highpitch_83 Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 I know that this topic (or something similar) has been discussed in the past but after viewing the Southwestern Championship photo album on DCI.org & the Bluecoats photo set from Denton on Corpsreps I think it's worth discussing again. Many WGI design/theme ideas have been utilized in the Drum Corps world since the early/mid '90s to varying degrees of effectiveness/success (depending on who you ask) but one of the most obvious has been the use of thematic elements from the show being integrated into the traditional "Military Style" drum corps uniform. To name a few: - Crown's interchangeable Baldric/Sash/Plumes & Shako accesories - PR's Baldric/Guantlets - Blue Devils "leg-capes", Plumes While some corps continue to let the Color Guard do the heavy lifting in that department the Bluecoats have taken it a step further and removed the traditional uniform altogether for a portion of their show... While personally I think it is effective in supporting 'Coats overall theme ("Imagine: a drum corps without a traditional uniform") I'm not sure this is the best direction for drum corps as a whole for one reason: In my opinion, a corps identity is directly tied to their uniform more so than any other element of their organization (marching style, hornline sound, all male members, etc...) I'm curious about the community's opinion regarding: - Whether this will begin an era where organizations will ditch the traditional "Military-Style" uniform completely and instead invest in more 'disposable' uniforms that are designed solely to support the theme from year to year (seeing as how Bluecoats are in 6th overall right now it doesn't seem to be hurting them competitively) - If corps begin to go that direction would it help or hurt DCI?! help or hurt the individual Corps?! - At some point does DCI/WGI begin to fly under the same banner with a "Drum & Bugle Corps/Field Show" division, Indoor Percussion division, & Indoor Guard Division? Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crfrey71 Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 I know that this topic (or something similar) has been discussed in the past but after viewing the Southwestern Championship photo album on DCI.org & the Bluecoats photo set from Denton on Corpsreps I think it's worth discussing again.Many WGI design/theme ideas have been utilized in the Drum Corps world since the early/mid '90s to varying degrees of effectiveness/success (depending on who you ask) but one of the most obvious has been the use of thematic elements from the show being integrated into the traditional "Military Style" drum corps uniform. To name a few: - Crown's interchangeable Baldric/Sash/Plumes & Shako accesories - PR's Baldric/Guantlets - Blue Devils "leg-capes", Plumes While some corps continue to let the Color Guard do the heavy lifting in that department the Bluecoats have taken it a step further and removed the traditional uniform altogether for a portion of their show... While personally I think it is effective in supporting 'Coats overall theme ("Imagine: a drum corps without a traditional uniform") I'm not sure this is the best direction for drum corps as a whole for one reason: In my opinion, a corps identity is directly tied to their uniform more so than any other element of their organization (marching style, hornline sound, all male members, etc...) I'm curious about the community's opinion regarding: - Whether this will begin an era where organizations will ditch the traditional "Military-Style" uniform completely and instead invest in more 'disposable' uniforms that are designed solely to support the theme from year to year (seeing as how Bluecoats are in 6th overall right now it doesn't seem to be hurting them competitively) - If corps begin to go that direction would it help or hurt DCI?! help or hurt the individual Corps?! - At some point does DCI/WGI begin to fly under the same banner with a "Drum & Bugle Corps/Field Show" division, Indoor Percussion division, & Indoor Guard Division? Thoughts? All excellent thoughts. The closer in Bluecoats when they have their coats removed is just too WGI, IMO. But, I have not really gotten the vibe that this might be a direction corps might take on a regular basis. If they did like you are thinking with disposable uniforms, that would be the most tragic change to date, by far. I agree with you about the corps' identity. I don't understand the BD reference though. I don't think the changes to BD's unis were put in for a particular show, but just a straight change to their uniform. there are always slight changes to a corp's unis. For example, the BD uni in the 80's always changed. SCV would keep changing from white to green pants (even during the same show) from year to year, as well as change their sash. That is nothing new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob J Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Some definitions: Uniform: distinctive clothing intended to identify the wearer as a member of a certain organization or group. or uniform: always the same - not varying (uniform thickness for example) I think ditching elements of the traditional corps uniform kind of violates both of these ideas, I like that I can see Vanguard, Cadets or Cavies 20 years later and instantly know who they are. Not a fan of modern color guard unis for that reason. See them warming up in the lot, and they might as well be in rehersal garb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CitBos Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 The only problem I would have with the "disposible uniform", as you call them, or getting a new uniform every year that goes with the show theme, is money. Espically the way the economy is now, this could get very expensive. I don't know what the typical price for just one uniform is, but I don't think it's the cheapest thing in the world, and having to get 150 (or whatever the max. number is now) wont be easy by any means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NakedEye Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 This is nothing new or anything indicating some massive sea change. See Sky Ryders 1987 - West Side Story with the corps split into three sections: white, black and gray. Nothing remotely military-looking about the simple, featureless outfits, which included the shakos modified into pointy shapes. When they did their Oz shows in previous years, the outfits looked somewhat like Munchkin attire as well. See Star of Indiana 1989: full-on British. It was completely different from the fuschia/star identity they had established for several years. 1990-91: full-on Roman appearance. All for the themes. Various corps experiment with this from time to time (I designed that way for the corps I worked with too), but at the same time you see others go backwards, to more traditional looks (Cadets, SCV). Frankly, if a corps insists on doing all sorts of body movement with the hornline, I wish they WOULD wear something other than a military-ish uniform for it. As much as I can appreciate well-done movement, I think it pretty much looks universally stupid to prance around, do graceful arm and leg gestures and attempt to "emote" while wearing a blocky-shouldered, military parade-inspired suit. It's a visual disconnect. If you really want to do that, go to something more flexible and athletic. Even the jumpsuits Blast! wears would be an improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highpitch_83 Posted July 23, 2009 Author Share Posted July 23, 2009 Some definitions:Uniform: distinctive clothing intended to identify the wearer as a member of a certain organization or group. or uniform: always the same - not varying (uniform thickness for example) I think ditching elements of the traditional corps uniform kind of violates both of these ideas, I like that I can see Vanguard, Cadets or Cavies 20 years later and instantly know who they are. Not a fan of modern color guard unis for that reason. See them warming up in the lot, and they might as well be in rehersal garb. dually noted bob! Perhaps "costume" would be a more appropriate term instead of "disposable uniform" ;-) ...I don't understand the BD reference though. I don't think the changes to BD's unis were put in for a particular show, but just a straight change to their uniform. I guess I interpreted the change from: 07: black plume and no cape 08: white plume + leg cape with white on the inside 09: same plume but yellow on the inside of the leg cape ... as what I would consider show related tweaks to the uniform. You make a good point that the leg capes have been in for 2 seasons now and could be a straight up uniform change a la Crown 07/PR 09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cathie Wiener Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 All I know is as soon as I hear the first electrical hum of the amps or the first note of the synthesizer out on the field *BAM* I'm looking for the floor of the basketball court. Those sounds are distinctively WGI to me and quite disoncerting to hear out on the field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Laubhan Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 From a marketing/identity standpoint, I've long maintained that a corps' uniform is their corporate icon, in many cases even more so than their actual logo. For most groups, it's their single most identifiable piece of visual branding. I agree that it would be foolhardy for a corps to abandon them completely. I don't think you'll ever see a number of corps completely abandon their uniforms for new costumes annually. If it was going to happen, I think it would have already. As far as augmenting or modifying their uniforms for specific productions, corps have been doing it since before I was aware of the activity, and I'm sure some will continue to experiment with it. I look at a group like Crown as a group that has best of both worlds. They've wrapped their visual identity in the clean, simple cream uniforms that are agnostic enough to take on different looks. Pretty brilliant in my opinion. The really interesting thing to me, is that the whole uniform vs. costume debate is another sign of how drum corps straddles the line between team sports and arts, as well as the very obvious line between it's military heritage and it's growth into performance art. Back to the influence WGI has had on DCI, I think it left it's mark in far more significant ways than what they're wearing. Look at how color guards have evolved during the WGI era, or how drill (especially during drum features) has changed. Even programming and show concepts have changed in ways that seem similar to the indoor activities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrfctTimeOfDay Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 (edited) I think the average DCI fan has no idea how many ideas/designs and show themes are. . .um, 'recycled' from the WGI world. I think those within the WGI community realize the impact they've had on the other activities, but they don't really make a huge deal about it. . .for example, those of you who enjoyed crown's finis show. . .I hope you have the chance to hunt down the IA finals video from 2004. St Ann's A who just squeaked into A class finals has a show that I'm sure you'd find interesting, it's entitled: 'The End' I'm sure you can do the rest of the math. . . As for changing uniforms. . .I don't see a trend changing that much from what we currently see today, I think Blooooo is just utilizing this as a one time thing, as it plays of their concept and show theme. PS. . .for those of you with the WGI fan network, you can check it out in the archives. Edited July 23, 2009 by PrfctTimeOfDay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hostrauser Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 While some corps continue to let the Color Guard do the heavy lifting in that department the Bluecoats have taken it a step further and removed the traditional uniform altogether for a portion of their show... While personally I think it is effective in supporting 'Coats overall theme ("Imagine: a drum corps without a traditional uniform") I'm not sure this is the best direction for drum corps as a whole for one reason: In my opinion, a corps identity is directly tied to their uniform more so than any other element of their organization (marching style, hornline sound, all male members, etc...) If it works for the show, go with it. Blue Devils took off their jackets AND unbuttoned their shirts (IIRC) in 1992 for that unbelievable "When a Man Loves a Woman" closer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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