Staccato

Can I ask why the decision was made to only take members over 21? There is a lot of talent in the NOVA area in High School and young college kids that would be interested in joining a drum corps if the recruitment was done correctly. I currently drive 5-6 hours every weekend to New Jersey with 9 kids that are under 21 to march DCA. I'm confident I could pull many more if there was a group in their own back yard.

1) I don't see how reducing the emphasis on demand should be considered at all. Group that marches block drill and plays long tones should not be in the same conversation as a group that is running around and playing clean runs. As long as the execution is of a high caliber then high demand on the performers should be rewarded. Anything else would play into the "soccer mom everybody wins mentality." 3) I'm not sure this guy understands GE. Effect makes up 40% of the total score. Music is only 30%, visual 20% (which indirectly effects Effect since guard is a major component of this), and communication is 10%. GE is already emphasized more than any other judged aspect of the show. Also, standing still and blasting Maleguana is only one type of effect. Judges are looking for differing ideas and how they connect to each other. A show that revolves around one type of effect should not be rewarded over a show that interweaves multiple effects. *aside: Am I the only one that is tired of hearing Maleguana and other "classic" drum corps/marching band songs? 4) Just a bad idea. Don't punish a program for being successful. 5) Tied in with 1 I think. A corps can be entertaining by standing still and playing good music. However, a corps playing the same music while running should be rewarded for meeting harder demands. It's the same idea in sports with similar scoring systems (gymnastics, diving, trampoline...). You can nail easier moves and get a max score, but your max possible score will be less than someone attempting a harder move. 6) This is really a terrible idea. If a staffing team has figured out a formula that works they should not be punished and forced to break up. Not to mention, many people out there have different teaching/design philosophies. There is no guarantee that two people who have done amazing work on their own or with their own teams will work together. There style may be too different and cause the entire corps to suffer. Also, how would this be enforced? What's to stop someone from quitting because they were drafted somewhere they didn't want to go? Or am I completely missing the point of this idea? 7) From what I've seen the problem isn't in the judging, but in the judges. I haven't seen the language on the judge sheets for DCA but I'm guessing it's not much different than that for DCI and WGI. Most comments I've heard from various staffs are that the judges are terrible. I've heard plenty of tapes to back up this position as well. Many judges will give stock answers to seem like they know what's happening without actually addressing what is happening on the field. I've heard judges make comments about DCA and DCI corps separate from the corps that is on the field. If so many people agree that there are problems with the numbers then the judges need to be fixed. Having training courses every year or two would help keep judges up to date on new trends so corps are being rewarded for pushing the envelope and using new rule changes instead of being penalized for it. Or DCA could institute a committee of selected staff members from each corps that review tapes after the season to discuss which judges are missing things or making poor comments. Of course it seems like the best solution would be to actually get new judges. We need some new blood who actually understand the state that DCA is in today and not what it was in 80s.

How is it hogwash?

It took two days for my account to be activated so I could reply to this. The percussion judge was moved to the box due to the findings of the following study: http://www.marchingroundtable.com/eku-marching-arts-research-team/field-percussion-study/ I can't speak for the other captions.