Restructuring the DCI BOD

[danielray]

you are mixing scholastic and independent groups and their missions. While WGi has scholastic and independent groups, they are very clear in the role of each. You aren't.

Marching Music's Major League*

*For All Groups That Are Independent Non-Scholastic Groups, So Please Disregard This Point In Comparison To Scholastic Groups... Because Some Are.. Wel... Kinda Better.

[danielray]

one point. people DO learn football in the NFL, because the differences between the NFL, college and high school are vast.

So, a guy is drafted... and then they teach him how to play the game?

and DCI's mission is far more than just running drum corps shows. Maybe you should read the mission statement

DRUM CORPS SHOWS

[Stu]

Marching Music's Major League*

Then use paid adult professionals! Otherwise the term is just a cutesy marketing ploy!!!

Edited December 6, 2011 by Stu

[danielray]

This is kind of goofy: the best college baseball teams could compete with professional baseball teams. Plenty of high school wind ensembles could outplay college music programs. EPL teams get beat by League 1 teams in tournaments. In ANY competitive activity you'll have some teams that over-achieve and some teams that under-achieve: there will always be a last place, and there will always be a decent sized achievement gap from 1st to last. If your standard is "any DCI corps must be a higher level than the best BOA and WGI groups," there wouldn't be enough DCI corps to sustain a tour.

You are REALLY getting too hung up on a marketing slogan. Surely someone with business experience understand that a marketing catch phrase is not gospel:

* Budweiser, as far as I know, is not affiliated with any sort of royalty, let alone Kingship

* M&M's have indeed melted in my hand on occasion

* you can't literally touch someone while calling someone from an AT&T phone

* Maxwell house frequently tastes poorly when you get down to the end of a cup: certainly the last drop

* PLENTY of people eat Wheaties without being athletic Champions

The list goes on. "Marching Music's Major League" is a catchy slogan, and not meant to be dissected and over-analyzed.

Try to see it from a completely objective point of view...

You are a potential corporate sponsor evaluating the activity... you are looking to align your brand with the DCI brand. You are going to want to make for #### sure that what you are associating your brand with is of a consistent level and quality.

[danielray]

Then use paid adult professionals! Otherwise the term is just a cutesy marketing ploy!!!

Are the Olympics amateur?

[perc2100]

Then use paid adult professionals! Otherwise the term is just a cutesy marketing ploy!!!

It basically IS just a cutsey marketing ploy (most marketing slogans are not definitive factual statements).

[Stu]

Are the Olympics amateur?

a) The Olympics have adults, as well as youth, participating in the performance activities;

b) While there are paid pros in the Olympics, they are not paid to participate in the Olympics;

c) The Olympics are not billed as, nor marketed as, a Major League but as performers representing their home countries at an international event every four years;

d) All Major Leagues (PGA, NASCAR, MLB, NFL, MLB, NBA, ad infinitum)consist of Adult Professionals who are paid by each respective team.

Edited December 6, 2011 by Stu

[Jeff Ream]

I never talked about eliminating them... just changing the classes... and world class and open class would still be on same ticket.

If restructuring things... you should not assume I think compensation structure for open class should remain as it is now. I have suggested before that each corps should negotiate independently with the tour operator.

And by doing that, you price out the TEPS. trust me on that, I've seen it on the DCA side where they do it that way. It rarely allows for great lineups full of heavy hitters.

And if you think the top dawgs arent going to jack their prices way up, you're living on another planet

[Jeff Ream]

Now we are getting to the heart of the matter. While the NY Phil, PGA, etc... have youth educational outlets, their Major Symphony or Major League consists not of youth, but of Paid Adult Professionals (which is really the only way to secure the best of the best). So, I would be in agreement with many of your ideas if: a) The DCI WC was structured as a real Major League with paid adult pros (like the PGA); and b) The DCI OC was structured as the educational outlet. And for the record, high schools being able to out perform pros is a reality: There are many HS and College Baseball Teams which could destroy some MLB Farm Teams (which is akin to a top BOA band being able to out perform some DCI OC corps).

the minor leagues in baseball are educational,and the players there get paid.

[perc2100]

Try to see it from a completely objective point of view...

You are a potential corporate sponsor evaluating the activity... you are looking to align your brand with the DCI brand. You are going to want to make for #### sure that what you are associating your brand with is of a consistent level and quality.

I get that, but in ANY competitive activity there are under-achieving people/units. ESPN is a sponsor of MLB, despite the fact that the Pittsburgh Pirates exist Typically if a corporate sponsor is looking to buy into a competitive league, they are buying into the best and "accepting" the worst, sometimes knowing that a) even the worst have their good days/seasons and b) seeing the lower-achieving groups makes the higher achieving groups look that much more impressive. If there is a really consistent high level at the top, and a lot of solid quality in the middle, the best will outweigh the 'worst.' You're not going to put in a DVD of Pioneer to pitch DCI to a corporate sponsor.

That all being said, finding sponsors for DCI is FAR less about, "look what you can do putting your name to DCI" and far more to do with "here is what you can get out of aligning yourself with DCI."