DCI Corps Moving Forward

[AlanAndreasen]

It was joke!

[MikeD]

Sure. Here's a thought. It's more difficult to come up with new ideas with the limited resources that DCI has, as opposed to the "anything goes" BOA style. You want more innovation? More bang for your buck? Let DCI become "anything goes" too. Me, I'm sitting back and waiting to have my mind blown by the next big thing.

Which is what I have been saying for years. Add an anything goes division to DCI for any ensemble using any instruments and of any size.

[MikeD]

I'm not a creative-type - but I work with them in the web-development business...

One of the best designers I work with always wants to start with a complete list of constraints. He says it helps him to more fully engage his brain knowing what he can't do, and even when WE are "the client" and he could start with NO RULES at all, he prefers to write some himself to "constrain" the design process and to sharpen his focus on whatever goals we have set for the design.

And how does that relate to DCI and rules?

I would say that great show designers (I guess it's design teams now) also benefit from constraints - the dimensions of a football field being more or less standard throughout North America; The height of most marching members in a tall shako and plume is about 7 feet; 11 minutes is, well ... 11 minutes.

So I suspect that their creativity is not hampered in any way by rules, and may, in fact, be enhanced.

You are assuming that there is only one way to be creative. What you state can be one way, but absolute freedom can also be another....and many other ways in between.

[MikeD]

1971 Cavaliers: One of the first corps (along with Garfield and Madison) (and without a doubt the best) to perform a total show concept, which was unheard of before this.

I beg to differ on THAT comment! :P

Mike, 1971 Garfield FMM

[Davy1dave]

Technically the Cavaliers' "double-helix" move(I think you are referring to the one in the 95 show) was originally a high school marching band move. Some BOA nut will probably come in here and give the school.

So then if that's the case, and looking at the rest of your list, you have to go back to 93 Medea for the most recent "huge leap." I went on youtube to watch Medea again after I posted my comments last nite. That show is 14 years old and it still evokes an emotional response when i watch it.

Looking at your list, it seems many of the early innovators went ahead and pushed the envelope knowing full well it could cost them the championship. One could even argue that Medea cost DCI the Star of Indiana. So are there any corps willing take that kind of a chance, anymore?

Edited August 1, 2007 by Davy1dave

[cowtown]

I tend to find it easier to be more creative within set, limited standards or rules. Kind of like arranging furniture – I was able to really recreate space and redefine rooms due to their size and shape limitations where as if I had endless space and could fit everything in with out thought – they’d be no creativity

Regiments drill has potential to be jaw dropping assuming it works when and if they can clean it up enough to be effective, I really don’t know because it’s not there yet. It may never work and be a flawed designed or it may just need to be super clean to work – the entire flocking thing is unique in the way it utilizes space, movements, forms and transitions.

[fourouttheforty]

It's definitely fair to say that Star 93 was the last time some really broke the medium. No one's even tried anything like it. Everyone does body movement now, but they still want to keep it "drum corps".

[NR_Ohiobando]

Technically the Cavaliers' "double-helix" move(I think you are referring to the one in the 95 show) was originally a high school marching band move. Some BOA nut will probably come in here and give the school.

So then if that's the case, and looking at the rest of your list, you have to go back to 93 Medea for the most recent "huge leap." I went on youtube to watch Medea again after I posted my comments last nite. That show is 14 years old and it still evokes an emotional response when i watch it.

Looking at your list, it seems many of the early innovators went ahead and pushed the envelope knowing full well it could cost them the championship. One could even argue that Medea cost DCI the Star of Indiana. So are there any corps willing take that kind of a chance, anymore?

I could be mistaken but I'm pretty sure that Jim Mason was exploring ideas of Star of Indiana doing things outside of drum corps during midseason 1992(due to his frustration in trying to connect with the crowd).

As to taking chances, I really think you should consider giving the corps that have used microphones the credit. Crown, Boston, Seattle and others I may be forgetting took a big chance using voice in '04 knowing full well that the audience might not accept it...and neither might the judges. (I think it was Boston who cut ALOT of their narration in an attempt to get higher scores). Cadets pretty much took off with the whole idea of a "concept" adding in voice and everything but the kitchen sink in their 05/06 shows. Blue Devils deserve some credit for their chance taking in their Yowza show.

Now, actually I really didn't like any of the narration shows, but that's just me.

[Davy1dave]

Which is what I have been saying for years. Add an anything goes division to DCI for any ensemble using any instruments and of any size.

But do you honestly think a seperate "anything goes" division could be sustained? We can barely field 20 Div 1 corps as it stands right now? Whatever is to be done has to be done inside div 1.

[MikeD]

But do you honestly think a seperate "anything goes" division could be sustained? We can barely field 20 Div 1 corps as it stands right now? Whatever is to be done has to be done inside div 1.

IMO it doesn't really matter if only 2, 3 or 4 corps decide to go that route. It's just dividing up the existing corps.