This topic got me thinking about a high school band director who told a group of us about one student's experience with a Junior Drum Corps...
The director received an phone call from a student touring with a junior corps last summer. The student was an out going type, easy to make friends with. When the band director asked if the student was making a lot of friends, the student was hushed...she finally responded that she only had 1 really good friend. This being incredibly unusual for the student, the band director asked more specific questions about what was going on...Was the staff a problem? No. Was the show / work too hard? Challenging, but no. Were the kids cruel? Um...no.
After finally narrowing it down, the band director learned from the student that there were activities going on during the bus rides that were embarrassing/degrading/appaling to the student. As described by the student, she and her 1 good friend would hide their faces while other members participated in "orgies". Now - what kids may consider orgies may be different that what the Romans did, but still...
That weekend, the band director flew out to meet with the junior corps and with the permission of her ailing mother, brought the student home. That director who always encourged the students to try out for this junior corps (and many did well over the years) vowed to the director of that Corps that not another student from that school would tryout for that corps...in addition, that band director would tell other band directors in the district what had been going on.
Tough to imagine this is going on...but it was at least 1 season ago.
Skill level of Finalist DCA corps has increased exponentially over the past 20 years. Membership dues are a fraction of what DCI Corps require. If they don't want to join DCA corps because they party too much, or are rude drunkards, then that decision is being influenced by other sources. Who is asking these kids why they would want to join the corps with the reputation of doing cocaine lines before a show...or the corps that had a wicked case of VD going around because there were orgies on the busses? If anything, these kids should be beating down a path to their closest All-age corps.
DCA corps are encouraging their younger members to try for DCI with the with the invitation and hope that they will one day return to that DCA organization (some kids do once the DCI season is completed).
It is my hope DCI Corps make the experience of Drum Corps something each member would undoubtedly WANT to continue AFTER their age-out. If a younger member does not make a junior corps - I hope they would be encouraged by that DCI corps to join a DCA corps to enrich their skills. I would hope DCI corps would be encouraging their age-outs to continue the activity they have enjoyed so much with a DCA corps. Would doing so tap into the wallets of their now alumni - those requested to help fund the new uniforms, etc?
These remarks regarding DCI corps are pretty generalized...I am SURE there are DCI corps out their that will support the DCA activity...I just wish there were more.