The Future of Drum Corps

[Bob J]

I'm no expert, but it seems that in the past our economy has had recessions, that may or may not have affected Drum corps. How about the early '80s or early '90s?

[drumcat]

I know this is going to come as a shocker, but I don't feel qualified to comment on the following and would be interested in hearing someone in the know talk about this.

How will the current mortgage/foreclosure 'crisis' affect drum corps both in the near term and in the long term.

For those who have less of a clue than me, please don't just jump in and blab about that which you know nothing. Mortgages are bundled and then sold into financial instruments known as 'mortgage-backed securities.' If you don't know what those are, you should probably ignore my entire post.

I would be interested to know what far-reaching effects these might have on the activity. Because many of these financial instruments are effectively worthless due to the foreclosure of the underlying assets...the houses the financed the purchase of! Sure hope DCI and the corps don't have any of these investments.

Anyone know anything related?

Yay -- a chance to use my Finance major!

Flat out, this will help drum corps. Most drum corps own debt of some type, and this will drive borrowing rates lower. There are a lot of periphery; less disposable income for kids, higher costs of commodities, etc., but it will be cheaper to do business if you own debt, and less expensive to take it on. The macro may be bad, but the micro is actually good, IMO.

And Mike, thanks for the kudos. I've just gone into "lurker" mode because I'd prefer the discussions all around improve, and I figured I better start with myself first. Fewer posts, better quality.

And the part I left out of the prior post is that unlike profitable sports leagues that do better by picking up expansion fees, tv revenue, etc., the corps that are at the top have very little incentive to add corps. That conflict of interest will make it difficult to reconcile a need for more corps. If you have a Finalist corps, why would you want to help create an environment that would make it easier for someone to "dethrone" you...

Incentives light the motivation lamp.

[Blueemrld8]

Nevermind... too OT

Edited January 19, 2008 by Blueemrld8

[Strongo]

One really good example of how a corps should start and survive would be Arizona Academy.

I marched in another corps when AZ came on the circut. We didn't expect anything out of them, as they had been a parade corps the year before. Nobody did really. But they joined the rest of the Div IIs on tour, and blew everyone away, winning every show (or so it seemed.) Then, the rest of us went on to Finals, and AZ went home. The next year, AZ came to Finals, and OWNED. More recently, everyone knows how they've fared.

Their staff did things right, starting small, and regional, and blowing up once the finances were in order. Obviously the real question here would be...how long will it last?

Other Div II/III winners had similar stories: having a successful Div II/III career, ending it with a huge win, the next year going to Div I quite succesfully. But then, many of them end up in the bottom 12. Corps that come to mind are Magic, Mandarins, Cascades, Pacific Crest. These corps, I fear, are the next on the docket for folding.

How does a corps prevent this "burn out"? This is another thing that must be considered with the future of the activity. How to stay competitive once the push to Div I has been completed?

*edit* I swear, I'm not flaming here. I've marched, considered marching, and have had many friends march every one of these corps I've named, and I've said the same thing to their faces. It's a genuine question.

Edited January 19, 2008 by dare2makemusic

[Blueemrld8]

Daretomakemusic - I think what you say is extremely important, esp. in the future of DC because I see more and more World Class having to adopt a more conservative/open class view of touring etc. I have always said that this model makes the most sense because it is baby steps and if a Corp. is smart about it, they can stop a step before they start folding. Then all they have to do is wait untill taking the next step is possible.

[CrunchyTenor]

There's an old business adage that says you should have enough money in the bank to run your business for a year without ever opening the doors to be successful. In other words, have the money to pay salaries, insurance, mortage or lease, purchase inventory, and pay utilities with no revenues or income being generated.

So, think about what you'd pay your staff; insure the members and equipment; lease or buy a corps hall; buy percussion, brass and guard equipment; buy or lease rolling stock, and the fuel to move them; turn on the lights and water at the hall; all with no membership dues or tour fees being paid. When you have that kind of annual fundraising, then think about starting a corps.

Now, just to pull the wet blanket off, this can be done in a strategic way. You can file for your 501©3 status the day you incorporate. You don"t have to have a performance group right away. (I think I remember hearing you only had to put out a group every five years or so to maintain your tax exempt status. That's how Anaheim Kingsmen ran a bingo operation for so long without having a corps on the field. The occasional winter guard or indoor drumline satisfied that requirement.)

As stated earlier, the current road to success is to start small and build. Arizona Academy started their war chest in 1999. They started a brass ensemble, drumline and guard as independent entities in 2001 before combining them into a drum corps in 2004. Five years went into planning that debut, not only from the design and recruiting areas, but also in the financial area. They slowly built the different ensembles, their equipment inventory, and the corps' infrastructure before they ever stepped on a field in competition.

VK didn't just grab all their old stuff and re-enter competition. It is a whole new organization, and they started VKYAO as a parent group at the end of 2004. It took three years to get them out there last summer, and it sure didn't hurt having DCI in their backyard.

I really think DCI needs to rethink it's National presence and consider creating smaller, local circuits under it's wing, rather than force them out of existence. We need the small corps. There is a transition coming out of a school program, even now. Not every school program goes to BOA, or even competes on the field. (A Canadian circuit, in particular, would be great. Kinda adds more credence to the term "International," too.)

Impulse has been instrumental in the formation of a couple of groups now, including Mystikal in Open class, and SoCal Dream in All-Age corps. They still have a training group for younger kids within the organization. They didn't run each unit as much as provide a base to launch these groups. When I formed Dream I was on the Impulse board. We didn't take any funds from Impulse. (In fact, we were the only division of the organization that ran in the black from the beginning.) As soon as it was feasible for Mystikal and Dream to venture out on their own, it was with the blessing of Impulse.

Though the days of lots of feeder corps within the corps' organizations are seemingly over, I'd like to see more corps do what Impulse has done and provide a starting point for other corps to start up. If every corps spun off a new group every five years or so, we could repopulate the roster of competing corps. Require that the groups be financially responsible for their own programs, just let them organize under your corporate umbrella.

There's more food for thought.

Garry in Vegas

Edited January 19, 2008 by CrunchyTenor

[SuperSmashBrothers]

I really think DCI needs to rethink it's National presence and consider creating smaller, local circuits under it's wing, rather than force them out of existence. We need the small corps. There is a transition coming out of a school program, even now. Not every school program goes to BOA, or even competes on the field. (A Canadian circuit, in particular, would be great. Kinda adds more credence to the term "International," too.)

Extremely Interesting... This point would be very difficult to effectively argue as a path for the future. I do not believe it is my place to even attempt that promotion but I would like to see someone argue that it could work. There USED to be other circuits and they are long gone probably for good reason but could these circuits have just been tweaked at all to make it all work? I don't even know if corps directors looked at it like you have just mentioned. I know that I haven't.

Perhaps more programs could exist both financially and as a competitive entity if DCI had some sort of regional circuits in place. The North East (New England/NY, NJ/Ontario+Quebec) would alone have a big handful of Open Class Corps. I am sure if it was put in place a few more programs would over the years possibly be able to put together a very localized and community based corps. Over the years they could even gain enough steam to be able to do the National Tour. A big question is... interest among potential members and fan base. How would you market this type of local circuit? I won't get into it. It could work or it could not work. I want to see someone argue that it could work. I am indifferent.

But.. Very Interesting.

[davidp]

I think drum corps is in serious need of looking at regionalization again (new circuits, etc.), as well as a renewed emphasis on the smaller corps. The world class division is almost a different animal compared to the rest now, and it may be time to look back and hype the smaller corps again. Not everybody can be Cadets, BD, or Phantom, much less be in them, but that shouldn't hinder people from doing corps on a local level (I know, instant gratification). With the advent of "any key," it seems like it would be easier to start up a smaller corps, since some players would already have their own horns (keep in mind I'm mostly blowing smoke here; I know next to nothing about running a drum corps) . Even if the corps just did a few shows within their region, it would still foster the activity. The main thing would be emphasizing operating with your means, even if it meant not having a lot of the cool toys of "modern" drum corps. Smaller might just be better, at least in the short term. I'll shut up now :D.

Edited January 19, 2008 by davidp

[VOReason]

The other day, my friend and I got into a pretty intense and lengthy discussion regarding DCI and where it is headed. It began by looking at all the D2/3 corps that went to prelims in 2000 (46) and how this upcoming year there will be less than half of that number participating. Now I know the decline in the number of total corps over the years has been long lamented on the forums, and that is not what this thread is about. My friend and I found ourselves into a discussion about the future prospects of the activity, and whether or not the total number of corps will continue to decline, stay the same, or increase over the next 10-15 years.

Seems to me as though you have answered your own question...

[Richard]

Seems to me as though you have answered your own question...

Wow, I guess we should just give up on drum corps right now huh.