cabalumnidrummer Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 (edited) I am with you both on that. I never quite understood that either. To me, you join one corps and stay with them and give them your full attention and effort. An occasional favor to help a friend might be okay, but to play in several at one time and divide your loyalties is something that's foreign to me. Edited July 13, 2010 by cabalumnidrummer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bariman50 Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 My wife and I remember sitting among lots of Yankee/Rebs at Allentown, 1990 wow. Always a class act, as far as marching with multible corps I agree it is sort of defeating the purpose but the reality is if you can play and march they all ask you, no one has enough people. Hope to see some of the YR people this summer. St Joes is going strong at 20 but numbers are tough!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rayfallon Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 No offense meant to anyone involved with alumni corps...those corps are great to watch, a lot of fun.... but the one thing I've never quite "gotten" with the alumni-corps thing is folks performing with multiple corps at the same show(s). One of the years at the Dixie Stinger, someone I knew was performing with something like five corps at that show. I joked with him that I thought being involved with alumni corps was supposed to mean LESS time performing/practicing than being in a competition corps, not more. LOL!! When my son Kevin was 17 he played with 4 alumni corps one night at an indoor show. He had spent a week learning the music which to him was no big deal. This kid who played in World Class Drum corps on contra for 9 years and was (not yet at that point) Blue Devils contra section leader told me he had to be nuts to try it - said he was exhausted and would never do it again. It's my biggest complaint with alumni corps, followed only by the people who still insist it (alumni corps) will replace all the competitive forms. It has a place- it's a wonderfulactivity - some of the best people and most fun,and even some of the most amazing moments I've experienced have been with alumni groups. It's not the future - in most cases it's not even the past. It's just fun. In that rare moment it's very very special - in my opinion not because of folks playing with 2 or 3 corps at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 When my son Kevin was 17 he played with 4 alumni corps one night at an indoor show. He had spent a week learning the music which to him was no big deal. This kid who played in World Class Drum corps on contra for 9 years and was (not yet at that point) Blue Devils contra section leader told me he had to be nuts to try it - said he was exhausted and would never do it again.It's my biggest complaint with alumni corps, followed only by the people who still insist it (alumni corps) will replace all the competitive forms. I do wonder if the "performing with multiple corps" thing has led to some of the burnout we're seeing at the alumni level. I certainly do understand the other factors involved in the declines in membership in several alumni corps...... age, health issues, family commitments, among others.... but like I said, I gotta wonder if the sheer physical and mental commitment that it takes to perform, say, four different shows with four different corps might also be a factor here. I mean, loving alumni drum corps and enjoying performing in alumni drum corps is one thing....potentially killing yourself to be in as many drum corps as you possibly can is another thing altogether. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 i could never play in multiple places at once. those guys that do amaze me, but I could see myself burning out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muzzicman1 Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 I am very sorry to hear this news. Not only for our friends in the YR alumni corps, but for the drum corps activity in general. I do wonder about the long-term viability of this activity, on all levels. Its difficult to swallow, when I saw YR in 1970 Portland Prelims, it was like my mind was being dipped in Drum Corps holy water. They were lightyears ahead of anything we had out west, it still remains burned in my memory to this day. Only a few weeks ago, we had to shut our doors to Bingo, the end was painful, the economy couldn't support us any longer. It seems like independent drum corps in America are struggling to survive, these are certainly hard times, but loosing another legendary unit like YR hurts us all.....God Bless the Yankee Rebels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigW Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 Big W, on the Westshoremen history thread you and others have talked about innovations and innovative corps in the senior/all-age corps activity through the years... IMO, the Yankee Rebels' "Requiem For An Era" production/color presentation, first performed in 1969, very well might top my list of groundbreaking, push-the-envelope productions on the all-age side. That was way ahead of its time..... to the point where I'm not sure the judges back then knew how to react to it. SC Vanguard director Gail Royer once said that the "Requiem" production, with its "split corps" and multiple meters/tempos, was his inspiration for the Vanguard's "Young Person's Guide" masterpiece of 1973-74. Before 1982, the Rebs were one of only two corps that placed in the top 3 of DCA that hadn't won a championship, and only the Cabs, Bucs, Hurcs, Sky, and Sun had actually won at least one by then. They were at the top, and the beer could pour pretty freely and the discussion could get pretty animated as to whether they or MBI are the best corps to have never won a DCA championship. The Rebs cracked open the door for later corps to be able to stretch the envelope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overthehillDM Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 Very sorry to hear about the Yankee Rebels, a GREAT corps, with a GREAT history, and a GREAT group of people! The Bridgemen, including yours truly, have been very fortunate to get to know the individuals in this legendary drum corps these last few years, as part of their terrific show, the Dixie Stinger! We are very happy that this show will still be held in the future, as the food alone is incredible! It has been an honor to perform at the Stinger, and I hope that we will enjoy many more performances at this very special venue! Like so many in our drum corps family, the Yankee Rebels are an incredible group of people, and have left an indelible mark on our wonderful activity. As a member of an alumni corps, it is easy to see how they (but very sad) how they have come to this unfortunate juncture. It is just not as easy to march in a long parade as it was when we were kids. That has become quite obvious to me, and to our membership, as well. We have chosen to implement another plan, trying to infuse the corps with younger members, in an effort to help perpetuate the life of the Bridgemen Drum and Bugle Corps, and thus far, the plan has been working. (As my good friend Liz has mentioned). Our average age has been dropping considerably since we first reorganized in 2005. This is a good thing, because some of us are not getting any younger! LOL To the Yankee Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps... THANK YOU for many years of incredible music, and marching that provided us with some AMAZING performances! After getting to know many of the members of your organization, it is obvious that your love, passion, dedication, and commitment to your corps have been second to none, and I want to thank you for all that you have given to us through the years!!! Congratulations on an incredible run, and a job well done! Jim Jordan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereese Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 Very sorry to hear about the Yankee Rebels, a GREAT corps, with a GREAT history, and a GREAT group of people!The Bridgemen, including yours truly, have been very fortunate to get to know the individuals in this legendary drum corps these last few years, as part of their terrific show, the Dixie Stinger! We are very happy that this show will still be held in the future, as the food alone is incredible! It has been an honor to perform at the Stinger, and I hope that we will enjoy many more performances at this very special venue! Like so many in our drum corps family, the Yankee Rebels are an incredible group of people, and have left an indelible mark on our wonderful activity. As a member of an alumni corps, it is easy to see how they (but very sad) how they have come to this unfortunate juncture. It is just not as easy to march in a long parade as it was when we were kids. That has become quite obvious to me, and to our membership, as well. We have chosen to implement another plan, trying to infuse the corps with younger members, in an effort to help perpetuate the life of the Bridgemen Drum and Bugle Corps, and thus far, the plan has been working. (As my good friend Liz has mentioned). Our average age has been dropping considerably since we first reorganized in 2005. This is a good thing, because some of us are not getting any younger! LOL To the Yankee Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps... THANK YOU for many years of incredible music, and marching that provided us with some AMAZING performances! After getting to know many of the members of your organization, it is obvious that your love, passion, dedication, and commitment to your corps have been second to none, and I want to thank you for all that you have given to us through the years!!! Congratulations on an incredible run, and a job well done! Jim Jordan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereese Posted July 13, 2010 Share Posted July 13, 2010 Big W, on the Westshoremen history thread you and others have talked about innovations and innovative corps in the senior/all-age corps activity through the years... IMO, the Yankee Rebels' "Requiem For An Era" production/color presentation, first performed in 1969, very well might top my list of groundbreaking, push-the-envelope productions on the all-age side. That was way ahead of its time..... to the point where I'm not sure the judges back then knew how to react to it. SC Vanguard director Gail Royer once said that the "Requiem" production, with its "split corps" and multiple meters/tempos, was his inspiration for the Vanguard's "Young Person's Guide" masterpiece of 1973-74. I've participated in so many corps contests, that I've forgotten most of them. But the biggest and LONGEST standing ovation I ever saw for a corps, was the AL Nat'ls in Atlanta. We (Rochester Crusaders) were on the ready line and Baltimore was performing. The crowd went absolutely CRAZY with the opening notes of their show. Screamed throughout the show. Was on their feet for the majority of their show, and when they trooped the stands, you couldn't count the babies being thrown. It was out of control. The crowd did not sit down cheering for Baltimore, as they were marching behind the stands, until we were just about into our concert......what a show!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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