kdaddy

They let a good duo go after 2022...

Or at least a couple big drill moves

I don't know about goals, but anecdotally, during finals week, there was an interview on the big screen with three "future DCI judges" who participated in training this season. If memory serves, they were one black guy and two white women. I'm not suggesting we've solved DEI, but it was nice to see. I feel that several of the corps are becoming more diverse, especially among instructional staff and instructional leadership positions. I'm hoping that trend continues to design staffs as well.

Pity party? Haha Let's be more self-righteous on a drum corps message board.

Yes, parted ways. But parted ways as a result of the post - that was my question.

So is it indeed confirmed that BK made a change because of the post? While folks in that position need to be mindful of how their social media presence is perceived, if BK made a change for that reason, that's absurd.

Or not

That's a bit surprising, and I suspect surprising to them as well (given other recent posts).

To me, the big decision that certain corps would make is "should I replace somebody with SCV designer/instructor X?" Assuming SCV folks are indeed going to be free agents.

A requirement these days is musical variety, and Regiment did a great job of this in 2023. Pop/rock/jazz + brass band + wind ensemble + classical, or some combination thereof. A tremendously underused composer is Sibelius. I'd love to see some combo of Sibelius (e.g., the brass motif from Pohjola's Daughter would be cool throughout a show), Rautavaara, Raitio (e.g., some awesome themes in The Waterspout), and modern/film stuff by Johan Johansson. Bjork would be perfect, but Crown just used some of her stuff. Maybe a Norse or nature theme. Something based on stories from the Kallevala might be too niche.

It would appear that they were close to Mandarins in GE but lagged in performance captions. They're still in transition in design and education, so I bet those will improve next season - especially guard and percussion. But if top 6 is a goal, they'll need to increase some difficulty (e.g., there was not an especially big drill moment).

I think I watched BD on flo once, maybe twice, all summer. Then three nights in Indy. Loved it. I then listened to it several times in a row while working today. Love it musically. No point to this story tbh other than to say that, while I'm in the "if another corps has a chance of winning, I'd prefer it," I loved 2023 BD.

The one good thing about only having seven weeks in the season is that you only need Flo for two months.

Kind of - SCV taking the summer off got them back. (not suggesting BK make changes, but the design staff got a lot of help from SCV)

Wes Cartgrass

*Wes Cartwright I'd say a program coordinator role could still be on the table. Assembling a talented group of designers to put the show together. I doubt Dean Westman contributes a lot to design, but he facilitates that process for Bluecoats, for example.

Has Darrin Davis been mentioned as a possibility at Madison? He's a Scouts alum that turned Broken Arrow into a beast, and he's apparently become a respected DCI judge. He'd also be senior enough to dictate what is necessary to make Madison successful. I was told that as recently as a couple weeks ago, the BOD chair was on board with Robb. I guess something changed since? Nevertheless, the BOD chair is a Tulsa guy, so Darrin Davis might make sense.

This is a great point, though I don't think it excuses the 2023 design either. While I poke fun at what appears to be a huge ego wielded by Jason Robb, I wouldn't have made wholesale changes just yet unless you have someone strong locked in. Replacing Robb & Co. with a group akin to the 2019 design team isn't going to take this corps anywhere.

Were you in your face melting seats? I tried to look for you and @Jurassic Lancer, but you remained elusive, Moby Richard-style.

Revisiting this...

I don't believe they are still together.

You're going to have to explain this one more. Namely, why?!? Also, does his role with that group indeed mean that he's no longer arranging for BD?

I wasn't suggesting that. I was responding to someone proposing David Glasgow, who I believe has a similar role as Pat at Stansbury.

I don't know about him specifically, but another guy that works for Stanbury on the west coast (and directs a devilish gold medalist) makes $$$. Far more than what I'd expect a DCI executive director to make.

I'm not endorsing this per se, but the biggest thing about the Rennicks is their reputation and thus ability to attract talented members.