Professional Drum and Bugle Corps league/organization

[cdm]

This isn't the airplane, E-Mail, or any of the above you list. This isn;t some kind of ground-breaking scientific innovation like those at all. Absoulutely silly and inane to compare them to try and sell your pitch. Don't try and call me a nay-sayer, just a practical person. You go find the well-heeled person willing to invest the tens of millions it would take to pull this off and we'll see.

Since it is not one of those that took millions of dollars, and/or huge amounts of human creativity to create, it could be easier to do.

[GUARDLING]

I have been involved with drum corps, and marching entities, since 1978.

If the level of business acumen in Drum and Bugle corps is reflected by the replies to the OP, then no wonder the activity is having problems keeping Corps alive.

I also started a IT/Computer company with $5000(with lots of people telling me I do not look like the type of person who is successfull in Computers) , and now it generates 7 figures a year in gross revenue. Things die off when people give up.

Here are few numbers I ran:

Say a Professional corps started with 50 members. To pay them $35,000 per year each, a company would have to generate $1,750,000 in revenue. Add in another $1 million to cover touring costs for 12-15 weekends during the summer., and it would take $2,750,000 in order to pay the corps, and tour during the summer. The company could factor in cost of doing business, and shoot for a profit.

There are plenty of small businesses who generate that kind of revenue, and much more, per year. ( a friend of mine, who is in smart phone app development, generates more than that with 5 people.) If, as stated in my previous post, the members are employees of the company, and their job description stated that, if hired, they must march in the drum corps, then there would be no problem with it. Also, at $35,000 per year starting salary, it would be enough to get paid doing what one loves. ( I can promise everyone, that If there was a way for me to become a professional drum corps member and get paid to do it, after I aged out, i would have busted ### to be the best player I could, so I could get drafted. That was before I found out about Future Corps.)

It looks like too many here STILL think the way society wants them to think, when it comes to Marching music/Drum and Bugle Corps.(that it is a geeky, nerdy thing for people who are athletic) Well, if you look around, it is the geeky, nerdy people who control the world now. It is the geeky, nerdy people who think out of the box, and probably could make this concept happen.

and you really believe mass appeal would be there?....hmmmmm as i said were lucky this activity still exsists. there is far less interest than there was when you started and Drum corps cant fill seats in theaters and stadiums. I would think being very close to marching members today and part of my own marching past, very soon the legacy fan will slowly die off ( sad to say ) and many members today consider this activty as a pass to something else. Us die hards are far and few now and will become less I believe and there isnt enough to take over. We spent YEARS in the activity and members today spend 1, 2 or 3...a few more and thats it, so the view on the activity is different.

We as an activity couldnt maintain a PBS relationship or support for it. JMO

[cdm]

and you really believe mass appeal would be there?....hmmmmm as i said were lucky this activity still exsists. there is far less interest than there was when you started and Drum corps cant fill seats in theaters and stadiums. I would think being very close to marching members today and part of my own marching past, very soon the legacy fan will slowly die off ( sad to say ) and many members today consider this activty as a pass to something else. Us die hards are far and few now and will become less I believe and there isnt enough to take over. We spent YEARS in the activity and members today spend 1, 2 or 3...a few more and thats it, so the view on the activity is different.

We as an activity couldnt maintain a PBS relationship or support for it. JMO

Sounds like what I am proposing should have been tried long ago. It is still possible to try it.

[dustyboo]

I have been involved with drum corps, and marching entities, since 1978. However, I got out of trying to do day to day involvement with Drum and Bugle corps due to family issues, and running my IT/Computer business, back in 1996. Now that I have run a "real" company for a while, and have a little freedom, I am looking to get back into Drum and Bugle corps.

If the level of business acumen in Drum and Bugle corps is reflected by the replies to the OP, then no wonder the activity is having problems keeping Corps alive.

I also started a IT/Computer company with $5000(with lots of people telling me I do not look like the type of person who is successfull in Computers) , and now it generates 7 figures a year in gross revenue. Things die off when people give up.

Here are few numbers I ran:

Say a Professional corps started with 50 members. To pay them $35,000 per year each, a company would have to generate $1,750,000 in revenue. Add in another $1 million to cover touring costs for 12-15 weekends during the summer., and it would take $2,750,000 in order to pay the corps, and tour during the summer. The company could factor in cost of doing business, and shoot for a profit.

There are plenty of small businesses who generate that kind of revenue, and much more, per year. ( a friend of mine, who is in smart phone app development, generates more than that with 5 people.) If, as stated in my previous post, the members are employees of the company, and their job description stated that, if hired, they must march in the drum corps, then there would be no problem with it. Also, at $35,000 per year starting salary, it would be enough to get paid doing what one loves. ( I can promise everyone, that If there was a way for me to become a professional drum corps member and get paid to do it, after I aged out, i would have busted ### to be the best player I could, so I could get drafted. That was before I found out about Future Corps.)

It looks like too many here STILL think the way society wants them to think, when it comes to Marching music/Drum and Bugle Corps.(that it is a geeky, nerdy thing for people who are athletic) Well, if you look around, it is the geeky, nerdy people who control the world now. It is the geeky, nerdy people who think out of the box, and probably could make this concept happen.

The amount of revenue you state you would need would not nearly be enough to run the organization. If this is going to be a "real" company then you would have to factor in all the other costs associated with doing business. This would no longer be a non profit organization. You would have to deal with Social Security taxes, health care (not to get too political but there are new rules about offering health care if the law is upheld, unemployment insurance, business taxes among other things. You would have to either have your own HR dept, Payroll or pay another service to manage all of that. Again, not to get too technical but you would have professional musicians and they would be part of the musicians union and demand certain things.

Also, if you are going for the wow factor in order to get the audience you say you can, you aren't going to do it with 50 members. You are going to need to have at least 70 horns tearing your face off for people to pay to see your professional corps. No slam against small corps, I love them all but to be a "pro" organization you aren't going to wow the masses with 20 horns on the field.

[cdm]

The amount of revenue you state you would need would not nearly be enough to run the organization. If this is going to be a "real" company then you would have to factor in all the other costs associated with doing business. This would no longer be a non profit organization. You would have to deal with Social Security taxes, health care (not to get too political but there are new rules about offering health care if the law is upheld, unemployment insurance, business taxes among other things. You would have to either have your own HR dept, Payroll or pay another service to manage all of that. Again, not to get too technical but you would have professional musicians and they would be part of the musicians union and demand certain things.

Also, if you are going for the wow factor in order to get the audience you say you can, you aren't going to do it with 50 members. You are going to need to have at least 70 horns tearing your face off for people to pay to see your professional corps. No slam against small corps, I love them all but to be a "pro" organization you aren't going to wow the masses with 20 horns on the field.

You all are totally missing the point of what I am saying. I was implying (and spelling out as plainly as possible) starting small, using the fan base that is there, and build from it. (just like Pro sports did.) After a while, there could be built up enough fan base/interest to make a Pro league big enough to bring in enough interest to justify larger salaries. To start, the league would have to have a long term plan for existence. (planning for 25 years plus, using the history of professional sports as a guideline).

And I did say factor in cost of business,( including benefits, etc.), in the model example.This would be a FOR PROFIT business, and the market forces(including unions) would determine the direction of the league.(although some pro sports team are non-profits, The Green Bay Packers, come to mind)

Edited May 24, 2012 by cdm

[elphaba01]

"Professional Drum Corps";

You want to SEE and HEAR a TRULY "Porfessional Drum Corps": Catch a performance of the USMC "8th & I" the "Commandants Own" Drum & Bugle Corps.

Elphaba

WWW

[cdm]

"Professional Drum Corps";

You want to SEE and HEAR a TRULY "Porfessional Drum Corps": Catch a performance of the USMC "8th & I" the "Commandants Own" Drum & Bugle Corps.

Elphaba

WWW

I meant to mention/cite the USMC "8th & I" the "Commandants Own" Drum & Bugle Corps.(but got distracted) It shows what professional corps could look like, or even be better than. Just would have to work out the details. Thanks for mentioning the USMC "8th & I" the "Commandants Own" Drum & Bugle Corps.

[irishbugle]

This is a big if here but IF you were able to change the entire worlds perception on marching music today its possible your idea would succeed. Awareness is a large part of the problem we fans deal with. I, like most others, have accepted this activity simply is a niche form of music the common person will not understand. However, I do believe there is plenty of untapped potential both for a fan base, and performers, in the world today. The problem is awareness.

Additionally, as a performer, $35,000 before taxes isn't enough to live on in todays age. Maybe for a while after college... but for 20+ years? No way. When Pro-Football first came about it was in a time when $35,000 would land you a big house and a nice car.

I believe the form of pro-drum corps your talking about, if it were to actually happen, would be a completely different form than what we know and love today. In order to gain public acceptance, drum corps would have to change their model, change the way performances are structured, and change the way the activity is presented. This would all happen over a period of decades as 1 pro corps morphs into 2, than 4, than a dozen, and so on. As these corps form, they adhere to the public perception of the activity that exists at that time.

It's the natural evolution.

And depending on how that future version of drum corps looks, you may regret ever proposing this in the first place,

That's why I have my time machine stored in my briefcase when I travel.

Edited May 24, 2012 by irishbugle

[irishbugle]

{Off in a distance, George Hopkins is sitting in his office in Allentown}

{He reads this forum and stands up abruptly, knocking over his chair}

S&*T !!! {He yells}

They know my plan!!! {He exclaims, with great concern}

[84BDsop]

Since it is not one of those that took millions of dollars, and/or huge amounts of human creativity to create, it could be easier to do.

Uhhhhh...have you TRIED to fund even a small corps???? I think you're underestimating the funds needed by QUITE a bit.

Jeff put it best....it won't work primarily because of the public perception that it's "just marching band"....and without MASSIVE public support, the idea will not fly.