Interesting Facts

[KeithHall]

1972 DCI Championships....How many corps are still in existence in DCI? 7 out of 39.

1976 DCI Championships....How many? 11 out of 82. All A class corps and all-girls are gone. The lowest scoring Open corps was Pioneer and right above them was Colts. The top 4 corps are still in top 12

1981/82 Saw the same amount of corps 98 and what is left? 14

[Ray Priester]

Yeah, great legacy for dci. thanks a bunch.

I know it's not all dci's fault, but ......................................................

so sad.

[rayfallon]

Guys - without resurrecting the oldest argument on DCP (or RAMD for that matter) I think that while facts are facts, without context they take on a life of their own.

We can bemoan, for instance, the number of corps in say Brooklyn that ceased to be since 1970, but how many of the local churches, VFW halls, or Legions would still be sponsoring a drum corps. In most cases they've given up on sponsoring any youth activity for a billion reasons of varying legitimacy.

You're right - it's a fact - and who doesn't miss these corps? But I think the corollary doesn't prove the causation in this case.

It is, simply put, a different world, and these are different kids in many ways than we were.

I personally don't think we can lay all that much of this on DCI's door, any more than we can blame DCA for the decline and inactivity of Sky, Sun, Brigs, Rochester, et al.

Different world - ask Eastern Airlines, TWA, Pan Am, My Space, you can do this all day.

Sic transit gloria Mundi...

[lindap]

We went to DCI finals 2010 and 2013, had fun; the performances were wonderful. Thank you!

I post what I can on DCP to celebrate our experiences. Drum Corps was a great ride with pride.

To those marching today, enjoy the experience of hard work, long hours, travel, friends and memories.

I've grown to have known many in drum corps and reacquainting with drum corps folks these past few years.

I find threads like this depressing while I'm trying to enjoy Drum Corps, past and present IMO

The fact lies in a unique product, in a niche, that needs to loudly shout 'It's A Good Thing!'

[ironlips]

We went to DCI finals 2010 and 2013, had fun; the performances were wonderful. Thank you!

I post what I can on DCP to celebrate our experiences. Drum Corps was a great ride with pride.

To those marching today, enjoy the experience of hard work, long hours, travel, friends and memories.

I've grown to have known many in drum corps and reacquainting with drum corps folks these past few years.

I find threads like this depressing while I'm trying to enjoy Drum Corps, past and present IMO

The fact lies in a unique product, in a niche, that needs to loudly shout 'It's A Good Thing!'

Thank you, Lindap.

Proof, once again, that Alberta Girls still know how to bring it (and in the middle of winter, no less), and that, indeed, is

"A Good Thing".

[rayfallon]

I find threads like this depressing while I'm trying to enjoy Drum Corps, past and present IMO

The fact lies in a unique product, in a niche, that needs to loudly shout 'It's A Good Thing!'

Amen - it is a good thing.

[JimF-LowBari]

And to go with Rays post (can't use quote with IEv11) how many Posts, churches, etc that sponsored corps no longer exist or a shell of what they used to be? And much as some people lacking history will argue with me, it HAS gotten lot more expensive with equipment, our lawsuit happy age, etc, etc, I belonged to a city church that has gone way downhill (surprised it's still open). Was on a working group that tried to find out what can be done when the local area goes in the crapper. The answer was you can't do anything except change to do the best you can and that "best" will NOT be what was possible in the past. BSA Troop at that church went under even after they opened up to the neighborhood kids as hardly any young kids attend this church anymore. It's a low income area and Troop finally folded due to lack of adult help. Adults needed to work that second/off hours job to help feed the family and activities like BSA had to take a back seat.

And how many gone Jr corps were based in cities that have hit the skids. It's called changing demographics folks and what makes people think Drum Corps is the only thing immune to this.

And was around when a bunch of smaller local Sr corps went under in the mid-late 70s/early 80s. Rising costs, downhill local economy and small area to get members and money from had a lot to do with their demise.

Edited February 2, 2014 by JimF-LowBari

[KeithHall]

Not blaming DCI at all. I know that many of the corps back then were sponsored by churches and AL or VFW's. I was just showing the amount of corps that are left from certain years.

Social media.....the worst! You can take a phrase, sentence, paragraph or one word and change the meaning to what you think it should be!

As depressing as it sounds, it is the truth. The blame doesn't lie ttally with DCI but mostly with corps directors who had no business running a corps. The success of the majority of all todays corps lie in the director/managements business sense.

I don't know much about Alberta Girls because they only competed in one DCI and took 7th in AG beating 3 other corps. But they did alot of traveling and exhibitions. That costs alot of money and they must've had a tremendous business person running that corps to send them all over the world.

Yes drum corps is depressing! Not the corps today but where did our corps go? In NY we had great corps and yet Purple Lancers were it for us. After that Squires, Cadets of Greece and Patriots. There was hope in Gauchos, Black Knights, Imperial Regiment, 76ers. Prior to DCI St. Joe's and Magnificent Yankees. But today...ALL GONE! Those are the facts. No blame. Just gone. Memories.

[DAvery]

We can bemoan the decline of drum corps or we can look at it a different way. While the number of of drum corps has declined, the number of drum corps style bands (old school term) has increased a huge amount. Think about the typical band 40-50 years ago compared to drum corps at the time. Completely different. Today - not so much. Corps style became so successful in the 70's that it changed the marching band world. It is sad we have lost so many drum corps over the years, but we have many more great bands than we used to.

[ironlips]

We can bemoan the decline of drum corps or we can look at it a different way. While the number of of drum corps has declined, the number of drum corps style bands (old school term) has increased a huge amount. Think about the typical band 40-50 years ago compared to drum corps at the time. Completely different. Today - not so much. Corps style became so successful in the 70's that it changed the marching band world. It is sad we have lost so many drum corps over the years, but we have many more great bands than we used to.

DAvery makes a very valid point. And it was the drum corps members from the 60s and 70s who transitioned into music education and brought about most of this shift. I daresay that is an important part of our legacy, and we should embrace it

Today's high school programs serve pretty much the same population as the local corps of yesteryear, and they tend to do so more efficiently and with a longer shelf-life. Of course, it still takes a very dedicated cadre of parents and some good management skills on the part of teachers and administrators.

That said, there are places, like the inner cities, where the local drum corps model would still be viable, should anyone have the ambition and good will for it. School music there is almost non-existent. Perhaps there are still some missionaries amongst us.

Edited February 4, 2014 by ironlips