t-mac Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 OK, first off this is not inteneded to be a Drum Corps vs. Marching Band debate (in the one's better, no it's not, yes it is, your Mama!... sort of way). I was just thinking about the way the DCI/BOA discussion has been presented in the past and it hit me that a different approach might be refreshing. I've heard it asked many times before, "How would ______________ BOA winner (pick a year) fare if they competed in DCI? I propose a different way of looking at it (and please let's mainly hear from those who have been to championship events for both DCI and BOA). Let's take this past year for instance.... Assuming that there isn't a penalty in BOA that would prohibit an all brass hornline, how far "down" would you be able to go in the list of DCI finalists/semi-finalists, etc. before you would find a show that would NOT have been able to win BOA Nationals? Debate (but please keep it civil) 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t-mac Posted June 5, 2012 Author Share Posted June 5, 2012 No takers huh? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 I think that, oh damm, commercials over, back to the Stanley Cup game. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mingusmonk Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 This will certainly be more civil than the famed Cheese vs. Waffles Clash of 2006. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillis35 Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 My guess is that when I watched Academy (AZ) last summer at Finals I believe they would have handily won BOA Grand Nationals. One reason people are not so likely to get into this debate is because there are big differences in structure and purpose. A drum corps rehearses when there are no scholastic restraints. When the members report to spring training, the drum corps have them for 30 days. The kids are not in class, they do nothing but music and marching for 12 to 15 hours per day. When they embark on tour there are no distractions. Just music and marching. No science, math, history, no sports, no after-school projects, no social life (well, they have a little of that on tour), no part-time jobs, etc. Drum corps is very specialized and focused. This is both good and bad. The good is that the product is going to be awesome once cleaned. From the mini-camps, to spring training, to the 2-month tour, these corps take 12.5 minutes of music and drill and perfect it (plus some other tunes for parades and stand-still concerts). The visual content of the top 15 to 17 DCI corps is on another level from that of high-school band, even BOA. Physically, the kids in drum corps just have more time to condition, and musically they become more competent at those 12.5 minutes of music because of the focus that they can give. The bad is that sometimes, and with some individuals, they can easily mistake their 12.5 minutes of greatness for an all-around greatness at music making. In reality, the musician that can play 2 hours of material at a professional level and learn it in one week of rehearsals is a better musician, and their training is more practical in the real world. A good orchestral musician might go to a 10-week summer camp and play 10 concerts, each with 2 hours of material. They will have learned 20 hours of music and will have done so at a super high level. Yes, this is training typical for music majors who really wish to play professionally, but I offer the example as a high barometer in order to put things into perspective. The job of a public school band program is to educate musicians in a diverse manner, offering many types of music styles, genres, and ensembles. In public school students should have an opportunity to do concert band, symphonic band, jazz band, marching band, chamber ensembles, rock/pop groups, electronic music, folk, and more. The job is to give a well-rounded education. Some high-school program do not do this. They beat competitive marching band at a time when kids also have classes, jobs, family obligations, and social lives. I believe it can be a bit dangerous, but even when done well I think you can see that the focus and specialization just isn't there when compared to drum corps. Each venue really serves a different purpose, whether it be the drum corps, the BOA/competitive HS band, college band, or the summer orchestral institute. It's really a matter of knowing what makes each venue unique and worthwhile. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mingusmonk Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Hey. Remember when BOA used to be called Marching Bands of America? MBA? Yeah. Me too. That was a long time ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flammaster Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Go away! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contrajedi8 Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Oh look. It's this thread again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soccerguy315 Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Oh look. It's this thread again. nah, this is a different way of looking at it. Didn't you read the OP? lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glory Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 (edited) ...The bad is that sometimes, and with some individuals, they can easily mistake their 12.5 minutes of greatness for an all-around greatness at music making... This point that singular greatness does not necessary equate to overall greatness is important. Too often the band vs. corps discussion goes off on the correct but not necessarily relevant tangent about superiority. The best drum corps are superior. What does that tell us vis a vis marching bands? It should tell us time (including maturity), resources and effort yield results. We shouldn't be surprised by that. We should, as JWillis points out, understand this achievement in context. My grandmother was an outstanding cook. Was she as great as Emeril, Bobby Flay or younamehim best chef? I'm not an objective judge. I can tell you this, though. My Nana cooked with creativity and skill while doing the laundry and the dusting and while making sure I didn't fall out of the window. She used the ingredients at the nearest grocery store, which meant she didn't have access to the freshest butter or fish that top chefs can take. She did the dishes too (at least until I got old enough that she trusted my washing!). Whose cooking would I prefer? I ate at Commander's Palace in New Orleans when Emeril was its chef. It was one of the best meals of my life. Doesn't mean I wouldn't take Nana's roast chicken if I had the chance. Her cookies and strudel? Not even Emeril could top those. All of this is to say: Academy would win at BOA; Colts might too. HH Edited June 5, 2012 by glory Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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