Green Fleurdelis

(bolding mine)Well stated jfmello. What many of us are upset about is precisely that perceived "morphing of drum corps into something else." Bigger, better, louder, flashier, new key, dancing. No problem. Well, to be honest I do have problems with some of the outlandish props, but not as much of a problem as I have with voice amplification and electronics. Not to mention woodwinds. Having a bass guitar and electric piano and synthesizer in the pit seems to me to move the activity into BOA territory. It feels like the activity is being transformed past a tipping point, where it is no longer drum corps. Why this makes the instructors happy is perplexing to me. Regarding middle ground? Hmmm. Perhaps there is one but I can't envision it. YMMV

My signature explains my affirmative vote in this poll...

Heh, heh. I had to quote this. It made me laugh. Regarding the OP: Yes, I'd love the Cadets' show if they performed as described. Regarding the various opposing strongly held opinions stated in this thread: First, I think most drum corps fans would agree that variety between corps styles is a good thing. Second, it is obvious that not all fans like the same things. I metaphorically shrug my shoulders and walk away when someone doesn't like what I like. Regarding my opinion on the Cadets: I've always liked the Cadets. I'll support any corps that has survived the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Hell, I still refer to them as Garfield. What I often don't like is the Cadets' show. Especially the last couple of years. Your mileage may vary.

I'd like to echo Dave's comments Cindy. It was a thrill having your dad our front, dressed in red. I, like many of us who marched that year, have a great photo of me and your dad. It's a great memory. I'm glad I got the chance to be a part of his horn line.

You can order the DVD / CD from the project's electronic store at... MSARP e-store web site I understand that sales have been brisk and since supplies are limited, you might not want to procrastinate. By the way, thanks RBarron10 for the nice compliments about the DVD and our show.

Here's one I forgot about. The Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights from Newark, NJ. I think they slipped my mind because everyone typically referred to them simply as Blessed Sac, rather than the Golden Knights.

Awesome. I am humbled to have had the honor marching in 2006 with the new Scouts director, and two of the new board members. All three marched in the Scouts Alumni Reunion Project. I'm thrilled with the selection!

Nicely done. I admire your creativity.

And let's not forget the Purple Lancers, a finalist in 1974 (10th place).

My personal favorite? Blue Rock. With 27th Lancers, Anaheim Kingsmen, Bridgemen and Velvet Knights tied for a close second. But there are so many to choose from: Star, Des Plaines Vanguard, Blessed Sac, St Joes of Batavia, Chicago Royal Airs, Belleville Black Knights. Sigh.

Welcome back Forrest. I had heard you were serving in the military (to explain your absence). True? I've bought from you in the past, and I need more! One satisfied customer.

This may help to put to rest some of the speculation. Thanks for posting your "inside" information. By the way, in my humble opinion, any criticism from an alumnus of what the Madison Scouts might put on the field is likely coming from a perspective of an overwhelming desire to have the current group of Scouts experience what many of us experienced as marching members. We want the very best for them and some alumni get frustrated if they think that the current members aren't getting everything they deserve to get. As a whole, I believe the alumni are VERY supportive of the corps and of the current members. Being on the field mingling with them the Wednesday before semi-finals was an experience I'll treasure for a very long time. Having said that, we're all human. And in spite of how I felt putting on the Scout uniform again, it doesn't make us perfect human beings. Imperfect people may say things that are imperfect. I personally didn't like the 2006 show. But I loved the kids, and revere the corps as much as I do when I love the show they put on the field.

Regarding the number of tenor drums, I'm not sure how I screwed that up. I got all the headcounts off the roster. Or so I thought. I look this morning and yep, 8 tenors. Oops. [Where's a headslap smilie when I need it.?]

But did you march 21 snares? And 111 horns? :P :) B)

And don't forget that the Chicago Royal Airs put on a full show at semi-finals in Madison in 2002, just like we did with the Madison Scouts Alumni Reunion Project in 2006. It doesn't matter where finals would have been held. If I remember correctly, only about a third of the Scouts Alumni Project were within 100 miles of Madison. May You Never Walk Alone

Here's our headcount: 36 sopranos 25 mellophones 34 baritones 16 contras 21 snares 7 tenors 7 bass drums 8 cymbals 13 pit 36 color guard 12 honor guard (including an original Madison Scout from 1938!!) 4 drum majors It was an awesome experience.

Heh, heh. Jerry, for not being able to put the emotions into words, you did a pretty good job. ODBC, I marched with the Scouts through the good times and the bad. 1967 is arguably one of the worst years for the Madison Scouts, and 1974 is one of the best. I now get to add 2006 to my experiences and I will tell you that the emotions I felt before, during, and after our performance are indeed difficult to put into words. But I'll give it a shot. How did I feel? Anxious (in both senses of the word), while waiting to come out of the hot, clammy tunnels during the I&E awards. Thrilled. From a pure audience reaction, the only experience I have that comes close to the gift that the crowd gave us Friday night was the CYO Championship crowd in 1974. That crowd was thunderous, but the semi-finals response was something even greater. And astonished that the crowd erupted in spontaneous ovation before we played a single note (forming the fleur de lis). Bewildered and disappointed right before Malaguena (our last song). I was thinking "Huh? Where did the time go? No!! It can't be almost over!!" Proud. We did it. By God we pulled it off. We lived up to the Madison Scouts standard of entertainment excellence. Honored by the expressions of personal appreciation that I received after the show and the next day by fans thanking us for our performance. The number of people who stopped me to shake my hand and tell me what that performance meant to them is truly humbling. We did the show for the crowd and for the current Madison Scouts. It is nice to know we succeeded. Melancholy. After such a "high", real day-to-day life seems like a "low". I'm sad that it's over. My wife is bugging me to put away my uniform, but I'm procrastinating. Thank you to all the fans and the posters here on DCP who have given such nice feedback. And thank you to all my Scout brothers, both new and old. I will treasure this experience forever. May You Never Walk Alone.

Heh, heh. Actually, I could see watching the Velvet Knights do that show -- it would almost be in character for them. If they still existed that is.Regarding the OP -- what would be my last staw? What would cause me to walk away from the activity? Well, I attend far fewer shows now than I used to already due to a) vocals, b ) overpowering pits, c) not enough equipment work in the guard*, and d) not-musical-enough music. So I guess you could say that I have one foot out the door already. I was going to say woodwinds would be my last straw, but I could more easily accept a saxophone solo in the pit than I can accept miked vocals. So, here is my answer, redundant as it is with the previous posters: 1) common use of miked vocals 2) marching woodwinds 3) stringed instruments (guitar, piano, cello, etc.) * though this isn't as much of an issue now as it was 5-10 years ago, IMHO [edited to add footnote]

In this thread I see references to both the Des Plaines Vanguard and the Skokie Vanguard. I think most everyone knows this, but I'll mention it anyway. These are the same corps. My memory thought they changed Chicago-suburb affiliations in '68 or '69, but checking their web site it indicates that in 1966 they were the Skokie Vanguard and in 1967 they were the Des Plaines Vanguard. I have no idea why they chose Vanguard in the late '50s when they formed. Back to the topic at hand...

Stef, thank you for your thoughtful response. With all due respect, I disagree with your primary conclusion. I'm not convinced that "modern" drum corps is any more sophisticated, interesting, or stimulating than "old style" drum corps. And there are plenty of examples of where "old style" was VERY cutting-edge. I like your personal anecdote of choosing a high quality summer band program over an lower quality drum corps program in the same town. This is certainly presumptuous of me, but I think the quality of instruction, the level of talent, and the success of the program had a lot more to do with your choice than whether it was cutting-edge or not. I think drum corps, regardless of style, is facing a dwindling audience due to the reasons you articulate. I think it is possible that this situation is exacerbated by the fact that "modern" drum corps simply doesn't connect with many of the "old style" fans. I certainly hear it often enough. But I just as certainly don't have any facts. Just opinion. Regardless, we're having fun. And I hope that the audience will too. PS - Thanks for the clarification regarding the Cavalier reunion corps.

Agreed. And if I understand things correctly, the Anaheim Kingsmen reunion* corps will be performing in 2007, and the Cavaliers reunion* corps in 2008. But I could be mis-informed. Wouldn't be the first time. * The Kingsmen are accepting non-alumni, but I don't know about the Cavaliers. I'm not sure they've decided yet. Perhaps one of my Cavalier buddies will come and correct me.

Forgive the long post. I decided on one post rather than three since I'm quoting the same poster. I assume there is some hyperbole in your statement too. :) (And you are right. While there were numerous ovations, certainly more time was spent with the audience sitting rather than standing -- anything else is wishful thinking.) True. But can you say more about what you meant by this? At first I thought you were making a statement about modern drum corps vs old style drum corps, but then I read it again and am not sure. If you are saying simply that the number of spectators are less than what they used to be, and it is not because of drum corps style but rather due to societal forces -- then I (mostly) agree. Thank you Stef.

Even if we weren't the Madison Scouts alumni corps, the crowd would go nuts. I had the pleasure of performing with the Chicago Royal Airs at semi-finals in 2002, and the Camp Randall crowd went nuts. Of course, being that the Alumni corps is "local", they'll probably go nuts ballistically! :P I cannot describe what a privilege it is to march with my Scout brothers. Scouts who span generations. But even though some of us old-timers had to learn a new marching style, the Scout bearing and behavior is something we all share. We are blessed to have this opportunity to march together.

Thanks for your kind words Bob. (And it was good to see you and talk to you after the show. I'm honored that a bunch of my Chicago Royal Air friends made a long drive up to see us perform.) We did a lot of cleanup (both musically and drill-wise) on Sunday. The general consensus of the staff was that our Sunday run-through was much, much better than Saturday night's performance. Don't get me wrong though. I'm not saying we didn't do well Saturday night. We had a blast, and it was clear the crowd was appreciative. It's great to get an emotional standing ovation mere minutes into the show. Shameless plug: If you happen to be in the Madison area early during DCI week and you want to see the Madison Scouts Alumni Reunion Corps prior to semi-finals, we're performing an exhibition show with the current Madison Scouts, Capital Sound, and Jubal (from Holland) on Wednesday night, August 9. The show is tentatively scheduled to begin at 8:00 pm. Location is Memorial High School in Madison. Tickets for the event will be $10 and will only be available at the gate approximately an hour or so before the show begins. All seats will be general admission. (on preview I see that vferrera beat me to the punch.)

I don't hate either the Cadets OR Change, per se, and I find his accusations a little insulting. As other posters have pointed out, I don't think Hop really understands the dislike some Drum Corps fans have for some of the changes he's introduced (or advocated). It is too much of a rationalization and simplification for him to assume that those of us who dislike voice in Drum Corps, dislike it just because it's different. It's not because it's different -- I don't like voice simply because I don't like it. For me, it detracts from the things I love about Drum Corps. I don't mind amplification, but I have been against it because of the natural consequences of narration and singing. Personally I like most of the historical changes he notes in his blog entry. It's not about change, or being different. If I want Broadway -- I'll go see a Broadway show. If I want Cirque de Soleil -- I'll go see a show. If I want esoteric music -- I'll go to a modern symphony concert. When I go to a Drum Corps show I want exciting brass, creative drill, and aggressive percussion -- I want to be spontaneously jolted out of my seat to applaud in the middle of the show. I don't want costumes and singing and narration. But that's just me. Off topic, the vehemence of posters strenuously (and often angrily or insultingly) advocating their opinion is usually humorous to me. Those on one side are rarely going to affect the opinion of those on the other side of the fence. Yet I wish I'd see more "I understand why you feel that way, yet I disagree", rather than "you're an idiot". I guess in this polarized day and age it's too much to ask.