capsounddad

CHEAP SHOT

I guess they will be "cut loose". Unless they can provide a "revenue stream" for DCI. I am still waiting for a reply from Tom about whether it his opinion or the official DCI position that DCI will be weeded out to include only the top revenue producing corps. If it is Tom's opinion, I'd like to know DCI's official stance. The intent of this thread was to discuss the future of the drum corps activity and the leadership role DCI and DCA could have. By knowing what direction each is taking, each drum corps fan can decide whether or not to support either or both. Or, as has been suggested go a different direction. Rick

Tom, Are you voicing a personal opinion or are you speaking for DCI? If Open Class corps are not members, then why are they required to pay membership fees, host shows, house World Class Corps and why are they listed as member corps on the web site? Before this continues to get off track, I'd like to return to the future of the activity. Are you saying it is the intent of the directors who carry the most weight at DCI to jettison the corps who don't provide a revenue stream for DCI and create a closed circuit of touring ensembles like a circus? By the way I have been to guidestar. My guess is that DCI lost money this year like a lot of other businesses, through losses in investments. I'm sure there aren't many people who know that SOME DCI money is used for investments. Rick Melcher

To borrow a line from Steve Martin's character in "The Jerk", "Now I get it. It's a profit scheme. That takes all the pressure off."

I couldn't agree more!! There are a whole lot of ideas out there about restoring that local character to drum corps. I think DCA is steadily cultivating that very thing but at a pace that they can handle both from an organizational and monetary stand point. I have seen and heard many posts on these forums that suggest DCI is doing the opposite. Trying to consolidate its resources to support a much smaller, financially viable circuit. One thing that adds to the dilema is that as the number of corps shrinks, the number of shows must also shrink. This seriously detracts from the already limited visibility drum corps has with people outside of the activity. Rick Melcher

This probably worked well before the era of what I call "free agency". In the past, the majority of members were from at least the general area of the corps home town. My son is in a world class corps that has one member from the state where the corps is located. It's hard to promote locally when most of the corps is from somewhere else. Having said that, I too like the idea and I will see what can be done locally. Rick Melcher

Tom, I am not trying to be anti-DCI. I was responding to a comment made about DCI paying for things that they don't pay for. I am not asking for an investigation of the DCI budget. As a non-profit they are bound by law to make their financial statements available to the general public. I would think that they (DCI leaders) would gladly show their members how their money is spent and what their plans are for the future without having to hunt for it. I personally am not as interested in the bottom line as I am in the priorities for expenses. I have no doubt the bill for finals week is huge and that breaking even is a struggle every year. I just think that every corps should know what their membership fees are and are not paying for just as parents and members should know what their dues and fundraising are and are not paying for.

Tom, I am not trying to be anti-DCI. I was responding to a comment made about DCI paying for things that they don't pay for. I am not asking for an investigation of the DCI budget. As a non-profit they are bound by law to make their financial statements available to the general public. I would think that they (DCI leaders) would gladly show their members how their money is spent and what their plans are for the future without having to hunt for it. I personally am not as interested in the bottom line as I am in the priorities for expenses. I have no doubt the bill for finals week is huge and that breaking even is a struggle every year. I just think that every corps should know what their membership fees are and are not paying for just as parents and members should know what their dues and fundraising are and are not paying for.

Jeff, Terrific input for this important topic. Here are some random comments: I wholeheartedly agree about the various boards of directors acting like boards of directors. The line I hate the most when trying to get things accomplished is, "This is always the way the (insert corps name here or DCI for that matter) does things." I also think that they get intimidated by directors, or feel like if they hold instructors accountable, the corps will fall apart. The organization has to be stronger than the individuals running it. On that same note, DCI should take a leadership role in establishing cooperation among the corps at the business level. Too often the pettiness and one-upsmanship are left unaddressed by the leaders at DCI. No one individual or corps or even group of "elite" corps should be stronger than the organization. It's hard to have the primary goal of each corps as "a positive, li(f)e enriching experience through their performances and interrelationships with their peers and staff.", when the demands of the DCI tour are so expensive and rigid. The way it stands now and for the foreseeable future there is no room for many young people who aren't wealthy or connected in drum corps I realize that money is the driving force in most of these problems. But if money drove everything we did, we would not have weddings or children, they're expenses far outweigh the tax deductions. Rick Melcher

Rather than loose my temper about the "generous part of their (DCI) proceeds", I will simply say this. I invite DCI to publically display their financial report (in a fashion where the average person can read it) and show the entire drum corps world EXACTLY what their $10,000,000 annual budget pays for and how it helps the individual corps. This is the amount Dan Acheson stated in his interview with Inside Indiana Business. When we were "required" to host a show, we were "required" to paid for the housing of the corps and the judges, marketing and advertising, and the stadium. We were NEVER given any compensation from DCI, but we were always "required" to pay our membership dues.

Rather than loose my temper about the "generous part of their (DCI) proceeds", I will simply say this. I invite DCI to publically display their financial report (in a fashion where the average person can read it) and show the entire drum corps world EXACTLY what their $10,000,000 annual budget pays for and how it helps the individual corps. This is the amount Dan Acheson stated in his interview with Inside Indiana Business. When we were "required" to host a show, we were "required" to paid for the housing of the corps and the judges, marketing and advertising, and the stadium. We were NEVER given any compensation from DCI, but we were always "required" to pay our membership dues.

Thanks for what ALL of you ARE doing to continue the greter good of the activity. Rick Melcher

Please tell me it's against the rules for someone to sit in the stands with a cell phone and communicate with the "electronics operator" during the show

Please tell me it's against the rules for someone to sit in the stands with a cell phone and communicate with the "electronics operator" during the show

I have waited until there were a few other responses before I wanted to put my two cents in. I definitely like the idea of reviving regional drum corps organizations and parade corps. These ideas would require less travel and expenses while increasing opportunities. I also think that there are any number of local festivals, county fairs, etc. that could provide both performance and parade opportunities. One last idea; no scores, only critique until the last couple of weeks of the season. This would provide opportunity for improvement without having to regard the other performers as opponents. I am glad to see the responses here are positive and respectful. I know that DCI finals are only days away and I think DCA finals are in a couple of weeks but I really would like to hear from someone from those two organizations directly. I could call them and have a private conversation but I think the conversation needs to be as public as possible.

Thanks for the input about DCA. I agree it is not DCA's place to bail out DCI. I only lumped them together as part of the overall discussion since they are the only two "official" drum corps organizations I know of. Rick

Disclaimer: This post is offered as an opportunity to stimulate an important discussion, NOT to criticize. I don't know what qualifies someone as knowledgeable enough to make observations or offer opinions that will be taken seriously within this activity. I offer my observations as someone who has never marched or instructed, but as someone who has observed both admirable and reprehensible conduct of not only individuals but organizations within the drum corps activity. While this is naturally true about nearly any kind of activity you can think of, the reason I write this post is because I truly believe that the tremendous amount of good that this activity offers young people far outweighs the selfishness and pettiness that, in my opinion, is steadily on the rise. In these troubled times, DCI and DCA need to look very carefully at what their roles in the future of the OVERALL activity will be. There is undoubtedly a steady decline in participation. While there is a natural tendency to focus on the blame for this decline, focus should instead be on what to do to reverse the decline. The participants of this activity should be able to look to the collective experience of the officials in both DCI and DCA to provide enough leadership to guide this activity through the inevitable changes ahead. At the same time these same officials should be leading in the effort to INCREASE the number of opportunities for young people to enjoy the positive experiences that drum corps provides. I invite DCI and DCA officials especially, but also the corps organizations and drum corps fans everywhere to answer the following questions: 1) What SPECIFICALLY are you doing to INCREASE the oportunities in drum corps for young people everywhere? 2) What SPECIFICALLY are you doing to promote the drum corps activity, ESPECIALLY AT THE BEGINNER LEVEL? 3) Does a 12,13,14,15,16,etc. year-old with no money and no prior musical experience but a strong desire to learn, have a future in drum corps? It is my opinion that if these issues are not addressed with open minds and soon, the drum corps activity will be reduced to a small, elitist tour of well connected and/or wealthy performers interested in little more than their egos and/or their wallets. One last thing. It would show some integrity if those of you wishing to respond would use your real names. Rick Melcher

My wife and I live only a few blocks from the stadium in Greendale. We spent a good deal of time in the afternoon watching two of the corps rehearse. Many people from the surrounding neighborhoods heard the music and showed up out of curiosity. We gladly took the time to explain what was going on and answer questions. The most common comment was, " I wish we would have known about this sooner. We already made plans tonight." I agree that the Racine Scouts organization and Greendale HS did a great job putting on the show. I do not feel qualified comment on the performances or the review directly. I couldn't carry a tune in a dump truck. I will say that I was thoroughly entertained and after all, isn't that what it's all about? This reply was for the review of the show. See my other topic thread for further discussion.

I have not posted to this forum for quite a while, but I feel I must on this topic. In real life I am a high school math teacher at a large urban school. I have been involved with drum corps as a parent, driver, cook, bingo worker, concession stand worker and a member of the Board of Directors. I have also coached several sports including state championship level athletes for over twenty years. I say all this to qualify that my comments come from a broad prospective. The true nature of competition is a comparison of one's self or organization against another or a given standard. I agree that competition in and of itself is a healthy endeavor. It energizes people to improve. If it is done with a group it provides support and encouragement to do things which might be difficult alone. When conducted in a mature, respectful way it provides confidence and respect to ALL who compete. Unfortunately competition has been replaced by winning. Respect for fellow competitors has been replaced by ridicule and mean-spiritedness often displayed in the postings to this and other forums. Improvement and growth within the activity have been replaced by lobbying for changes to gain an advantage. Increasing, or at least maintaining, opportunities for young people to better themselves has been replaced by a narrowing of focus that in my opinion will kill the activity in a very short time. Using the statement, "Pioneer beats Phantom", to justify the importance of scores insults everyone involved with the Pioneer organization. It should insult everyone who understands the great benefit this activity gives to EVERYONE involved. In TRUE competition, any corps should be able to win on any given night. If the Troopers beat Santa Clara because Santa Clara just put in their closer and it was sloppy while the Troopers did their whole show cleanly, then you can talk about true competition. Yes there will be a "Champion" crowned this year and we should all celebrate the accomplishments of the young people who gave that performance as well as the organization who gave them the opportunity. Unfortunately, the growing mentality is that unless you are in that "winning" corps, you are a loser, especially if you are not in an "elite" corps. That is not TRUE competition. Rick Melcher

"I have received a couple of messages from people associated with Capital Sound expressing their concern about trying to come back with MJS being active. Potentially, it could create competition for membership. Although we have kicked around the idea of inviting alums to play, the target group we have discussed is middle school aged kids. It seems to me (I may be wrong) that Cap Sound's membership is typically older than that. That being the case, we could be potentially feeding Cap Sound as well as the Scouts. I will say publicly, on this forum, that we never deliberately set out to disrespect or kill off Capital Sound. If this project ever takes that turn, I will leave it. I want to see the activity grow and prosper. I invite Cap Sound people to PM me with their thoughts. I promise to respond respectfully and to bring them up at our meetings." David, I'm not sure what PM means but I am asking you directly to stop making vague references to "people associated with Capital Sound". If you want to contact someone with authority in the Capital Sound organization directly, then you may e-mail me directly at capsounddad@yahoo.com. In the meantime, please stop giving people the impression that ANYONE you have spoken to has any authority to speak for Capital Sound. Rick Melcher

Please see Capital Sound web site www.capsound.org for an OFFICIAL announcement from the Board of Directors

When wil DCI tell us finals will be in Louisville?????

I was just informed over on the II/II forum that prelims and semis will be at Pasadena City College and finals will be at the Rose Bowl on Saturday before Div. 1

When was this decided and why weren't we notified? Any word on housing or required/focus shows?