What do the Scouts need to do to become more competetive?

[silvertrombone]

I didn't know I could just do that. I thought I'd get a penalty either way.

Na'ah--just looks juvenile.

Sorry for the rant

BUT WHAT HAPPENED MADISON?

OK, is that you, Hrothgar??

Go back to being the Madison Scouts, instead of being the Scouts, because what is better for that corps, a 17 year old bass drummer from sun prairie, or a rook-out snare drummer from Texas

Go with what works, even if your the only one doing it ^OO^

Umm...care to explain further for us non-drummers? If you're saying it needs to be a local corps, it's not happening. The biggies are national corps now. If alum don't like it, stop giving funds. But that won't help the corps either way. To expect the Wisconsin All-State Band to fill out the Madison Scouts is to expect Scouts to drop below Pioneer. Interesting if you had three really, really old corps in Wisconsin and none making finals. Intersting contrast to California and Ohio.

National corps, guys. The biggies, and many others, depend on national auditionees. That's the way it is. Unless you want to start moving more corps to Texas. We've got the members and the disposable income to support DCI.

Bring it!

[NR_Ohiobando]

I want the scouts to play "Don't stop me now" By Queen, man that'd be nice.

(MR.Fahrenheit)

Idea for a show based on "Shaun of the Dead"(a "Zombie" show) pops into my head.

[jcn8]

Man, the new team has only been in place for a season and already some want to throw them under the bus. Madison made incredible improvements from the beginning of this season and I suspect they will be greatly improved next year. Of all the suggestions provided, I agree with those who prioritize recruiting, fund raising, and continued emphasis on improving the design of their shows. As far as those who propose a return to Madison of the past, I firmly support a ten point penalty if they even consider playing Malaguena. IMO, this would be commensurate with waiving the white flag and saying, we give up, we can’t keep up with the activity so we will continue to live in the past. Why do so many people feel the only way a corps can improve competitively is to go back and repeat shows they performed when they were more competitive? My message from a program perspective would be, for God’s sake, don’t give us Malaguena again; Give us something new, something fresh, and in doing so, make us feel the way we felt when you played Malaguena in ’88. (However, please don’t consider any music from West Side Story suitable replacement for Malaguena.)

[Tom Brace]

If Scouts keep the work ethic they had this year, when everyone with the corps refused to give up when so many said it was over, they will go far.

I wish someone would go back in earlier season threads when the corps was getting beat up and repost the earlier comments. Really, after that, who thought they would have kept moving up through the ranks to place barely 3.5 points out of finals. When did we last see such dedication, such belief in oneself?

This year was such a total turn-over, there was much to learn and so little time to learn it. Now that the new book has been written, I trust the corps will move forward.

Madison Scouts 2007 truly was the corps that could. Success is not just measured in ultimate placement.

I believe you will find that the comments on DCP really mirrored Madison's season very well. People were on them early and it was accurate and then you notice that once they began their improvement and march back into the mix people gave them credit.

Now, the question being asked is future related....like what are they going to do now.

My answer is seek financial stability and keep the recruiting going. Everything else will follow.

[Ben]

Some posts were removed. DCP is not a safe haven for rumors, do not post them.

[noduttingoutloud]

I am thinking a well thought out and contemporary program, recruiting program that attracts a color guard that can compete with the talent of todays 30+ member guards, retention of the brass & percussion sections from 07 and the work ethic and dedication displayed by this year's group and the Scouts will be fine. They need not be encumbered by the greatest hits of the corps history, only its philosophy.

[ChiBoyinLA]

Stabilize the finances, management and staff. Then, good things will follow.

[melloglory]

It's interesting to see all of the ideas on here....some good...some not so good. I'll try to remember as many as possible.

1.) Sorry ladies...it ain't gonna happen.

2.) I believe I remember someone calling out the corps for being afraid of tradition. ARE YOU SERIOUS?! DID YOU EVEN WATCH THIS YEAR'S SHOW?! If you did...I must assume that you completely missed the COMPANY FRONT coming on to the field. Or maybe the 5 FLEUR DE LIS didn't jump out enough for you. Could it possibly be that you missed out on the HIGH MARK TIME after the hit in the closer. Finally, maybe you missed out on the MELLOPHONE LICK AT THE VERY END OF THE SHOW that was a throwback to the "good 'ole days". If you were at one of the shows that the Scouts happened to play the encore, did you not stick around or did you really miss out on the LAST NOTE OF ICE CASTLES? I hear it was held for something like a minute or a minute and a half in St. Peters, Missouri. The drum major even pulled his cell phone out and made a call (holding the phone up to the audience and the horn line before crescendoing again and finally cutting them off. Come on man...there is plenty of tradition in that corps. Maybe if you would've went out by their trailers after their performance (instead of watching corps 9-14) and talked to some of the members or gone to one of their rehearsals to observe what was going on instead of reading the rumor-mills....then maybe....just maybe you could see some tradition in that corps. Oh and I must appologize if you do happen to be blind and couldn't actually watch the show...but I guess that would be unneccessary at this point seeing as you couldn't be reading this right now. So I'll stick with my original statements.

3.) THE RIGHT STAFF! The instrumental staff were basically all new to the world of teaching in a drum corps setting and I dare to say that the greater percentage would say that the horn line (musically) was the strongest part of the show. The visual staff just needs time (and retention) so that their new style of teaching can be set and then there will not be variation in technique.

4.) As for not saying the drill writer's name...I'm not afraid to do it. His name is ALAN JOANIS and he wrote a terrible visual book. Kevin Nix was brought in to fix it all and I must say that it was much, much better.

5.) Did someone say play to the judges more than the crowd and Scouts in the same sentence? Wow...talk to the kids in the corps and talk to the staff...see who they'd rather please. 9 people in green shirts and khakis or the 40,000 screaming fans who may as well be throwing their own babies on to the field? I sure as hell know what I would pick.

That is all that I can remember at this point. Please feel free to write back with any and all comments. Thank you.

[Pinwiz]

5.) Did someone say play to the judges more than the crowd and Scouts in the same sentence? Wow...talk to the kids in the corps and talk to the staff...see who they'd rather please. 9 people in green shirts and khakis or the 40,000 screaming fans who may as well be throwing their own babies on to the field? I sure as hell know what I would pick.

Neither. I'd pick satisfying myself instead of the fans or the judges.

People are putting way too much pressure on where Madison should be placing. They need to put on a good show. We need to stop caring about how they score, if that's the true emphasis of the organization (which I don't buy, btw).

I trash Madison a lot, but it's not because of the organization itself but because of their fans. There's a sense of entitlement with Madison fans: They want old school Madison, they want Top 6 Madison, and if it doesn't happen they raise hell. Other corps ARE ALLOWED TO GET BETTER TOO. At this point, I doubt that I'll see a Top 6 Madison corps in the next five years and that's actually ok.

Edited August 24, 2007 by Pinwiz

[Fan101]

Everything above me is exactly right. OK not exactly above me, two above me now. So the show didnt make finals, it was by far my second favorite madison show, next to 97. Give them time, thats all they need, I liked the show design, and the hornline was amazing. Give the young kids time.

Edited August 24, 2007 by Fan101