MusicManNJ

They were OK. Not going to say it was great. But they were well positioned for the 2024 season. Even had a new director in place and everything. Compared to Cadets in prior years they were in much better shape for the Cadets.

The descision to file for bankruptcy was made when settlment discusions broke off. Once the decision was made for the orderly unwinding of the organization the board then started to sell off assets to help cover the cost of winding down (return of camp fees, staff pay, vendors, etc). Just because it was not announced to the public does not mean plans were not underway. This was all TRIGGERED by the end of settlement discussions and the move to trial which the Corps could not afford.

No one was let go until it was clear that the org was going to close. They did let go the ED but that was not related to funding. The Corps was on track to come out in 2024. The end of settlement discussions also ended the Cadets future.

Once the settlement discussion ended, so did the future of the corps. There was a donor who was going to pay the settlement. The plaintiff's lawyers made it clear they would pursue this to trial and would enjoin any perceived successor organization. The only thing left to do was the orderly unwinding of the organization and ensuring staff was paid, refunds for the 2024 audition season were made, purchased corps jackets delivered, and the passage of time to avoid the 90-day clawback period. Assets only started to be sold when the settlement discussions ended and it was clear bankruptcy was the only option.

This is not true. Plans for 2024 were well under development as there were positive indications of a settlement. That went up in smoke as soon as people started bashing the plaintiff on social media. he plaintiff ended settlement talks and that effectively ended any chance of the corps surviving. They could not withstand the expense of a lawsuit moving forward. That is what killed the Cadets. After an incredible finish in 2023 the goals for 2024 were even loftier. But, because of the move to go to trial and breakoff settlement discussions, that was the final straw.

That person is not telling the truth. It was crafted by the Board chair with the help of probono PR and legal input.

Chapter 7 means going out of business (what the Cadets did). Chapter 11 allows for reorganization.

This is the end of the road for one of the most honored and decorated drum corps. https://cadets.org/cadets-arts-entertainment-cae-files-bankruptcy?fbclid=IwAR3ULNWNRGqOvNIVKOJa9i7o8OIZSYnuVNnkYHnP5VhxaoVRKrK0VtrAaBg_aem_AbmWMN0sf5FT5n-E3QyEFnIk1UyCyAUZpG8z8KLsALfW9V4K9j8GB8DUoAHtMSrlT65vtpjh-7KqShbV5W44EKpR

Russ is a great choice for SCV! Has the background and experince to lead the organization back to sustainability. Looking forward to great things from SCV 2024!

DCI was silent because DCI did not know that SCV management had planned on pulling the plug. They were in the dark like everyone else except the SCV leadership.

And she is a highly regraded composer and arranger for percussion through Rolloff publications and is so highly respected by the broader percussion community that she was elected as President of the Percussive Arts Society for the current term. Pardon the expression by Julie is a bad ###!

This is correct. DA is done by end of calendar year. Period.

A successor for Dan has NOT been chosen yet. The search continues...

Clean, Clean, Clean! Build up that endurance... and do what the Cadets always do at this time of year... just like Atlas... RISE!

How about that Percussion Section!

Ok... but if that is the case, why replace last year's percussion staff who were... 5th place? It was terrible last year to be 5th but this year is OK? Cant have it both ways. And is not clear they will even be 5th this year.

Not this year. 7th place with an 8th in achievement is not "hanging". I wanted them to be good... but this is not the percussion product. Maybe they will get better over the next few years but this year, IMHO, is done. Cadets had a complete percussion staff turnover like Crown. They were 4th, not 7th. And are excelling with some key Crown percussion folks from last year. The Corps management made such a big deal about this "transformational" percussion staff. It has yet to materialize. Most of you here will not agree. We will know who is correct soon enough.

Percussion has been under performing most of the year. One night either way does not tell the story. But the trend is clear. Percussion will be LUCKY to finish where they did last year (5th). That is certainly not the outcome I want to see but it is clear to most they are still not at the same level as the top lines.

The die is cast. With a 7th place in percussion (so much for improvement from last year) it looks to be another 4th place finish. Love the corps... but clearly, they are missing something and have not been able to figure it out since 2015.

That is like saying Cadets won in 1983 "inspite of" the percussion that scored below the other captions from a field percussion staind point. But the conrtibution to the overall program (musically and visually including GE) was critical to the Cadets success. Hannum won his first of several DCI Championships (with three different corps) in 1983. His last with Crown in 2013. He may win his next title before Crown does.

Yea... they did. Twice. First when they "Thought" they had grabbed Tom Aungst from Cadets only to have him back out and then had to go to Hannum to beg him to come back after that debacle. And then last fall they made the percussion changes and DID NOT consult with Thom but listed him on the staff... again without consulting him. That classifies as doing him dirty. On your other points... like you said... time will tell. I do hope they get it together.

Last I checked they won a championship with Hannum et al (should have been two IMHO). For 2023 the results speak for themselves. Not sure the show design helps percussion either. This was not a step forward. This is a step backward. Not all indoor percussion designers translate well to the big stadium.

Not so sure. I might go with D) Replacement staff is not as good as the prior staff. That is my take. You are what your numbers say you are. Admittedly, I am a huge Hannum fan. Crown did him dirty. Travis and Team are doing great with Cadets, Hannum is doing great with Boston. But this was NOT the step forward everyone promoted it to be. Really a shame and it will cost them in the end.

So what is up with percussion? After they made a big deal about all the changes to the percussion team and how this was the missing ingredient to Crown's success, they are currently placing 8th in percussion. EIGHTH! It looks like they made a mistake forcing Thom Hannum and his team out for something better(?). Many of the former Crown perc staff are at Cadets, and their percussion program is doing VERY well in comparison.

Gotta throw out a wild claim without a shred of evidence. Nice.