danielray Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 All of these things help or hurt at the margins. The money and time and personnel devoted to electronics did not help Glassmen survive. Neither did their show designs (IMO) nor their relative competitive decline. Management decisions surely contributed, as did the touring schedule. The answer is not any one thing, no more than any one change has contributed to the sharp decline in corps count in the past twenty years. But the plans pushed in the past by Hopkins and the rest of the G7--larger membership, amps, electronics in that mix--each added a few straws to that camel's back. The new G7 ideas would be even more punishing to the non-G7 corps--no Friday or Sunday shows outside the G7, a smaller share of revenue outside the G7, less control by non-G7 members--along with related ideas from Hopkins et al--woodwinds would not net out to save anyone money. Someone who wants to help struggling corps should be proposing ideas for helping those corps that are at the biggest risk of folding, not for padding the balance sheets of the corps who already have the biggest budgets and the biggest fanbases. If dropping 2 grand on electronics is going to cause you to go under, please fold now. Look, all of these groups that went under, it doesn't matter what it was exactly that caused them to go under. It was all the same thing. All went under not due to cash, but cashflow. They got too much air in the hose. Anyway, if you got to the point where 2 grand is what could take you down, you deserve to fold as quickly as possible... because it was only a matter of time. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 If dropping 2 grand on electronics is going to cause you to go under, please fold now. Look, all of these groups that went under, it doesn't matter what it was exactly that caused them to go under. It was all the same thing. All went under not due to cash, but cashflow. They got too much air in the hose. Anyway, if you got to the point where 2 grand is what could take you down, you deserve to fold as quickly as possible... because it was only a matter of time. Yeah 2 grand here, couple more grand there, bunch more grand over that way, pretty soon corps might have a lot of bills to worry about. Have yet to read "we folded due to $2000" but each additional and/or higher cost just makes things harder and harded. Expression "straw that broke the camels back" comes to mind when I read the info from corps when they go inactive. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skywhopper Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 (edited) Has there been a document seen publicly in which the G-7 essentially states "Dear, DCI participants. . . . unless our latest suggestion is agreed to, in its entirety, we're outta here, and going off to do our own thing!" I haven't seen such declaration. Until then, I don't expect any breakout beyond that which has already been agreed to, and previously tested. The letter that started this thread says: If possible, the “7” would like to remain as active members of Drum Corps International through the years to come. We would like to, if possible, keep our entire effort within the walls of this very organization we have helped to create.In order for this to happen, we believe that we need to be represented at the table of governance. There is no way to read that other than "we prefer to stay in DCI, but only if we get control of the board". And later: We are all aware that the Music in Motion/Drum Corps International separation is volatile. It has been the discussion of many over the recent weeks.With this in mind, we offer this alternative as a method for maintaining what we have created. In other words, "the DCI/MIM split is already underway, but the plan we've given is our proposal for keeping DCI intact." Honestly, having looked back at it just now, I can't read it any other way than, "we're on our way out, unless you guys give us control of DCI". Edited January 16, 2013 by skywhopper 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skywhopper Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 If dropping 2 grand on electronics is going to cause you to go under, please fold now. Look, all of these groups that went under, it doesn't matter what it was exactly that caused them to go under. It was all the same thing. All went under not due to cash, but cashflow. They got too much air in the hose. Anyway, if you got to the point where 2 grand is what could take you down, you deserve to fold as quickly as possible... because it was only a matter of time. No corps spends that little on electronics. Maybe the mixer cost two grand. But in any case, you totally missed the point of my post, didn't you? Twenty two-grand things add up to a forty-grand thing, and if you take on debt to pay for it in a bad year, that adds another few thousand you have to come up with for the next several years. Adding electronics was just a tiny additional expense, but it was one all the corps have felt it necessary to take on. But that's not the only additional expense. Proposals to help DCI should be looking to find ways to minimize the money corps feel they have to put into extras, not increase it. Yeah, maybe it's just a few thousand, but sometimes that's all it takes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 (edited) I think Jeff hit upon the probable right answer--the G7 wanted the two weeks to put together the list of rule changes they planned to pass once they had a controlling vote. I don't believe for a second that the G7 thought that the DCI members ( non top 12 ) were going to vote to essentially vote in favor of a proposal that limits at best, and eliminates at worse, their future right to vote. I havn't heard the results of the proposal, but my guess, its voted down in a heartbeat, as it was a non starter right from the getgo... and the G7 knew it would meet with this result all along. The G7 may be many things... but having political instincts that wouldn't be able to properly gauge other DCI members thinking probably isn't one of them. So they know this proposal has no shot. I think its more likely that they've already discussed what their next move is once its voted down. Edited January 16, 2013 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ripper Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 So after DCI votes down the power-grab proposal by SE7EN, who are not yet prepared to leave DCI, should DCI (or can DCI) take any other action as regards SE7EN, or should DCI kick the can down the road? The letter is clear that this proposal is the way in which SE7EN would "remain as active members of Drum Corps International through the years to come". Is there anything that DCI, having shot down the kill-the-competition proposal, as they must, could do to prevent the split from happening in 2014? Let them return and position them 1st on in open class and then everyone will come into the show at the beggining and probably stay and enjoy some Open Class love 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 All went under not due to cash, but cashflow. They got too much air in the hose. That's a very good way of putting that... I agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 If the 7 are going to eventually leave regardless, it might be DCI's best play to cut them off ASAP, before they have time to get completely situated and deal a parting blow to DCI on the way out. (honestly, I don't think the 7 leaving is good for the 7 or the corps that would still be in DCI) I don't think they will bail, at least all of them. But given that 2013 has many contracts in place, if DCi cuts them out of this year, it could be lawsuit city Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I think Jeff hit upon the probable right answer--the G7 wanted the two weeks to put together the list of rule changes they planned to pass once they had a controlling vote. well and for someone to hire and editor for Hopkins. face it, the 2010 document wasn't fully vetted before it went out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarimbasaurusRex Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 If dropping 2 grand on electronics is going to cause you to go under, please fold now. Look, all of these groups that went under, it doesn't matter what it was exactly that caused them to go under. It was all the same thing. All went under not due to cash, but cashflow. They got too much air in the hose. Anyway, if you got to the point where 2 grand is what could take you down, you deserve to fold as quickly as possible... because it was only a matter of time. 2 grand? You can't even buy the mics to mic a full set of keyboards for 2 grand, let alone the mountings, cables, mixer, amps, speakers, cables, etc. A single good quality weighted key synth is 2 grand. Try $20-30k and that's closer to the ballpark. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.