Canadacorps

from Alberta... spent a lot of time in a couple of Corps in the region there too, before moving on to a corps in California :) Unfortunately, the entire western side of Canada has no currently active competing (JR or SR) Drum and Bugle Corps (as of this past season), although at one time there were a lot more.... and the first corps I was a member of (and where my heart is) used to be a Division I corps, back in the day.... but sadly they went inactive in 05.. Maybe one day we will see them return as a DCI member corps... I can always dream. Last I heard they were thinking of starting a senior group.. but that was s0till in the thinking/planning stages. I wish I could help the state of drum corps in Canada, but thats kinda hard to do, living in AZ.

Ok, try Albuquerque on for size..... :lolhit:

funny that I should come across this thread.. My family always plays this game: Think of a location, and try and come up with a Drum corps name... This evening we were working on New Mexico... that one is kinda hard... Of course the obvious ones came to mind, like La Fuego, (sp?) Caballeros (taken), and Conquistadors... but what if there was a New Mexico corps without an overtly Spanish/Latin sounding name?

Cool! I'm glad to hear that DCA has expanded up across the snowy borders... :) Well I'll be the first to admit you are right. I have not made a concerted effort thus far to keep myself up to date on DCA. I'll be sure to do a little more research in the future B) However, one corps, in one province in Canada isn't exactly what I'd call representation - Canada has been poorly represented in Drum Corps regardless of the organization, (be it DCA or DCI) for decades. Come on people! In a Country with the second largest land mass in the world, that is in almost every way similar to the States, (except for the beer and government ^_^ ) why aren't there any groups in the REST of the country? I mean, there is more to Canada than Ontario and Quebec, but thats where 90 percent of the drum corps are/have been from. But thats a topic for another time. As far as representation in DCA, what about the Northwest? (outside California) the Southwest ?(besides San fran) and there are other areas as well. You have to admit, that although it is growing, the amount of states in which you cannot find a DCA corps still heavily outweighs the number that have them.. 36 to 14.... So I still hold to my stance that DCA is not as accessible. (Although I do hope that changes :) )

I think as much discussion as there is back and forth, the burn-out theory holds up. For example, I marched 10 years of JR. corps straight and I just couldn't come back to age-out this past season.. That was a long time to put off everything else and spend every spare moment doing corps gigs, local stuff, touring, rehearsals, fund-raising, etc. etc. etc... besides that, A lot of kids are financially strapped after the summers due to time commitments, fees, unexpected costs, etc. I may be an extreme example, but I'm sure that for many other kids, a similar experience could easily occur after even three or four years, depending on school commitments, work, and family. I also understand the "March DCA" argument. If there had been a DCA corps close to me, it might have been an avenue to pursue.. However, even though it is growing, there still aren't DCA corps everywhere across the country, and none that I know of in Canada (where I'm originally from). For a large majority, DCA isn't nearly as accessible as going to your nearest Div III, II or Open class corps, and it becomes expensive, regardless of the fee structure, to be continually travelling large distances for weekend-warrior type rehearsals... I am definitely a case for being burnt out and not wanting to march for a while. But... I might teach. :P

ahhh... "Member corps"... div I... n/m then.

Beautiful. Thank you!

I heard a while back about some fuel program designed to save on costs during the summer.... a bunch of corps were going in on it.. anything ever happen with that? and can someone point me to the thread or give me some info?? I'm interested in passing this information onto some friends of mine... :)

The Black FEVER redesign is AMAZING.. I have a request.. I dunno if you'd be interested though... Can you design something that adds elements of Old and New...ish.. I'll PM you with what I mean..

read some other threads, then deleted this post.

PSSSST... guess what? I also heard the DI B.O.D also wear black hooded robes at all their meetings, and eat their own young!! :feednotroll: Of course they care about DII/III. They just dont FOCUS on it.... They are busy trying to ensure the continuation of their own Corps, providing the members of their organizations with the best possible experience, and improving their portion of the activity. Instead of trying to blame our insecurities about the future of Div II/III on the DI B.O.D, why dont we try doing something to HELP DII and III. Give your time to a corps as a volunteer and work some bingos, DONATE some of your income to a corps, Help with your talents (if you are a driver, cook, prop builder, instrument repair(er) etc...) Remember, if you want Div II/III to grow and thrive, we've got to get involved and support it, rather than moan and groan about how we think there is some evil force conspiring to bring our portion of the activity to a cruel end.

Agreed.

Great show, was there personally.. My general Observations.. Please note, I'm a hornline guy and mostly watched the horns for each group. (This is not a full review either, only a few groups) Oregon Crusaders - MUCH improved over last year, and as you can tell from the above scores, being rewarded for it. I loved the visual complexity in their show.. really stood out in my mind.. I thought their execution of the visual "goodies" (manuals, body work, etc) to be fairly good as well, not quite finals week material, but of course, we are not in August yet. There was one Trumpet/Flugel..? Soloist that had a rough night, but I'm sure the Arizona heat wasn't helping him a lot. Overall, OC has come a long way, and with that last push to the end of the season, they will be a contender. IMPULSE (Div. III): Pleasantly surprised at the volume and quality produced from the hornline..I wasnt sure what to expect with the change from Division II to III, but, as usual, they came on and entertained the pants off everyone. Solid show IMHO. Arizona ACADEMY: -One word came to mind for me - Fabulous. These kids came out and shined tonight and the whole stadium was electric. By far, the most musically demanding show of the night. Lots of double tonguing, technical passages, and fast tempo. The Jazz running at the end was nice to see too. I personally could not hear any flaws in the music at all, whether in the brass or in the greater ensemble. Very tight ship they run there. The visuals were spit clean, marching top notch, and even the small details were all there.. The looks on the faces of the performers, every detail seemed attended to.. Almost felt like watching a Division one group. Kudos to all for a great night. Definitely worth my 18 bucks.

That is the best response I've ever seen to this issue. Agreed.

This guy has got a point.... Even with insurmountable odds, you can do it! Last summer I thought my Drum Corps career was over. I had gotten married, I had an awesome steady job, was looking into college in a foreign school system, and since I am a former Canadian, I was also struggling with Immigration. However, I found options. I had gotten down on myself and quit the corps I auditioned for and made, although they had the most AMAZING instruction and people there. I ended up going with another really awesome corps at the last minute and got my wife and family's blessing. It was the greatest summer I have ever had to date. I know I can't age out this year, but I will never regret making that decision last summer. (BTW, I came up with my entire tour fee and plane tickets in 36 hours. ) It IS possible, however unlikely it may seem. BUT, Make sure you are leaving on good terms with your other commitments.

I think that what Sooner and Iplaytimpani may be getting at, is a discussion re: How the membership feels... Not like an Island council(watching survivor too much) to vote and begin changing the organization's rules, policies, etc. as that is obviously up to the management and board, but a way to have their concerns voiced and be heard. After that point, it would be up to the board and management to see what they can do with the comments they are provided with. Happy members=More + Returning members. Also, In keeping with the route this conversation has gone, I'm wondering, how much of the problem with membership in "struggling" (for lack of a better term) corps is due to a lack of Organization? Eg. people not being sure where rehearsals are, parents not knowing what the fees/deadlines are, or what camp schedules are going to be like.. etc. Again, I suppose this issue would ultimately boil down to lack of communication again..

So you are stating that members to be provided with a more active role in the organizations they are members of,(within reason of course) and for more open discussion between members and the "powers that be". Am I correct? interesting....

IMHO, I think in a lot of areas what is needed is fresh ideas, as far as this activity goes.....Eg. What is it that attracts kids to other activities? How can we incorporate those interests into what we do, without changing our activity? OR Why is it that Kids have decided NOT to march? If we could arrange some sort of feedback system within the corps, when they DO have the membership, then maybe we can make adjustments to what it is we do, that will retain the membership... Honestly, I know change is not welcomed in most aspects of this activity as it is rooted in Tradition. However, tradition cannot exist without people there to observe it. There lies the fundamental paradox of our activity, wherein change is needed to keep tradition alive. DCI figured this out long ago, and they take a lot of heat for it. However, Drumcorps is still around, so they must be doing a lot of things right. I dunno, I'm not saying that many of these groups haven't already done absolutely everything they can to keep things going, but maybe a new approach is needed to stop this gradual decline we've been seeing for the last 7-8 years.....

I still do not defer from my point. It's not apathy, at least not everywhere. I agree with you on your second point. It really HURTS.. with Allegiance Elite and Strutters being the only TWO active corps from the west in the last 10 years or so, then suddenly within one calendar year, they are both inactive. (Ok, so there's the lone exception of Pride in 05.. who are not touring this year either.) To put it in to perspective: Imagine, if you will, that BD and SCV were the only two active Drum and Bugle corps left in the ENTIRE western half of the United states. I'm sure there'd be a few shouting doomsday. Then, per se, they both go inactive. How would you feel? I must say, It's a little more than a "sting" for some of us..

Well, I guess this means I sit corrected. B) Even still though, there were still WAYYYY more groups out in the east than there have ever been in the western portion of the country.. Plus, I wonder what ever happened to all those groups, and if any of them plan on making a re-appearance... I know there was a guy on here talking about a start-up in Vancouver some months ago...

Even though you joke, I don't think your assumption is 100% correct. While apathy may play a part in the current Drum Corps situation in Canada, its share is fairly small. The "Millions" of corps you refer to, have almost ALL been in the East. It is important to note that there are a number of factors other than apathy at play here, namely: A 90 to 95% Majority of those "millions" of DC's that came out of Canada were primarily from Ontario and Quebec. Even with how incredibly VAST the United States is in terms of Landmass and size, Canada is even bigger... and with a population that is only the size of California's, that puts a LOT of space, and comparatively FEW people between the eastern and western portions of the country. Therefore, the amount of people that are going to have a clue as to what Drum Corps is, outside of certain portions of Ontario and Quebec, is going to be very small, even miniscule. Also, The only three DC's that I have ever heard of from the West are Allegiance, Strutters, and Pride. (who only spent 1 season as a DBC so far, and I'm not sure of any future plans) Anyway, since there is more than 2000 miles between the eastern and western groups, there isn't much oppourtunity for shows within the country. Now we could have more shows in Ontario and Quebec, but that sure doesn't help spread the activity at all within the rest of the country, which is what we'd all like to see, isnt it? Public exposure now-a-days (wow I'm getting old) is pretty much minimized, except for local gigs. Also, I would attribute a lot of the problem to the lack of marching activities in Canada. Marching programs are just NOT FEASIBLE for our schools. Seriously, why would the schools invest all the money it takes to have marching programs, when the ground is covered with snow for the majority of the year?? Music programs have also been extremely underfunded in the last 10-20 years in Canada.. Many schools across the country don't even have a music program to speak of now. Therefore, with very few marching activities, the ones that still exist are trying to recruit kids that usually have no previous marching or musical experience, and are a lot less interested in the activity than your typical band/corps kid in the states. The majority of them would rather participate in sports like Hockey! B) (Btw, the Edmonton Oilers are goin to the cup! ) Oh, and I forgot, Money. Yeah... good ole' greenbacks.. er.. In Canada, I guess they'd be loonie-backs? Anyway, Many places in Canada have decided to go Non-smoking in public places. This may seem like a good thing initially, but it really doles out a nice beating to Bingo revenue, which is the lifeblood of our activity. Anyways, thats my 2 cents.

No worries, the Western contingent is all but "Gone".... Every corps has had to take a season off now and then.. its the nature of the beast in Div III, especially in Canada where marching arts are all but absent in most areas of the country. Allegiance has a good program going this summer, and I have confidence that they will be back in '07... As well, from what I hear, The Strutters are currently rebuilding as well..

I liike the New Strutter uni's... although they never officially unveiled them, as they didn't go on tour in 05. :( Looks like their site is back up and being rebuilt! =D

I was on the tour and in California all last summer. After being exposed to both shows at various points in the season, I think I'd have to say.... so far as entertainment value, I thoroughly enjoyed Pacific Crest. I thought Esperanza was good too, and they were fairly innovative but I think the edge goes to PC. My favourite year for Esperanza is still 2003!!

Evaluation time coming soon - according to the previous posts of this thread. Best of luck Canos! :)