Sad News from Music City

[mojo67]

How sad this is to hear. I hope explanations are given because fans absolutely deserve one. It is ashamed that corps members were not even emailed prior to this. How sad. My gut tells me that there is something rotten in the state of denmark. I am not sure what it is yet, but my gut instincts are usually right.

They were on the up and up, ready to burst onto the scene in a big way. Something is just not sitting well. There were no rumors of $$ issues or bus issues or anything. All of a sudden..POOF!

With the results of last Saturday that ensured the Cavaliers were somehow included in the TOC and with the dissolving of Music City..for players for the G7. I really hope the G 7 are happy. I am getting jaded and jaded year by year and will soon lose my interest. Not because of the kids and the support I provide to them, but because of the butthead adults who are trying to run the scam so the rich get richer and the poor end up like Magic, Velvet Knights, 27th Lancers, Music City, Sky Riders, Star, Southwind, Revolution, Forte, Teal Sound, Capital Regiment, Dutch Boy, Americanos, Patriots, Kiwanis Kavaliers, Esperanza, and Glassmen and God knows who how many more.

Here is some major food for thought....HONEST answers would be appreciated. Why is it that there seems to be a maximum number of World Class drum corps in a given year is 20 to 24? Is this activity supposed to be growing?? or stunted? Is the G 7 afraid and shaking in their boots that a new corps may come out and rule the roost? Imagine if there could be a given year where all the fizzled out drum corps could be competing in a single year...NOW THAT WOULD BE A DRUM CORPS World Finals!!!!! I think people are scared, that someone else may march on their turf. Just food for thought.

[randyb]

The one thing that everyone has to remember is that it takes a lot of people to run a successful drum corps....BoD, Admin, Staff, Volunteers, Membership, Parent support, Local and Statewide Support......

While at Teal, we were successful in the first few years of the rebuilding stage in 2007 - 2009 as we made a run towards WC status....after that, the daily routine of running an actual business and not just an organization to compete at the WC level became greater than a lot of people wanted to do. A good friend of mine, also a current WC director told me back at the end of 2007 in Cali....The first year is amazing - everyone from top to bottom is having the time of their life.....The second year - Still enjoying the honeymoon, still moving forward, everything is just fine. The third year- honeymoon wears off and the real-life sets in...find out who wants to work and who doesn't......By year four, now it is a job, goals are set higher, not everyone on board, different ideas of what needs to be done vs. what should be done......and so on and so on.

Those words came true for Teal Sound and a lot of of programs have gone the same way. Knowing the folks at MC as well as I do, I think they saw what a financial stress things had become. Believe me, it is not easy keeping up with the big boys and as long as things are the way they are, mark my words, there will be more programs each year that can't afford to keep fighting the daily struggles and costs that it takes to run a drum corps in today's market!

[garfield]

How sad this is to hear. I hope explanations are given because fans absolutely deserve one. It is ashamed that corps members were not even emailed prior to this. How sad. My gut tells me that there is something rotten in the state of denmark. I am not sure what it is yet, but my gut instincts are usually right.

They were on the up and up, ready to burst onto the scene in a big way. Something is just not sitting well. There were no rumors of $ issues or bus issues or anything. All of a sudden..POOF!

With the results of last Saturday that ensured the Cavaliers were somehow included in the TOC and with the dissolving of Music City..for players for the G7. I really hope the G 7 are happy. I am getting jaded and jaded year by year and will soon lose my interest. Not because of the kids and the support I provide to them, but because of the butthead adults who are trying to run the scam so the rich get richer and the poor end up like Magic, Velvet Knights, 27th Lancers, Music City, Sky Riders, Star, Southwind, Revolution, Forte, Teal Sound, Capital Regiment, Dutch Boy, Americanos, Patriots, Kiwanis Kavaliers, Esperanza, and Glassmen and God knows who how many more.

Here is some major food for thought....HONEST answers would be appreciated. Why is it that there seems to be a maximum number of World Class drum corps in a given year is 20 to 24? Is this activity supposed to be growing?? or stunted? Is the G 7 afraid and shaking in their boots that a new corps may come out and rule the roost? Imagine if there could be a given year where all the fizzled out drum corps could be competing in a single year...NOW THAT WOULD BE A DRUM CORPS World Finals!!!!! I think people are scared, that someone else may march on their turf. Just food for thought.

I agree with your emotions, but I think your presumptions are way out of whack. What did the G7 have to do with the demise of this corps? Was the G7 involved with their operation, their finances, their recruiting? As if some invisible hand was wrapped around the corps leader's neck, holding him down?

By all accounts this was a successful operation that made it to full-corps size in five years, but is it realistic to think that they were a threat to the G7? One that would cause them to collude against MC? I think not.

I'm sure there's a back story that will filter out in time and hopefully it will serve as a lesson to others who take the chance of starting a competitive corps. Something wasn't going right in MC's operation. We'll likely know what it was soon enough.

And they deserve credit for: 1. Despite likely making this decision weeks ago, didn't let it out so as to not spoil the kids' season, and 2. They didn't leave them stranded in Indy or mid-way on tour.

Edited August 16, 2013 by garfield

[garfield]

The one thing that everyone has to remember is that it takes a lot of people to run a successful drum corps....BoD, Admin, Staff, Volunteers, Membership, Parent support, Local and Statewide Support......

While at Teal, we were successful in the first few years of the rebuilding stage in 2007 - 2009 as we made a run towards WC status....after that, the daily routine of running an actual business and not just an organization to compete at the WC level became greater than a lot of people wanted to do. A good friend of mine, also a current WC director told me back at the end of 2007 in Cali....The first year is amazing - everyone from top to bottom is having the time of their life.....The second year - Still enjoying the honeymoon, still moving forward, everything is just fine. The third year- honeymoon wears off and the real-life sets in...find out who wants to work and who doesn't......By year four, now it is a job, goals are set higher, not everyone on board, different ideas of what needs to be done vs. what should be done......and so on and so on.

Those words came true for Teal Sound and a lot of of programs have gone the same way. Knowing the folks at MC as well as I do, I think they saw what a financial stress things had become. Believe me, it is not easy keeping up with the big boys and as long as things are the way they are, mark my words, there will be more programs each year that can't afford to keep fighting the daily struggles and costs that it takes to run a drum corps in today's market!

And it may be as simple as that.

[GUARDLING]

I agree with your emotions, but I think your presumptions are way out of whack. What did the G7 have to do with the demise of this corps? Was the G7 involved with their operation, their finances, their recruiting? As if some invisible hand was wrapped around the corps leader's neck, holding him down?

By all accounts this was a successful operation that made it to full-corps size in five years, but is it realistic to think that they were a threat to the G7? One that would cause them to collude against MC? I think not.

I'm sure there's a back story that will filter out in time and hopefully it will serve as a lesson to others who take the chance of starting a competitive corps. Something wasn't going right in MC's operation. We'll likely know what it was soon enough.

And they deserve credit for: 1. Despite likely making this decision weeks ago, didn't let it out so as to not spoil the kids' season, and 2. They didn't leave them stranded in Indy or mid-way on tour.

I totally agree with your last line. Good for them for not making it a drama fest blaming everyone in the world and stuck somewhere in the country with no gas, food, staff, etc etc. At least their planning for the 2013 season got them through instead of the pipe dream of " we will worry about tomorrow when it comes "

It's pretty easy to see if there are money issues moving forward where some of that comes from. It's an old story that is consistant with alot of corps.

Sorry to see you guys go

[mojo67]

I really do think that the kids should have been notified first instead of people reading it on social media. When I asked a friend of mine what happened to Music City his reply was "You know as much as I do." I honestly believe this was a correct answer and he was not hiding anything. For the kids, well at least those that paid their dues, deserved more than getting the rug pulled out from under them and finding out on social media.

What does the G 7 have to do with this? More than you can ever imagine. If you can say my thoughts are out of whack, answer my question of why there hasn't been more than 20 - 24 World Class Corps in a given year since at least 2000? Now, I'm no Jessica from Murder She Wrote, but shouldn't the activity be growing and not shrinking? Also, granted I was not a fly on the wall during any board meetings, but I certainly do not feel this was a decision made weeks ago.

Here is the thing with G 7, when oh certain directors decided to say it was ok to raise the member limit from 120 to 150, there are 30 people..Yes? Now, go back to my above post and see how many corps we have lost. Did this move improve the activity or in reality did the "rich get richer and the poor get poorer." I am just being blunt and honest without beating about the bush. I call it as I see it. Can I be wrong? Absolutely! Can I be right as well? Absolutely!

[Tekneek]

This is sort of a threadjack, but is specifically related to some points made in this thread. Further discussion of these points would be better made in a different post altogether.

I don't think the G7 is assassinating drum corps in the middle of the night, but I think they have certainly created an environment that is not conducive to growing the number of corps actively competing. They are a self-serving bunch that are primarily interested in consolidating their domination of the activity, rather than increasing the competition.

[MisterA]

First off, I am sure the young members must be devastated at this point. It doesn't do any good to point fingers or blame the G7 at this point. Best wishes to all members to find new homes next season. I know it is tough to leave a corps you love.

Music City as far as I am concerned, has been an overall success. They put out great shows, rose to large numbers, and as far as we know, nothing bad happened, the members were all fed well, and they ended their season getting their members home safely. So by all means, definitely a success.

I think another poster put it so well when talking about the finances and volunteers. We have lost many corps over the years due to both of these. I would really hope that Music City would return to the field someday, but after reading the Facebook post, I would almost guess unless someone new steps in to take over, they aren't planning on returning. I remember working with a couple of corps over the years that have folded, and I remember the disappointment by the members, staff and volunteers. I wish there was something we could do as a community to put them back on the field, along with hundreds of other corps that have folded. But since this isn't likely I guess the most I can personally do is say...

Thank you for the wonderful shows you have put on the field the last few years. Thank you to all the members staff and volunteers for all the hard work you put in, the long hours, endless rehearsals, and putting your heart into the activity that we all love so much. Please know there are thousands of people who are disappointed that you won't be back next season. But I have confidence we will see many of you next year, not realizing it, when you march in another corps. So while this is definitely not an ideal situation, may you all find the next stop on your journey just as amazing.

[funkjazzaxe]

As someone who served on the board of directors for a World Class corps that fairly recently went inactive (while I was on the board- I had to help make that decision) let me offer my perspective. I don't believe the G7 have anything to do with it, the more corps that go inactive and the more the activity shrinks, the more strained and insignificant drum corps becomes and the less relevant everyone is. Most the G7 corps have deep roots in their communities, and have been operating as a highly visible non-profit youth serving organization in their communities going back years and years to when drum corps were all just small groups of local kids. G7 corps have powerful boards, they are tapped in to the local Rotary Club, and they often have established means of fundraising due to lots of community connections. Their high profile and years of competitive excellence lead to equipment manufactures fighting for them to use their equipment, and command the highest performance fees because those corps pull in the majority of the audience. Also, most of the G7 corps have highly professional business people operating the corps behind the scenes, and have very well thought out business plans. Even with all that going for them, most the "big boys" run on a surprisingly thin margin- razor thin in many cases.

Music City and other corps like them, corps fighting to get to World Class, or corps in the bottom of the World Class heap, have the most difficult time. The current touring model places a lot of financial stress on all corps- the amount of money simply to get the corps down the road is insane. Bottom placing corps and World Champion corps pay the same for gas, and the same for food. Fixed costs associated with touring are brutal on all corps, especially the ones without as much community support. Drum corps have a very difficult time funding year to year activity with operations alone (tour fees and appearance fees). The math simply doesn't work out- unless members pay even more than the huge fees they do now, or audiences pay even more for shows (already pushing the envelope for ticket prices as it is) corps just can't stay ahead on operational income alone. Unless a corps has some serious community support, an amazing business plan, and some sort of steady cash flow for outside, it is very, very difficult to make it. Couple that with the fact that corps no longer hold many assets- they don't "own" anything anymore, save for a trailer, souvie trailer, cook truck, and assorted small vehicles. Due to high costs of ownership, most corps lease buses. Just about all equipment is bought/sold off the truck at the end of the season for a financial wash. Thus, at the end of the season, the corps has very little liquid assets. Not much to leverage, and very little cash flow.

So, my .02 is that it is not some evil G7 conspiracy or anything. All those corps directors feel the sting of a shrinking activity just like everyone else. Its not about people's desire to "dominate" or eliminate the competition. If you are the only one left in the race, than why would it mean anything to finish first? For all corps to survive (G7 included), a healthy activity with lots of corps benefits everyone. The current touring model, the difficulty for corps to contend with other charitable non-profits for grants and public dollars, and high cost of doing business is what does corps in. I know- I've lived it.

[rockinbrass]

Music City was financially built off the back of "The Band Hall" and sadly it was venture that was never going to last long term.