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Forget Woodwinds – Beware of WGI


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36 minutes ago, N.E. Brigand said:

Yes but I wasn't looking for this thread specifically or even a thread from exactly ten years ago today. I was more generally looking at some "end of the decade" thoughts I remembered people posting in August 2009. I had no memory whatsoever of this thread.

I’m surprised I haven’t seen that many, if any, threads reflecting on the end of this decade of drum corps, the 2010s. I know one poster said he would make something like that, but I haven’t heard much from him since then.

With that said, who would like to be among the first?

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45 minutes ago, garfield said:

I know many focus on these numbers as a measure of health, but I’d encourage you to resist the temptation.

Instead, you should peruse a look at the total, top-line gross revenue in DCI’s 990s.  Has “record paid attendance” translated into more shareable revenue coming in from the tour to share among the corps?  

 

Do you know the answer? And do you think the best path to a bright future is going backward?

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Through all of the changes, one thing is clear about DCI - today, 10 years ago, and 30 years ago when I fell in love with it...

DCI is the best of the best of marching music.  Even BOA grand nationals look like a video played at 1/2 speed in comparison.  It is phenomenal what these kids and young adults are doing in DCI. It is shocking how good these corps sound today.  Keep it going for the next 10 and I’ll be happy.

 

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4 minutes ago, Dr.Mickey said:

 DCI is the best of the best of marching music.  Even BOA grand nationals look like a video played at 1/2 speed in comparison.  It is phenomenal what these kids and young adults are doing in DCI. It is shocking how good these corps sound today.  Keep it going for the next 10 and I’ll be happy.

Adding woodwinds might douse the fire of what DCI is currently. 

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57 minutes ago, MikeRapp said:

Do you know the answer? And do you think the best path to a bright future is going backward?

Well, sure.  Do you want me to give it to you or do you want to go get it from Guidestar yourself?

If the three years typically found on Guidestar don't satisfy you, I have 990s going back a couple of decades.  Don't hold me to this but, if memory serves, a decade ago DCI's top-line revenue was something along the lines or $8million.  2015 it was  $11.5mm and 2017, the most recent year, it was $11.75million.

There are several measures of growth and the 990s don't show clear indications of how much of gross revenue is passed on to the corps.  But the top-line revenue of DCI, absent any debt financing, represents all of what the tour takes in to distribute to the corps (exclusive of the TOC shows which have their own payout schedule of the revenues generated at those shows).

I think a reasonable goal would be for that number to be growing significantly through increased exposure and growth of corps, MMs, and paying family and friends.  So long as expenses are kept in check, payments to corps would be increasing.

It's easy to see increasing fights for an increasing slice of the pie if the pie isn't growing.

 

 

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3 hours ago, garfield said:

I know many focus on these numbers as a measure of health, but I’d encourage you to resist the temptation.

Instead, you should peruse a look at the total, top-line gross revenue in DCI’s 990s.  Has “record paid attendance” translated into more shareable revenue coming in from the tour to share among the corps?  

 

Are any corps in the top 12 looking for financing of their debt among other corps? And if so, are they opening their books to qualify for loans? 

Edited by Jurassic Lancer
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2 hours ago, Cadevilina Crown said:

I’m surprised I haven’t seen that many, if any, threads reflecting on the end of this decade of drum corps, the 2010s. I know one poster said he would make something like that, but I haven’t heard much from him since then.

With that said, who would like to be among the first?

I'll offer the first in a thirteen-part series of "decade" polls in a few minutes.

Still scrolling through some August 2009 threads. Just read the beginning of a long one that argued Open Class corps ought to be allowed to compete in World Class Prelims. A few years later that happened. Another thread, started by cowtown, called for Dan Acheson to be fired because of how awful the sound was in Lucas Oil. The following year, he was fired! But not for that reason. And then his termination was rescinded on the same day (I believe) when the full membership overrode the vote of the previously G7-dominated board.

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7 hours ago, Dr.Mickey said:

Through all of the changes, one thing is clear about DCI - today, 10 years ago, and 30 years ago when I fell in love with it...

DCI is the best of the best of marching music.  Even BOA grand nationals look like a video played at 1/2 speed in comparison.  It is phenomenal what these kids and young adults are doing in DCI. It is shocking how good these corps sound today.  Keep it going for the next 10 and I’ll be happy.

 

Waaaaay too much artificial sound and amplification today.

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7 hours ago, Jurassic Lancer said:

Are any corps in the top 12 looking for financing of their debt among other corps? And if so, are they opening their books to qualify for loans? 

I don't recall seeing any corps with significant amounts of debt on their books.

If there are corps with debt, then I'd assume they had to qualify just like any other borrower, including "opening their books".

You, too, can see a lot of their books by reading their 990s.  As 501c3 non-profits, they're required to keep their books public.  However, any for-profit entities owned by a drum corps are not required to share their financial data except with the IRS/Gov't.

Edited by garfield
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11 hours ago, Fred Windish said:

Hey!  That’s pretty cool. Thanks for the memory.   

The only thing I’d change (10 years later) is to suggest big (hockey size) arena spaces. During the past decade, this type arena buildings have spread throughout the nation and are readily available to serve as tour stops.   Many built using government redevelopment funding, like here in Allentown. To make those buildings work in this indoor concept, I propose each stop having a minimum of 2 performances per day. A matinee and an evening show. As such, 8,000 -10,000 front side seats are available to sell in most facilities, over two performances.

 

If you're going to move Drum Corps to hockey/basketball arenas,you'll have to reduce the size of corps.

A hockey rink is roughly 1/3 the size of a football field.

So does that mean corps of 50 or so MM ?

 

 

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