dcjosh

Hope the G8 come near me. I don't like having to pay $40 or more to see a few groups that are not very good, and 1 top 8 corps.

You don't need to worry about school years being any longer than they already are. The reason is that nobody can afford it. Many school districts have been cutting days to save some money. Obama is just trying to draw some attention from the economy and give people something to talk about. But, DCI is already having problems with finding housing sites due to schools being in session during August. They even advertiesed on their website to try to find hosts during World Championships.

I used to hate the idea of woodwinds in dci with a passion. Like many, I loved the big brass sound that only corps had and didn't want any marching band influence. Now, I've changed my mind. Drum corps is going nowhere and comes up with zero new ideas. If you think there's a new idea at a dci show, it's more than likely that it was first done at a BOA or WGI show. The top BOA bands are impressive, but they're still dirty both musically and visually when compared to corps. But they are able to get sounds a timbres that corps can't get with the current rules. Imagine what it would be like to take a show like Avon's or LD Bell's and perform it at the level that corps are capable of. People hear the idea of woodwinds in dci and immediately think that it's going to be like bad marching band. That would not be the case with the top corps. I understand the history of drum corps and respect the opinion of those who don't want woodwinds allowed. That's why I think there should be both woodwind and non-woodwind classes. If one of the classes fails after a few years, you can always change back. I'd just like to see what it would be like for once.

I never said the quality has gone down in the last 20 years. What I'm saying is that they are no longer getting better (especially after the top 7 or 8). DCI couldn't make it through a season withouth the G7, and I think all of dci knows that.

This has to pass eventually or else dci is dead. These G7 know they could leave dci and make it on their own. Do you think other corps are going to just let these corps just walk away? They know they would be doomed. I became a fan in 1993 and I used to love to see ANY corps. Now I wouldn't pay anything to go see a show without these G7. I used to hate BOA and all that goes with it, but now I'm more impressed with what the top BOA bands are doing than what is going on in dci. Sure the top 6-8 in dci are fun to watch, but after that it's just not that good anymore.

Who knows what the G7 really want from dci, but in the end I think they'll get it. I know almost everybody is mad about this, but the fact is dci can't thrive without these 7. If these 7 completely leave eventually, then dci could scale down the tour and maybe survive. They wouldn't make as much money off of videos/mp3/fan network, they would have to lower ticket prices, they wouldn't be able to get big venues, but they probably could survive in some capacity.

I'm sure the "G-7 Darlings" would love for everybody to donate to the other corps. Then all the money that they make for dci's fan network wouldn't have to be taken away from the G7 and given to everybody else. Just think how scared dci would be if the G7 said we're no longer allowing you to sell our videos/mp3s. That's alot of money!!!

I haven't read all 39 pages of this thread, so this might have already been mentioned. Obviously money is at the center of this issue. These 7 corps are generating the most money for dci through ticket sales, merchandise, and media on the fan network. They think they deserve a bigger share of what dci hands out to the corps. I agree. Also, this won't make most people happy, but I think that this is a step in the direction of the top corps becoming closer to a marching band. If they form their own tour they will be able to form their own rules which will eventually include woodwinds. Most purists will object to it, but the corps will be able to reach a larger (and younger) audience that way. It's probably still a few years down the road, but I see there eventually being a BOA type summer tour with independent groups like the cadets, bd, etc., and a seperate drum corps tour (maybe the hold outs joining DCA).

Eklipse (different spelling, I know) has already been a drum corps in 2003. http://www.corpsreps.com/corpsreps.cfm?vie...orpstype=Junior Of course this is a different organization.

While Cavies, Phantom, and BD all pretty much stayed the same score wise throughout the week, Bluecoats managed to go up .7 points. I don't see how BD could go from .3 behind the leader in brass on Thursday and end up in 4th place in Finals. Brass Scores Throughout the Week: Cavies - 19.3, 19.6, 19.6 Phantom - 19.4, 19.5, 19.4 Blue Devils - 19.1, 19.1, 19.0 Bluecoats - 18.4, 19.0, 19.1

According to dci's website this is the order for the show at Louisville on Monday. Carolina Crown Glassmen Spirit from JSU Blue Devils Phantom Regiment Southwind Pioneer I don't understand why Southwind and Pioneer would perform after BD and Phantom. Is this order correct? No disrespect to those 2 corps, but its going to be a let down after watching the corps before them.

Does dci even sell the dvd's in widescreen yet? I hate watching drum corps on my widescreen tv, because of how it stretches the field. I know I can switch to 4:3, but then I have the bars on the sides, and the picture is too small. You'd think with quarterfinals being in theaters and so many people having widescreen tvs, dci would have changed by now.

Actually according to The Cavaliers Kuhn did retire. http://www.cavaliers.org/cgi-bin/news.pl?c...howstory&id=573

Pacific Crest 77.250 Esperanza 76.200 The Magic 75.975 Troopers 71.675 Pioneer 71.525 Kiwanis Kavaliers 68.600

I just listened to their APD, and thought they sounded great. If that's 6th, then 1-5 must be pretty amazing!

Here's the update after the afternoon at San Antonio. Boston, SCV, and the Blue Knights are all fighting for that last place at Murfreesboro. 1. Cavaliers 89.025 2. Cadets 88.375 3. Blue Devils 88.333 4. Phantom Regiment 86.833 5. Madison Scouts 86.788 6. Bluecoats 86.350 7. Carolina Crown 83.425 8. Boston Crusaders 82.767 9. SCV 82.588 10. Blue Knights 82.175 11. Glassmen 81.588 12. Spirit 79.408 13. Crossmen 78.862 14. Colts 77.915 15. Mandarins 77.425 16. Pacific Crest 77.400 17. Seattle Cascades 74.381 18. Southwind 73.988 19. Capital Regiment 73.885 20. Magic 71.830 21. Esperanza 70.363 22. Troopers 68.744 23. Pioneer 67.150 24. Kiwanis Kavaliers 64.413

DCI is using the top 8 average scores from this week (17-23) to determine who is going to be at Murfreesboro next Friday. It will also determine the order for Indy. The main race is for 8th between SCV and Boston. Vanguard will perform twice at San Antonio, while Boston will only perform once. Here's the order through Friday. 1. Cavaliers 89.025 2. Cadets 88.375 3. Blue Devils 88.333 4. Phantom Regiment 86.833 5. Madison Scouts 86.788 6. Bluecoats 86.350 7. Carolina Crown 83.425 8. Boston Crusaders 82.767 9. SCV 82.147 10. Blue Knights 81.650 11. Glassmen 81.133 12. Spirit 78.780 13. Crossmen 78.400 14. Mandarins 77.9 15. Colts 77.475 16. Pacific Crest 77.400 17. Seattle Cascades 73.950 18. Southwind 73.770 19. Capital Regiment 73.738 20. Magic 71.550 21. Esperanza 68.450 22. Troopers 68.383 23. Pioneer 67.150 24. Kiwanis Kavaliers 64.133

Bluecoats - 8 - I really like the very beginning of this show, but then it seems to lose alot of energy after the opener. The brass played pretty well except for a couple of bad phasing problems. They have a very good drumline that I think should be shown off even more. They played really clean, but they didn't do anything really special like some of the other good drumlines there. I don't think that the Bluecoats will jump up any during Finals week, and they might get passed by the Crossmen. Madison - 6 - The first 7 minutes of this show seem pretty slow. But Malaga is on fire. The drumline was much improved from last year, and so is the guard. I kept on wanting more from the brass, and I think they'll really open up next week at finals. The Cadets - 4 - They got the best reaction from the crowd. The pit got the crowd going before the show, and then the crowd responed with a standing ovation after the opener. The drumline was good, but not as good as the past two years. The baton twirler was not a distraction at all. He had the crowd going crazy. Boston - 7 - I don't know how they lost to Madison. They're flying all over the field for the whole show. The drumline is much improved from the beginning of the year, and the show is very well designed. The crowd really liked them too. I guess their brass might be holding them back some, because the guard is great, and the drumline is pretty good. Cavaliers - 2 - They play better than last year, and they're visual is really good. The drumline is so much better than it has been the past two years. The brass is great too. This show really gets the crowd involved, but I think that it is a little bit too choppy. The last few minutes just seems to be like a bunch of cool, short ideas thrown out on the field in random order. Phantom Regiment - 5 - I was really impressed with Phantom. I wasn't expecting much after seeing that their scores have been down some this year, but they really have a good show. The music seems to be much harder than last year, and they pull it off pretty well. The brass has tons of fast passages, and the drumline is very clean. The thing that is hurting them is that I noticed problems in the feet every time I tried to find one. SCV - 3 - I watched SCV practice 2 days this week, and they are getting better. The drumline is amazing, the guard is putting on a great show, and the brass is LOUD. The worst part about their show is by far the high brass. They did have one guy fall at the beginning, but I don't think that hurt them much. I would love for them to win with this show, but I don't think they can catch Cavies or Blue Devils. Blue Devils - 1 - They are on fire once again. This is one of my favorite Blue Devils shows ever. It is so well designed, and it really captivates the audience. The brass and guard are just amazing. The drumline is good, but they do have some issues in cleaning in the snares. Visually they are very clean. I don't know why people say that they have easy drill. They are flying around the field every time they march. There are multiple times when the brass is actually running, but unlike most corps they are still able to play with a good sound while doing this. The crowd was really excited and gave all the corps good ovations. For all of you who think that the amp issue is hurting DCI, I'm sorry to tell you that your are just wrong. The whole home side of the stadium was completely full all the way to the goal posts. There were even people sitting behind the endzones, and on the away side of the stadium. I didn't hear one negative coment about narration or amps all night.