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Why do people in the drum corps activity take such offense to being called "marching bands," when every innovation that has been introduced defines drum corps specifically as "marching bands?"

See any flutes, clarinets, saxophones, trombones or sousaphones out there?

Edited by Piper
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:cool: I remember those days. That was back when the hairstyle for guys was long and hair stylists called it "unisex", which basically meant that they charged you an additional $10 for a haircut. I saw a picture of BAC's guys in Drum Corps News with their hair cut "high and tight" and it seemed a bit unusual for that era, but they didn't seem to mind. I guess the old adage of "What goes around comes around" is true. :cool:

Boston's rules go back...well decades. No facial hair, no jewelry in uniform, hair cannot touch the collar in back, no eating, smoking, swearing, or PDA when in uniform.....(but you can hug your mom!). :thumbup:

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Bluecoats 2006 had a drill move at the end of the show where a box was slowly built by slowly building on smaller boxes flying into the forms of the next bigger box. I'm pretty sure I've seen this move in another Bluecoats show...and I've been searching through Fan Network for a while and I CAN'T FIND IT.

What other show was this drill move in?...or am I losing my mind?

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When you're constantly coming up with new ways to rotate lines around a center point, things that look like swastikas will show up randomly.

Just an artifact of geometric drill design.

In 93 one section, mellos maybe, just stood in a swastika set for a while

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I wrote some drill where it wasn't until I saw it on the field and the band director whispers in my ear "I call this the penetration move." I wish the ground could have opened up swallowed me.

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Just some off the wall thoughts I had while watching DCI videos all day at work...

Do members of the 2004 Blue Devils feel somehow cheated that they weren't on the field at the end of their show, and didn't get to see the crowd give them a standing applause at Finals?

Did anyone of the schoolgirls in the 2005 Cadets secretly want to be one of the other girls? I'd want to be the girl in the Machine part, personally; she seemed to have the most fun.

How'd they pull that off, anyway? Were all three girls in that box the whole time? Did each of them have to spend half the show in there?

What's the deal with west coast kids and facial hair? Seems like half the members from the Blue Devils and SCV are bearded, but you don't see that in, say, the Cadets or Cavaliers.

Seems like the Madison Scouts change uniforms every year now. When do the kids find out about the change? Do the marching members show up to camp expecting to wear the same uniform as last year, and are they disappointed to find out that they won't?

Does any marcher, particularly a guard member, have a photo of themselves just before tour, and then a photo from just after tour, so they can compare just how tan they got over the summer?

Has anyone else seen someone attractive in a drum corps video, and wondered where they are now?

What kind of training does it take to be a top-tier guard member? As I horn guy I'm familiar with when most of us start playing, but when do guard members start learning? Is there anything besides marching band? Do they often take dance?

How does a show's placement influence our opinion of it? 2003 Cavaliers is sometimes an overlooked show; is it because the show doesn't entertain as much as the Cavaliers championship programs, or does the fact that that show didn't win make us think less of it on a subconscious level?

DCI clearly has a number of cameras that are busy taping during Championships. Why not have one camera trained at all times on a specific section? That way they're always prepared is an especially neat visual moment occurs, whether it's in the guard, the hornline, the drumline or even the pit.

Speaking of cameras, how aware of the cameras are the kids, while they're marching the show? A couple of times I noticed pit members look directly at the camera, but do any members out on the field find themselves doing that during the show?

Well that's all I've got right now, though I'm sure more will come to me. Give me your answer if you've got one, or feel free to ask some questions of your own.

In regards to the new unis at Madison...

There was a different uniform each of my 4yrs in the corps.

The staff usually made an announcement of the impending change December camp'ish. If not, they would tell the hornline and at one of their winter camps word soon spread to the rest of us.

I remember not seeing the 05 uni until the beginning of spring training and seeing the 06 uni at Memorial Day Camp. The 05 uni was definitely my favorite. When I found out the uni was changing for 06, i was a little disappointed, but grew to love the white 06 jackets and understand the historical significance about them.

To be a top-tier guard member means you a high achievement and understanding of equipment and dance technique.

Most of those members not only have several years of experience, but are typically involved in a competitive winterguard program as well. That enables you to have that year-round training. Involvement in WGI is great for guard members. Its something I wish I'd done sooner, because it has made me a better spinner since the whole season is focused on guard and not a whole corps. Winterguards give a better focus on movement/dance. WGI also allows guard members to advance their skills because a lot of things that are hard to do outdoors are easier indoors...away from the elements (ie...high tosses, trick tosses).

These days, the ability to move/dance well is just as important as the equipment. It helps with posture, your overall carriage and how you look while spinning. I know of people that take dance classes either at their university or at studio to help better their understanding of dance.

In guard terms, the "triad" (drill, body, equipment) and the ability to do all 3 at a high level of vocab and excellence is something guards like Cavies, BD, and Crown are superb at.

Most of the people that I know in top DCI guards were either heavily involved in their high school program or had an interest in guard and became "backyard betties", spinning in their backyard, watching videos to learn how to sping, asking for help from people they knew in guard.

Personally, I was a dancer before I started spinning. For people like that, the understanding of equipment seems to come fairly easily.

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