MikeN

Back in the beginning <checks notes oh my god it was twenty years ago?!?> we were guessing when we structured the forums that D2/3 threads would get buried in the D1 forums. Honestly, hindsight has shown that combining them these days wouldn't be an issue anymore. (Note: I have no power to actually *do* this... 🙂 ) Mike

That stadium was the only nice thing about it. Bad parking, bad food options and so-so hotels. Admittedly just my opinion, but I think the new place is way better. Mike

Huh - sure is! I didn't even realize it. Good for them. Mike

I do agree with this - DCI should be actively trying any and all avenues. A bunch of us mentioned this on the other thread about priorities, but if you can't keep the kids safe, throw your hands up and say "well, we tried," why are we even doing *any* of this? Mike

We'll see her again soon, then, as Varsity is more actively partnering with DCI. Mike

About ~$250-$300 on the secondary market is normal for cheap ones. Mike

I don't remember them ever announcing it - just the pivot to Ballet for Martha. Mike

I remember Fiedler actually talking about this in an interview - he said they keep a spare of every uniform they've ever used, and that modern body movement did not look right at all on the "classic" SCV tunics, so they went with the 90's version as the next best thing. Mike

I swear the original announcement wasn't 3hree, but they were going to do Nine, The Musical, which was big at the time. Maybe age is catching up... Mike Edit: Answered my own question. https://www.drumcorpsplanet.com/forums/index.php?/topic/149720-santa-clara-vanguard-2012/&do=findComment&comment=3135439

Guardians hitting top 6 would be awesome - that's the next milestone they're due for. Mike

Except financially. Even when successful they were sacrificing the future to pay for the present. To be fair, they definitely haven't been the only ones. Mike

Yeah, WC vs OC is an organizational designation, not an on-field one really. WC means you get appearance money, priority in scheduling and housing, and access to a lot more support. In return, you are guaranteeing you can handle appearing all over a national tour (30+ shows generally) during the 8-9 week season, that you have not only finances in place to cover that, but reserves at a certain level, that you're providing "world class" health and safety, meals, transportation and other member support, and that your committing to having a stake in the whole. I've been in the room - there just aren't any OC's currently that are built to handle that. WC gets a lot, but in return they give a lot. Crown spends more on health and safety staff alone than some OC's spend on food all summer. OC places a lot more of the burden on each individual org, but also lets them tailor their tour experience way more to their liking. Mike

I am. Mike

August is just so much tougher for Texas due to football. They're already in preseason and scrimmages then, and facilities would be much harder to come by. The reason DCI Southwest works as well as it does is because the Texas Bandmaster's Association is already in town for their annual conference, so it drives group ticket sales. Somewhat homer-ish, I do think Texas probably should host a Finals again simply due to the number of MMs and families from here, but I'd say probably DFW would be the best option because of the giant travel hub. Mike

Fair, but I don't know if I would call it a stupid deal. There were not a lot of bidders for DCI's events, audiences weren't travelling (remember 12k in Orlando?) and Indy offered a very good, if not great, deal to DCI in return for the long-term contract. Financially, DCI the org is in a much better and stable place than they ever have been, and their tour deals have really helped that along. All of that said, I'd 100% open it up at the end of this contract - would love to see what some of the other big NFL stadiums might offer. Mike

A thousand times this. I could care less who wins if we can't keep kids safe. Mike

Texas State Fair proves this every year. Mike

I seem to remember one as well, back when Fan Network was releasing in-season recordings. Like one show where it didn't work or some such. -Mike

I have weird memories of that 2005 BD show. It shouldn't work, and for many people that summer, it didn't connect. But ... I really dug it. I think the narrator nailed the voice work, and the whole program has a weirdly compelling energy to it. It's not a terribly deep concept - dance derby in reverse - but sometimes you don't need a ton of subtext to it, you know? It's just... fun. <shrug> Mike

Tapspace Music (which is Murray Gusseck's company) published a standstill version of that Anima Mundi drum break called "Ramrod," if you want to see the sheet music. Jim Casella and Murray Gusseck were absolute drum wizards back in the early 2000's. To this day they're the most *musical* marching percussion books I've ever seen. Nobody has ever matched their total attention to the drum package serving as either a mirror or additional voice to the brass. I can't say enough good things about how cool those Vanguard books were! Mike

I don't even know if you need to fix parity on the front (corps) end. The back/judging end is where you could make lasting reform, and it starts with the silly expectations DCI and it's member groups have about adjudication. <deep breath> Caption bleed is ridiculous and just shrugged at, and nobody can give you practical examples of what GE is, other than "I know it when I see it." The sheets themselves are written so nebulously that it lends itself to any idea of interpretation, and the idea drilled in to everyone's heads that scores obediently improve a little one show to the next, in nice little slotted positions, over the course of a season is patently ludicrous. I can give you a dozen different activities that let judges rank and rate independently, and you rarely get similar results. Hell, remember when *DCI itself* briefly had double panels a few years ago for part of a season? Everyone got so mad that they didn't agree - "how could they see it so differently?" You want parity? Call. It. Like. You. See. It. (And can actually define it.) Off my soapbox. Mike

Couldn't file their taxes, that's where they are. 😞 Mike

The average child and adolescent psychiatrist is 65 years old. Not a typo. We're about to have a much bigger supply side problem on our hands in the next few years. Mike

Mental Health Professional here. They've always been there; they've just gone unnoticed, uncared about and generally dismissed. That's one good thing that's changed in my time in the industry - we've made great improvements about reducing the stigma of mental health issues. Mike

Got to watch the Tour Premiere tonight. Phantom sounds good so far but looks fantastic. Seriously - they absolutely nailed the visual and drill and uniforms. I’m very pleased with the show so far, and I’m certain that, regardless of placement, we’ll look back on this as - great step one of the rebuild. Mike