experience.