keystone3ply
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Posts posted by keystone3ply
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1 minute ago, ContraFart said:
I will ask this question again. Are Cadets not touring this year because of the 5% of the budget they could have saved, or because of bigger reasons?
Well, there is a rumor going around that this may be a 'coup' attempt by GH to regain control of The Cadets. It's on social media so you know it's got to be true. 🧐🫢😂
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11 minutes ago, MikeD said:
In 70-71 era Blue Rock had their own lousy busses. One of them had no reverse, so they had to be careful where they parked. Another one could not start unless a bunch of members got behind it and pushed it.
We (Garfield) had to get out of one of our busses on the way to Miami, as the full bus could not drive up a steep hill. We walked in front of the bus, just in case! 😀
SOA use to have a fleet of old GMC (I think) buses. On one of them, the rear wheels tracked about a foot to the right of the front wheels so it looked like a running puppy. A couple of them had bad air bags on one side so they 'listed' like a sailboat. 😂
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24 minutes ago, denverjohn said:
You are actually not too far off. Lots of "woke" messaging ever since "narration/preaching" overlaid music books.
👀 Oh my lord, it was a joke*. I just can't...
*See laughing emoji.
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10 minutes ago, IllianaLancerContra said:
The new director is certainly having an interesting first month on the job.
Nate, line one... Nate, line two... Nate, Nate? 😁
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27 minutes ago, TheOneWhoKnows said:
In all truth, it was probably more the vote by the board happened the night they made the announcement. So truly up until that vote, it was go on as normal.
Oh I'm sure that's what happened, but you know, being TheOneWhoKnows 😁, that the rumors were flying around the 'field house' that something was about to go down. Someone could have said, 'hey, why don't we hold off on that last social media post'? It could have easily been avoided as it's not a good look & garners zero 'goodwill'. ✅
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1 hour ago, denverjohn said:
The real factors are political, cultural, spiritual, economic, and demographic but we are not allowed to discuss those on this forum.
Yup; it all started going downhill with The Cadets 'Angels & Demons' then piled on by BAC looking for witches. Maybe throw in a dose of 2023 Mandrins 😁
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1 hour ago, Terri Schehr said:
I saw one six hours before. Bad optics.
They are getting push back for that Friday morning post on social media. Folks that are trying to defend it cite "it was posted by the marketing team" or "it was an automated scheduled post", etc. Just an incredulous oversight & there is no excuse for the timing of the post. 🤬
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11 hours ago, Terri Schehr said:
I’m sad tonight. Maybe delayed grief.
The show that changed EVERYTHING for me and I believe, the activity. I still remember that tenor break in Concerto in F like I had first heard it yesterday. I first saw this show in Madison, Wisconsin at Drums On and I was in love. I never thought much about Garfield before then. They certainly got my attention that night. Groundbreaking is a term overused in drum corps. This was legitimately groundbreaking.
if posting this is not permitted, I apologize.
Yes! And those Slingerland "Cutaways" with Remo Pinstripes. Marched a set of those in college a couple of years before we received our new drums; love their tone quality. Thank you! 🙌
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9 hours ago, tedrick said:
catch the final climax of this arrangement!
hornline arrangers have so much to learn, borrow and steal from choral arrangements -
Reminds me of Glad's "The Acapella Project" album. Great material & has been used by a few corps in the past.
🙌
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8 minutes ago, Mello Dude said:
No, a semi and a food truck (which could be a semi). Food trucks tend to be semi trailers but they don't need to be. I mean, cutting down to less vehicles will save a lot of money. Seriously, if you are going to drum corps shows because of massive props you are missing the point.
I was thinking maybe combine the equipment & food truck. We could set up the grills on the keyboards & use the timpani as a sink. 🤷♂️😆
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1 hour ago, kevingamin said:
Heck, I thought I was pretty quick to get this on the front page this time. 😄
Love your avatar thingie. 💚
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54 minutes ago, Mello Dude said:
I would limit it to one semi. Every rig you add is huge money.
So is it:
a) "Semis? We don't need no stinkin' food truck."
b) "Semis? We don't need no stinkin' equipment truck."
Or something like that. 😂
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36 minutes ago, Mr_Moto said:
We’re looking at the activity as a whole, and I think there are some ways that everyone is affected equally. Ultimately though we’re talking about a small group of non-profits that all operate on a slightly different business model. There are 3 big levers that are what we need to look at in how to fix the problem. 1.) Operating Expenses 2.) Revenue 3.) Fundraising. It’s not going to be a one size fits all solution, it’s going to be a bunch of small little tweaks and investments that are going to help right the ship, and each corps will have to figure out what is going to work best for them.
This is going to require corps to really workshop and try to look at their operation holistically and through a different lens. This requires creative problem solving, and is going to take several iterations to figure out what will work, create the metrics, and make it happen. This process has to be collaborative and operated from a flat hierarchy in order for it to not be steamrolled by one individual or small subset that might already be controlling power.
What are the things that need to remain constant vs what can change? The member experience, which include competing, is the main draw for the competitors. So how do we keep that same, even if we’re looking at less shows or possibly fewer miles traveled, while figuring out other areas in the organization that can reduce operating expenses.Operating Expenses:
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Most corps are already minimizing camp attendance, some cutting to just brass for Feb and March already.
- One of the biggest expenses is flying in instructors and paying them. Can we use more local staff who aren’t necessarily on tour to help fill out the roster and who also might be willing to work for the same or less pay.
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Size of the convoy is a thing that adds up quickly. Vehicle rental + labor to drive + gas + insurance = This is 20-25% of the budget for most corps
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Souvies could be cut down. Mandarins is a great example of this. They weren’t making enough at most shows to cover the cost. How can we reduce operating expense while trying to maintain the same revenue?
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You could take the Souvie vehicle out of the fleet. Cut the foot print of soupiest for most shows to a small tent, samples of most/all items, and one person with a POS system. The foot print of this could fit in the back of one of the support vans that most corps have. All orders are then shipped from corps hall or 3rd party the next day. Yes, fans lose the instant gratification of getting the item that moment, but if you educate them on why they are doing this, most would understand. They could still do full size souvie setups at regionals and finals and this would exponentially cut down cost.
- With a smaller setup size for most shows you could have this run by one of the admin assistants as the size would only require 1-2 people to setup.
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You could take the Souvie vehicle out of the fleet. Cut the foot print of soupiest for most shows to a small tent, samples of most/all items, and one person with a POS system. The foot print of this could fit in the back of one of the support vans that most corps have. All orders are then shipped from corps hall or 3rd party the next day. Yes, fans lose the instant gratification of getting the item that moment, but if you educate them on why they are doing this, most would understand. They could still do full size souvie setups at regionals and finals and this would exponentially cut down cost.
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Souvies could be cut down. Mandarins is a great example of this. They weren’t making enough at most shows to cover the cost. How can we reduce operating expense while trying to maintain the same revenue?
- DCI in recent years has created the relationship with Sysco to negotiate for a better deal for all corps for food. How can we leverage DCI to negotiate better rates on other things that all corps are doing. Could DCI negotiate with a bussing company or tractor/trailer rental company to do a larger rental contract for the season that corps opt in to.
Revenue:
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Corps need new revenue streams. Many have realized this, but drum corps is not the money maker. These non-profits need to realign in serving their community to create opportunities to generate revenue, and qualify for more grant opportunities. This would take a lot of leg work in building relationships and initial infrastructure investment to get things up and running.
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Music lessons programs - Some corps have done this locally or virtually. Incorporating staff or local educators to improve local music education is a viable option. This could include student and adult performance groups as well.
- This could be a great opportunity for older members or recent age outs that are local to cut their teeth on teaching and to continue to have a relationship with the corps in the off-season.
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Music Store - with many local music shops closing down this could be an opportunity to create a hybrid opportunity, and have an instrument repair tech on staff that could be useful for the corps to keep repair costs down, and could be an opportunity to build great relationships in the community with local band directors by offering repair services and bid on local school contracts.
- This could be starting their own or investing into a percentage of a local company to help support them and make sure the community has music instrument inventory and repair resources.
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Create a service that the corps has been outsourcing. Phantom has done great with this by creating a march printing business that is available to other corps or the local community.
- Cross pollination - Corps could use this to co-op to use their buying power together to support each other and make sure that they’re getting the best possible price.
- Entertainment Companies - We’ve already seen this with corps in certain locations especially where pro sports are. Advertising these services and having local members.
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Music lessons programs - Some corps have done this locally or virtually. Incorporating staff or local educators to improve local music education is a viable option. This could include student and adult performance groups as well.
Fundraising:
Fundraising is such an integral piece to making drum corps happen. We’re at a place in time where everyone is being stretched thin financially with the current rate of inflation. If we consider the recession of 2008-2010, how did that affect fundraising for drum corps? Are we looking at something similar now where we could potentially see a downturn in dollars raised for corps? Or is that a risk to be considered?
Exposure of the Activity:
If we’re ultimately looking for more corporate sponsorships to help offset costs, then the activity needs more exposure and that is going to take an investment. This is where the PBS broadcast used to be super helpful in getting this niche activity in front of a larger audience. DCI should be investing in larger media advertising campaign to help promote the activity as a whole. Hopefully this is something the new DCI CEO will be looking to focus on.Cadets BOD: "You're hired!"
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Most corps are already minimizing camp attendance, some cutting to just brass for Feb and March already.
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So, does anyone with 'inside baseball' info know about the tour status of SOA? Unless there's a quick settlement, I'm thinking that a trial timeline, litigation, etc., would take it well into 2024 or even 2025? I'm hoping they're able to maintain a semi-normal course, with limited distractions, while their legal team handle the case. 🧐
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20 minutes ago, KVG_DC said:
I'm still stuck on the visuals.
I mean, they have a drill book road map in reutilizing Phantom's Into the Light. Enter from one tunnel, move the corps across the field through the show, and exit the other tunnel!I should stop, but I can't. Maybe there's something I could take for that?
One of my favorite shows. Michael Kamen; may he RIP...
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14 minutes ago, scheherazadesghost said:
Coo. Not only corporate sponsors though. Large institutional and individual donors as well. Ya know, the ones you want to be able to rely on by building long-term sustainable relationships with? 😉
True; it's not like our local community sponsorships for the fine arts program that covers the band, choral, & theatre programs. These are on a much larger scale as to the amount of money as well as the national & even worldwide exposure for their brand. Most all of your touring artist have corporate sponsorships giving the corporation or product brand an incredible amount of coverage.
Even something as simple as wrapping the motor coaches & semis that are on tour with the music artist can bring in a lot of revenue for the tour production. There's a great company in Nashville that create, design, & install the vinyl wraps on the entertainer coaches & semi trailers. But that's just a small portion that could be tapped into for addition revenue.
I've never really understood why the drum corps model can't seem to tap into more large scale corporate sponsorships. (or even espn that covers corn hole & spelling bee competitions.)
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34 minutes ago, KVG_DC said:
Why not both! Show theme could be the biological processes of using Pepto Bismol. Maybe P&G would sponsor the uniform costs!
Good lord; another ear worm. That song...
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3 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:
It’s ok. I’m tailgating in the rain at Penn state with crap reception and at least 90,000 other water logged people
I guess "You Are or You is Penn State? Especially in the rain.
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5 minutes ago, scheherazadesghost said:
What you're bothered by doesn't matter. Me too for that matter.
Mission alignment is used for nps who want to develop sustainable relationships with large scale donors and funders. If nps aren't interested in that then so be it. They're welcome to keep relying on funky off-brand (often unsustainable or unreliable) development models that the rest of the np industry scoffs at for cheapening the industry. Their choice. VMAPA is the same boat and I come down on them for the same reason.
I completely understood what you meant by mission alignment as it pertains to substantial corporate sponsorships. It's very important to those relationships. ✅
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36 minutes ago, CadetDood said:
Well that was my point, the person keeping everyone in the dark (Vicki the CEO) is now gone. I'm a bit confused at how the board couldn't have found out about this earlier. Perhaps the corps needs a new model for running the corps? Ever since George the corps has put all of the power for running the corps in the hands of the board so one individual couldn't be as all powerful as George was. This seems to have backfired in having a board full of well meaning individuals, but that have full time jobs outside of Cadets and can't give the corps the full time focus it needs and allows for financial incompetence to take place from a poor CEO. I actually think if the corps is going to ever come back they'll need to lean hard on their Corps Director (who had no part in the financials of the corps BY DESIGN) and try to keep him around the best they can.
And it infuriates me that this has now given him fodder to his cause as he is now spinning this on his social media platforms. Basically saying, 'told you so', etc & spinning it to make himself look good in true narcissistic form. But we all know the truth except for a handful of his followers and/or cult.
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26 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:
Evidently not.
Love your pic, avatar, or whatever it's called. Go Cadets!
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11 minutes ago, 2000Cadet said:
Cadets helped to take an 17 year old teenager, who spent his childhood surrounded by drugs, gangs, and typical inner-city problems, and allowed him to see what life should be like. If it weren't for Cadets, he wouldn't have spent 21 years in the Navy created a life for himself that's worthy of celebration. That kid was me.
The Cadets mean EVERYTHING to me. If they need to take a year off to get things back in shape, then so be it. I'm sad that this is happening, but with the continuing rising costs of everything, I can neither be surprised nor naive that this won't happen to other corps, because with the current trend, it will.
Thank you for this post & for your service. It just made me feel little better. ❤️
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Just now, KVG_DC said:
Which was also tongue in cheek to some degree. But frankly I'm a big fan of what Surf does from keeping it at a scale that's doable during the summer with some great instructional efforts based on what I saw in the lot at Annapolis to things like their mobile music lab going out into the neighborhoods to bring music education into areas in new ways where the schools have long axed such things. People dog them for being small and non-competitive and snark out with "demote them to Open Class" and such. But... they're still here and they're still doing their thing and doing it well.
Yup, I knew it was. Surf was so much fun this year & I love their community outreach in music education!
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The Cadets FB post about to break 600 comments. And that doesn't include the shares & drum corps groups.
Cadets Suspend for 2024
in DCI World Class Corps Discussions
Posted · Edited by keystone3ply
cx
Off Topic Good News:
Taylor Swift spends the night at Travis Kelce's mansion & they have been seen holding hands in public!
(This tread has really gotten intense.)
On Topic Reference:
Taylor Swift might be interested in a large financial sponsorship of The Cadets or DCI? But, she might require the Bari Sax be added to instrumentation & all corps add the number '13' to their drill.
Why not?