You know drum corps is dying when.............

[Brigscontrachik05]

that's not counting corps that are not coming to finals. DCI's numbers reflect those that do not attend finals.

I'd say because of that, DCA has about 25 total

Blackstar numbers adds to 24. Now I have made the stat about this. I took every single stat posted on the DCA score history website, put all that together, and made a nice little graph of the number of corps per year competing in the DCA circuit since 1965, seasons shows included. Wanna see it? (slow summer at work)

11 Open Class corps 2000

13 Open Class corps 2009

5 Class A Corps 2000

11 Class A corps 2009

[Brigscontrachik05]

me too. thank you 42 color guard for making 41 brass look that much bigger

I can't argue that one... haha

[soccerguy315]

There's a lot more to a synth than just the sounds coming out of the module.

Example: System Blue Xylosynth

In some ways, that is actually more difficult to truly master than an acoustic marimba.

With electronic instruments, it is easy to make a sound, but challenging to make music. I bought an Akai EWI awhile back and have been using that quite a bit. While it is easy to honk out some sound on it, it actually takes serious practice to master it.

Anyway, the way electronics are currently used in drum corps is more for texture or accent. I guess you think the kid in the pit playing wind chimes or a woodblock is looking for an easy gig?

the first person I quoted referenced a 20 person tuba line, and then said that they needed a synth to bolster the bass sound.

I'm saying that the staff puts the synth in, not the tuba players. To insult the tuba players because of staff decisions is not fair to the tuba players.

edit: and people are not arguing that it is easy to play a synth... they are arguing that parts that used to belong to other people can be switched or bolstered by someone sitting in a chair on the front sideline. Surely it is easier to play a synth tuba at volume 11 than to have a 16 person tuba line at FFF.

I strongly disagree that the synths are used for textures or accents... they are used on practically every single big hit in every show.

Edited August 27, 2010 by soccerguy315

[JimF-LowBari]

Blackstar numbers adds to 24. Now I have made the stat about this. I took every single stat posted on the DCA score history website, put all that together, and made a nice little graph of the number of corps per year competing in the DCA circuit since 1965, seasons shows included. Wanna see it? (slow summer at work)

Christine, did you happen to list the corps names also? Wondering as there were a pair of circuits for smaller Senior corps 1969-1978 and (roughly) 1980-198?. Would be interesting (well to me anyway) to see if there were competing Sr corps that didn't do DCA in a given year.

Yeah, yeah... off topic....

Edited August 27, 2010 by JimF-LowBari

[Jeff Ream]

Blackstar numbers adds to 24. Now I have made the stat about this. I took every single stat posted on the DCA score history website, put all that together, and made a nice little graph of the number of corps per year competing in the DCA circuit since 1965, seasons shows included. Wanna see it? (slow summer at work)

love to. you should post it

[Jeff Ream]

r

I can't argue that one... haha

and trust me, dodging them while trying to teach was a #####!

[BOBSMYTH]

Drum Corps is still alive and kicking. Maybe not the same size and shape and look and feel as it once was... but it is a survivor.

I can't tell you the number of times that it has been pronounced dead or dying - even before DCI came into existence.

The reports of its demise have been greatly exaggerated. {$1 to Mark Twain}

[Brigscontrachik05]

love to. you should post it

Well I can't post it here... It's a bit off topic (not that the OP is serious anyway) but I'll gladly send anything your way by email. I've put all the data DCA.org had into a database, I can work the info any way you want it! Shows, cities, scores, placements, spreads.... I just wished I had recaps. That would be even more complete.

Yes, I am a stats junky. lol

And Jim, Yes I have all the corps names listed as well. Keep in mind I only listed the corps that the DCA score history database provided. There might be information missing (shows, corps...)

[littlebirdy]

Good story, bro.

[N.E. Brigand]

Well, what they publish publicly is pretty much what I think they would want to be floating out there.

And what the IRS requires them to publish, of course. The 990 seems to require that the "current highest compensated employees" be listed if they earn more than $100,000. As Hopkins isn't listed, he presumably earns less than this. Presuming the form isn't wrong, the figure garfield reported is either incorrect or from a different year. In any case, I don't care about this; I trust he's paid fairly and not exorbitantly, and was just trying to work out the discrepancy.

One comment I will make is that gross numbers don't mean too much and the only number that matters is the net profit.

Yes and no. You have to have a budget large enough to accomplish the mission. And then revenue large enough to balance.

I am an absolute firm believer that activities like drum corps should not be non-profit activities, but not-for-profit. A very different mindset. There should be a major emphasis on generating profit, not just covering expenses.

I half agree. Yes, all non-profits should both bring in sufficient revenue to pay for their programs and set something aside for the future. (And I think this is properly called "surplus" rather than "profit".) But they needn't be on an unending growth track -- at least not permanent growth that far outstrips the rate of inflation. There is a right size. Also, each corps ideally should have set up an endowment --and fund it until it's at least three times the size of the annual budget (I think that's the usual recommendation)-- to help pay for future activity.

$10M is a pretty big number if you're keeping a good chunk ... If your expenses are $9M, $10M is a lot smaller ... $11M, $10M is a failure.

Of course.

A great profit margin on a $10M figure for a group like DCI would be about $2.5M banked. If they are pulling less than that, they are probably spread too thin

I think very few non-profits see an annual surplus of 25%! Certainly not on a regular basis.

Also, a couple of key areas that would be able to generate revenue not related to drum corps year round would make a hell of a lot of sense.

Non-profits are limited by law as to how much income they can earn not related to their mission; at least, they would have to pay tax on such income. That said, what you say below might make some sense; I simply don't know enough about the actual workings of DCI to begin to say:

I've been a strong advocate of dividing DCI's activities and separating the event related aspects into a separate operating entity that would operate year round, building on the expertise, experience, equipment and infrastructure of the organization to produce and manage events and tours for non-corps related activities, in order to generate year round income and attract highly-experienced individuals in the events management, as these guys would be utilizing their skills year round, rather than only 1/3 of the year. This would also cause the departments within DCI to be much more focused.