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Nine White Russians

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Posts posted by Nine White Russians

  1. In 1989 at the beginning of Madison's show...."Hi Karen!"

    End of Phantom..."Judges are you watching" (I used to think he yelled "The judges aren't even watching!")

    1999...Beginning of SCV...."Go Wonderbread!!"

    1983 Garfield Cadets, at the end of the ballad, you can hear Zingalli giggling.

    1986 right before Madison's Harlem Suite, some kid softly yells "Go for it Madison"...sounds like he's sort of afraid to yell.

    1990 Madison in the beginning of Remembrance, some woman yells "Go Cubby" (it was Kevin Hochstetter's girlfriend)

  2. 25 minutes ago, MikeRapp said:

    No matter how you look at it, a co-Ed corps has more potential marching members than a single gender corps.

    This is a non-issue. First, for decades this was never a problem for the Scouts. And it has never been a problem for the Cavaliers.

    This decision is smpke and mirrors to distract from CK's and DP's poor management decisions over the years. I wish the 2020 young men and women

    coming into Madison, but unless the admin and BOD is voted out, I see no real change.

    • Like 3
  3. 2 hours ago, swmstom said:

    I have a couple of thoughts on Chuck's post discussed in the thread.

    1st. Why are the Scouts in the situation of a "total rebuild"? Where did things go wrong and who is responsible. Are those responsible for allowing Scouts to fall so far competitively being held accountable?

    2nd. I scratch my head at the idea of doing a show strictly to please the crowd without "playing the game" in order to retain members. Seems to me finishing dead last most shows and getting beat by nearly everyone in World Class would push most folks AWAY, not to stay. And another thing....and I really think this gets to a root of the problem with Scouts these days....why is there such a divide in philosophy between "crowd pleasing" and being competitive, or "playing the game"? It should be BOTH! You should NEVER sacrifice competitive possibilities for the sake of having a fun or entertaining show. Just as you shouldn't purposefully put on a boring, esoteric or bizarre show with no entertainment value for the sake of scoring better.

    AMEN! Look at the Bluecoats. They are top level of competitive excellence and one of the most entertaining/crowd friendly corps out there.

    • Like 4
  4. 11 minutes ago, Gantang said:

    So, the 8th place finish can be attributed to mason and not CK? That means CK went 13th, 12th, 16th, <15th since Mason's departure. That doesn't bode well. 

    Yep. It was Mason who should get all the credit for 2010-2015. Komnick loves to act like he's been the mastermind of those years. He is not.

    • Like 2
  5. Wow. Just watched the show...it's cleaning up and it's looking and sounding amazing!! They may not make the top 12, but if they continue to work hard, clean, and keep selling this show, they could climb a couple spots at least. Some of the drill moves/transitions are incredible, and I LOVE the music. I wish I could convince Elvord or whoever is in charge of the overall program to add some cool props to give them more GE points...and I'd offer to buy them if I had the money!! But overall, this is a VERY entertaining package and you can tell the guys LOVE performing it. At the end, you can see the look of satisfaction on the guys' faces as the crowd lights up!! The intro/opener and Young Persons Guide are some of my favorite pieces Madison has done in a long time!

    • Like 8
  6. On one hand, I still disagree with this move because it seems to be the leadership succumbing to legal, financial and competitive pressure......but trying

    to look at the positives....it could be good as a reset/reboot in the sense that, it pries the Corps out of traditions/image/identity. For decades, they have always had one foot

    in the past. There's always been a concern of "does this fit the image of the Scouts I've always known" or "is this show "masculine" like the Scouts need to be?".

    And like it or not, that hamstrings you as a designer. I did not like last year's show for that reason...it didn't look or feel "Madison". It was a decent show in general, but it was "off-brand".

    This move defintiley tears them away from any of those concerns. This is no longer the Madison of old. It will be a new Madison, like it or not. 

     

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1
  7. 3 minutes ago, FlamMan said:

    Thanks. I wont return to Parthenon.

    Used to love hitting Parthenon after weekend camps and on trips back to Wisconsin. But last time back about 10 years ago, went there again and it just wasn't the same.

    But I will have to check out that new one up on hwy M next time I'm back. Wish I could've made it back for this weekend! Hope you all enjoy the show tonight!

  8. 4 minutes ago, FlamMan said:

    Madison has improved exactly .7 since their first show with a score of 63.00 on June 22, to a score of 63.70 June 28. This run rates to a last show score of about 67.2.

    Tomorrow is probably a rest and relaxation day for the corps. . Ye gads.

    "But we're creating such a great experience for the members....by teaching them how to have a losing mindset!!!!"

  9. 1 hour ago, 2muchcoffeeman said:

    Tidal. Tidal wave. Anyway, I applaud the concern for a "former champion," but I find the throw-the-bums-out approach to be a tad facile. We simply are not in a position to know the organization's books or the satisfaction level of the members. It's too easy to read organizational collapse into a middling ranking. We Simply. Do. Not. Know.

    BAC probably has great alumni, but it was not alumni who cranked up the revenue machine in Boston. BAC has probably the highest-octane board in the activity, and membership on that board is not only way large, but membership also is pointedly offered to people who are not alums. Alums on a board start worrying about uniforms, so they are held at arm's length from the people whose responsibility is to keep the nonprofit parent of the Crusaders afloat. Don't get me wrong, they love their alums there, but that board is primarily interested in them only so far as they can open a checkbook, or can persuade someone else to do likewise. It is the diversified revenue stream of the parent 501 3(c), not the drum corps' alumni group, that has provided the horsepower.

     

    Yep. And Madison's BOD, since the Stewart era(and maybe before) is mostly Madison alumni. Not good.

  10. 6 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

    this may sting but....outside the Carmen show year...Madison hasn't truly been relevant since 1999. After missing finals in 2002, they were top 6 once. since 2000 out of finals 5 times, average placement is 10.8. A popular telling of why the slide, while incorrect, is that it started after Scott left. Well no, it started before he left. And the best year since 2000 is one of two with a female in it ( and no I am not advocating for coed status). The organization...admin, alumni...all need to come together and agree being Madison for the sake of Madison, which pretty every show listed, has been a noose slowly circling their necks, and it's time to just go nuts, entice top names to come in, and design for what works today. Vanguard has managed to maintain being Vanguard without relying on the past. Their worst placement ever was what 9th? 

    I agree with everyting you just said, mostly the part about attracting the top staff. I believe if you do that, you can have it both ways....design something that wins and is "Madison" in spirit. The huge problem is, Madison has not been able to raise and maintain the finances necessary to attract andkeep said talent. They really need to observe and figure out what Corps like Boston and Mandarins did to build themselves up to where they could make those successful moves. I do not believe Chris Komnick is the person qualified to do that. We gave him ten years to try, and aside from the Mason years (which Komnick gets too much credit for), he has failed to achieve success. It's time for him to leave and let some new, more qualified blood to come in. My dream/fantasy is he leaves, and Jim Mason comes back....but this time as Executive Director. He knows how to run a successful Corps, build finances and get people who are professional fundraisers....and how to hire the right people under him like Donnie VanDoren. 

    • Like 1
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