OMello1

Was there even a Div 1 vs. Div 2/3 back then anyway? I honestly don't know. But since it is the top 21 Div. 1 corps that have voting rights (+ the 2/3 rep and some at-large members), it is safe to say that DCI is here to focus on and serve the needs of the "member" corps, which, most of the time, are all Div. 1 corps. On the website, they state they serve the "junior drum and bugle corps activity", so they officially claim some responsibility for not only the Div. 2/3 corps, but "the activity" as a whole...maybe they should think about limiting their scope to national touring div. 1 corps, and "outsource" the development of smaller corps and their tours to an organization that is focused on the div 2/3 needs. I wouldn't want DCI or their Div. 2/3 division (including J.W.) to take offense to this. But can anyone honestly say that DCI has the best interests of Div. 2/3 in mind at all times? If you answer no to this question, do that mean an organization *is* needed to do that???? What would Div. 2/3 look like in 10 years if there was an organization that catered only to their needs (and, as a result, what would div. 1 look like??)? I should also point out that just because a corps is Div. 2/3, does not mean they don't have the ability or resources to undertake a large scale tour (and vice versa...not all div. 1 corps have th resources...these classification are not a game of "haves" and "have-nots"). But would that be the exception rather than the rule? DCI: For division 1 by division 1 (and that is fine...) DCI: For division 2/3 by division 1 ???: For division 2/3 by division 2/3 which is best for Div 2/3?? M

I don't think a circuit to overtake DCI is a good idea at all. DCI is VERY good at what they do (now), and they are pushing the activity further than ever before. Why would we want to stop that? What we need is a sister organization that will focus on all things NOT national. Regional tours and championships, Div.2/3 corps, etc. -DCI is no longer charged with providing opportunities for the Div. 2/3 corps, freeing up their resources to focus on their core customer: the Div. 1 corps -The new organization focuses on developing regional touring and championships for corps that do not have the resources for a national tour. -The new organization has voting rights in DCI (and vice versa), since the two work closely together to guide the upward movement of corps through their ranks. -Since the two organizations are 'sisters', when a corps is ready to make the transition from a regional corps to a national corps, the process is made as easy and painless as possible. -The new organization would operate entirely separate competitive schedules, though appearances of Div. 2/3 corps in DCI shows is encouraged, and vice versa (maybe each corps is asked to appear once in a show of the other organization?) There is much more... M

What most people hate to acknowledge is that DCI was never supposed to support the D2/3 corps, or the local circuits. DCI was founded to meet a specific need - those of the Div. 1 corps. Today, DCI is meeting those needs better than ever, even in times like these in which the basic nature of a competive Div. 1 corps is VERY different from 1972. The failure here is not on DCI's part...they had never meant to spread their reach so far as to protect every single corps and every single circuit. The failiure is on the local corps and the local circuits to maintain their health and their appeal. It is easy to point at the "big boy" and say they ran the corps and the circuits into the ground...but the corps managements have free will. If they don't understand where their resources end, that is their problem, no DCI's (even though DCI now has 'safeguards' to assure the participating corps have the needed resources for a full tour). If a corps doesn't have the funds to take on a full scale tour, they should not try to do so. If they do, and run out of money and end up folding, why is that DCI's fault? DCI provides the opportunity, the corps need to decide if the opportunity is right for them. DCI can't solve everyone's problems...the corps have to do that themselves. Look at DCM. The Div. 1 corps left en-mass because DCM couldn't (or wouldn't) meet their needs anymore...why shouldn't a corps head to greener pastures? The corps needed better judging, bigger shows, more corps and more revenue. DCM had failed to grow to meet those needs... The failure here is that no organization has risen to meet the needs of the Div. 2/3 corps. DCI makes an attempt, but lets be honest, it is clearly not their focus. It was never meant to be. There is a HUGE unmet need of a national Div.2/3 organization that can organize regional tours the meet the needs of these corps. I've said it before, DCM is in a prime position to become the main Div.2/3 organization... M

So...when one asks for our list of "worst" champion, do they mean the champion that we personally like the least, or the one that, in our opinion, fits the criteria of the judging sheets the least? In most cases, people don't understand the difference. We, as fans, tend to react to performances, and base our "ratings" on these reactions. Judges, on the other hand, are generally taught not to react but to analize what they are seeing/hearing, and compare the product/performance with the criteria set forth in the philosophy of the caption (though the general effect captions rightfully call for some level of reactionary decision-making). So, while often times people don't understand or agree with the judge's decisions, it is generally because they lack the understanding of the judging system. And this is not to be interpreted as the fans don't/can't understand what they are seeing/hearing, or that if fans don't have judges training, it is a lost cause trying to understand their decisions. But, as fans, we naturally have certain areas of the performance we gravitate to over others (I, personally, am a visual guy). And while we may not even realize it, we tend to generalize a corps performance based on a single caption or group of captions. And when those captions are not to our liking...well...we are just beside ourselves trying to understand why corps XYZ could beat out corps ABC when ABC was clearly "better". I'm not sure that there is any one person on this board (or in this activity, for that matter) that has enough expertise in every single caption to make a blanket call such as "worst champion", which is why there are 8 judges, not 1. Now, if you wanted to re-name this thread "least-likable" of the champions... M

At least 4, off the top of my head: 1992, 1995, 1999, 2000...there may be a couple more from the 80's/early 90's. But he has not always been caption head...Jim Campbell was caption head through much of the 80's and early 90's. Bret took over...um...in the '93 - '95 era, not sure exactly...correct me if any of my info is skewed... M

I'm pretty confident that through most or all of DCI's broadcast history, the lineup of corps has always been determined by the semifinals placements, hence SCV exclusion from this year's broadcast, as well as several other noted exclusions from the past. Why? Not sure exactly, but I would guess it has something to do with PLANNING the finals broadcast and knowing which corps will be represented, and giving the broadcast some sort natural flow. Remember 1996 when they changed the order on the VHS videos to reflect not the order of performance, but the order of finish? People HATED that... M

I don't think this is a criticism of the Drum Corps Planet website, or the hosts, staff or moderators themselves. The apparent negativity comes from the users, not the site (the same users, btw, that made RAMD such a negative place...). It may seem like a small point, but I don't think this should be aimed at "DCP", but at those people who choose to post in the discussions forums. There is MUCH more to DCP than these forums. DCP is not loosing its way. In fact, DCP planet is doing a wonderful job in providing a positive and informative service to the activity-which, according to the Wikipedia article, is the goal of DCP. It is the users in the forums (which are only a segment of DCP) that are apparently loosing their way...falling back into the same patterns as in RAMD. The moderation of the boards is a good attempt to keep the conversation positive, fun, and constructively critical (though it does, at times, seem excessive). While there certainly has been some rudeness, I think it would be wise not to confuse PASSION with NEGATIVITY, though one often begets the other. Kudos to DCP and those users who honor the intent of this site and the discussion forums... M

Trying to force this activity to conform itself to such a narrow title/definition is unhealthy and will push it to extinction before anything else will. Drum Corps is much more than drums and bugles, and has been for many decades. The perameters that this title indicates have long ago been broken. If people are still stuck on that...well...then, I don't think I'm going to worry about that. Did people *want* 3 valves? Yeah..enough to get it started Did people *want* grounded pits? Yeah, enough to get it started Did people *want* Bb/F horns? Yeah, enough to get it started Did people *want* Amplification? Yeah, enough to get it started Did any of these fundamentally change this activity? In my opinion, no. These changes were meant to improve on what we already had. Better horns, the ability to play the percussion instruments the way they were meant to be played, etc. The only notable exception to this is amping the human voice. The addition of woodwinds fundamentally changes the activity, and besides a small number of people pushing for the rule change, not that many people want woodwinds in drum corps. Someone else said this in a much more eloquent way a while back, and it rang true then as it does now: It is not the instruments we play, or if we are "wired", or if we sing, run, stand or do jumping jacks for 11.5 minutes that defines the "drum and bugle corps" acitvity. What defines "drum corps" is the experience of the members, life lessons, the good and bad times, and the thousands of cheering fans each year. And as long as I wan't hallucinating, I think I saw more than a few people cheering this summer, and I know there were great life lessons, good times and bad. So what if woodwinds are allowed to compete at I&E? What this does is bring more (and previously ingnored) young musicicans/performers into the "fold" (and, maybe someday, an additional source of revenue...and that is not a bad thing...remember, DCI has bills to pay too). Is this a back handed way to bring WW to the competitive field? No...Jeff Fiedler has clearly stated this, and frankly, I believe him. Finally, can you just imagine the can of worms that adding woodwinds to drum corps would open in terms of instrument care? Chipped reeds. Stick pads. Broken keys. *shiver* Touring is hard enough on brass instruments... M

What more do we need? How about a field in decent shape with field markings that are visable to the performers? Completely unacceptable field for the "superbowl" of our activity. The Gillette Stadium officials should be embarrassed and apologetic to the corps, and Drum Corps International should be furious at the stadium management for forking over so much $$ and getting such a poor surface for the corps to perform upon. Gillette Stadium and its management are not worthy of Drum Corps International or its member corps. I don't care who was using the field before we got there... Pro-Turf is the way to go folks!! M

Who will win Visual GE? The Cadets Who will win Music GE? The Cadets Who will win GE? The Cadets (by .3 or less) ----- Who will win Visual Performance? The Cavaliers (who put Blue Devils?) Who will win Visual Ensemble ? The Cavaliers Who will win high Colorgaurd? The Cadets Who will win Visual? The Cavaliers (by .3 or less) ----- Who will win Music Brass? The Cavaliers (has anyone else noticed that Cavies brass have only lost once this season?) Who will win Music Ensemble? The Cavaliers Who will win Music Percussion? The Cadets Who will win music? The Cavaliers (by .3 or less) ----- I think the 2005 Champion will be decided by a margin of .2 or less. M

Since The Cavaliers are paying a lot of money to RENT the facilities (including housing the entire corps in dorms at MTSU for three days), it is entirely fair. This wasn't a special "perk" the corps got from winning last year or whatever. This is just good planning on the part of the corps management and their willingness to drop a little money to get a world class facility for a world class drum corps. I'm sure MTSU had NO problem making money this week by renting the facilities out... M

A report from Gainesville, FL --As in most places, it seems, our sound was also disappointing. That alone kinda killed the night a bit. Unfortunately, nobody in our audience (including me) had the nerve to ask the theater to turn it up. ####... --There were 2 theaters for the event, and at about 6:59pm, my theater was not even half full. It seems they may have overestimated the market here in G'ville. BUT...a couple minutes into the show, the bus literally pulled up and a high school band rolled in. My theater ended up about 2/3 full...not sure about the other one...But the lack of interest at these theaters also kinda killed the enthusiasm too... --I also thoroughly enjoyed the '74-'80 corps. But, as has been stated before, the gap from '80 to '89 was awkward. Interesting that they chose to show a short clip of The Cadets from the middle of the decade to "bridge the gap" a bit. While I fully understand and support DCI's decision to base the show on fan voting, I almost kinda wish they would have "doctored" the results a bit to get a more even progression through the years. Also, I took my SO (kinda new to corps but a big WGI fan) and he stated that almost half the night was basically 1970's drumcorps. I loved it, since I've seen very little drum corps from before 1985...I particularly enjoyed 27...but he got a little restless until SCV came on... --The level of sophistication of the 1970's and 1980 groups surprised me...especially the visual design.. --The crowd was also a bit older than I had expected (save the band kids). Lots of BAC and Magic kids I think (from overheard conversations...) --I do have a small beef with two production things: first, I wish there had been a little more time between the corps. There was very little time afforded to reacting to what we just saw and to get ready for the next corps. The most glaring example was moving from VK to Phantom. Opposite ends of the emotional spectrum...I was still giggling at the site gags from VK when Phantom started. I felt like a little kid who got in trouble and had to "shape up" to watch Phantom. --The "surprise" was a bit disappointing. Please don't "surprise" me with something I see and hear dozens of times a year. I was expecting some big announcement or something like that...my fault for getting my hopes up I suppose... Overall, we gave the experience a 6.5 out of 10. M