Stu Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 I think there is a LOT of area between the drum corps fanatic that looks at June shows as being 'dirty' and 'not worth spending time going to' and the uninitiated mainstream. Lots of area! There are a lot of people who have heard of drum corps and have not attended a show (price, distance, being outdoors, wrong day) that will be attracted to an indoor venue (no bugs or sunscreen needed), with nice seats and surround sound. No need to sit on stadium bleechers or stadium seats and either die from the heat or get soaked or end up with a seat where you cannot hear or see whats going on. IF DCI would just put a bit of promotion dollars into some Internet ads or a couple of well placed TV ads to reach outside the current drum corps community, there would be even more interest........IMO. My question has still not been answered: If the target audience is actually the "uninitiated mainstream", and not current drum corps fans, how can DCI promote this event and get them interested in purchasing a ticket to go see it in a theater? Otherwise, it will just be yet another theater event promoted on the DCI website for the entertainment of current drum corps fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkfdPRphan Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 My question has still not been answered: If the target audience is actually the "uninitiated mainstream", and not current drum corps fans, how can DCI promote this event and get them interested in purchasing a ticket to go see it in a theater? Otherwise, it will just be yet another theater event promoted on the DCI website for the entertainment of current drum corps fans. You are right! I think DCI hopes each of us will attend the theater event and bring someone (new to drum corps) with us. WE are the promotor to the "uninitiated mainstream" and not DCI. This doesnt make attending the theater event 'bad', but, to me, DCI looses or chooses not to even use the theater setup to drum corps advantage....or their own advantage (whatever that might be). I dont see enough, well any, promotion by DCI....we are IT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterA Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 One think I think someone should point out, as far as new people coming in and seeing drum corps for the first time, whether on their own, with a DCI friend, or with some sort of bgand program. Most people who haven't seen corps perform before, have probably seen marching bands at some point. And anyone who has seen their local marching band, a local marching band competition, or a state marching band competition are used to that level of show. My opinion is, even if the corps shows are a little dirty at the beginning of the season, most people aren't going to notice it so much. When you compare even a first show from almost any corps, to an end of season performance from almost any marching band, there is going to be no comparison, and the perfomances from the top 8 are still going to be far superior than almost anything they have seen before. I think one of the more obvious things about this is if you go to a smaller town show, and listen to the people around you who are seeing shows like this for the first time. Just watch their reaction and amazement, and it will make you excited to be around the activity. And alot of times this happens early in the evening, even before the top 8 corps take the field. So to be honest, I think that almost anyone fairly new to the activity, who hasn't seen things like the shows DCI puts on every year, I think they will still be very impressed, and alot of them won't notice dirty feet, slight intoniation issues, and phasing issues. Plus the likelihood of the cameras catching alot of obvious errors would proably be fairly small. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowtown Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 So we get to see 8 incomplete dirty shows on the big screen. I can't wait. I love this reply It totality G-8s the G-8, it’s that exact thinking I see in the G-8 proposal. It's that elite, only the best is good enough for me (or the masses) kind of thinking so it’s fair play…live by the sword and die by the sword. If you’re selling excellence you better deliver, always. If good is what sell, show me good Personally, I don’t agree with that and can enjoy early season shows and corps at all levels but I'm not some sort of G-8 freak pushing the great lie incomplete shows do bug me regardless, insulting really I have to question how much of this supposed failure of Drum Corps in California, according to the G-8, is due to the top California corps not delivery complete shows in their home state. They are not acting as a very good show case, not being the best of the best…I mean really, the best corps do a stand still in front of a paying audience because they can only get 6 dirty minutes on that filed, maybe BD and SCV should get their own house in order first….. Recently wasn’t Vanguard lacking an ending until Texas and they had already left California? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueorginal Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 A couple of ponderings from me 1. Could the corps have agreed to have a "finished" show for these initial events. 2. Shows will be dirty but I never expect clean until mid-late july 3. At one point do we taint the activity for ourselfs with our own negativity so much that we won't enjoy a show even if it's great? 4. While Drum Corps is all about Traditions, it's also one that changes with the performers...at somepoint we've all adapted to changes from rigid drills to flowing, fast, unique and amazing shows. Best I can say is it's like my grandfather was, whenever we played in the street in front of his house he'd break out the hose and wash the sidewalk and street cussing at us to go away that he never did what we were doing...........So juding from the posts so far the G-8 better watch out for hoses in the stands........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 (edited) Most people who haven't seen corps perform before, have probably seen marching bands at some point. And anyone who has seen their local marching band, a local marching band competition, or a state marching band competition are used to that level of show. My opinion is, even if the corps shows are a little dirty at the beginning of the season, most people aren't going to notice it so much. When you compare even a first show from almost any corps, to an end of season performance from almost any marching band, there is going to be no comparison, and the performances from the top 8 are still going to be far superior than almost anything they have seen before. I agree with you up to this point; the average "new" person would not be able to tell the difference between BD in June and BD in Aug. So to be honest, I think that almost anyone fairly new to the activity, who hasn't seen things like the shows DCI puts on every year, I think they will still be very impressed,... Here is where I disagree. I contend, through years of experience talking with people after shows, most "new" people who do not know much about music will not really be able to tell the quality difference between the TOC on the screen and their local marching band shows. Let's face it, most people who do not partake of symphonic music cannot even tell the quality difference between the Chicago Symphony and their local high school orchestra, or the difference between a professional band and a local bar cover-band. ... and a lot of them won't notice dirty feet, slight intonation issues, and phasing issues. Plus the likelihood of the cameras catching a lot of obvious errors would probably be fairly small. Again, I agree with you on this point. Edited April 29, 2011 by Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 You are right! I think DCI hopes each of us will attend the theater event and bring someone (new to drum corps) with us. WE are the promotor to the "uninitiated mainstream" and not DCI. This doesnt make attending the theater event 'bad', but, to me, DCI looses or chooses not to even use the theater setup to drum corps advantage....or their own advantage (whatever that might be). I dont see enough, well any, promotion by DCI....we are IT! A high school band participant is very hard pressed to get anyone outside of their own immediate family to go to a local marching band contest which costs very little; and most people who do not know a participant are just not interested in marching music competition. How in the world can we DCI fans convince an uninitiated person to pay "big bucks" (comparatively speaking) and devote an entire evening to a TOC theater performance? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterA Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 Here is where I disagree. I contend, through years of experience talking with people after shows, most "new" people who do not know much about music will not really be able to tell the quality difference between the TOC on the screen and their local marching band shows. Let's face it, most people who do not partake of symphonic music cannot even tell the quality difference between the Chicago Symphony and their local high school orchestra, or the difference between a professional band and a local bar cover-band. I can understand where you might disagree a little and I respect that. The thing I am trying to get across, is that someone who spends $15 or whatever it takes for admission, usually has at least an idea of what they might be seeing, otherwise they wouldn't be going. Whether it was a referral from a corps person, a band director, or a good friend, etc. But I have the feeling the visual programs will still be worlds above what they are used to seeing from their local marching band, which does set DCI apart from the marching band activity. And if you see Cavaliers and Cadets drill, even with some marching issues, the drill is still very impressive, along with many of the other corps. And musically, the level of music played is usually very challenging, the main question will be will a new person to the activity enjoy the music or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubaJon Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 C'mon now people. If you dont wanna go then don't, but paaaallllleeease do not tell people in your hometown or people you are connected to NOT to go. That is only hurting DCI, which is something we all clame to want to save. If you really bought into that attitude, go buy a ticket, and help. Not going because the show is not as clean as you like or who is performing it, is not helping anything. If this thing fails, then they won't do it again. But if not, let it be what it is, a new source of revenue, and a possible recruitment tool. Take all of your friends and talk it up, there is no need for someone who has never seen it befor, for you to point out that a member is not splitting. A lot of us are saying that we want to save drum corps, but are some of us doing the exact opposite? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 (edited) I can understand where you might disagree a little and I respect that. The thing I am trying to get across, is that someone who spends $15 or whatever it takes for admission, usually has at least an idea of what they might be seeing, otherwise they wouldn't be going. Whether it was a referral from a corps person, a band director, or a good friend, etc. Ok; so the target audience are the people who already know about drum corps and "not" the uninitiated mainstream? Edited April 30, 2011 by Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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