contraBand Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 (edited) Some time in the last year or so I recall hearing word of a couple startup corps in the Washington area. If I remember correctly they were run by the Cascades organization and were based in Vancouver and Marysville; one of them I believe was called Northern Sound, the name of the other escapes me. The point is, I was excited at the prospect of other corps joining us in the Pacific Northwest, but they seem to have dropped off the face of the planet. Is anyone willing and able to tell us where did they go and why are they gone? Is there any chance that a similar effort will be made to form new corps in the northwest area- especially since Thunder is now the only Open Class left? EDIT: Before y'all ask, I did a quick search of the forums before I asked this, nothing conclusive showed up hence the asking... Edited November 8, 2012 by laser.lemon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric24 Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 The corps is named Ascent from Vancover Wa. If you go to Cascades site, there's info about them. http://www.seattlecascades.org/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contraBand Posted November 9, 2012 Author Share Posted November 9, 2012 The Ascent Drum Corps is moving to Tri-CitiesUpdated 10-11-12 8:35pm PST The Ascent Drum Corps has developed a strategic relationship between Hanford High School and Director of Bands Kevin Swisher, along with the Richland School District that will allow us access to the school and the talented members, staff and band programs in the greater Tri-Cities area. We look forward to finalizing the details of our Walk On Weekend scheduled tentatively for November 23rd, 24th and 25th. Details to follow..... How is it that they are moving to my hometown area but I have not heard a single thing? O.o Does anyone know any more about this group? I am intrigued, mostly by the lack of any apparent word, either here or anywhere else... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Denzer Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I know that more new corps is always a good thing.....however, does it make sense for Cascades to start another corps when they have been struggling to field enough members for even a medium sized open class corps in the last few years? Why not recruit those members as members of the Cascades? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNModdison Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I know that more new corps is always a good thing.....however, does it make sense for Cascades to start another corps when they have been struggling to field enough members for even a medium sized open class corps in the last few years? Why not recruit those members as members of the Cascades? This has always been my question/thought. To me; there just aren’t enough members (or qualified staff for that matter) to sustain 3 or 4 drum corps in the NW. 1 corps in Seattle, 1 corps in Portland, and 1 corps in Spokane would be the max that I could possibly see work. The (Seattle) Cascades have been struggling to field a full drum corps for years now, and I would think that any members from the Tri-Cities area would/should be encouraged to join the (Seattle) Cascades, or Spokane Thunder, or Oregon Crusaders. I hope that they aren’t spreading themselves too thin. As for Northern Sound that was starting up in Marysville; I don’t see how this could possibly work, especially with the (Seattle) Cascades coming back to the West Side of the state. There simply aren’t enough prospective members in the northern Puget Sound. I would really love to see drum corps in the NW thrive. I love seeing the Oregon Crusaders winning Div. 2 last year. I hope that they can continue to grow in Div. 1. I hope that Spokane Thunder can stay in competition and continue to grow. And of course the home team (Seattle) Cascades; I hope that they can make a step forward. I am glad that the floundering on the East Side of the state is over. I wish them all nothing but success! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danp8161 Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 Hello all, My name is Dan and I am the Direct6or of The Ascent. Yes we have made the move to the Tri-Citiies in washington state. We have known since July we were making the move. We didn't put that infomation out to the public because we wanted to have the interstucture togeather first. As well as having discussions with The Director of Spokane Thunder as we did not want to harm them in any way. We are excited about our first camp in the tri cites comming up in just 2 short weeks. As for the cascades, we are part of the Cascades Foundation which is the parent group of the Seattle Cascades. We are tasked with our own fund raising and support. Other than being included in the Cascades insurance We are not a drain on the cascade's funds. I have been involved in Drum Corps in the Northwest since 1972, I do remember back at that time there was 5 corps in the Portland Oregon area as well as 7 in the greater Seattle area. I feel the more corps we can have in the area the better. we are setting our price point for member fees at a very reasonable level. We will open up the Drum Corps experiance to a whole group of young people who at this time are priced out of the activiety. It is looking like this is going to be a great year for Northwest Corps and there will be more students involved in our beloved activeity this year than there has been since the early 90's. Please get involved with one of the 4 fine Drum and Bugle Corps in the Northwest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contraBand Posted November 11, 2012 Author Share Posted November 11, 2012 Hello all, My name is Dan and I am the Direct6or of The Ascent. Yes we have made the move to the Tri-Citiies in washington state. We have known since July we were making the move. We didn't put that infomation out to the public because we wanted to have the interstucture togeather first. As well as having discussions with The Director of Spokane Thunder as we did not want to harm them in any way. We are excited about our first camp in the tri cites comming up in just 2 short weeks. As for the cascades, we are part of the Cascades Foundation which is the parent group of the Seattle Cascades. We are tasked with our own fund raising and support. Other than being included in the Cascades insurance We are not a drain on the cascade's funds. I have been involved in Drum Corps in the Northwest since 1972, I do remember back at that time there was 5 corps in the Portland Oregon area as well as 7 in the greater Seattle area. I feel the more corps we can have in the area the better. we are setting our price point for member fees at a very reasonable level. We will open up the Drum Corps experiance to a whole group of young people who at this time are priced out of the activiety. It is looking like this is going to be a great year for Northwest Corps and there will be more students involved in our beloved activeity this year than there has been since the early 90's. Please get involved with one of the 4 fine Drum and Bugle Corps in the Northwest If I may ask, how much are you advertising your presence? I know a couple Thunder vets still in the Tri-Cities that have no knowledge of a new corps, and I know of quite a few more non-vets who I'm sure would be interested in hearing about it. I would be interested in helping you spread the word a bit as well when I return home, if that's what you're looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I know that more new corps is always a good thing.....however, does it make sense for Cascades to start another corps when they have been struggling to field enough members for even a medium sized open class corps in the last few years? Why not recruit those members as members of the Cascades? For one thing, there may be kids who cannot do a full summer schedule in 2013, or cannot afford the cost of it, but who would be interested in marching if there was an open class drum corps in their area. As for Cascades recruiting, maybe they are thinking long term. Some of the kids that enter the activity through an open class program may eventually move to the world class program of the Cascades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oc1 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 This has always been my question/thought. To me; there just aren’t enough members (or qualified staff for that matter) to sustain 3 or 4 drum corps in the NW. 1 corps in Seattle, 1 corps in Portland, and 1 corps in Spokane would be the max that I could possibly see work. The (Seattle) Cascades have been struggling to field a full drum corps for years now, and I would think that any members from the Tri-Cities area would/should be encouraged to join the (Seattle) Cascades, or Spokane Thunder, or Oregon Crusaders. I hope that they aren’t spreading themselves too thin. As for Northern Sound that was starting up in Marysville; I don’t see how this could possibly work, especially with the (Seattle) Cascades coming back to the West Side of the state. There simply aren’t enough prospective members in the northern Puget Sound. I would really love to see drum corps in the NW thrive. I love seeing the Oregon Crusaders winning Div. 2 last year. I hope that they can continue to grow in Div. 1. I hope that Spokane Thunder can stay in competition and continue to grow. And of course the home team (Seattle) Cascades; I hope that they can make a step forward. I am glad that the floundering on the East Side of the state is over. I wish them all nothing but success! Nate, Shawny Shawn here....you better wish us success! I am also working on getting The Ascent off the ground. We are working to support Cascades and all corps in the NW by offering a price point that is much lower then the full costs that the 2 World Class Corps currently offer. We hope to be a competitive group right out of the gate and we feel that with our Tri-Cities staff and support that this will be very successful. Again, Dan mentioned that we are not a drain on Cascades as we are responsible for our own fundraising and resources. We have some of their reserve equipment and they help with the insurance. We are confident that we can put a solid group on the field this coming summer. Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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