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Do corps choose a Veteran over a better player/marcher?


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I hope she realized (realizes) how her spirit inspired us all.

Yup, she and Kevin were at the reunion at Pasadena this year. I talked to her for a few, it was good to see her. That kind of loyalty to its members just doesn't happen anymore in "world' class corps. Bob knows what am I talking about and anyone else that marched that year knows just how different Drum Corps was back then.

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eh, I hate it when people put it that way, but yes.

I'd take a season of marching my second chance corps, than no corps at all.

I'm not saying Open Class is worse than World. I prefer Open Class honestly. There is more quality and progress over the summer months in my opinion. But I think auditioning for drum corps seems like choosing a college. You pick a reach corps, a guaranteed corps, and a back up corps. Depending on how it works out, you decide from there. Obviously any corps experience would help if the staff of a corps is being "biased" and picking people who have experience...

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Yet, that's exactly the best way to make a higher placing corps.

Ding Ding Ding Ding. We have a winner.

You know what else is a good way to get more consideration from a top corps? By having other corps experience. I remember hearing some fact about BD last year (or '06 or something) that they had a ton of "rookies" to BD in their hornline, but only a handful in the line had no prior corps experience. Top corps love to see that you've been through a summer or two on another level and have shown the ability to survive the physical and mental drain of a summer of corps.

You can teach a less talented kid to play or march. You can't teach someone how to stay engaged, focused, and on task during a whole summer of corps. That's why so many corps take kids with experience.

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on the subject of skill, i know a guy who beat out THREE vets for a place on phantom's snareline. if you're good enough, you're good enough. experience is an aspect that is considered in an audition, but it's not the only aspect. thread starter sounds like his mommy told him lots of different things as a kid. :worthy:

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I just wanted to know how DCP felt about the choice of corps members. I know some make think that the best of the best will make the corps, but I believe that corps are bias when it comes to choosing a veteran over a rookie. I learned from experience when I auditioned for the Bluecoats in 2005. I was a former drum major, had corps experience, have won many awards, including going to state on french horn in texas. I marched in a university marching band on mello and have played mello for years. I always thought and heard from many corps members and directors that I had the ability to make any corps if I tried. Well in 2005 I was put against 6 vets in chance to make the mellophone line. I was called back for three camps, all camps up until the January camp when I was cut with a score of 68 (you had to make 70 to make the corps). The thing that upset me greatly was the fact that there were some 04 bluecoats mellophone vets from Texas also, that were no way near as good of a player, hard as a worker during camps, and marcher as I and many other rookie mellophone players had noticed. I also noticed that 4 of the vets went to the University of Houston, where the mello tech taught brass. The bluecoats only took the 6 mello vets that year... Maybe I am over reacting, but I just wanted to know if the same thing has happened to others??? Thanks for your time.

I know for a fact that the Bluecoats took two mello rookies from Texas as well as two from Ohio that year. I marched with those four the past two years. They are some of the hardest working, most positive individuals I have ever had the pleasure of marching with. Maybe you were a better player and/or marcher than them...maybe not. Maybe you played well on your own but didn't blend well with the ensemble. Maybe your personality didn't blend with the personalities of the mello line. I believe that attitude plays a big part in any audition. Drum corps is an activity that forces the members to work as a TEAM. If attitudes don't blend well, the chemistry of the corps doesn't work, and the ending product is not as good as it could be.

The four rookies probably made the line in 05 because they acted like vets from the first camp. They were probably just as proud to play in that hornline as any vet was. They probably had the heart to make the line. Maybe you just didn't show the instructors that you were proud to be playing in that hornline....member or not.

It would be a shame to hear that you gave up on your drum corps experience after just one failed attempt. I hope you ended up marching somewhere.

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