MiamiSun76

yes and yes.

Put both championships under different control than the regular season. That should help broaden the base.

You can get that at DCA, right Fran? B) ^0^ B)

OK, NOW I can do it. How would you improve a cappella chiors? Add accompaniment! May we have the AFLAC duck now?

In that the veterans' groups brought their own captive audiences as did the corps, I'd assume attendance was significant. Finals were at Georgia Tech as I recall. It was my 1st year teaching, so I wasn't counting the crowd. It's difficult to counter your logic. You dismiss everything and everyone before 1978, yet 1978 was over 25 years ago. Where are things TODAY? Well, Spirit is in Alabama and occasionally in finals, DCI South is dead, Suncoast Sound is dead, and your local tour shows draw about like any other. Yes, Spirit had a couple of contending years 20+ years ago. The championship hasn't been back for a while, and the South is more likely to see a DCA championship than DCI. Instead of a 25 year-old BOOM, talk about today's BUST. And yes, I still wish the Atlanta Corps Vets the best this weekend.

Can't wait to see you guys again this weekend. You've made it work in Atlanta over the long haul. Good Luck!

There you go again.............. 1969 AL Nationals were very competitive for both Junior & Senior and held in Atlanta. Why correct one generality just to launch another? One of my previous points was that the veterans' groups helped the South by frequently having their championships in southern venues. I don't get your point other than that all drum corps south of Baltimore started with SoA in 1978. If that's the case, the "heyday" only lasted a couple of years and left with the TV station. I've said that I laud what Freddie and the others did in Atlanta. It was part of a process in the region that started in Miami and New Orleans and is currently best manifested in the Carolinas.

I was referring to the ESPN thread Paul Towne started and the "next director" thread that had nothing to do with Rick. And yes, I'm trying to beat the clock ^0^

OK, I finally managed to go over my own head I seem to have mixed two different issues. I was addressing the WW on the field issue in a thread about I&E. I could try and cover myself by asking why there would be an individual piano contest at an a cappella gathering, but that would add to the confusion. So, in homage to the late Gilda Radnor..................Never Mind!

SCV

I appreciate your clarifications, but now I'm confused. I thought the gist of the thread was "why isn't drum corps popular in the South". Your answer seems to be that it is. Thanks to Freddie, Bob Hoehn, and you can add Paul Milano. I laud what they did in their day. In fact, one might make the case that the activity pretty much peaked in the South in the '80s. Certainly Spirit and Suncoast were more (competitively) successful than Spirit and Magic today, and even Wave was pressing for a finals spot in the late 80s. As to the New Orleans corps, the Bleu Raeders, nee Stardusters had a fairly good run in the immediate pre-DCI/early-DCI era. That's only a couple of years before Spirit's flirtation with a championship. Having spent my youth in Southern drum corps, It just hits me wrong when I see that "drum corps in the region didn't start until the '70s". Next someone will tell me that drum corps in South Florida started with Steve Rondinaro.

Bob Hoehn was the person I was referring to from the Crusaders. Since he mentions that experience to this day I'd assume he was equally proud of that affiliation. (actually, I didn't want to butcher his name). While the Crusaders didn't last long, their founder was also the founder of Suncoast Sound. As to Harvey Seeds, check out that corps' placings from the inception of the AL Nationals 'till the mid-60s. I'd say not knowing that piece of history is your loss. I don't know how you define "mainstream". Cesar LaMonica, who led the Miami Boys Corps (became Vanguards/Wave) for decades was a local icon in legitimate music. His concert band performed for decades in the Miami area. If "mainstream" means DCI, then check the 1st Finals: New Orleans Bleu Raeders. How long until Spirit came along?

So those of us in Miami and our friends in New Orleans were just "whistling Dixie"? One of my favorite trivia questions: who was the only corps to win a major national championship outside North America? Harvey Seeds Miami Rebels; Legion Nationals; Paris 1927. Wasn't one of the founders of Spirit the drum major of the Miami Crusaders in the '50s? One major benefit that the vetrerans' groups did for Southern drum corps was to hold their national conventions in Miami, New Orleans, and Atlanta. Before the days of the "tour" in Miami, we saw the big guys in 55, 57, 60, 61, 63, 70.

For what it's worth, MLB counts tickets sold.

OK, here's how to close it: Do you think either Rebecca or Carmen would be interested in becoming director of SCV?

Yes, but............. Sometimes it can backfire. It largely depends on when the concert recording is made. SCV does a great job with both a Dolby 5.1 and stereo concert on their DVDs. On the other hand, I've heard another corps rush out early or pre season concert recordings that do more harm than good.

The mising element here is what's left unsaid. Everyone knows that NFL stadiums seat around 65,000 - 70,000. To say that there were 50,000 in attendance conjurs up an image of 50,000 in a 65,000 seat venue (keping in mind that most of the real world doesn't know that we use only one side of the field). It would look absurd to claim a sellout crowd of 30,000 in what most people know is a facility at least twice that size.

And I thought it was when Lt. Norman Prince post first used slides in competition. Mike, I realize you try to be the open-minded agent of change, and that's not all bad. But how much accompaniment does it take before an a cappella choir becomes a chorus?

St. Patrick's Cadets - Jersey City. The "other" Bill Hayes/Bobby Thompson production.

Oh, you mean the Ted Baxter of DCI?

Just checked my (Baltimore/Washington) local listings to see what's up. We're up against some pretty stiff competition. "Extreme Dodgeball" (I'm serious) is in the same time slot For the behind-the-scenes crowd, there's "Inside the PGA". I'm personally torn between DCI and Police Squad; Naked Gun 33 1/3. (Gotta see O.J. again). Interesting aside: DCI is not color-coded as a "sports" show. That might be a hint of things to come.

Totally OT: Is your avatar a map of West Virginia or a Georgia O'Keefe painting? ^0^

So what would you rather have, a good funnel cake or 4 narrated shows? b**bs Seriously, drum corps "in the round" is still an idea worth exploring. Much more beneficial to the activity and much more challenging than what's been hyped as "progress" recently.

I believe the "behind-the-scenes" was a DCI idea, not PBS. It's part of this whole expand at all costs mode. I agree with those of you who feel that this is a big risk. The activity could become the butt of jokes while experiencing little or no growth. This is a niche activity, about on par with Civil War Re-enactments (relax Fran) and that should be OK. Like someone else said, drum corps will never be the Monday morning water cooler topic. So let's work at keeping the niche market we have and keeping it re-plenished.

4 directors in 38 years. I doubt there are many Fortune 500 companies that have such a record of stability.