stop the corps folding

[Pete Freedman]

Here's one idea that may have been suggested on other threads:

Since drum corps is the only performing art I know of that normally debuts a show when the quality isn't there yet ("Opening night", indeed!). That is, the first few weeks of competition are not very impressive yet.

So, arrange for all or many corps to have a move-in location within 200 miles, say, of a designated town. This location(s) become a drum corps village of sorts. The first few weeks of competitions are mostly held at these practice fields. The result is a short (1-3 week) mini tour of those practice fields. No paying customers. The tour proper begins in early-mid July and would presumably involve several tours going off in different directions.

Benefits:

- Saving transportation costs until the corps are good enough to merit them

- (If one location) Early contests still feature all corps, so corps get better judge information. Even if there are 2 or 3 such drum corps villages, that's lots of corps to compare yourself to.

- More relaxed early season experience without sleeping on buses, and presumably more time to practice.

- Reduction in logistical headaches.

- Wonderful opportunities for interaction between corps members, between instructors, and between other staff including directors. Mini-conferences for various roles and topics. Or, if they prefer, one big conference after the first week. Open it to the public.

- A little bit of that community drum corps spirit that the Boston area used to have (according to another thread).

- Some corps fans would spend their vacation there, visiting each corps and participating in many of the social events and meetings as well.

- Doesn't have to be initiated by DCI itself. Any director who thinks its a good idea could arrange with several other directors to do a limited form of this.

- DCI Opening Night contest held near the end of this process, in the region. Hopefully well-attended because of all the local publicity this would presumably generate.

Cons:

- Finding the location(s) that could support this.

- Loss of show revenues from ticket sales. (Offset by savings in transportation costs. Also, most current shows could be compressed into the remaining weeks.)

This last point brings up a huge question; if all corps start from the same place, can the tour be even more effectively organized to reduce transportation distances?

[Pete Freedman]

Dude did you even read this?

1. Drum corps are not sports teams

2. Drum corps are traveling summer arts schools who happen to compete.

∴ Drum corps are sports teams.

Does Ikea act like a restaurant? Does Ikea base it's location planning and everything else on the fact that Ikea is basically a restaurant?

No?

But Ikea is a restaurant. That is, it has a restaurant. You can get Swedish meatballs there!

There is a difference between having a characteristic of a thing and being that thing fundamentally.

Similarly, most of what a drum corps does is not sports. Most of what a drum corps does is teach performing arts.

∴ They should make decisions primarily based on what good performing arts schools do, not on what good sports teams do.

[Stu]

There is a difference between having a characteristic of a thing and being that thing fundamentally.

Similarly, most of what a drum corps does is not sports. Most of what a drum corps does is teach performing arts.

∴ They should make decisions primarily based on what good performing arts schools do, not on what good sports teams do.

Your argument here is not consistent. Why? Because if your contention is that DCI is not a 'sport' just because it merely has some of those characteristics, then for you to be consistent the same would have to hold true about it not being a performing arts 'school' for the same reason. DCI corps have some educational characteristics, but not anywhere close to the fundamental attributes of a 'school'. Now to begin to fend off your notion that DCI has 'instructional staff'... well so do football teams. The offensive-line coach instructs a small group of players on the finer aspects of that specific position just like a tenor-tech in a corps instructs the tenor players, the offensive coordinator instructs the offense just like a DCI percussion caption head instructs the percussion, and the head coach makes decisions over the entire team just like a DCI head director. Moreover, 'schools' teach a student way more than a narrow select specific item to a student whereas a DCI snare drummer is just narrowly instructed on just the playing/marching finer aspects of the snare drum; 'schools' teach a wide array of academic items such as theory, history, etc... Thus if DCI corps are considered traveling 'schools' then you also have to say that football teams are traveling 'schools'.

And on a side-note, here is a wake-up call for you... most all high school band programs around the nation no longer academically 'teach' music; they just narrowly focus in on performers preparing a very small select few charts each year, both in the fall and spring, to get ratings/rankings at competitions.

[Tekneek]

I think the big corps (G7, for instance) should pay something to the lower-ranked corps when they get veterans from them each year. Sort of a training fee.

[Stu]

I think the big corps (G7, for instance) should pay something to the lower-ranked corps when they get veterans from them each year. Sort of a training fee.

While I am far, far, far from supporting the G7 ideas, as long as the youth have to fork out $2,000 to $3,000 plus another grand or so in camp travel expenses the youth should be able to audition for any corps they please without DCI financially punishing any of the corps.

[Pete Freedman]

Your argument here is not consistent. Why? Because if your contention is that DCI is not a 'sport' just because it merely has some of those characteristics, then for you to be consistent the same would have to hold true about it not being a performing arts 'school' for the same reason. DCI corps have some educational characteristics, but not anywhere close to the fundamental attributes of a 'school'.

I'm not saying drum corps are not sports teams. I'm saying that the fact that they are in part sports teams does not by itself argue for implementation of rules that exist in other sports teams. Because they are not quite the same thing.

Various policies have been promoted on here on the basis that other sports have them.

For example, Brasso argued for transfer policies in several substantial posts on the basis that all other sports, pro and amateur, have such reasonable, sensible rules, and that nobody objects. FWIW: Most articles I found on transfer rules were discussions of criticisms. And the NCAA claims it's transfer policies only apply to certain of its sports. And that any player can transfer anytime they want; they just have to sit out a year. And this is only necessary (they claim) because otherwise academics suffer. Not an issue in drum corps.

Other (non-NCAA articles) claim that the essential reason for transfer rules in college sports seems to be preventing the negative aspects of player poaching. The ones I found include having poaching agents come onto campuses (unacceptable to the college) and coaches having to spend more time and effort on keeping players. I found no reference on the NCAA site or anywhere else that such policies make the sports more exciting by bringing performance levels together. (I did find a vague reference to "competition reasons" for some rules.)

The big problems faced by the drum corps activity do not really include player poaching.

So all I'm saying is pidgeonholing drum corps into a category doesn't constitute an argument for other elements of that category.

Now to begin to fend off your notion that DCI has 'instructional staff'... well so do football teams. The offensive-line coach instructs a small group of players on the finer aspects of that specific position just like a tenor-tech in a corps instructs the tenor players, the offensive coordinator instructs the offense just like a DCI percussion caption head instructs the percussion, and the head coach makes decisions over the entire team just like a DCI head director. Moreover, 'schools' teach a student way more than a narrow select specific item to a student whereas a DCI snare drummer is just narrowly instructed on just the playing/marching finer aspects of the snare drum; 'schools' teach a wide array of academic items such as theory, history, etc... Thus if DCI corps are considered traveling 'schools' then you also have to say that football teams are traveling 'schools'.

And on a side-note, here is a wake-up call for you... most all high school band programs around the nation no longer academically 'teach' music; they just narrowly focus in on performers preparing a very small select few charts each year, both in the fall and spring, to get ratings/rankings at competitions.

I don't disagree with any of this. Pro football teams can be thought of as "football schools", but not NCAA teams, because they are part of larger schools and issues like this involve the larger school.

But even with pro teams, the reasons for the various complex rules are just as complex and generally involve player inducements and salary.

Maybe spending caps, transfer rules, etc. are good ideas, but not simply because drum corps is "a sport".

[Pete Freedman]

While I am far, far, far from supporting the G7 ideas, as long as the youth have to fork out $2,000 to $3,000 plus another grand or so in camp travel expenses the youth should be able to audition for any corps they please without DCI financially punishing any of the corps.

I agree with this, but I also ask the following (of those who want less predictable outcomes in DCI):

True or false:

Any rule change that increases uncertainty in championship rankings, necessarily punishes the current top corps hugely.

If this is true, then any attempt to shake things up is a punishment to BD, Cadets, etc. Whether you do it through transfers, age requirements, spending caps, or as Tekneek suggests, training fees to lower corps.

And, I think, if they are punished, they are more likely to leave.

[Tim K]

If there is a spending cap, there are two things that need to be considered.

First, what about areas of eth country where cost of living is higher? On my recent trip to Indy, a gallon of regular gas was $3.27 per gallon in Indiana, but $3.69 when I returned home. On finals night I stopped at McDonald's for a McNuggets meal, $5.24, the same meal near Buffalo, NY: 9.42. Since cost of living is higher in California than let's say Wisconsin, do we give the corps from places with a higher cost of living an allowance?

Second: what about in-kind donations? Does this get included in the spending cap?

[Stu]

... Pro football teams can be thought of as "football schools"...

You 'cannot' be serious!!!!!!!!!! While they have coaches who 'guide and instruct' players, the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, et al are not 'schools' by any definition of the word; not even remotely close. They do not consist of teachers and students, but consist entirely of professional career adults, some who manage and some who do the grunt work, just like all other professional corporations.

[MikeD]

I think the big corps (G7, for instance) should pay something to the lower-ranked corps when they get veterans from them each year. Sort of a training fee.

Why? Potential members march where they choose to march, and they pay for the privilege of doing so. Why would one corps pay another because a potential member chooses to audition with their corps.