Eleran
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Posts posted by Eleran
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Just a clarification for everyone, the Spirit shako is white. I realize there's a consistency across all the images making it look gray, but in person, it's clearly white.
Yup - this picture brings out the white in those shakos. The triangle to the left of the buttons looks a little weird from this angle, though - almost like it's an inch-deep triangular cutout awaiting some plug to be inserted - like IronMan's power supply or something. Just the camera angle and a reflection of what's off-picture, I imagine.
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If DCI desires to broaden it's appeal, as Cirque de Soleil did for the circus...
It scares me a little bit by your reference to Cirque de Soleil, because I have often made joking comments over the last year or two that many DCI shows are leaning more and more to becoming circus acts like Cirque de Soleil, with the focus shifting to theme and storytelling, and crazy costuming and choreography - too much a Las Vegas act. And of course this year you have corps actually using Cirque de Soleil music, which makes my joking become even more frightening. bizarre.
And while as a proponent of animal rights, I certainly applaud Cirque's movement away from traditional animal-bases circuses, it's definatley NOT what most people think of when you say circus. It is entertainment in its own right, but do we want to reach a point where DCI becomes "an entertainment", but NOT what most poeople think of when you say drum and bugle corps?
Edit: It strikes me that perhaps this discussion would better take place elsewhere than the Phantom 2014 thread.
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I said that last yeat when peeople were ranting about the Crown uni...IMO drum corps needs to get away from the military look and focus more on costuming to their show themes and designs. Surf did it when in div II with their Elvis show and the Down the Shore show (my all-time favorite show of theirs).
If that became more of a trend (or a perceived requirement in order to score well), wouldn't that simply add a greater separation between the financial haves and have-nots, as corps felt compelled to purchase new uniforms/costumes every year? Also, doesn't that idea take us further down the road towards performance art, where the visual and dramatic continues to gain preeminence over the musical? I mean, if you really want to do away with all military aspects, then wouldn't you also do away with the entire concept of marching?
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" June 14th " for "Cabs on the Beach". Well the beach is a few blocks form Maxwell Field. In Wildwood again, DCA: 6:30pm: Buc's, Cab's, Fusion, Windsor Regiment. Also has DCI: Raiders. Then Cab's Alumni also.
I've seen this posted several places, but just wanted to point out that the Raiders will not be at this event.
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Awesome. I will be doing something similar. I have never marched drum corps and I plan on auditioning for Raiders or Legends but also Bluecoats because you never know. Some people who never expect to make it end up making it. Even if you don't, you can still learn a ton by going to the audition. So you should go for them next year and don't feel like you can't audition just because you haven't marched a bigger corps before.
If you don't want to wait until next year, there are still openings with Raiders for this summer (and a host of other Open Corps as well, apparently)
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but most will likely take it serious enough
though they might accidentally spill a beer on the tablet, or drop it down through the bleachers ...
You WILL be covering them with something impenetrable and cushioned, I hope???
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I know people are generally on this forum expecting to make money on those instruments for which they no longer have use. However, if the quality of your instrument is such that you may not be able to obtain top dollar for it, or else you are just an incredibly generous person, then we would be very, very grateful to accept an instrument donation. We are a brand-new drum corp, and we could use various brass and percussion instruments.
If you are willing to donate, we would certainly appreciate it in order to get us on our feet. Please contact us to discuss, using the below information. Thanks in advance!
Brunswick BattalionDrum & Bugle CorpsCharles Sheard, DirectorEmail: BrunswickBattalion@gmail.comFacebook: www.facebook.com/BrunswickBattalion
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Blue Saints' Facebook page features a picture of a Pegasus with the tagline "Summon the gods"
"Summon the gods" is ok, but "Release the Kraken!!" would have been epic!
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think about the theme for the show and then think about what kinds of tools you could use on the field to help reinforce that theme.
Duct tape and cardboard, of course.
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Wow! Good luck this season!
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I know some other corps also use this service. For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the system, are you able to say how much the corps gets per subscriber? I understand you get something for each text (up to 3 per day) sent to each subscriber, but I cannot find anything (even on i-text website) indicating how much. Thanks.
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Here's a video of Robert Cawthorne assembling the Copter camera. A lot less plug-n-play than I could ever have imagined.
Yeah, I would have expected them to be using a DJI Phantom.
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DCI trumpeted the growth of its Open Corps today in an article, and I like how many of these new corps are primarily "staying at home" in their early year(s). Of course, that's probably a lot easier for the corps in states like California, where there are lots of show options.
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The reason you don't see more OC video on demand is the perceived lack of need. IOW, how many more subscriptions are you going to get if DCI spends $1000 on acquiring an open class show where only a few groups are there?
How many do you NEED to justify that cost .... 10 people?
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Let's at least be challenging, and attempt an umbilic torus
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I wasn't sure I was going to mention this, but what the heck - it's relative to this discussion. I'm actually trying to get off the ground a small local drum corps, to fill-in some of the gaps in options for kids 13-18. We're trying to set our season to begin after the end of high school marching, and end before all the May DCI camps, focusing on local parades, civic events, etc., without significant travel or related costs.
I have already had talks with one DCI corps about a sort of feeder relationship, and have reached out to a dozen or so local band directors (some in schools that don't even have a marching band option). I have to say, as a sort of connecting link in the so-called farm system that's been discussed here, I've gotten better response and offers of assistance from the DCI side than from the high school marching band side. I will no doubt have to ramp up my attempts to engage them - so far just an email campaign as to HS directors unknown to me - but I wonder how much cooperation I will get at that end, if any.
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Well, if fear (for lack of a better word) does exist, it certainly won't be helped by so many World Class corps beginning residency now, when the younger kids still have another month of high school to finish out. I can imagine the thought of having to 'catch up' a whole month of rehearsal might be a problem.
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and rugged like the Rockies, depicting snow, mountains, clear blue sky
NOW I remember what the uniforms reminded me of. Even the silvery blue circles!!!
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We have two DCA corps very nearby. We went to the first one's audition day in November, and were turned away because my son was not 15 (even though no such age limit was posted on the website, and I had sent emails specifically mentioning it). The second one said age wasn't a problem - the Director himself has a child marching at age 13 or 14. But we are lucky - we live within 1.5 hours' drive to 4 DCA corps, 1 DCI Open Class and 2 DCI World Class corps. But those corps represent 11% of all the DCA/DCI corps in North America combined. The rest of the country probably isn't so lucky, and I don't know how many beginners are going to join a DCA corps that is more than a 2-3 hours drive away.
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Stratifying drum corps at this point will fracture it beyond repair, IMO.
Perhaps what's needed is not so much a stratification, but a new layer of local/regional corps focusing on younger/beginner players, that don't have to travel all the way to Indy each year. They can rehearse and perform within their region on their own circuit, while the World/Open go on their own national tours. It wouldn't be the full DCI life style, but it would still be for young kids only, so perhaps you get the best of both DCI and DCA as far as young/beginner players are concerned.
The problem, however, would be balancing such a regional circuit with the desire of DCI to send their big shots through the same territory. I think that could probably be surmounted, however, by selecting venues significantly distant in both miles and dates.
Of course, SoundSport may be able to fill such a void as well, but will need to focus on where/when/how to hold competitions. If all they do is piggy-back off existing DCI shows, I don't think it will work.
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Grumpy - I used the term "old farts" affectionately. Fact is, my own son chose DCI over DCA in part because he wanted the experience to be about time with his own age group, or at least people that were fairly close to him in age. Not people that were out in the real world working jobs already (i.e. "old farts"). I don't think we can discount the importance of the bonding aspect as one of the lures of drum corps, and people in their late 20s and older just aren't the crowd my son wanted to hang out with all summer. I presume other "beginners" would have similar feelings.
And of course, when I threw out the idea that I could return to marching and go with him if he chose DCA, he ruled out that option right quick!
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DCA.
That may be a good option as far as the lesser commitment, and perhaps the willingness to accept beginners. If there is one nearby, of course, - only 21 DCA corps in only 12 states, if the DCA website is up to date.
And you have the further issue about DCA that (a) some younger players don't feel comfortable marching around old farts, and (b) some of the DCA corps have a reputation (founded or not, I cannot say - but the reputation reached my ears) for alcohol consumption that might scare off some younger players (or at least their parents who are probably providing the funds and transportation and therefore have the ultimate veto power).
Edit: just looked up the DCI/DCA corps distribution, and exactly half the states in the Union do NOT have corps within their state borders. Granted, there may be corps in an adjacent state which are relatively close to their borders, but by the same token, there are plenty of large states where the only corps may still be hundreds of miles away, even though within the same state.
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I think one of the major roadblocks is simply distance. When you talk about beginners, I think primarily of high-school aged kids, and how many of them are going to be taking plane trips every month from November through May to attend camps? Even if they live within a 4 hour driving distance from camp, how many of them have their own cars (or parents with no other responsibilities) to get them to camps all winter and spring?
Just look at the DCI map of Open Class corps - the East Coast is the most populated part of the country, yet Raiders, practicing in Burlington, NJ, is the southernmost Open corps along the coast (heading west to Nashville may be an option for some). If you add World Class, you can throw Spirit of Atlanta into the mix, but I don't think Carolina Crown is taking too many beginners. Other than that, there are no DCI options for east coast kids that want to march DCI, other than options requiring major travel. [There may be other options (DCA, etc.), but this is a DCI forum]
And even when a corps is local, you can't guaranty that getting to camps will be local - didn't Boston hold their winter audition camps down in Florida? To me, those sorts of roadblocks are even more intimidating than the mental roadblock of "can I hang with them?"
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I'm going on a limb, I speculate it could be space themed show
One word: Gravity
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Enough Already: Stop Playing That Piece
in DCI World Class Corps Discussions
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Well, don't listen to the Raiders' closer.