cixelsyd

I have read articles from the 1950s mentioning blank spots in the drill at various times in the season, so no era was immune to this. One advantage they had BITD was the simpler drill enabled a substitute marcher to learn it quicker. I have read about corps having members who worked rotating shifts, and they would routinely swap people in and out subject to availability.

Yes, it is. Thanks for providing it here. I will be referring back to it soon. Do they all drive you bonkers? Or is it just the ones who voice disrespect toward modern drum corps? Just a month ago, we had a thread on the DCI side asking what we would change if we had the power. One of my suggestions was based on an observation I had from seeing Japanese bands/corps on video. They only use as much equipment as the corps members can bring on/off with them. They still have full pits, flag changes, and some props. They are also able to set up in one minute flat, and get all their stuff off the field that quick too. And with a common sense equipment limitation in place, their groups are not going bankrupt left and right in mid-season. So I suggested I would make that change in DCI. Am I stupid, then? (I probably am, for wading into this.) Some can - some cannot. This particular case involved a post with derisive (and inaccurate) comments about current drum corps. Some people will do that, and may never learn otherwise. But not all dinosaurs have the same roar. I have come to know quite a few dinos myself. To some of them, it is a reasonable and logical belief that some of the changes that drum corps (and other marching arts) have adopted over time have added to the financial and logistical costs of operating a corps/band/guard. These people have seen the requirements for equipment, finances, and human resources multiply tenfold over time. They have also seen the number of corps decrease tenfold, and now watch bands and guards feeling the same pinch from which school budgets used to offer better protection. Like your quote above, this is the "perspective" of some whose involvement in the activity dates that far back. Among these dinos, some spoke out BITD and some still speak out now because they believe there is a cause-and-effect relationship there, and they still hope their voice might have an influence. Others who no longer harbor that hope, of course, might still shoot off a less constructive post of the type that prompted your response, just to vent. I doubt you can impose a statute of limitations on that discussion. Besides, both G and Bb/F are in use by the corps discussed in this forum; therefore, that subject remains relevant. Fortunately, we do not see such comments here "every second", or even every month. And when we do, we probably would not see them repeated if not for the people who reply with the opposing opinion. Takes two to tango. (And the mufflers are nothing compared to a subwoofer at max volume with all car windows open.)

BITD, we sketched things out on the cave wall. You had to know where that cave was in order to stay in the loop. News just spread in other ways prior to Internet and mobile broadband. Going way back (1950s), people really did write letters, as the telephone was used sparingly at the time. Early drum corps publications were monthly issues (at best), and many of their articles were literal letters from contributing writers, summarizing all the news from their area for that month. Remember "pen pals"? Also worth noting, much of what was being communicated was not "rumor", per se. The season was much longer, and corps made more public appearances in the off-season. If some major change occurred with a corps, people would see it at a parade, stage show, or even the occasional winter contest staged in an arena or armory. Not much was kept secret. Drum corps had an unwritten truce with the music licensing powers-that-be of the day, so repertoires could be changed and announced freely. Of course, corps did not change as much music from year to year anyway. Prior to 1979, no one was sneaking the Bottle Dance back into their show just for finals. Corps still had an interest in keeping their members from being dragged into public arguments. The same policies we have on Internet posting applied to letters to the editor BITD. Rumors (and worse) still had their places. Anonymity was not invented on the Net. The anonymous letter to the editor was one such ploy. Several drum corps periodical staffers wrote columns devoted to rumors, with all kinds of unsubstantiated material put forth with no sources identified. A few such columns ran for many years in that style, if their rumor mills proved accurate. Some columns were used to spread lies or promote the agenda of a particular person or corps - those did not last long.

When kids put forth tremendous effort, they deserve applause. Every corps I saw at 2012 championships, world class or open class, met that definition, so I applauded them all. For me, the standing O is my primary way to express my preferences. Those corps who affect me more, by either design or performance (better yet, both), earn a standing O from me. I try to reserve that for roughly half of the corps, but when performances exceed my expectations, the corps get the better of me and I end up on my feet for a majority of them. It does not matter where they place. I have applauded from my seat for champions, surrounded by standing fans. I have also stood alone to applaud a lowly open class corps whose performance just plain deserved that recognition. I have been known to give a mid-show standing O for something uniquely spectacular. If the whole crowd does so, I will stand too just to see the drill.

How thoughtful of them to design for that handful of people, then. It is important to realize that, as Jeff Ream pointed out earlier, many fans will only see a show once. And some of them will not do research to understand the symbolism. Even some of us diehard fans prefer to enjoy drum corps at face value, and not make a research project out of it. At the same time, I have taken my turn responding when nearby people ask why the guard is dancing with kickballs while the corps plays The Planets. Most of my favorite drum corps moments have deeper symbolism attached to them... but all of them have spectacular effects from the brass and percussion. I think the designers understand that good show design must provide effect at all layers, from visceral to intellectual. I think the judges do, too - just not 100% sure about that one.

My compliments to the previous posters. You have articulated nearly every one of my reactions. The only one I feel the need to add is this. Websites do not create negativity - people do. Whatever grievance the OP has is not with the Drum Corps Planet website. DCP provides news releases, a number of categorized subforums, and the moderation necessary to achieve a higher signal-to-noise ratio than unmoderated sites. The OP grievance is merely an adverse reaction to the opinions of certain people. Wait till he sees the rest of the Internet!

The way you put these words together makes it seem as if you think DCA show design has never advanced past 1980. Not sure if that is really what you intended, but if so, I suggest you take a look at some DCA corps - you are in for a surprise.

Both Long Island and New Jersey had a corps named Lindenaires. No Freelancers from New Jersey, though.

Why stop at 1991-1993? To understand the varying adverse response to Star over the years, it helps to look over all the years. It started back in 1984, when the corps ran a full-page ad in Drum Corps World. The corps had already hired star-quality design staff and caption heads, and put head shots of these people inside stars in the ad layout to convey that message. They took recent caption winning staff from other corps regardless of whether they were a vulnerable sinking ship (Bridgemen) or on top of the world (Garfield). And when I say "took" - unlike other staff hires back then, when Star hired someone, they stopped working with all other corps at all levels of the activity. Naturally, that practice is going to generate resentment in places. You can always find a critic for any top corps, but the general reaction I remember had most to do with the use of props. Come show time, the debut season of Star of Indiana (1985) proceeded without any undue vocal negative response. In 1986, however, the corps employed a series of props so large and numerous that an additional equipment truck was brought on tour to carry them. That was unprecedented at the time, and it did not go over well. People I heard from thought it was too much; activity insiders felt it (and the extra contrabasses) reinforced their perceptions (accurate or not) of the financial excess of the corps. Some similar reaction was generated by the 1987 circus. But when the corps settled down into shows free of such supplemental materials 1988-1991, the backtalk subsided and the corps climbed all the way to the top of the ladder without visceral objection. Then came 1992, and that enormous screen. But in those final years, it was no longer just a matter of envy over money or props. Show design became a prime determinant of crowd reaction to Star. Fans evaluate title contending shows with higher expectations than shows further back in the pack. The shows Star gave us in 1990 and 1991 met (or exceeded) those expectations. The 1992 show did not. The veneer of patriotism failed to resonate even with the same fans that clamored for it. Crowds still enjoyed the show and marveled at the level to which it was performed, but as a duel for the top emerged between Star and Cavaliers, fans began taking sides (well, mostly one side) when scores were announced. I remember booing when the quarterfinal outcome was announced (Star over Cavaliers); I remember cheering when Cavaliers prevailed in semis; but I also remember stunned remorse from many when the third place announcement came over the PA at finals. Now, 1993 elevated the design debate to historic levels. Star 1993 ushered in the modern era, but not in the way most think. This was a season full of crazy, edgy shows that pushed the envelope. Admittedly, Star was at the leading edge of edgy. At the risk of being taken the wrong way, I want to call it "unbalanced" design - the emphasis on body movement, the lack of color, absence of a loud note-ramming drum feature, so much dissonance vs. so little harmony... those were the design aspects that distinguished this show from all others, even in 1993. All of these things had been done before, but the degree to which Star employed them made their show deviate from the parameters of balance that all other shows resided within at the time. What stands out most significantly in my memory from 20 years ago is the politics. This was the first time (and unfortunately, the start of a trend) for show design issues to become the subject of a full-fledged "campaign" waged among the fan base, not just in press boxes and post-show critiques. All during the season, there were a few true believers proselytizing at length about how every last thing this corps did was innovation. To hear them, you would think no other corps had ever used a bare flagpole, performed a soft drum feature, worn white both above and below the waist, or had horn players put their horns down and move their arms in unison. Granted, the 1993 Star show was a love-it or hate-it proposition to begin with, but the politicking going on in the bleachers made things even more divisive. I think the negative reactions to their show were compounded by the campaigning by their supporters, the inference that all future show design should therefore head in that direction, and the corroborating evidence that it would - based on one such design factor, the increasingly dissonant, edgy shows already coming from other 1993 corps. Since Star was proclaimed (rightly or wrongly) as the setter of this trend, those who opposed that trend directed their displeasure toward Star specifically.

Free speech has both pros and cons. Regarding the show reviews, what if there was an option for a reviewer to lock their show review thread? That way, nobody else could post and argue with the reviewer.

If a show leaves you with "no idea" what the designers were thinking, that is a design failure. So far, though, you are the first person I have heard that reaction from regarding 2012 BD. So what did you think of their show? Everyone has a right to their opinion. I think we all understand that your interpretation of their design would, by definition, not be a definitive statement. If we must have definitive statements, though, the corps did put out a show description around this time last year. Much of what is being discussed here draws upon what the corps stated in that writeup.

No - if you do not want the physical media, simply enter my mailing address instead of yours when you fill in the account information.

No growth? ALL the growth of the activity, from no-such-thing to the pre-DCI peak, took place under the G-bugle, all-acoustic model. And yes, the decline from that peak to where we were at the millenium was also under that model. Which is what - only a few hundred performing groups and no ESPN airtime? Counting corps, that might be a step forward.

Everything - no one would have competed without a battery prior to the evolution of the front ensemble. You think so? Looks to me like we stopped at 8 marimbas/vibes, decided we could not hear them well enough over 70 brass and a 9-5-5 battery at fff, and concluded that amplifying them was the only option. Why did we decide that a ninth keyboard was not an option? And why did we decide that hearing the marimba 99.9% of the time was not good enough, and that it must also be heard at that one rare moment when 70 brass and a 9-5-5 battery are all simultaneously playing a fff accent? Some time ago, the contrabass (tuba) brass voice made up less than 10% of the hornline. Players were taught to overblow, developing a blasting, ripping sound in order to be heard in some sort of balance with the ensemble. Over time, people decided they wanted to hear the sonorous tone the horn was capable of producing. They did not submit a proposal to electronically amplify contrabasses - they just used more of them.

Seriously? Kids like iPhones, therefore we should add A&E to drum corps? I could try to address this with you on an ideological level, and explain how the attraction of drum corps has always been the challenge of performing with a limited set of instrumentation that does not include every state-of-the-art piece of equipment. But how about we try facts instead? There was a surge in youth interest from the late 1990s through about 2003 or 2004, both in membership and fan interest regarding DCI corps. The years 2002 and 2003 saw frequent press releases touting record audition numbers and record ticket sales bolstered by busloads of band kids. Amplification was introduced in DCI starting in the 2004 season, with electronic instruments debuting in 2009. Claims of record audition numbers or ticket sales have been very rare ever since. If electronics attract youth, we should have seen growth in youth involvement over the past 9 years, right?

Yes, the marching xylophones of the 1970s were not "parked" on the front sideline. However, from what I saw, they sometimes marched with the drumline, and sometimes went up front for extended periods (with or without the rest of the drumline). Obviously, their staging varied from corps to corps, but that is my impression.

Really? And that "deep resentment" simply evaporated in 1996? My hunch is that your 1995 show simply did not please fans. Based on the insane* fan appreciation I witnessed in both 1994 and 1996, the "deep resentment" theory does not hold water. (* - "insane" is just an expression. Fans were perfectly sane to react as they did to the great shows of '94 and '96.)

Quoted for truth.

No. As far as I can tell, hornlines are no louder today than they were prior to the creation of the pit staging area.

If memory serves, the xylophone was a pleasantly balanced addition to the ensemble from a live spectator standpoint. The "incessant clanging" came later, when we heard recordings of those corps with their mallet players so often staged directly in front of recording microphones positioned very close to the front sideline.

I am calling BS on this. Fact is, the front ensemble has become unequally prioritized compared to the field percussion or the brass. They are now the one section playing constantly from the first sound of the pre-show through the final note. And they are the only section that has had widespread (obligatory) concessions employed in staging, then later in use of electronic amplification. We have seen corps, including title contenders such as Ventures and Patriots, forsake field percussion entirely and use only pit percussion. Have there been any examples of similarly competitive corps in the same era forsaking the pit and using only field percussion? Or you could do what every other instrument does - vary the quantity to achieve the desired balance.

He only dove deeper into the same quicksand with that additional explanation I saw here.

I know you mean well, and I would welcome any and all new corps to DCI however they come about. But I do not agree with the assumptions you are putting forth in the development of this idea. The big one is what I have underlined below: You will not be able to rehearse more frequently during the winter months. School is in session. The kids you are describing are already involved in HS band programs. They may have other extracurricular commitments. It is also WGI season, so guard and percussion kids are just as likely to be missing from your corps as from the other DCI corps. Many high schools of the type you describe have their own winter guard or drumline, which would then obviously take precedence over rehearsal for a summer program. The philosophy of "school comes first" has become the unwritten rule for DCI drum corps. These corps require the cooperation of school band directors for recruitment, housing, or even personal participation as instructional staff. So when there is a schedule conflict between a pre-season drum corps rehearsal and a school function, the school function takes precedence. The excellence drum corps achieves is largely the product of a long term focused time period where the corps is in "all-day" mode. That can only happen when school is out for the summer. For that reason, I do not see a HS corps having the advantage you envision over other DCI corps.

Fail. Everyone knows that guard uniforms must have a patch of black-and-white stripes or checkerboard to be truly hideous. Fortunately, there is time for alterations.

No. From what I recall, it was just like this last year at this time. Because the deadline for declaring class is June 1st, there is a resulting burst of news on DCA corps in the first week of June.