Jeff Ream Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Except for minor changes.....The Opera Shows at the NY Metropolitan Theatre has not changed in 50 years.The Bolshoi Ballet has not changed...... Major League Baseball has not changed the baseball thrown, nor the baseball bat ( aluminum bats are not even authorized)....... the NFL and College football has not changed in any material way. The ball is still pigskin..... the NBA has not even allowed a change in the color of the basketball ( the ABA multi- colored basketball was voted down )........ Soccer has not changed much at all in 50 years in terms of the ball, the net, the rules, etc...... NHL Hockey has not changed much at all in 50 years.... the puck is still the same size, net the same size, stick same size, etc....... the Rocketts show in NYC has not changed in 50 years...... the Las Vegas Show Girls shows have not changed in 50 years...... and on and on. And all of the above..... have grown their fan bases..... and have become profitable...... without changing much of what made them attractive and successful in the first place. This notion that if Drum Corps does not change it will die is not supportable by the evidence. As a matter of fact, a compelling case can be made that Drum Corps is dying as a direct result of TOO MANY changes in such short time that it has been a shock to it's system and it's fan base, and as a result they have struggled both financially and in growing it's members and spectator base. This year, may have been a refeshing pause to reflect on it's direction in terms of MAJOR revolutionary changes in it's format. i agree. too much change too fast, and no evidence to support it's truly helping, especially as the economy tanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCIHasBeen Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 "But I would agree...there are tons of legacy fans...I guess that's now the accepted term...in the stands as well. I think this year's show pleased them. In some cases, I am hearing from legacy fans who are going to buy the DVD this year for the first time ever or the first time in a long time."I am one of those guys. As a "legacy" fan, I felt that DCI peaked in the late 80's/ early 90's as the triangulation of melodic content, in your face emotion, and talent steadily rose from DCI's inception to about 1991. Then we saw a steady diet of esoterica, visual at the expense of melody, and a whole host of flaws too numerous to mention. Then seemingly out of nowhere, we get a finals for the ages. Phantom led the way but there was a whole slew of great moments from the entire top 12. Back in 1975, when DCI was first telivised live, baseball was losing its appeal, the sport was considered "boring" and it was losing its place as America's past time. The in one magical night, Carlton Fisk hit the foul pole in the dramatic game 6 of the World Series and everything that made baseball great was amplified and the fans came back in droves. I consider the Phantom Regiment's performance akin to Fisk hitting the fole pole. It amplified everything that makes drum corps the great sport it is, and I for one will be running, not walking to buy the DVDS. Amen! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Yes....and they were the champions this year. But, I agree with you here. There is a ton of WGI bleedover now more than ever.But, I believe this trend will also dissolve over time as fans (and then finally judges) get tired of seeing the same tricks during the winter and summer. somehow i doubt it, and here's why: the same designers the same judges. fans have complained about numbers of changes over the years, and let's be honest...it hasn't stopped DCI and to a lesser extent DCA. but having been at a major regional, i'll tell you this....the youth movement in recruiting didn't seem to be evident in the stands. the crowd looked distinctly 25 and up for over 70% of the audience. So I ask...are all these changes aimed at the kids really working? fewer corps to go to. i'd imagine given the prices for finals, it wasn't very young in the stands either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Would you rather go to a Yanni concert, or the London Symphony Orchestra?'nuff said. both, but i wouldnt expect to have either done up to be something they aren't Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 however....attendance figures for both DCI and DCA are flat....not declining. Flat for how long is a conversation, but there is little proof that the olde timers absense is currently being felt at the gate. Now, maybe that will change in a few years.At the same time, someone pointed out that both DCA and DCI have fewer corps participating than they did back in the heyday of the activity. In the long and short of it....support DCA....support DCI....but please....support drum corps. actually DCA has to be up with more and more shows in newer areas, and the venue in Rochester holds more than Scranton could Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 OK....I understand what you are reacting too. I don't agree with the "olde phartz" have to go. Heck, I am an olde phart myself...just turned 48.Anyway...the DCI audience consists of some main constituencies. On this we agree. However, I don't think there are many free tickets given to high schoolers anymore. At least not in an organized way. Some band directors are given deals on blocks of tickets, but that's about all I am aware of. But I would agree...there are tons of legacy fans...I guess that's now the accepted term...in the stands as well. I think this year's show pleased them. In some cases, I am hearing from legacy fans who are going to buy the DVD this year for the first time ever or the first time in a long time. So, I think there was something special about this year and it goes beyond...though it was most certainly helped by...Regiment's victory. I also believe there would have been a similar response had the Ft. Mills crew pulled off a victory. And just so everyone is appropriated informed...that day is coming. Crown is becoming more and more impressive each and every year. it isnt just because Phantom won, tho it helped. the programming in general helped. but the legacy fans keep being dismissed by many, and yet they are the core group that survived the mid 90's when things were tough. A successful business can not thrive if it keep turning over fans/customers, and it seems DCI thinks that is the way to go. At some point, there won't be enough of that next generation to become the next set of legacy fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hup234 Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 olde phartz are defined one....by age....and two....by attitude. "You kids get off my lawn." "Drum corps don't play any recognizable tunes anymore." "We should bring back the tic system." "DCI is destroying drum corps." How am I doing with the attitude part? Pretty accurate in my book. Thanks for the lecture about attitude, Mr. Brace, and for again proving my point that your activity has no interest in respecting its century-long past and its pioneering early heroes, the men and women who worked -mostly for free, unlike your current mercenaries - to build what became a stunningly-successful North American system of hundreds upon hundreds of drum and bugle corps and contests in nearly every corner of the continent, corps that used to welcome all ages and all talents.And then ... and then... we handed that mantle over to the Combine, and then DCI. So look around at all the ghosts of corps and shows and fans and members that aren't there anymore, and then tell us more about attitude. As to the current topic here: your lost audience is lost forever. They won't come back. A few like myself do check in here on occasion out of a sense of morbid fascination with slow and ongoing decay -- like people who photograph once-beautiful but now-abandoned buildings or study the works of Goya and Ivan Albright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kusankusho Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Santorini, baby ... Yeah. Well - yeah, I know, but it's all personal taste. If we could get past the stigma there may actually be a drum corps show in his music. I doubt if anyone would actually do it though because of the factor.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kusankusho Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 both, but i wouldnt expect to have either done up to be something they aren't Wan't it the LSO with Yanni at the Acropolis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 I bet your dad would have loved the Blue Stars this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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