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This bothered me... A lot.


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Atlanta Regional was packed with high schoolers.

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Maybe it's just that show, because here in Canton at the DCI show I saw a ton of kids under 21, maybe 30% or more.

At DCI Finale there were tons of young people everywhere. So I think some shows do this better than others in terms of bringing in youth. This can be done through high school bands, youth groups, or just attracting a lot of young people in the region.

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Here's my concern:

There were almost NO young people. If there' were 2000+, there were 150 people below the age of 20. It was startling. The mean age was EASY 53 years old. I'm 43 myself. I was proud to attend. But I think there's a real issue here. Not one I've ever really thought about, but really struck me at the show. Now, I know, NE is not the hotbed of marching band it is in the other parts of the country, but that fact only reinforces my point: Where's the groups of young people? Those familiar groups of 4 or 5 at the shows cheering that are the real meat and bones of the activity? It was BAD. I'm happy to have gone to the show, but this is a youth activity. Where's the youth? What's happened to the craving to see the "pros" in the summer? Is the product so spread thin that the activity doesn't have the draw? It bothers me. It makes me nervous for the long-term viability of the activity. Please tell me that the shows are well attended in different parts of the country when it comes to young people!

Any thoughts?

Yes....several.

1. I wasn't in Lawrence this year, but I did go there in '09 and '10. There were kids of all ages at those shows. True, though, that the HS demographic was not as well represented as it is at most other shows. In contrast, the Charleston, WV, show this year seemed to be half HS kids in the audience, many of whom arrived there via school buses. Perhaps the Lawrence show does not have that same kind of outreach to the local schools.

2. I think a better question would be "why is there so little competitive marching band in Massachusetts?". The state had a HUGE drum corps activity back in the day....and some of those drum corps circuits had marching bands too. Today's marching band activity in MA is way smaller than the drum corps activity was BITD. I don't think the same can be said of any other area of the country.

3. For those who scoff at marketing to the "legacy fan", it is worth noting the value of the older demographics filling seats at shows like this one.

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Yes....several.

1. I wasn't in Lawrence this year, but I did go there in '09 and '10. There were kids of all ages at those shows. True, though, that the HS demographic was not as well represented as it is at most other shows. In contrast, the Charleston, WV, show this year seemed to be half HS kids in the audience, many of whom arrived there via school buses. Perhaps the Lawrence show does not have that same kind of outreach to the local schools.

2. I think a better question would be "why is there so little competitive marching band in Massachusetts?". The state had a HUGE drum corps activity back in the day....and some of those drum corps circuits had marching bands too. Today's marching band activity in MA is way smaller than the drum corps activity was BITD. I don't think the same can be said of any other area of the country.

3. For those who scoff at marketing to the "legacy fan", it is worth noting the value of the older demographics filling seats at shows like this one.

If Drum Corps was so big in this area BITD, then why don't those alums advocate for, promote and teach competitive high school marching band, so we get more young people involved in that region? If you care about the activity and want it to thrive, wishing for a return to the day of local corps isn't very realistic at this point, but teaching the fundamentals through competitive high school bands gets more kids doing the activity and/or supporting and at least going to shows. Might not be the ideal answer for many of you, but it is an answer. Being in a region where many schools are leaving the competitive field, I feel as though it's for no other reason than band directors not wanting do it because its a lot of time. I think this is total BS. The only difference between competing bands and non-competing bands is that competing bands are accountable for the quality of what the directors do. At least in my area. The trend of bands going to non-competitive status will cut off drum corps at the heels. Imagine the uproar if all these schools were cutting football.......can't even imagine.

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The Lawrence DCI show has really struck me as more of a DCA crowd.

Exactly. The DCI events I've attended have a good mix, unlike the DCA crowds.

Where was this event held in Lawrence? Maybe a more modern facility in the area instead? It seems like some shows are held in locations just because that's where they've always been. The show I went to in Glens Falls NY...like a middle school baseball field...place is not DCI quality! And will do nothing to attract NEW fans, imagine if you were to hold that event where there are HS bands in Syracuse or Albany.

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OK, it was a great year. GO Cadets!! Very proud alum!

I saw the show in Lawrence, MA, and BD, Cadets, Boston, and SCV were all great. Fantastic corps, one and all! As an alum, like I said, I'm very proud of the final results for the year. I can see how BD were so close, as back in early August when I saw them they were clean as all get out. The fact that Crown beat them in horns at finals means that Crown must've been PHENOMENAL because BD were incredible sounding when I saw them!

OK, I digress-

At the Lawrence MA show, it was well attended, I'm thinking 2000+ easy for attendance. It was Boston's show, so I'm sure someone has the actual attendance #'s somewhere. There may have been more. The crowd was enthusiastic, polite, and respectful. All corps were given their due as far as reactions.

Here's my concern:

There were almost NO young people. If there' were 2000+, there were 150 people below the age of 20. It was startling. The mean age was EASY 53 years old. I'm 43 myself. I was proud to attend. But I think there's a real issue here. Not one I've ever really thought about, but really struck me at the show. Now, I know, NE is not the hotbed of marching band it is in the other parts of the country, but that fact only reinforces my point: Where's the groups of young people? Those familiar groups of 4 or 5 at the shows cheering that are the real meat and bones of the activity? It was BAD. I'm happy to have gone to the show, but this is a youth activity. Where's the youth? What's happened to the craving to see the "pros" in the summer? Is the product so spread thin that the activity doesn't have the draw? It bothers me. It makes me nervous for the long-term viability of the activity. Please tell me that the shows are well attended in different parts of the country when it comes to young people!

Any thoughts?

My experience was the opposite.....I not only saw lots of bando kids, but there were many, many school groups in T-shirts with parents and Band Directors in charge. This has probably always happened but I just seemed to notice it more this year. I think the relationship between DCI and the School Band community is healthy. Although I have my fears that the coming years of reduced funding will kill some music programs.

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Sorry, but I would LOVE to attend a show where there were no kids under 20. Why? Because many times, these are the kids who are talking during shows, texting, joking around with their friends, and generally just not paying attention to the shows. Get them out of there. This has been less of a problem for me lately since I always get the premium seats anymore. Typically, these kind of kids I'm referring to sit in the cheaper seats (but not always.) Anyway, I can't say I haven't seen this sort of behavior with older adults, but it definitely is more common in younger kids.

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I'd like to share a few thoughts about this particular show, in no particular order..

First, someone mentioned that perhaps it is an aging facilty...it is not. Veterans Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, MA was completely renovated in 2007. It is an ultramodern, superclean facility with huge stands and a beautiful turf field surface.

Liahona, I KNOW you can provide us with a pic..... :cool:

While I don't have hard figures on the Aug 4th show attendance, my estimate would be SUBSTANTIALLY higher than 2000...in fact, I believe they sold out the reserve seats.

The biggest reason for the "older" fans, is that there are thousands of drum corps alums in the Boston area...don't forget that in the early 80s, we had 5 World Class Corps and more than 25 Open Class (Div ii-iii) corps, and these folks are all still around.

With regard to marching bands in New England (and this is an activity with which I am very involved), the predominant circuit around here is NESBA. I think there are a total of about 30 high schools bands who compete, but keep in mind that all but a half dozen or so have anywhere from 25-60 members. With a few notable exceptions, we do NOT have the huge bands like they do in FL and TX around here. I teach the largest band in Maine, (South Portland) and we top out at about 75 members.

There is great outreach to these bands, particularly from BAC and the Spartans, and most competitive bands around here are taught by drum corps folks. The Spartans do a great job of having a very professional recruiting booth set up at all the major band shows, and BAC's "Mass Bay Music Festivals" for high school jazz ensembles during the spring have become a huge draw.

I think the audience had a healthy mix (I actually had 6 of my band kids there). Conversely, when I go to a show like the early season Virgina (Arlington, maybe?) and see 800 high school kids and only a hundred or so "adults" in the audience, I get concerned about that..... :smile:

The East Coast Classic was the best attended show in New England, and a great time was had by all. As a matter of fact, all three Massachusetts shows (Quincy, Lynn, Lawrence) had a welcomed vibe of "Drum Corps is alive and well" to them.

Edited by craiga
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