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How did you choose?


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Crossmen - I had friends who marched there, I enjoy almost all of their shows, and I just like the attitude/appearance that they always have. They just seem to have this aura of ###### that to me defines drum corps

Music City - They had open spots, show music, enjoyable shows in general, and the staff and members are all really cool/friendly people

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I had marched in a couple of corps for 6 years & after marching finals in 1979, with 2 years of eligibility remaining, I decided to take a year off & go to as many shows as possible. My Girlfriend at the time who is now my Wife went to shows almost every weekend. I was never a fan of the Madison Scouts...I was a BD guy...but at 1980 DCI Midwest, we sat down low in the 5th row, & during the Scouts drum solo I turned to my Girlfriend & said "I'm going to march in Madison my last year". Of course in those days there were no formal auditions or videos or tryout music. You showed up at a practice, strapped on a drum & played. The entire tryout & cut process was very informal.

There was something special about the Madison Scouts in those days. I hope today's members feel the same way.

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Some corps wait to see who walks in the door to audition while others are proactive and invite people to auditions.

I know that some of the competitively more successful corps scout band shows, indoor contests, college concerts and such for soloists, great sections, and needed musicians and guard folk.

Were you scouted or invited this way?

PS. My first drum corps practiced at the field adjacent to the one where we played baseball. My team (and me) were so dismal and the game so booring that those on the bench would watch the drum corps when not needed on the field. Later mergers moved the little corps into bigger arenas.

Edited by xandandl
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It was 1979....a new powerhouse called "Spirit of Atlanta" was spreading it's wings. 4 hour drive. Home team so to speak. My dream. A friend was marching and a hole opened in the drum line in Late December. I drove over to a rehersal in January. My tryout was with Tom Float.....Tom: "You any good man"? Me: "Yeah"...Tom: "You're in.....the line is in that room...go on in". The next three years are the history that has been a foundation for all of my life.

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I'd liked Boston's shows from '12-'14 and a few from the early 2000's and my director taught there as well as my assistand director being DM at one point. Also it was close being that all of their stuff was in Florida up until Spring Training. Then I went to camp and I felt like I was home. The environment just felt so right. Thats when I knew I really wanted to march BAC rather than just march corps and happen to be at BAC because of circumstance. Even after I was cut on Mello I wanted to find a way to march there and then somehow I wrangled a full spot on Contra.

TL;DR: After the first camp, it felt like home.

I always like to read the perseverance stories...so awesome to hear you got a spot with BAC...I will attest that you will have the time of your life! ..and what's better you get to march in their 75th...I marched the long-forgotten 50th...I can not imagine (even to this day) of going anywhere else...Best of luck!

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Sitting in the stands as a soon to be freshman in high school, in '92 at my first corps show, and hearing that drum feature from the Crossmen. I turned to our band's drum major and the upper-classmen members of the drumline that brought me with them to the contest, and I said, "I am going to march for the Crossmen one day!!!" The drum major said, "Better get practicing." and some of the senior drumline members laughed. All of them came to watch me my first year at Finals!

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Sitting in the stands as a soon to be freshman in high school, in '92 at my first corps show, and hearing that drum feature from the Crossmen. I turned to our band's drum major and the upper-classmen members of the drumline that brought me with them to the contest, and I said, "I am going to march for the Crossmen one day!!!" The drum major said, "Better get practicing." and some of the senior drumline members laughed. All of them came to watch me my first year at Finals!

That's kinda the best revenge. One of the snareds from 84 BD (A Canadian who almost NEVER got into a picture...we still tease him about it...right end snare as you look at the line) was told by folks home he'd never make BD no matter how hard he tried.

A couple of the other Canadians (2 of my roommates, in fact) were told by THEIR mates back home that thjey were outright lying that they made BD in 84.

Then they all ended up with a drum/;brass title and #### near a ring!

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Sitting in the stands as a soon to be freshman in high school, in '92 at my first corps show, and hearing that drum feature from the Crossmen.

Same here... In 7th grade I marched in a Div III corps and the first show we had with open class corps got rained out. The Crossmen were still in town and did a clinic the next day. After the first 5 minutes of their show I knew where I wanted to march.

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