ckomnick

On rare occasion a jacket will come up on eBay or Craig's List for sale. Dann and I monitor these sites for things like this. We first politely ask the seller to remove the item and not sell it. If they were a corps member, they often comply. Sometimes these jackets come to sellers through estate auctions or through abandoned storage lockers. If the seller won't comply, then the corps will offer to buy the jacket if it's reasonable to do so. One problem we've had is that there are black-market jackets being made in Japan and being sold online. And it's not just corps jackets, but other corps merchandise as well. That's been a bit more difficult to battle, but we try to stay on top of that as well. Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts Drum & Bugle Corps

A big thank you to all of our fans who showed up for our Merrillville show only to have it cancelled. We waited it out as long as possible, but the prevailing lighting did not allow us to continue that evening. The option of an indoor standstill just isn't practical for numerous logistical reasons. We are hosting our third show on Friday, July 6th in Whitewater, WI. If you present a Merrillville ticket stub, we will provide you a free GENERAL ADMISSION ticket to the event. This is another great show lineup in a historic venue and hopefully you'll consider coming up for that show. Thanks! Chris Komnick Executive Directors Madison Scouts

Thank you Craig and the Cavaliers! As the show sponsor, it was very difficult to finally cancel the event after a long delay. While the rain did eventually cease, there was lightning continue throughout the evening...our foremost concern. We appreciate your willingness to make this offer! Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

Uh oh, it's usually not a good thing when you have a DCP thread started with your name in the title. Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

Here's a great opportunity for horn players who are still interested in marching this summer. We now have an immediate opening for a trumpet (lead preferable), mellophone and tuba. These positions were recently vacated and you would need to come audition at our upcoming camp (March 23-25) in Indianapolis, IN. Great staff, great show and a great experience are the reward! For additional information contact director@madisonscouts.org Come join us in Indy! Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

The corps did play ESOM at our camp this weekend as part of our rehearsal music. We also played Brian's Song and scales and exercises. I don't know what we're going to play for our encore pieces as we often don't even decide that until late in the spring. I'm thinking some of the slur exercises might be the best choice. I was just surprised by the word "fact" and was wondering if somebody failed to get me the memo. P.S. - we do have our show selected and I'm thinking on making the announcement on 12.25

Really....a fact. And your source is?

For the life of me I have no idea why Jolesch felt the need to publicly publish this photograph, especially without any greater context to the situation. It almost seems that their intent was to embarrass this young man. So let me put it in context, this was one of our snare drummers and the photo was taken on Finals night. All week long he had been battling an illness, one that had him in the ER on the Monday before Finals. In late July we lost one of our snare drummers due to injury leaving us to finish the season with only 8. This young man fought hard all week to keep the section in tact for the championships. Instead of sitting on the sidelines he opted to perform...and perform he did. I can tell you that everybody had the greatest respect for his effort. Obviously the physical exertion took its toll at the end of the show, much like you see with athletes who push themselves to the limit. Once he was able to rest and rehydrate, he was fine and attended the retreat ceremonies. He was a great sport about the situation and the guys in the corps appreciated the fact that he "left it all on the field" that night. So that's the full story. Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

Hey Fans: Just want to make you aware that the Madison Scouts and the Boston Crusaders have again decided to put on the gloves and square off in The Old School Challenge REMATCH! Last year the Boston Crusaders put a TKO on the Scouts by winning by a mere $69. But each corps raised over $16,000 each and it was an incredible fundraising effort for both corps. Thanks to all the fans who participated to last year's success and hopefully you can make a contribution in the rematch! Tour expenses are taking their toll, fuel is expensive, and we can both really use your support. While the Scouts & Crusaders battle it out on the field (and it's really quite competitive right now), we can do the same in this fundraiser. CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO THE MADISON SCOUTS > CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO THE BOSTON CRUSADERS > The Old School Challenge runs from now through midnight on Friday, July 29th. Final results will be announced at the Atlanta Regional. Thanks to you all for your continued support! Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

We have the full rights to arrange, perform and sell our audio performance of Empire State of Mind. The issue that has not been resolved is what is called the "sync rights", or the combination of the audio component with a video component in situations where it is sold on media. This is why the Fan Network can show a live performance of the show, but must mute out audio during a replay of the show. We have been in this process since February and will continue to work on getting this to some sort of resolution the best we can. It has no bearing on our ability to perform the piece. Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

Alumni, fans and family: We look forward to hosting the 59th Annual Drums on Parade (drum corps' oldest show) and we think we have a great lineup of activities for you. There are still a few tickets available to the show, but you'll need to get them from the gate at this point. The festivities include: FRIDAY – JULY 8 MSARP 5-Year Anniversary (everyone welcome) 6p – Stadium Bar – Madison, WI (near Camp Randall) Food and drink specials, performances on the big screens, good times! SATURDAY – JULY 9 6th Annual – “GO FOR THE GREEN” Charity Golf Outing 9a – Pleasant View Golf Course – Middleton, WI Proceeds benefit the Madison Scouts 3p – PRESHOW TAILGATE (everyone welcome) Live music, food & beverages - located in the park right next to the stadium Proceeds benefit the Madison Scouts 6:30p – DRUMS ON PARADE Tickets still available but must be purchased at the gate This is a big fundraising weekend for the Madison Scouts and we hope you can join us to make it a big success! Chris Komnick Executive Director

The Madison Scouts instructors have a clear standard of conduct that is a component of their contracts and reinforced verbally. We have again discussed our expectations with our instructional team to assure that such things do not occur. Having been on the road with the corps for the past two weeks and at every show, I can confidently say that I have not seen this behavior firsthand from our staff. However, I do suspect that the conduct in question was from an over-zealous volunteer. I apologize if that situation disrupted your show experience and we will work to make sure that does not happen in the future. An ongoing challenge for the activity is to provide a place for the staff's of corps to evaluate the performance on the field. As we traveled up and down the East coast, we've encountered very small venues with limited space for viewing the performances. Certainly the show promoter doesn't want to sacrifice prime real estate for staff viewing. But that same staff needs to review and evaluate the performance so they can be effective in the post-show critiques. This is a problem that does need to be solved. Thanks for the feedback, Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts

At this point in time, the synchronization rights to "Empire State of Mind" have not been secured. The Madison Scouts have secured the ability to arrange and perform the piece, but the sale of synchronized video content has not yet been granted and DCI has appropriately decided to mute the replay content on the Fan Network to avoid any possible infringement at this time. This does not affect the broadcasts of live performances, only the replay of them. We have been furiously trying to resolve this issue for over 7 months. Due to the popularity of the piece and the numerous artists involved in its creation, it has proven to be vary challenging. Let's just say that drum corps licensing is not a high priority for the agencies involved with a pop tune like ESOM. We are continuing to aggressively secure a license and we appreciate your patience as we work through these matters. Chris Komnick Executive Director

Due to the weather outlook for today, we have CANCELLED our dress rehearsal this evening. We have reschedule the dress rehearsal for an 8:31p step-off on Monday, June 20th at Indiana University's Memorial Stadium. Public entrance will be from the SE corner (non-concert side end-zone). Sorry for the inconvenience and we hope to see you on Monday evening. Chris Komnick Executive Director

It is our intention to march 5-9-5 although we've been dealing with some nagging injuries in those sections during spring training. When you see photos at this time of year, there are all sorts of reasons that guys may not be in the line. During mid-week some younger guys are finishing up high school. Sometimes somebody sits on the sideline to attend to an injury. Don't read too much into spring training photos. Lots of changes and lots of people moving in and out. Chris Komnick Executive Director Madison Scouts