luvscorps

never mind...not worth the argument.

if you look closely at the recap and ordinals for prelims, you'll see that RB was behind MBI in field percussion, ensemble percussion, field brass, and ensemble brass. For music effect, both judges placed MBI ahead of RB performer music effect, and one judge gave MBI the edge over RB in both subcategories. For visual effect, one judge split the caption but had MBI ahead over RB overall. So, for all of the music and effect captions, the judges DID score MBI ahead of RB on the performance categories. That seems consistent with the comments above -- so how's that 'giving it' to Reading? The total score is a combination of lots of different parts, some of which have to do with content and construction, not just how the performers did. Is it only 'giving it to Reading' because it's Reading?

If the circumstances of the day had been exactly the same as they were, if the performance quality was exactly as it was on Saturday, but the team that went on last that evening was someone other than Reading, would you be asking the question in the first place?

How about signing your name? Do you think blasting this stuff here is the way to go? Now, now matter what the PR organization says, it won't be good enough for the know-it-alls who very possibly know absolutely nothing about what's really happening inside the organization. With the path this thread has traveled, will anything less than a photo of a severed head of the PR leadership satisfy people?

I don't know brassyNsassy and can't get into his/her head, but I think the comment about not wearing hats was a joke -- since the Bucs lost to the Statesmen in brass in Scranton and the Statesmen don't wear hats as part of their uniform. I think the ES people on this thread got the joke, too....

Respect fot the generations cuts both ways, doesn't it? Perhaps colorado instigated this when he said "as for your quote..." and brought up the fact that people in that generation didn't need amps. That's what Kamarag was responding to, is it not? The quote in his signature, to me, is a dig at anyone who complains that drum corps is too loud - period. And if you read it that way, it's pretty funny, and true! In fact, Kamarag replied...'if you read my quote that way.....' So, it seems that Kamarag made his comment in response to a comment that back in the day, they didn't need amps ... a dig on today's drum corps. It's all well and good to chastise today's folks who apparently don't respect drum corps from back in the day, but respect has to flow both ways...

Agree with most of what you said, but this didn't make sense. Otherwise, thanks for sharing your impressions!

Nah. That didn't help me. Actually, for me, it made it worse.

your comments are interesting about the dirt you saw in Bucs' line and how you had them in front of Hurcs by not too much. the recap is interesting - the tighter subcaptions were technique for field perc and performance for ens perc -- only 1 point each. the larger gaps were for musicianship and musicality. So it seems the judges agreed with your comparison.

I highlighted a few words in your post that I actually locked in on when reading it. Read those words as a sentence on its own. Everyone else can argue till they're blue (or green, or red, or black-and-white) in the face about competition. But 'expect an evening of passionate drum corps.' That, alone, justifies going to DCA Championships and experiencing every last second of it from the stands. Now back to the increasingly pointless and childish argument at hand.

You were a fly on the wall when the design team put the show together? Perhaps they focused on a program that fit the corps' style, that they thought would be entertaining, that would give dues-paying members a good experience and would also push them as designers and teachers in a new direction? And one that would play to the scoring sheets as well? There are many different versions of what is 'entertaining' and it's not universally objective. If you prefer one style over the other, so be it. But that doesn't mean the other style lacks value or is just put on the field for the folks with tape recorders and clipboards.

Dr. Dan Richardson Dan Farrell

Most of the time you only get one chance to make a first impression. A business mentor of mine told me that "very early on you are branded with either a halo or horns, and it's hard to lose either." I've been at drum corps rehearsals where guests were in the audience and instructors, administrators and staff were wearing clothing that was downright inappropriate and reflected poorly on an organization that brands itself as classy. I've been at drum corps rehearsals where guests were in the audience and instructors, administrators and staff were using language and banter that was downright inappropriate for an organization that bills itself as educational, classy and a model for others to follow. I've seen the condition of schools and practice facilities left by drum corps who bill themselves as educational, classy and a model for others to follow and understand why it's so hard for drum corps to find places to stay when the 'very best' in the activity act more like spoiled rock stars than respectful guests. I remember a discussion on these boards a while back where someone complained about how rude a souvenir salesperson for a particular corps was and how this tainted his/her view of that organization -- like it or not, the salesperson WAS a representative of that organization. Moral of the story - little things matter. Little things are metaphors for big things. Whether you like it or not, we're representatives of our respective organizations and our actions DO reflect on them. Another business mentor of mine once admonished me that 'we always wear our lipstick to the grocery store' -- meaning, if you do your job right, when people see you, they'll associate you with the organization - so in that sense you're always working and always on your best behavior since everything you do reflects on the organization. I think that's particularly true in an activity like drum corps where we're entrusting young people to learn a lot about life, not just about music and marching, and where those of us who are fans are hyper-critical of everything. Little things matter. Thanks, Granny, for provoking the discussion.

The post of the year!

Maybe the Regiment offering isn't a poster per se but just a graphic to announce the show. I'm sure many of the graphic artists who filled this thread with their judgments have volunteered their time and talent to their favorite drum corps so they have a more polished graphic presence. I'm certain of it. No, really...I am. I wish the season would start already so we can find equally picayune things happening on the field to ##### about! OMG....the Regiment members are tying their shoes using a double knot! Don't they know that's unprofessional? OMG, that guard member has too much eye shadow on and her lipstick is too red. I can't believe the staff is sending them out there looking like cheap hookers! OMG, Hopkins is wearing a red shirt. Proof that he made a pact with the devil. I'm looking forward to the next discussion of the fonts corps use on their web sites and whether they look amateurish or really classy. If the poster is any indication, betcha Regiment's looks like it was done in crayon.....

Or maybe he retracted it because he genuinely regretted saying it? Just sayin' I'm sure all of us have said something that as soon as we said it we knew it wasn't what we wanted to convey. Happens to me daily. And sometimes stuff comes out totally wrong. That comment, years later, is a slap in the face only if we allow it to be one (or if somehow we want it to be one to justify our indignation). He said it. It wasn't the best thing to say. He apologized. Letting go is a liberating thing!!!

My opinion has not changed. I loved DCI a while ago and still love it today. I loved DCA a while ago and still love it today. Two different versions of the same activity. Both awesome in their own right for what they do. What the members in each circuit accomplish amazes me every time I see it. And I'm always entertained. In different ways depending on what the corps is performing. Vive la difference!

Wow. Just wow. Just read throught the entire thread and would like to get about 15 minutes of my life back. A whole lot of overly-sensitive griping about slights, perceived slights, opinion stated as fact, fact stated as opinion. No wonder our activity is struggling to stay in business. The people who love it the most can't say hello to one another without pitching diva fits. That's not a dig on DCA OR DCI. It's a dig on divas. And if you feel personally insulted, well I guess that's karma too. There's a whole bunch of folks who need to just step away from their computers and spend their energy making whatever form of drum corps they prefer better. Wow.

Why would you resent it? It was his opinion and one of his reasons for deciding to join a DCA corps. You'd be resentful of him if he resented you because G bugles are such an important factor to you. So why resent him because he feels differently? Kind of a pot-meet-kettle thing, no? G vs. Bb is a different topic for a different argument (which happens every 7-1/2 weeks, it seems!).

Agree 100% Where the argument gets dicey, though, is that people take the above comment and get defensive or frustrated. Both circuits are wonderful. Both are drum corps (save the 'it's not drum corps anymore' argument for another thread, please), but they are inherently different from one another for all of the reasons described above. Different product, different experience, different 'standards' for excellence -- and there's NOTHING wrong with that. As I said above, both are fruit - one's an apple, one's an orange, and that's fine. The problem happens when you expect them both to be the same. That said, there's so much cross-over between circuits that it's really cool to see how the level of quality on the DCA side has shot up over the last decade or so. While the best of DCA wouldn't compete with DCI from a purely objective quality standpoint, when you look at what the best of DCA accomplishes with weekend-only rehearsals, it's pretty amazing. Love both. For different reasons. Vive la difference!

That wasn't my point. If we're going to carry this fruit metaphor further...it's not that the apples are trying to be oranges. I would disagree completely with his assessment of the DCA performances. He's entitled to his opinions and I'm not begrudging them. Based on his comments, it seems to me he was looking at the DCA performances and measuring them against what he's come to know and love about DCI, which he's entitled to do. To me, the apple wasn't trying to be the orange. The apple was being an apple and he was evaluating it based on his experience as an orange...and based on that he didn't like the product. And that's his right...and by no means am I disparaging him looking at things that way. I think when you look at it that way, and you don't alter your perspective and have different expectations because it's a different product completely, you're going to be disappointed. I applaud him for describing his perspective and acknowledging that it would prevent him from really enjoying the DCA experience....and if that's the case, bravo to him for knowing that about himself before he jumped in and was disappointed - and complicated things for others in the process. Sorry for the use of masculine pronouns if the poster is feminine (an apples and oranges thing, too, I guess!).

One is an apple, and the other is an orange. Both are fruit, but they're not the same. If you have had an apple, and have enjoyed the apple, and are devoted to the apple, you won't enjoy the orange -- that is, if you're looking at the orange expecting it to be an apple. If you, by your own admission, are 'spoiled' by your DCI experience and you would struggle to enjoy the DCA experience because of some of the things you mentioned in your post, then you're right...it's not for you. Your opinion is valid and your honesty is refreshing, even if I disagree with the opinion. Better to not be at a DCA corps knowing this is your predisposition than to be there, expect it to be like DCI, and make life miserable for others around you because it's not like DCI and the quality is not what you have come to expect.

There's a missing choice in the poll, IMO. My SO dislikes drum corps but is completely supportive of my involvement in it.

Anyone have a review of the show?

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