ROO

Howdy Folks- Dutch Boy is looking to fill a few spots left for the summer. It's a great tour for a great price! Coast to Coast. we are looking to fill the following positions- 1 snare 1 trumpet 1-2 Baritones 1 tuba 1 percussionist (rack player) Please contact me if you're interested or check out the website- www.dutchboydrumcorps.com or you can reach me at roo13@hotmail.com

Some of what you're saying is true, some a little inacurate. Yes most of us Canadians have/had little to no music experience before joining Drum Corps. Certainly no Marching Band programs. as for Band programs in the schools, they were there in every high school in KW then, and still are. Music is elective, and many of the folks we marched with probably woundn't have taken it. Especially the drummers, as the music is boring and you learn nothing with regards to technique. Drum corps is a hard sell without Marching Band programs in Ontario. How do you gain the interest from kids who have no idea what-so-ever what drum corps is? Most of our kids at Dutch Boy have no marching experience prior to joining, and little music. It's tough to stay active up here. From what I'm hearing there very well may be only 2 competing corps from Ontario this year. Both in Div III.

Rob, you know anything is possible! If you look at some of the kids we've had at Dutch over the last few years, you'd be surprized by number of them with disabilities- be it physical or mental. One kid was legally blind- marched trumpet for 2 years A few kids with ADHD others with Learning disabilities One kid had Turrets, was diagnosed with agoraphobia as a young child (recovered with meds), and couldn't write more then his name. he marched lead trumpet a couple years ago. Never say never. And who knows, if I'm still around when she's old enough, I'd be happy to teach your daughter.

The largest spread I know of is Dutch Boy winning A class by 9.25 in 1982 over Les Etoiles with a score of 68.05

Thanks Micheael and Fern for a wonderful read!

That was awesome!!!

Good stuff- keep the info coming!

Sure, but "coming very soon" with only 2 weeks to the audition camp is really cutting things short. As with Annette, I wish Kiwanis all the best, but I really do question what's going on. There seems to be a lack of information available with so little time left. Who's on Administration? The Director? I'd want to know where I'm sending my kid and who's looking after them before I signed anything. Hopefully you'll see this as constructive critisizism, and not an attack on the corps. I do want the best for the corps!!!

Looks good, can't wait to see the show! Best of luck this year!!!!

GREAT!!!!!!!!! nice to see Strutters back up and running. Best of luck this year!

Which version of the Wild party? LaChiusa's 2000 Broadway with Mandy Patinkin, Toni Collete, and Eartha Kitt, or Andrew Lippa's off-broadway 2000 version with Brian d'Arcy James, Idena Menzel and Taye Diggs? Personally I love Lippa's version- more up-beat. But you can pull from both and have one heck of a show. i actually suggested it at a design meeting for the upcoming year. Probably a little too mature for a Div III corps. I could see BD or Madison having a great time with this.

HAHAHAHA- Nice Adam! As for the topic- Who knows, it'd be nice. Thanks Frontierdirector for the really kind words. The kids we have are absolutely amazing! In my 17 years of being around the activity, I'd have to say I've never been with such a great bunch of kids last year.

The only part of Chess that I've heard on the field is in BD 1997. They play the instrumental opening to "One Night in Bankok". It was awesome I might add! As for an interesting show- How about Titanic? I love the music in this show.

Man do I love to disagree with you Jim!!! HAHAHA DB didn't do the parade last, If my memory serves me correctly As well, I don't the name is from dutch Boy market. It comes from being the feeder corps to the Flying Dutchmen. Dutch Boy, get it, clever, huh!!!

Actually Jim, the Leiderhosen were around on the DB cadets all the way into the 90's

That song was actually King Arthur's song, but whatever, it's sooooo funny. The entire show is is a constant laugh. I had the chance to see it this past weekend as well in Toronto. The music would be fantastic for a DC show

Interesting... Is the kid overplaying, or is the mic hot? If he's overplaying, he might get nudged down, but that doesn't mean he's still not overplaying, and any competant judge, on the field or in the box should catch that. Which in turn means that it's hurting no one. The member is being called out/ noted for the overbalance and the audience is getting a better sound. Everyone wins (well the corps might see a repercussion on the sheets or on the tape), but the audience is getting the best sound. the spectators should be happy!

Thanks for the kind words Jim. It seems to me that your argument generally leads towards not having amps at all. Unfortunately (for you and the others that loathe amping) it's hear to stay. We need to find the best possible sound for these instruments so they blend with the ensemble. This is why amps were brought in, in the first place. With that, they need to be adjusted as the performance goes on, so the best sound for the environment is achieved. You listen to the Basses, I listen to the pits. Other watch guard and drill, listen to horns. But overall, people want to see and hear the big picture. Now that amps are here to aid the pit sound, they will constantly need to be fine tuned. So if I'm the average drum corps fan seeing a show- perhaps from the top of the bleachers, I want the whole music GE package- which might include finger snaps, or finger cymbals, or a beautiful ripple roll on the bass end of the marimba (golly gosh, I love those marimbas!). I don't want the sound over-powering, nor do I want to miss the sound entirely. There needs to be balance and the only feasable way is to have someone working a board to insure the fan gets the effect. You brought up the point that this is a large art form, and we aren't going to get everything out of it- it's simply impossle. Very true, but why should we limit what we can and can't hear. At least have the opportunity to give more. That's what amps are doing, you're getting the intricacies of the percussion world, that weren't readily accessible to drum corps before because they weren't audible enough. I don't think we'll ever see eye to eye on this. But that's ok, cuz you're Jim, and i love ya!! Cheers, old buddy!

Normally I'd side with Jim, as I think he's the cat's meow! But not this time, Sorry Buddy. I'm all for adjusting levels during a show. Stadiums are different, and PA's sound different in each venue. We are talking about live performances. Miccing is here to stay. We need to offer the best sound possible each and ever performance. How can we just pre-set and pray that it will sound OK? That's just crazy. As for adjusting Dynamic levels of individual players during a show... I seriously doubt there is much if any of this going on. If a member is out of the balance, he/she is not doing their job on the field, and as a pit tech, it's time to break out the whip! Board players are taught to play together, like any other section. A player out of balance would/ should be caught by judges. It's pretty easy to tell if the section is playing at 3 inches and one person is playing at 9. For me personally, I'm in love with amping the pit. I love being able to here the low end of a marimba being played properly. No pounding. No beating the crap out of equipment just so it can be heard. Good technique. Being able to hear things you normally wouldn't have in pre-amp drum corps.

Jim, that's not what I had heard. Although Dutch Boy Food Markets are/ were(?) in Kitchener, and may or may not have sponsored DB. I had heard the Dutch Boy name comes from being a feeder corps to the Flying Dutchmen. maybe Rob can clarify this?

I'll take my shot at Div III finals In no particular order (Because I can't decide placement) Revolution Dutch Boy Yamato Raiders Impulse Fever Cap Sound & Spokane could be there too??? Who knows

Thanks for the kind words. We're really having a great summer with such an fun, entertaining show. All the kids are fantastic this year, with a want/ need to learn.

I'm not really sure where all the confusion is with what sheets DB was scored on. We were scored on div 3 sheets but the excitement, and possible confusion came from having a great panel that also judges DIV 1 corps. The kids were excited for the valuable input that was provided on the tapes from judges that they perceive as the people who judge the best of the best. SO, there may have been confusion, or misinterpretation, but hopefully this is cleared up now so that we can move away from it. As for the show in Hornell, NY... hmm... show changes and practice helped to reflect the improvements we have made. We all very much enjoy our show and our goal is to put out an entertaining product for both the membership and the crowd. Dutch Boy has always believed that as long as there is education, effort and entertainment; the goal is accomplished because you cannot control the numbers. We wish everyone great successes this year and look forward to making some new friends along the way. Leigh and Roo :)

And Cap Sound

Canadian Knights did the same thing in the early/mid '90's. 1994 I think