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True story: I did not audition for the Cadets colorguard because before auditions, some horn members were discussing on IRC's #drumcorps chat (before hashtags were a thing, this was mid-90's) about the "queers" in the guard and avoiding them in the showers. I didn't want to go through whatever those vets were willing to dish out. The world was a different place then, 25 years ago. As a 16 year old who had never left a small town, I assumed the whole corps felt that way. With some perspective, I now know otherwise and that of course, there would have been an open, accepting environment. Things have changed dramatically since then, but how many trans kids might want to march at the Cadets and not know how to feel using public bathrooms, going into states that have laws preventing them from using the bathroom of their identity? Anyone who has marched with black people will know what they face when corps travel through racist areas. I applaud Denise and the Cadets for just opening up a space to have these conversations and to attract talent by welcoming them and learning to avoid what might cause them not to show up. It can only help them!

Please don’t be hostile. I will leave it to the mods to decide whether your other post was political in nature, since you think it is so funny to have made it.

Ok my definition of “inclusion”: making sure anyone who joins the group feels welcome and is safe. This means safe from any harassment from group leaders and OTHER MEMBERS of the group. wow such a horrible idea.... sure glad we didn’t have this where I worked... oh wait we did....

where is the attack? i said nothing that was attacking

I marched in the Scouts in 1985. I will never forget the sound when we came out of the tunnel for finals. The crowd EXPLODED! It was so loud that we could not hear our drum major start the show. You can see this if you watch the video. The back of the horn block actually steps off about two counts after the front of the block! We did recover, but that was rough. The top 12 in 1985 was very strong. Great music and some wonderful performances. The top 4 corps had amazing shows. Truly one of the best years of my life!!

Garfield, SCV, Blue Devils, and Madison were all amazing in 1985. Cavaliers in 5th with Planets and you could tell they were pushing their way to the top. Suncoast Sound was easily one of my favorite shows of the night. Once again, as with 1986, this corps' brass line was stellar. Star of Indiana made top 12 in their first year (10th) with a fantastic show that by Finals had more fans than doubters, who early in the season were not sure the Disney theme would work. Freelancers were amazing too with a fantastic brass line. Troopers were one of my favorite shows of the night. VK was great, Spirit of Atlanta was great -- heck I think I liked everyone. Phantom was good, too, but a bit disappointing with parts of the show -- and probably not the placement they were hoping for. A look at scores from Finals and show music: 1) 98.4 Garfield Cadets Jeremiah-Make Our Garden Grow-Candide 2) 97.2 Santa Clara Vanguard Festive Overture-Tender Land-Red Pony 3) 97.1 Blue Devils Lovecraft Earth-Karn Evil 9 (ELP)-First Circle (PM) 4) 95.0 Madison Scouts Ballet in Brass-Rhapsody in Blue 5) 94.1 Cavaliers Planets (Mars-Mercury-Uranus-Jupiter) 6) 92.7 Suncoast Sound Florida Suite 7) 91.0 Spirit of Atlanta Gershwin Concerto in F 8) 90.1 Phantom Regiment Symphonie Fantastique 9) 86.7 Troopers Symphonic Dance#3-Copland#3-Buckaroo Holiday 10) 85.8 Star of Indiana When You Wish-Zipidydodah-It's a Small World 11) 85.3 Velvet Knights Peter Gunn-NBC-Chimes Festival 12) 83.2 Freelancers Immanuel-Minotaur-Island-Forest-Bells In terms of competitive standing I didn't have a problem with scores and placements. I imagine it was hard on Gail Royer and SCV to lose that one. I'm not sure if Don Angelica's comments had anything to do with how SCV was scored. I did not realize he was in the booth with judges. I heard the comment that he stated on the PBS broadcast with Rondinero. SCV was .2 off of Garfield after semis, but on Finals night they fell behind by 1.2 which means a number of judges must have seen/heard some issues that pushed them back. All I know is I personally thought it was close. I could have accepted either corps as champion, but Garfield stood out a bit more. By Finals Garfield was a polished machine that pushed the boundaries of demand and visual. The Bernstein music they performed was downright demanding and it was played very artistically as well. It also pushed what an audience would listen to and perhaps appreciate. That first half of their show was complex and not easily hummable. I felt Garfield had won after Finals, but I will still expecting a .2 to .4 spread. The 1.2 was a surprise. On the other hand, SCV was also spectacular. SCV 1985 was for a LONG TIME my benchmark in show openers. That whole production of Festive Overture was absolutely amazing. The prop, the pants change, the timing of it all, the musical arrangement, the brass sound, guard, it was all there. Loved Grover's Corners, and the Tender Land is still one of my favorite closers. Seriously, this show was a championship worthy show; but Garfield just had one of those shows that came together in the last few weeks and managed to take the title. Incredibly this was the first year in a stretch of 4 in a row where SCV took 2nd place. The next year they would take 2nd with BD in 1st. Then Garfield beat them again in 1987 in one of the all-time great shootouts of top 2 corps, and then they take 2nd in 1988 when Madison pulled a surprise victory and BD fell to 3rd. Finally in 1989 SCV reigned, and it was Phantom Regiment who felt the sting of another 2nd place finish (though 3 of them were in the late 70s). I still love the Blue Devils 1985. That is another show that just worked. Different for them, but great stuff. Seeing the guard in wings was cool. First Circle (Metheny) was great, and I was such a huge fan of Emerson Lake and Palmer, so it was nice to hear Karn Evil 9 on the field. I thought coming into Finals that Madison had a chance to take BD. The Mad men were seriously amazing in 1985. Ballet in Brass was a great opening chart. Cavaliers were captivating with their kaleidoscopic drill (nothing like what we would see in the 90s and 2000s). I had not seen anything like that up to that point. Suncoast did Florida Suite, which I believe was one of the first original music shows, and I believe Robert W Smith composed the music and the book for SCS. One of my favorite shows of the night. SCS had this killer brass line in the 80s. I really miss them. Overall I think 1985 was strong. Good shows top to bottom. Many of the units were beginning to explore new concepts and styles. For much of the season I felt SCV was the best corps on the field, and I saw a good number of shows that summer. But in the end, Garfield put the polish on a very demanding and well designed product and simply elevated to a slightly higher level.

Excluded on an inclusion thread. How embarrassing. This is worse than that time I was beaten up with a "peace" sign.

You aren’t exactly making a strong case that stated policy changes behavior, given that DCP has a policy about political subject matter and your choice to bash people along political lines flagrantly mocks that policy.

You might want to brush up on your reading.

Back left snare was one of my former students in the marching band I arranged for and taught! Great person and marvelous drumming skills.

Got a little misty here.

No Crown 2020, but this version showed no mercy. Electric run during 2016. Oh, my! One of the greatest shows ever! Now, on to Inferno, ‘14, ‘13, ‘12, ‘11, ‘10, ‘09. Sure miss Crown. C’mon back soon!

Italian composer Ennio Morricone passed away today in Rome at the age of 91. He is best known for his legendary movie and TV scores ranging from Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns to his Oscar-winning score for The Hateful Eight and a host of others in between, and even the theme to the 1978 FIFA World Cup. And drum corps is no stranger to his excellent compositions, dating back to the Queensmen using music from For a Few Dollars More in 1968, and as recently as Carolina Crown and Jersey Surf just last year. Here’s a complete listing of all of Ennio Morricone’s works that have been heard in drum corps: http://dcxmuseum.org/index.cfm?view=search&Composer=Morricone%2C Ennio I hope to hear more of his works on the field in the future. RIP.

So what was going on in 1985 behind the scenes was a discussion among DCI leadership as to whether or not it was bad for the activity to have a corps win three times in a row. Many of the judges had to hide their cards to get on the finals judging crew, so the top four early on and then the top three were judged close all season long. I am consolidating a year with far more twists and turns in it. It was never a question of who had the championship show, although I had no clue about ths during the season. It was a time of transition in that traditional drum corps for that time was giving way to Garfield changing the landscape on drill, speed, and an unusual approach to music and visual performance and meter in combination. Don Angelica got thrown out of judging after 1984 because some felt he biased the judges when Garfield won by a tenth of a point that year. He had ZERO impact on the 1985 judges and certainly not a positive one for Garfield as far as judge scoring. I suspect he DID derive great satisfaction wtaching Garfield speak for itselt by being so far ahead of the rest that year. LIke many, I get energized by just about every drum corps show I have ever heard live. THe energy is just there. THe SCV show, to me, was not a championship caliber show. They didn't have a bad finals performance at all. Not in the least. The finals judges just let out what they had kept in all season long. Rewarding the championship show for what it was. THe SCV show was strong until 1:48 in. Then it picks up at 13.25 for 45 seconds. In between, It could have been the Freelancers or any other good show from that year. Durm features without any marching,, horn lines that take entire minutes off from playing, marching basically straight head at 120 with no time signature chanages...and on and on...all fine. But not championship caliber. THe 85 Cadets were not the end all be all. But it was the clear, and in my opinion, only championship caliber show for that year. It was also the first time that as a very young person, I understood what people meant when they talked about " politics". DCI is not unique in this regard as we all have learned over the decades. " Life lessons?" HAHA. No one even used the term back then but they were there and still apply today both in the positive and in the negative. And yes I know this honest post will NOT make me very popular. But I know 1985 DCI very very well. NOt everything ( obviously). But some stuff.

And now some love for the Free Players!

My procrastinating prevents me from multitasking.

Every year since July 11, 1953, the Madison Scouts have hosted “Drums on Parade“, the longest continuing drum corps show in the history of the activity. This year will be no different despite the pandemic and cancellation of the 2020 DCI Summer Tour. Forward Performing Arts and the Madison Scouts are pleased to announce the […] View the full article

If you have issues with individuals of your experience, maybe you should address those issues with those individuals. That seems like a better first step in improving things than complaining about them on a drum corps forum that I’m guessing not many of them read. Generalizations are often the very fabric into which prejudice is woven. As someone who has been the victim of hurtful generalizations throughout my life, and as I’m sure the perpetrators would have often claimed to just be speaking the ugly truth, I’m not sure how generalizations would ever be a step towards improving anything.

So many of his scores were perfection. We have lost a giant but are fortunate to have his rich musical legacy. Every time I hear part of the Cinema Paradiso score I wonder when a corps is going to put it on the field, particularly the love theme as a ballad.

Yep have to agree with you that “all” is overkill or someone thought it would look nice on paper. Could make management look bad (or at least dumb) when “all” doesn’t occur. Seeing what you quoted explains a lot about your opinion And strange that harassment not mentioned. To me that is a huge obstacle to making people feel safe and welcome. See your point now in why you mentioned 2018.

Different types of people, absolutely. But all different types? I hope this effort is not preoccupied with checking off every one of those boxes, instead of moving forward with the people they have. The word "harassment" did not appear even once in their press release. Honestly, I wish as much as you do that harassment prevention was the focus.

You don't happen to have the tape from the recording device you wore, do you? 🙂

Harassment prevention was a big initiative in 2018. And how do I know it is worth fixating on the word/concept of "inclusion"? Well, it is already clear from the description of the committee: "The Committee will represent a diverse cross-section of the organization to include persons of all races, religions, gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity, and any other relevant distinction as determined by the Committee." That will be a large committee, in order to include persons of all those groups.

Thank you for saying this. You are spot on! There is a big distinction between equal opportunities and equal outcomes. Equal opportunities = liberty. Equal outcomes is the opposite of liberty.

The dictionary definition of inclusion is "the act of including". We have other words for what we do after that to make the included feel welcome, prevent harassment, ensure fair treatment, and establish codes of conduct for everyone involved. And THOSE things are not horrible ideas. Why would you think that of me? Since it seems anyone with the slightest nuance of opinion is immediately presumed a hater of all virtues, let me be clear. I am proud of the drum corps activity. We have been ahead of the curve on racial justice, ahead of the curve on gender justice, and so far ahead on other constituencies that there was no curve yet. In my own face-to-face experiences, drum corps (and specifically among them, the Cadets being one fine example) have been the best institutional role model I have for minority acceptance. And even saying all that, if a corps or circuit wants to improve on that, they have my support. Continuous improvement is, after all, one of the life lessons of this activity. At some point, though, there is a distinction between equal opportunities and equal outcomes. Usually, when buzzwords like "diversity" and "inclusion" appear, that indicates an interest in equal outcomes. And usually, pursuing equal outcomes devolves into reverse discrimination... which is just another form of discrimination. (And again, let me be clear. I oppose discrimination, in all its forms. Therefore, I prefer equal opportunities.)

sadly about the 23rd century. Philly and Pittsburgh with Arkansas in the middle

and that's bad?

power? no. want to be part of a solution? Sure, why not!

I will give you a hint. "Inclusion".

July 7, 2002, 10:37pm ET - Tour Day 45 Cortland, NY The weather has cooled down now that we are in New York. We’re back to working hard and making progress on the show. Corps alliances and rivalries are starting to take shape. We had an interesting night with the Boston Crusaders. [Section removed to protect the guilty.] We march retreat next to them at almost every show for the rest of the season so it should be fun. Hershey The Cadets - 84.9 - all captions Crossmen - 79.4 Bluecoats - 77.4 Boston Crusaders - 76.7 Spirit of Atlanta - 72.8 Kiwanis Kavaliers - 79.75 Magic of Orlando - 79.75 Syracuse Brigadiers - 78.05 Hawthorne Caballeros - 73.4 Reading Buccaneers - 71.4 Bushwackers - 69.1 Cortland The Cadets - 85.85 - all captions Crossmen - 81.9 Boston Crusaders - 79.8 Carolina Crown - 74.5 Kiwanis Kavaliers - 65.3 Magic of Orlando - 82.05 (Next post is July 9.)

Whatever Jeff.

a few jerks is too many. trying to downplay it is nothing more than enabling their behavior

His score for Cinema Paradiso is perfection.

1985 Garfield - High Cam from Semi Finals.

Yeah, but they were doing other things when they came up with that estimation.

OMG. I'm obsessed with his The Mission score. It's beautiful.

Wow. Twice in one day, you have claimed greater knowledge than myself regarding what I think.

I'm not sure how to explain it, but to my ears there's a lushness to the sound of corps of this era that I love. I would much rather listen to Freelancers' 12th place show, for example, than to a number of much higher ranking shows of more recent vintage.

I wouldn't hold my breath. The same people that scream about limitations and leveling the playing field are the ones virtue signalling. HOW many times have we been over placement vs corps income....and its never addressed. People like their elite little clubs and say all the right things but never do the right things.

Very thoughtful and accurate response. The Cadets announcement includes buzzwords that we are inundated with daily by the media. I don't think that is a coincidence.

Well said!

And you know this how? Suppose we discovered that not as many women want to be a corps director. What then?

I am having a flashback. It was just 14 months ago that a quintet of protected classes (recited twice) and the name Darcie Aungst were all over a show design announcement. Now it is an "equality and inclusion committee". Inclusion? Really? And of all times, this moment of maximum irony? Drum corps WAS a truly inclusive activity, once upon a time. Now, it is unapologetically focused on being an advanced-placement summer camp for experienced alumni of the scholastic marching arts activities, which themselves are based largely in affluent suburbia. Drum corps can no longer even create the pretense of being "inclusive" toward the inexperienced and/or at-risk youth that they used to routinely train from scratch back in the day. And now, the activity faces its own economic challenges - some of which are of its own making. Forgive me if I do not hold my breath waiting to see how drum corps renounces its expensive ways, and instead returns to prioritizing outreach to the socioeconomically underprivileged. Notice that the poor are not one of the groups selected for greater opportunity and inclusion in these virtue signaling exercises.

020 SUMMER BONUS EPISODE! Each week this summer, we’ll release a past Bluecoats brass judge tape from a show in the same city we would’ve been at if we were on tour. This week is our brass tape from the 2016 CrownBEAT show in Lexington, SC. The brass judge was Jeff Harper. Read the rest […] View the full article

I think a tunnel though which the corps passes, quite fast at one point, while changing their trousers from black to white, counts as a prop. And a very effective one.

Vanguard '85. It didn't win. It didn't have to. The show was monumental and so Vanguard. To this day one of the most beautiful ballads on the field - Grover's Corners. There are no pyjamas, there are no props. It's just Vanguard.

i know some shows early in the season but to me what stands out was first Allentown...26 corps in prelims! and finals that night!!! -------------- Saturday, August 3 -------------- Allentown, PA DCI DCI East Prelims 1 Santa Clara Vanguard 93.8 ^ Garfield Cadets 93.8 3 Blue Devils 92.3 4 Madison Scouts 91.0 5 Cavaliers 89.9 6 Spirit of Atlanta 87.7 7 Suncoast Sound 86.5 8 Phantom Regiment 85.1 9 Velvet Knights 81.6 10 Troopers 81.1 11 27th Lancers 79.0 ^ Freelancers 79.0 13 Star of Indiana 78.1 14 Les Eclipses 78.0 15 Crossmen 73.1 16 Sky Ryders 72.9 17 Colts 71.4 18 Avant Guard 69.6 19 Boston Crusaders 68.3 20 Argonauts 68.2 21 Knights 66.0 22 Florida Wave 62.8 23 California Dons 58.7 24 Blue Knights 52.3 25 Bridgemen 50.6 26 Kingsmen 48.4 Allentown, PA DCI DCI East 1 Santa Clara Vanguard 95.5 2 Garfield Cadets 93.3 3 Blue Devils 92.8 4 Madison Scouts 91.8 5 Cavaliers 89.7 6 Spirit of Atlanta 87.8 7 Phantom Regiment 85.6 8 Suncoast Sound 85.2 9 Velvet Knights 82.0 10 Freelancers 78.8 11 27th Lancers 77.6 12 Troopers 77.5 first corps on at prelims, 7:40 AM....this new corps Star of Indiana. well helo they woke the #### place up....not far out of finals. well let's see how that goes with their cute Disney show. Bridgemen and the Christmas show....well....they tried.I must admit,myself and several with me got up and left when the California Dons came on...after 83, Westshoremens management sold their equipment to the Dons, almost killing the corps. stupid to do, but i was 16 and following adults.This was the Boston Axel F synth year...it was cool! Sky Ryders had Wizard of Oz part 1, and Crossmen going Spanish looked like they weren't gonna make finals.Freelancers with a fun show, and 27th, sans Danny Boy trying to retain a finals spot...time will tell. Troop looking like finals for the first time since 79, VK really starting to become a factor, Phantom down a few spots with Symphonie fantastique and Marcia on the podium...the 80's version of Kristy Spears. Take me to the beach Suncoast! the first Florida Suite....and that bass run! Spirit fun Southern and Cavies Planets 1, making themselves truly felt. then Madison...BD going a little out of their usual wheelhouse with a great version of First Circle and Emerson....Cadets and wow that show...but SCV 2 pointed them at finals after tying them at prelims! and SCV,...Festive Overture and the first time with the tunnel/pants change....wow. like literal drum corps overload in 1 day! over the next 2 weeks lots of place swapping all over, then...Madison week! Star wins the Open prelims, then quarters ( before everyone did quarters). semis saw Cadets .2 over SCV, BD and Madison not far behind...Suncoast and Phantom approaching Cavies...Troopers, Star and vK .7 apart and...OMG Star made finals their first year!! Then Freelancers in 12th, .7 over 27th, who missed finals for the first time since the early 70s'. Les Esclipses, Sky Ryders, Colts and Crossmen next. finals...no placement changes, but Cadets pull away to win their 3rd in a row. a lot of fun shows, and a year often overlooked, as with the shift in design slowly starting in 82, then really growing in 83 and 84, a lot of corps started trying new things and branching out away from "their style".

I'm bored so I'll answer with a simple "yes". Here are my suggestions; others feel free to expand on these: 1) Reduce corp size to a "Pep Band" status only requiring one bus to eliminate extra buses & extra staff thus reducing cost. 2) Eliminate all equipment trucks. All instruments will be stored & transported in the bus bay. 3) The single bus will pull a small trailer for food prep & storage. (see #4) 4) All meals reduced to Oats, PB&J, Ramen Noodles, & Pop Corn. McDonald's Dollar Menu may also be utilized periodically for incentives/rewards. (For a small surcharge, fruit cups maybe added but will require cold storage in trailer.) 5) Eliminate using all schools for overnight stays. All sleep will be employed on the bus between events. 6) Add frequent WalMart visits for restroom, AC breaks, snacks, & toiletries. 7) Reduce all performances to a "standstill" style performance on the track thus eliminating extra staff for design, teaching, cleaning, etc & rehearsal venues.