Madisons Staff...

[Pinwiz]

I think that a number of these young men are being told, “I wouldn’t just causally consider Madison, No……I’d be running to the Madison Scouts and I’d be doing whatever I could to secure a position as a Scout ASAP”!

...are being told, "Go to Crown, they're going to be the next Champion."

...are being told, "Go to Troopers, be part of a historical resurgence."

...are being told, "Go to Cadets, because you fit their style."

...are being told, "Go to Phantom. Imagine being a part of those ballads."

Etc.

The staff changes help, but in today's climate a lot of kids already know where they are going to audition. Some may change their minds and move to Madison, but why is Madison's staff changes any stronger than Crown taking second and winning Brass or BD's championship or Troop's Finalist status?

Madison will get a boost and retention is excellent, but I don't see other corps being hurt this summer.

(And who says that the vets that stay to march the new Madison will stay for 2011? Change cuts both ways.)

[elmhurstmusiced]

Main Entry: Madison Staff 2010

Pronunciation: \mad-is-on-staff\

Function: to produce an incredible show, while still holding the corps values close to their heart.

1 : A group of people resonsible for putting together and teaching one of the greatest drum corps of all times. i.e. Star of Indiana.

2 : A group of people resonsible for the incredibly successful theater show Blast!

3 : Several DCI Hall of Fame members.

4 : Individuals who have marched in, or instructed many other great corps including the Cavaliers, Blue Devils, and Crown to name a few.

These people are a who's who of drum corps staff, and I would find it hard to believe that these names won't generate a flurry of kids wanting to audition.

I know I am going to get attacked for this one, but I think it is very likely that the colorguard alone will attract the same amount, if not more than the Cavaliers. I could be wrong, just my opinion as of now.

[perc2100]

For all the naysayers and narrow sighted!

Here’s how Madison's historic staff changes will impact the Scouts and the drum corps community at large:

#1. Madison’s new legendary staff has already and will continue to have a dramatic, positive effect upon retention. Life is a lot easier when you don’t have to constantly reload! Keeping what you have along with additional highly competitive auditions is a beautiful thing.

#2. It doesn't matter in the least that today's prospective members weren't born when these Hall of Fame Instructors were working their magic. Today's drum corps is a completely different endeavor with many of these young men embarking upon music, performance and dance majors. For most, they’re very serious and discriminating individuals that usually have only several seasons to accomplish they’re drum corps dreams. Most of the young men choosing to come to Madison (or elsewhere) have done their home work…..they can’t afford otherwise. So, when it comes down to needing to know who's who regarding top flight instruction and their pedigrees, these young men are on top of it! They’re not in the dark “or couldn’t care less” as some here have suggested. Those auditioning for the first time with the Scouts along with returning members will be looking forward to the challenge of superior instruction……And they won’t be disappointed for they’ll be under the tutelage of drum corps legends. Furthermore, these young men will be signing on for that “unique” Madison experience which is second to none.....Those Scout values that will successfully effect and guide them for the rest of their life's.

#3. These young men respect and seek the guidance and input of their peers along with former and current Instructors, Band Directors, Teachers and Professors. The Madison Scouts now have some of the “Best of the Best” Teachers and Writers to have ever worked with drum corps, high school band, college and university programs along with a whole host of other musical and visual arts idioms. Not to forget Blast! and every other production that Jim Mason and his Mason Entertainment Group have successfully produced! This extraordinary group of professionals reads like a “Who’s Who” wish list of top musical and visual instructors that have simply "rocked" the performance world in their areas of expertise. Don’t you think it’s a safe bet that more than a few of these young men are being influenced by their current professor or band director that knows all about Madison’s legendary staff status? I think that a number of these young men are being told, “I wouldn’t just causally consider Madison, No……I’d be running to the Madison Scouts and I’d be doing whatever I could to secure a position as a Scout ASAP”!

#4. Here’s the other reason why it’s not important when these current young men were born……They’ve got drum corps parents who know all too well about the amazing accomplishments of Madison’s legendary staff. Do you think these parents will have any influence in the matter?……I think so!

I believe the Scouts will do just fine in recruiting for 2010.

If the Scouts have a successful 2010, look for their recruiting to grow exponentially in 2011.

Madison Scouts staff=recruiting WINNER!!!!

I'm really excited at the prospects of Scouts for 2010, and as an alumni I'm sure you're super hyped to (hopefully) see your corps return to competitive greatness.

But pretty much everything you said above can be said about all of the current corps of the Top 5: the only difference is those other corps are currently Top 5 corps while Madison ended smack in the middle of semi-finals, almost three points away from 12 place. Blue Devils and Cadets are also a who's who of DCI HoF members on their design and teaching staff, Cavaliers literally won half of the Championships of the past decade, Crown is THE corps when it comes to 'the next big thing,' and SCV had one of the fan favorite shows of last year and looks to build upon their 5th place finish.

I agree that Scouts will be fine recruiting wise, but I would be surprised if, say, a plethora of marching members decided "gee, I don't want to be in a Top 3 guard anymore at Cavaliers, I think I'll go over to a wild card 16th place color guard at Scouts."

And, I wonder if the expectations on this corps are impossibly high. If Scouts next place, say, 13th because the bar is raised by all of the other corps and everyone comes out strong, is their season not a success?

Also, is anyone worried about the further homogenization of drum corps? If we have design staffs who are writing/designing for two or three corps, is anyone worried that everything will start looking/sounding the same?

Just a thought; it's easy for fans to be super excited about the awesome talent at Madison. Obviously these gentlemen have proven their success several times in the activity. Will alumni/fans be unhappy if things don't go as they expect (I've seen some predict single digit finishes, Top 6, etc)?

** EDIT **

I think the real key will come in 2011. If 2010 is a head-turning year for Scouts, I imagine/expect them to jump up in 2011 in recruiting and design. But this year, I think, is still a bit of a wild card.

Edited September 29, 2009 by perc2100

[Mad75]

...are being told, "Go to Crown, they're going to be the next Champion."

...are being told, "Go to Troopers, be part of a historical resurgence."

...are being told, "Go to Cadets, because you fit their style."

...are being told, "Go to Phantom. Imagine being a part of those ballads."

Etc.

The staff changes help, but in today's climate a lot of kids already know where they are going to audition. Some may change their minds and move to Madison, but why is Madison's staff changes any stronger than Crown taking second and winning Brass or BD's championship or Troop's Finalist status?

Madison will get a boost and retention is excellent, but I don't see other corps being hurt this summer.

(And who says that the vets that stay to march the new Madison will stay for 2011? Change cuts both ways.)

Ah.....I don't know which previous post you're referring to, but I never made the argument that other corps will suffer in their recruiting efforts via Madison's accomplishments! And to your assertion that most kids already know where they're marching next summer is statistically wrong. Recruiting numbers year after year show that audition decisions are made primarily in mid Oct. through Nov. Furthermore, I already know of several cases where young men were considering marching with other drum corps in 2010, but since Madison's recent announcements, they're now heading to the Scouts......Sorry Pin person!

Your quote: "Some may change their minds and move to Madison, but why is Madison's staff changes any stronger than Crown taking second and winning Brass or BD's championship or Troop's Finalist status?"......If you read my post, I've already stated my case for "the reasons why Madison"? and the possible influences behind those reasons.

Finally, your conjecture regarding "who says that the vets that stay to march the new Madison will stay for 2011"? is rather absurd.....it's like my infant daughter continually asking me "what if dad"? type questions.......Yea, WHAT IF????......WHAT IF THIS?????........WHAT IF THAT????

Historically, Madison has always had one of the highest retention rates in drum corps simply due to it's values and philosophy. Something you wouldn't appreciate unless you took the time to understand......As I've already stated, If Madison has a successful 2010, watch for their recruitment to explode in 2011......Bank It!

Edited September 30, 2009 by Mad75

[SACMellos2010]

The staff assembled in Madison will have a big impact on the talent that is attracted to the Madison Scouts and subsequently negatively impact other corps.

I do not think it will impact one specific group but pull a few very talented kids that were going to audition for other corps to audition for Madison.

Geographically Blue Stars have the biggest threat of competition for members.

For those that think it will not and think that just because they were in 14th last year...yikes time to get back to reality and how the world works.

For those that think kids today do not know of the history of this staff because they were too young or not born.... heck I know all about a lot of old corps and staff that were in their prime prior to me being old enough to really know... why is that... my Dad and other band directors and fans.

I can remember a corps that wore pink and quite a few at the top thought.... that is a nice little corps but we do not need to worry about them competing with us..hmmmmm

There is now an incredible all star staff assembled with a corps that has a long history to build upon.

I think there are going to be great things coming out of Madison pretty quickly. 2010 should see a huge leap and give it 3 years to have the program in place.

JMO

Edited September 30, 2009 by General Blunt

[BozzlyB]

Cavies now have the MAC.....every drummer will be runnin there now

After they get cut from Blue Stars.

[BozzlyB]

Re: the OP, IF Blue Stars lose any brass to Madison, it will be because of Brad Green going there, not because Madison has DVD's name on their staff list. I seriously doubt madison can put together a drum staff that will steal any of Blue Stars members, and no one is going to defect from Michael Shapiro's color guard. Bottom line is if Madison sees an influx of talent and numbers due to their staff announcements I really don't see the other WC corps in the reigion suffering at all as a result of it.

[bass5]

I think the idea that some have mentioned of the Blue Stars loosing members to the Scouts is because of an assumption that there are a lot of members in both corps from Wisconsin.

I'll bet you could count on one hand the number of members in each corps that are from Wisconsin.

[contrajedi8]

I think the idea that some have mentioned of the Blue Stars loosing members to the Scouts is because of an assumption that there are a lot of members in both corps from Wisconsin.

I'll bet you could count on one hand the number of members in each corps that are from Wisconsin.

I was just thinking the same thing. I'd give them maybe 2 dozen "local" kids between the two corps. SW had the same problem. Very few kids came to march from Kentucky. Lots from GA, AL, TN, MI, etc...

[perc2100]

Re: the OP, IF Blue Stars lose any brass to Madison, it will be because of Brad Green going there, not because Madison has DVD's name on their staff list. I seriously doubt madison can put together a drum staff that will steal any of Blue Stars members, and no one is going to defect from Michael Shapiro's color guard. Bottom line is if Madison sees an influx of talent and numbers due to their staff announcements I really don't see the other WC corps in the reigion suffering at all as a result of it.

I agree. I also think that Madison will see a larger impact with kids cut from other corps. I think if some gets cut from, say, Blue Stars (and is male) he is more likely to go to Madison than try to go to Colts. But in a world of "what have you done for me lately," Madison has done middle-of-the-semifinals-pack, while it's geographical competition has made finals. It's a little hard to hype on Madison's staff when it feature a lot of people on other drum corps' staffs.