silvertrombone

How's about...as the Chairman of Forte's parent organization, may I suggest attending other shows full of Open Class corps and supporting them/us? Nobody said you had to go to G8/WC shows! We sell t-shirts too, ya know! :-)

Wow. I'm amazed at how GREAT DCI was ON the field from 91 to 96 yet how totally crap the attendance was at Finals. 93 is not on the list but was in the Orlando territory of 13,000 or so. 11 to 15, IIRC. With those 5 years its pretty incredible to me that the activity even survived those great on-field years. This sort of thread intrigues me...MBA geek that I am. Good thread...I'll have to come back and engage in more analysis since number crunching is sort of my profession...later, when time permits. This is the sort of thread the activity needs to see more of...good, solid conversation based on outside economic factors affecting attendance. Kudos, all!

I LOVE your signature! "Fave all time Drum Corp story... Jim Wren - What do you mean the brass score isn't very complex? DCUK Judge - I played 1812 in an orchestra and the trumpet parts are not very difficult. Jim Wren - I know that but my trumpets are playing 1st & 2nd violin parts. DCUK Judge - Oh." Jim's a great arranger. Randy Bass also has a tendency to arrange like that...writing violins into the clarinet parts, cellos into trombones (now THAT's fun!). Stuff like that. Composer/arranger in Texas. Has been involved with Metropolitan Winds since its inception as Coppell Civic Wind Symphony. He never won DCI. You and me both. I feel strangely out of place in this thread with all of this jewelry walking around. And on a side note, I have always been entertained by those shots of BD soloists with previous years' rings on over their gloves. Classic. I guess when you're a bad ### nobody calls you out on stuff like that. Then again, it IS BD. Goatee's? Rings on over gloves? Big deal. Oh yeah, $1 to undefeated BD 94, my one year in Finals, two to the right in retreat (left if you were in the stands!).

Well, in all fairness, the Dallas Symphony is one of the healthiest symphonies in the nation due to local philanthropic support. Those "free" concerts you mentioned are usually supported by either our Fortune 500 community (largest in the nation also) or those wealthy individuals. The difference, of course, being that DCI doesn't enjoy such a great corporate development department historically, for whatever reasons.

See, that's the funny thing...ego is self-serving and it never serves a greater good. 5 or so egos all-time in drum corps have kept the activity from becoming something truly spectacular. Doubt me? In another era, a simple "marching band" (dude with an immigrant father by the name of So...added the initials of his new country to the end of his name) was the rock band of their era. Do we have to market DCI as a rock band? No. 5% interest amounts to 10 million+ fans. Not bad, eh? On the other hand, building up such a fan base might actually require not having a 40-year history of antitrust violations and monopolistic practices. But it sure feeds the egos of, say, 5 people...give or take. Now...again, my favorite example, by comparison, is the NFL. Jerry Jones and other "Legacy" owners of the 49ers, Giants and a few other franchises gave up a little bit in the old system in terms of opportunity to dominate and received a HUGE increase in revenues due to increased interest. From where? Places like Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Seattle and others who have played in or won Super Bowl's since the mid-1990's. Shoot, mighty ARIZONA was one 103-yard interception return away from winning the Lombardi trophy. ARIZONA!! Now THAT will increase fan interest and revenues. Didn't hurt having a fourth network emerge and increase demand and thus increased contract rates. In one scenario, those in charge chose ego and championships over increased exposure and competition. In one scenario, those in charge chose increased MONEY and FAN INTEREST. And do you like the NFL any less today than in 1990? Dallas? Maybe. San Francisco? Definitely. Pretty much everywhere else likes it just fine. Lots of places with no championship history prior have it since. DCI COULD have pursued this strategy. It chose not to. More like the Big 10 attitude toward playoffs in NCAA football--NO WAY!! Oh well.

Ahh..."G-8"...so, I was right!! Welcome to the club, Blue Stars. World Series of Drum Corps...I guess you do have to have 8 to make the playoffs, eh? Kind of hard to make it work with 7. [/sarcasm]

Overlooked b/c they left out 'Kill da Wabbit.' Not unlike 'Faust' without Faust, who ever heard of a 'Ring' without 4.) Probably the last drum corps show I saw before my 98-03 hiatus. 9.) I have to admit...I ordered 'Night of the Mayas...Day of the Dead' because of their opener. And though they beat us all year, we topped them in Boston when it counted! 12.

I'll be honest...the 80's were before my DCI time. Didn't even hear about DCI until 91. That said, in my limited knowledge/preference, I'd have to rate the last three years as my favorite in reverse order. 89, 88, 87 in close 3rd due to Cadets 'Appalachian Spring,' one of my top 5 favorites of all time. 89 takes the gold for me because of the 1/2 battle my guys lost out on; today's "BIG THREE" of Cavaliers, Blue Devils and Cadets in 3/4/5 (last time one of them was not in 1/2???); and Star of Indiana in 6th, the last time they placed so low. DCI changed in the 1990's. For one thing, Star established itself in the elites. Phantom Regiment went on a tear from 89 to 96 of GREAT programs that won the hearts of the fans if not the caption scores of the judges. The "BIG THREE" established a stranglehold on the activity, the DCI trophy and the Top 3. The late 80's would have been fun to follow had I known of DCI's existence. In that regard, I am jealous of Texas band members today what with the focus on membership and touring Texas enjoys now. Back then it was primarily Dallas, Houston and back up north. We were pretty lucky to even have Finals in Dallas in 91, and I was crazy lucky to be starting my Senior year in high school that fall. Too bad I didn't have a HS Director who was an alum of DCI...

Thanks, Stu. I have already spoken with the Texas Lottery Commission, which oversees non-profit Bingo in the State. I'm a few steps ahead of what you are suggesting and considering how I might partner with organizations outside the State of Texas in structuring our Bingo operations INSIDE the State of Texas. Texas law, for example, requires that all funds raised by non-profits be spent to support those non-profits in their activities INSIDE the State of Texas. And since even BD, The Cadets, Phantom Regiment and Bluecoats all come to Texas every year...get my point? I don't care what laws in other States are so much as the experiences corps/organizations have had in Bingo in general. Any input on this? Contacts are appreciated.

I decided not to take over someone else's thread because my comments became a bit more extensive than would have been appropriate except in its own thread. I'm a little disappointed as an alum of Phantom Regiment that after 8 years of Paul Rennick the organization had to go outside of alumni ranks to fill Paul's shoes. I recognize that outside talent is always a good thing to supplement and complement, etc, et al. But I would also like to hope that in an organization as family-oriented as the article states Regiment is that long-term caption heads of the calibre a Rennick is would be constantly developing their replacements...or at the very least, propogating DCI with their progeny. I consider Tom Landry (if not Vince Lombardi) to be perhaps the greatest football coach ever. This is not due to their championship mettle so much as the championship mettle of the assistant coaches they taught the game of football and the art of coaching to. Landry, for example, produced NFL coaching greats like Mike Ditka and Dan Reeves, each of whom coached in the Super Bowl, as well as other players and coaches who coached in the NCAA and NFL. The model that I learned (at Denton Bible Church, actually!) that I like the best is...who are you developing to replace you? I am not a minister, but the pastoral staff at DBC used to literally be required to be training someone in their place. This is because DBC for many years was producing so many Missionaries and young pastors who were hired by churches elsewhere that if the church did not practice this policy it would have been totally devoid of capable pastors below the rank of Senior Pastor. While Tommy Nelson is tops in my (and many others') book, the amazing quality of Denton Bible Church, especially in the late 90's through the mid 2000's, was the quality of young pastors across the board and interns, seminary students and upcoming pastors being developed. It is this nurturing nature that I had hoped might have been present in the percussion caption the last 8 years in Rockford. I don't mean this commentary as a criticism of either the Phantom Regiment organization or its leadership, Paul Rennick, etc. but more of an admonition going forward. Quite frankly, as awesome as Paul is and as long as he has been around, I would hope that there were 25 little Paul's running around DCI now. Perhaps there are and I am just unaware. If so, again, don't take this as criticism but as admonition--who are you developing to replace you??? This could go for the Board of Directors, Corps Directors, Senior Leadership, Caption Heads and even volunteers with individual drum corps, as well as the Executive Director of DCI. And again, it is not meant as a criticism but as an admonition. Dan Acheson and Dan Farrell won't be around forever. Heart attacks and auto accidents happen and old age envelops a new class of AARP members every year. This question is simply good management in its answering. I'll be honest...it applies to me as much as anyone else as well. First of all because I'm now one of those Board members. And second because I'm pretty green when it comes to leadership and development (people and money). So don't think that I'm lecturing because the lecture applies at least doubly to me as to those with other corps in similar positions as mine. And I'll end with a question rather than a statement. I believe it would be very beneficial to hear from individuals in Board and Corps Director positions in this thread. Who was 'pouring into' you in your development? I know there have been some great names like Gail Royer and George Bonfiglio (sp?) who many of you point to in your marching experiences in drum corps. Any of you currently or formerly in leadership roles in drum corps or DCI who care to chime in and tell of your mentors? Or brag on the next generation of our activity's leadership? Who are the up-and-comers (if there are any?)? Who are the ones being 'groomed'? What responsibilities are being delegated to others in individual organizations or at DCI with development of future leadership in mind? Shoot...who's gonna replace Rondo when he starts sounding like Curt Gowdy?!? These are important questions, you know!

I didn't read to see if anyone had said this yet, but... ...honestly...who in the world would want to potentially march next to one of their own students?!? Gag. Yeah...what he said.

Has anyone ever done a thread about BINGO on DCP? Links to old threads? I need to see what you guys know about Bingo operations with individual corps/organizations, regulations/laws in States, non-drum corps (AL/VFW, etc). I know that BD and SCV (as well as other CA corps) have a reputation for having had great Bingo operations historically. And I also know that there has been a good amount of discussion here about the changing face of CA non-profit Bingo and Casino/gambling laws. I need information, and I figured there might be one or three of you on DCP who possesses the same...mind sharing? If you don't want to post publicly, email me at silvertrombone@yahoo.com. Thanks!

GREAT idea! Wrong State. You need an established fan base, lots of members with disposable income and parents with nothing but time on their hands who will do ANYTHING their kids want to do. That spells Texas, friend! Or Bloomington, IN...if you know some Billionaire with nothing but time and money on his hands. Ironically, I'm working on a new venture in home health care...what a small, ironic world! Edit: Benefit of either D/FW, Austin/SA or Houston is that you have multiple universities with gobs of DCI vets as well a huge number of great HS programs. Plus, even the AAA and AA (aka Hickville) schools support their bands. Set up performances on weekends in a fundraiser environment similar to DCI. See if you can get class credit, too. If not in music, then try business...LOTS of business concepts go into what you're pushing. Put together a biz plan and submit it for University business plan competitions...could potentially even win some cash for start-up expenses. University of North Texas has one that used to be exclusively for undergrads...not sure how they run it now. Happy to chat further if my comments are helpful.

Hroth...didn't you audition at Surf? How'd that go? You're a music major, yes? Or was it philosophy? Which corps do you think would be the "music major" corps and which ones do you think would be the "others?" How would the breakdown of the give-or-take 60% who ARE majors or WILL BE in college pan out to "major" corps versus "other" corps? And lastly...how would this situation affect your personal situation as far as auditioning/marching is concerned? BTW...we'd LOVE to have you audition at Forte...I believe we'll even be having Virginia Beach auditions again. I know we'll be having OH auditions again. I'd LOVE to see you there.

OP...you're kidding...right?!? Two words: MORE CORPS!! One last thing...would play jazz again??? My entire answer depends on the answer to that question. Heck...I'd even settle for Tommy--they did Godfather recently, I'll take me sum Tommy!! They're repeating their previous music, so, give us some Tommy!!

Perhaps a more relevant question...how many GAY Corps Directors in DCI...now and historically? I can think of at least a couple. Good thread, cow!

Wait... These are the sorts of comments I was looking for. Comments about souvies and program posters are fair game and I hadn't even thought about this aspect of the activity. Sorry about leaving out Cavies. I've been pretty friendly in my commentary about them since joining DCP...at least about the period 04 to 2010. Wasn't around 2000-2003 and 07 onward was a step down from 04-06. I didn't mean to diss your guys--thanks for the commentary. And I'm more interested in the organizations overall than any one year's program. Overall best as far as total programming for the decade is concerned. That's why I was saying that Boston and Blue Knights, et al, take a leap up because some of their programs, IMHO, are better than their corps' placements bely. I would agree that Cavies are the tops for the decade based on innovation, achievement, placement, etc. But some of the music left something to be desired. Machine, for example, is not something I would listen to regularly. It served a purpose, but without the visual of the DVD, it is sort of lost on me. My opinion. But the overall program was incredible. Drill especially. Top programming organization of the decade. After that, it becomes an argument for second. BD and Cadets were crazy consistent, especially first half of the decade before Phantom got it together and Crown emerged as an elite...and more recently Blooo! BD has been a tad more consistent, where Cadets tried some new things...even when many didn't prefer what they were trying. And they put forward some CRAZY good corps like 05 and 07! Only one title in mid-decade, but I can't simply toss them because many of BD's offerings (again, IMHO) are based more on talent, heavy reliance on visual (including props) and the occassional "Absudity" themes that really stand out as tops. 08 was a GREAT concept topped only by GE on Finals. So its a toss-up for #2, IMHO. 3rd to the runner up for runner up. 4th is a toss-up between Phantom, Crown, SCV and Bluecoats. Slight edge to PR, probably more due to bias, but they had great offerings beginning (03), middle (06) and end (08) with several other crowd pleasers tossed in for good measure. SCV also put forward great shows in all portions of the decade (00, 04, 09). The next guy, an SCV alum, might give edge to SCV for the same reasons I give it to Rockford. And same thing, toss-up for Blooo and Crown for 6th and 7th. Blooo had some GREAT concepts beginning in mid-decade (07, 08, 09, 10) and Crown came on REALLY strong of late (07, 08, 09, 10) with programs (including MUSIC) that will live on as crowd favorites FOREVER! 8th through 12th includes corps that were strong here and there, or in individual aspects (music, drill, themes, etc). Each had multiple really good shows. Edge to Blue Knights for being in that 7-12 spot pretty much all decade long. Glassmen and Boston topped out higher (5th each), IIRC, but I've REALLY been into BK's music of late. Boston has had some really great music as well, so they're right there. Scouts has got to be considered in this category, maybe even nipping at the heels of the group ahead because some of their programs have been such crowd pleasers! And going into the new decade, alum and fans have to be excited about what they're going to do next! That 12-spot has been an exciting race all decade long, and its no different for the ALL-DECADE honors either! SOO many corps like Troopers and Academy (nod to someone finally performing Strauss' 'Alpinesinphonie') put on GREAT shows. Colts, Spirit and a few new faces including Academy, Teal, Surf, etc. REALLY great stuff was happening this decade. Maybe not as great in terms of programming as the 90's. Of course, maybe that's just my bias as well. But I prefer the music of the 90's and the achievement of the 00's. Programs in both are hit-and-miss. I can still appreciate incredible achievement with a show that I don't prefer (Cadets 07). And I can get into good music any day (BK 09, 10, Boston 09, 10) of the week, and twice on Saturday night! Now if we can just get the designers to put great music on the field and build great shows around that. All else being equal, how much more difficult would it be to put recognizable music out there for these talented folks to entertain us with instead of "original music"? Check out JD Shaw's use of obscure but enjoyable music in building PR's shows. I don't like ALL that Rockford puts out there. Spartacus was one example. I was just like...really?!? But it worked. And I liked the CONCEPT of 'The Red Violin' in 09. It just didn't work. Oh well. But 'Faust' was GENIUS. Pure, unadulterated...well, maybe I lusted for Marge just a LITTLE bit!...GENIUS!! 'Faust' without any Faust? Who knew?!? Look at 'Toy Story 3.' Pay attention to the cartoon short 'Day & Night' at the beginning. GREAT music (Overture to 'William Tell'...the quiet, slow part, etc) with FUN visuals! It is sooo easy to marry visual and music together. 'Machine' is perhaps the greatest example of all. I didn't prefer the music for the sake of the music, but that wasn't its purpose. And it WORKED so well for what it was meant to do. I think it would be so easy for designers to elect to use music that will drive souvie sales instead of otherwise. Ask Crown how much they were selling at the souvie trailer in 2000 versus in 2010. That's enough proof for me! I look forward to having this discussion again in 2010! And yes, I WILL include 2010 in this decade as well.

The Dallas Cowboys no longer play in Dallas County. At least Texas Stadium was in Dallas County. Cowboys Stadium in Arlington is in Tarrant County. The FC Dallas soccer team also plays in Frisco, TX in Collin County in Pizza Hut Park. Never thought of dropping the name 'Dallas,' I don't think. There is one part of Dallas that is in Denton and Collin Counties to the North. And many folks up there rent office space in the City of Dallas proper for the prestige of the address. "Plano" just doesn't have the same visual images as "Dallas" on the letterhead. Ironic, then, that Cascades and Cadets disassociated themselves with Seattle, Garfield and Bergen County, respectively. IMHO, that is part of the problem in our activity--it is good to associate one's self (or organization) with such places. Disassociating from said places sends a message to the business community--we don't NEED you any more! If the Scouts ever leave Madison, the first places I would look to would be Madisonville, TEXAS or any other burg with a similar name. Spirit of NY/NJ? Move to St Louis or stay put. It cannot possibly hurt for a corps to remain associated with a town or state even if they have NO members from that locale. Take Rockford. When was the last member in Phantom Regiment actually FROM Rockford/Loves Park, IL? How many since 2000? I'd betcha a Dublin (that's in Texas, ya'll) Dr Pepper that Texas sent more members in 2010 than Rockford has since 2000 cumulatively. Heck, I tried to convince the corps to move to Texas, but... Personally, I think DCI needs to start marketing the corps to corporate sponsors a la NASCAR...logos on uniforms...the whole nine yards. I mean, put 'Waste Management's' logo on the bottom of corps' SHOES, for crying out loud! Get some money coming in, ya know? Heck, if General Electric comes in and says, "We'll fund the corps annually, but we want the Cadets to move to KALAMAZOO," I say DO IT!! And if they cut a check for $2 million / year, move camps to Kalamazoo, rent a PO Box there, and forward it to Allentown, you know? On the other hand, if Exxon-Mobil stands up and says, "We'll fund ANY corps that will move to Dallas and rename the corps EXXON-MOBIL CORPS"...I hope there would be 12 corps sending local alum to Exxon HQ's and flying their corps directors in overnight jockeying for the PRIVILEGE of bearing the name "Exxon-Mobil." Exxon-Mobil Phantom Regiment D&BC...not bad! In Dallas, Texas. Whatever. Think green? Waste Management Cavaliers D&BC--I LOVE IT!! Every PR alum just peed a little! How about the Blue Devils Brand Toilet Scrubber D&BC--quite a contrast to their storied history, eh? Best in the business, right? Of course, that would also require creating the brand as well. But such a 'world class' product it would be. I joke at the expense of rivals of "my" corps, but seriously...we need corporate money. And if corporations are willing to give money, DCI and the corps' need to be willing to give 'em the farm. Naming rights. Logos on uniforms. Heck...logos woven into DRILL formations? Heck yeah! City's name in the name of the corps--SHOW ME THE MONEY!! Fields corps, supports young people experiencing drum corps...gets a company or city some national attention...wins all the way around.

So. Let's assume that woodwinds are inevitable. WHEN DCI allows woodwinds, how about if they created a separate woodwinds DIVISION instead of flat out requiring everyone to leave Pioneer in the dust and ADD woodwinds? Which division does Cadets go to? BD? Phantom? Others? Obviously, the woodwinds proposals being pushed by one person in particular, I am singling out Cadets on this one. But it would cause each corps to consider for itself, would it not? Does Hop create an ensemble specifically for the woodwinds division and leave Cadets brass only? Does a "marching band" division spur new groups to be fielded? I mean, I could possibly see a school district like Katy outside of Houston putting together ONE group district-wide and entering it in the new division. Possible way to get public schools participating widespread...who knows? Thoughts? On Cadets, specifically. Or waffles in general. Personally, I would HOPE that Hop would leave Cadets alone. Create a marching band group. Shoot. Fill it up with folks who audition for Cadets first and don't make the corps. Plus anyone who plays a woodwind instrument. Sort of a quasi-cadet Cadets, so to speak. Hopefully. I put nothing beyond Hop at this point. I think he's gotten bored. Beware a progressive with an agenda and a bored guy with a microphone...or powerpoint.

Wow, is that really Hop? In MY thread?!? I like the suggestion on bringing back Les Mis. I have been one of the anti-electronics folks. Imagine what could be done with Broadway on a DCI field with electronics? Win me over--do it well, do it right. And thanks for stopping by.

I've been saying for several years that someone ought to do some Judas Priest! Not exactly 'classic,' but I really enjoyed their 2004/5 disc, 'Angel of Retribution'...maybe I'm getting one of the tracks confused for the album title. There is some KILLER percussion stuff waiting to be written from that album. I mean, if there's some up-and-coming drum guy out there, this concept could make your career! The opportunities for bass drum writing is absurd on that album. GREAT stuff! Lots of good heavy metal, meaty brass literature there, too. Again, not exactly 'classic rock,' but some good stuff, and Teal has certainly established themselves in this genre recently.

Troublemakers: Peer Gynt (sp?) and Till Eulenspiegel...complete with a mock execution! (turn to audience for thumbs up / thumbs down GE) Made for Cadets, given their fascination with characters the last few years. Fun to see two corps do 'executions' in the same year, too. (see below) Day & Night...have you seen the cartoon short at the beginning of 'Toy Story 3'? Has drum corps written all over it...GREAT music, funny visuals! Blue Knights? Given their fascination with great music recently, this works really well. Especially with their dark unis! Love's me some Berlioz...how about a Crown versus Phantom Berlioz fest? Crown on 'Harold en Italie,' Phantom finally answers the calls for 'Symphonie Fantastique.' Epic battle all season long. And ironically, now it would be PR playing catch-up based on the last two seasons' results. Epic. No matter the caption results! SCV...when are you guys gonna break down and take on Phantom of the Opera again? Now you've got the drums to match 89. You've already been taking on everyone else's "BEST"...time to turn the finger inward and take on YOUR "BEST." Besides, think about all the changes to DCI in the last 20 years. You could do a really KILLER POTO with all the electronics. Many of us keep calling for someone to really WOW us with the electronics...here's YOUR chance! 'Requiem'...several of us have suggested a compilation of great selections from great Requiem Masses...Mozart...Beethoven (Solemneis)...Verdi (MEAT!!)...Berlioz. How about it, Boston? Kings last year, Popes this year? Perhaps Cavies? I dunno doesn't seem to fit their theme as much. Though the darkness of Mozart played by the Cavaliers sure does send shivers down my unmentionables. SCOUTS! How about walking us through the Boy Scout Motto/Pledge...whichever it is? "On my honor, I will do my best..." There's your show title. Themes: Trustworthy. Loyal. Kind. Thrifty. etc. What music to perform? I don't know. Maybe a generous portion of old hymns updated? Maybe a little bit of jazz-against-contrapunctal Bach sort of mish-mash? This one of all is a visual spectacular wrapped around ANY repertoire you choose to blanket it in. Good, old-fashioned USofA performed by the BOY SCOUTS, for crying out loud!! I really, really like this concept. A little jazz, a little Bach, a little Martin Luther...yum! Now...Blue Devils. You guys have to help me out here. I'm obviously not the biggest BD honk there is. But I keep screaming for Concord to do three things: 1.) Jazz. 2.) JAZZ. 3.) JAZZ!! But I also realize that they are doing their design based around visual and not around music any longer. So some of you honks collaborate with me here. We need to build a suggestion for the corps that incorporates the visual including the props that we know they are going to use with the screaming JAZZ that will feature that brass line like nobody's business. Suggestions? How about this...mirrors last year, yes? How about BROKEN MIRRORS this year? How many mirrors did they have? Say 20. Cut up the reflective stuff on each one to result in 20 uniquely-shaped broken mirrors. GREAT opportunities on the guard uniforms. Mix up the unis from last year cut up with silver lycra implemented in its place...a la BROKEN MIRRORS! Lots of great design opportunities there. Now...give me a hand with music. I want to UNLEASH that hornline! Those horses are THOROUGHBREDS being used for Shetland Pony crap. Waste of All-Time talent. Two back-to-back undefeated corps like that deserve to have the best repertoire ever put before them. First thought? Take a little bit of everything ever performed and toss it together...multiple themes/pieces going at the same time...quotations springing up all over the field all at once. This is a BROKEN MIRROR, after all--let's get it ALL in there! Quotes from EVERY BD corps since DCI began. Tommy. Strawberry Soup. My Spanish Heart. Constantly Risking Absurdity. 1930. Through a Mirror...Darkly! That musical thought alone allows some pretty cool opportunities across the entire field. Stick 10 players out in back right, 10 up front left, 10 dead center, 10 each in the other corners and have them JAM to begin the show with...its not like you can't put 10 BD brass players on MARS (pardon the pun) and them be heard! Then the big hit with everyone coming together into... ...you honks make the call--what do they come together and blow our faces off with? Just one concept. BD mystifies me. I want them to take it to the next level. Thoughts?

*NOTE: This thread is intended to discuss the off-the-field health of an organization more than its on-the-field results. The overall health of the activity over the dominance of the select few. * Be honest. I STILL bleed Phantom Regiment. Purple is growing on me (see signature), but PR hung the moon for me. That being said, I value the entire activity FAR MORE than either PR, Forte or any other individual unit or organization. I would seriously sacrifice any corps for the health of the entire activity. Gone. See ya! Because as much as I love Phantom Regiment, I know that there are a WHOLE BUNCH more people that march everywhere else than at Rockford. Now, that's not my saying see ya later, Regiment! Don't get me wrong. I'm just saying that after my nice long break from the activity and an MBA, I returned with a little bit of perspective and an adjustment of attitude. The activity largely provides the same benefits in an OC corps as in an elite WC. Same travel schedule in Troopers and in Blue Devils. Same monotony in mid-July of sleep, eat, rehearse, shower, polish horn, bus to show site, perform, snack and off to the next stop on the road to Championships whether you are wearing Cavaliers green or Teal...well, teal! So while my heart still stirs when those white uniforms come into view, I value the health of the entire activity over any personal biases or honkish phan preferences. I'd be interested in hearing your perspectives on this matter.

Nope. Carrollton R.L. Turner HS. We were in the same athletic district as Richardson and Plano in those days. Which means...we got out BUTTS handed to us real regular-like! Fun memories, though. A buddy of mine from band camp who went to Plano HS is now the director there. That's the only connections I have to the Plano schools. I still have cricket nightmares about Plano's Clark Field. HUGE things. Big enough to carry of a small contrabass! And MILLIONS of them! Well...a whole bunch at least! 1.) Thanks! I thought, gee...I'd sure like to hear all your stories about "THAT" uniform and which one it was for you all! If you haven't yet, chime in--lots of great stories out there, me thinks! 2.) That's great--we didn't have that sort of atmosphere in 94 in Rockford. I doubt the considered us vets even after Boston. Do tell--would LOVE to hear about that experience! That's because you guys WERE indestructible! I marched PR 94, the first year of the new BD uni's. They were a pretty big deal! I was actually jealous (not really!) because "THAT" uniform of mine was literally about 8 sizes too big...looked like a whale. Whoever wore that thing in 93 must have been one big boy--YIKES!! The newer PR uni's are more custom fitted, but when you're 6'5", it's kind of tough to get ANYTHING to fit right. I was so thankful that my HS MB uni was MY uni! Fitted for it as a freshman, only person to ever wear it when I graduated. Nice. Even Phantom Regiment couldn't give me a uniform that was made for MY arse!

We can debate all day whether the 2000's are from 2000 to 2009 or 2001 to 2010. I don't care quite frankly which standard you adhere to. It is interesting, is it not, that depending on which position you take, it more or less places the top 2 corps of that time period in either 1st or 2nd place when taking placement into consideration? Well, this thread is not about placement. It is about PROGRAMS. And keep it nice. I don't care if you are a Phantom Regiment honk or a Carolina Crown Homer. I don't care if you are a Hop-Hater or a Gibbs Roadie...let's talk about who had the best overall PROGRAMS for the period 2000 to 2010. There should probably be some high-ranking corps from the group of Boston, Blue Knights, Bluecoats and Glassmen given the numerous quality programs put out by those groups. And by programs I mean both the repertoire as well as the drill, cleanliness, design, GE and individual captions...although not so much from a "numbers" perspective. And while the Phantom Regiment's had some pretty incredible programming in the second half of the decade, the first half was something of a contrast in that regard. Exchange 2004 and 2009, for example, and the first half is pretty sparce, IMHO. And the second half is pretty incredible! So probably not as high as if 2000-2004 were on par with 2005-2010. Cadets had some PHENOMENAL corps in this decade, namely 2005 and 2007 especially! Programs were somewhat..."different" from at least 2005 to 2008. Affected their overall placement, IMHO. BD...best talent of the decade. Repertoire...some bright points...some "YOWZA's." Nuff said. Crown...decade of the up-and-comer, started slow, accelerated all the way through the last 3-4 years' shows. Boston / Glassmen...high points in placement earlier, some GREAT programming later! I would say that they bump a few places for purposes of this thread based on overall "fan-friendliness." Same with Scouts, Bluecoats and Blue Knights as well. Blue Stars kind of paralleled Crown in the up-and-comer and accelration categories. VERY fan friendly shows of late. SCV...some GREAT programs throughout the decade. 2004 Scheherezade, 2009 Appalachian Spring...even 2010 Barber/Bartok was good stuff! Bump overall. And adding Paul Rennick for the 2010's? Look out! The 2020 version of this thread may bring good things for SCV! Troopers, Crossmen, Cascades...just like we have seen TOUGH challenges for that 12-spot the last half of this decade, the 12-spot for the DECADE should be tough competition! And that should make this thread REALLY, REALLY fun! Maybe I'll go back later and see if a poll can somehow be added? I'll try an initial "Top 12" of the decade later. I look forward to your EDIFYING commentary and ADULT discussion.