Attendance SHAZZAM!

[ShutUpAndPlayYerGuitar]

Anyone have other corroborating evidence, anecdotal or otherwise?

A friend of mine who's a band director took his students to the Murfreesboro show. The group ended up with some lousy seats at the endzone (I'm guessing due to the sheer number of tickets sold) despite paying decent amount for the student package.

It's a bummer that they didn't get a good show experience, but I suppose it's also a "good problem to have" scenario.

[BRASSO]

Better disposable incomes in the key 45-54 market, empty nesters returning to shows after decades away, more entertaining shows from top to bottom now than in previous years, DCI ( Cesario) telling Corps to become more fan friendly, new revamped GE sheets to give a bit more consideration to audience engagement, social media notifications, contacts, more DCI shows in indoor stadiums ( where rainouts and loss of ticket value are diminished ), Better Corps PR's in these regions with their local communities, DCI & Corps outreach to schools and Universities, etc... all these have played a cumulative role in the recent uptick in show attendance at many DCI shows. This is a refreshing thing to see, and the hope is that this uptick is not a temporary occurance, but instead becomes a permanent one, and the increases accelerate in the coming years as well. But this is definately good news right now to hear this.

Edited July 28, 2015 by BRASSO

[George Dixon]

lower gas prices this year HELP

[JimF-LowBari]

Hate to say it but..... lack of media might be helping the live show numbers too...... Know I'm missing DCA FN...... and can't really go to a live show...

[garfield]

Lower gas prices likely help, and the lack of media is probably helping, too.

But I'm going to push back a little on those who claim an "improving economy" is a benefit.

Without getting all geeky-statistic on everyone, IMO the very marginal improvement in personal economic circumstances doesn't explain the rather sizable increases in reported attendance.

To the notion of DCI's "outreach" to schools, maybe this is true in the music/school media spending that DCI does, but I can tell you that neither the host school of our show, nor my son's school in a neighboring community (where's he's the DCI "Ambassador") has received anything from DCI as "outreach". It would seem that show-host schools would be low-hanging fruit, but Dublin music programs didn't hear a peep from DCI.

I, personally, think the answer lies somewhere in corps doing a better job of entertaining and DCI judges being asked to slot scores tighter to create closer competition.

Edited July 29, 2015 by garfield

[BRASSO]

I, personally, think the answer lies somewhere in corps doing a better job of entertaining and DCI judges being asked to slot scores tighter to create closer competition.

This sure is new news to me. I had not heard that " judges are being asked to slot scores tighter to create closer competition ". Who is allegedly telling the judges how to score ? And... secondly, whats your source for this ?

Edited July 29, 2015 by BRASSO

[N.E. Brigand]

To the notion of DCI's "outreach" to schools, maybe this is true in the music/school media spending that DCI does, but I can tell you that neither the host school of our show, nor my son's school in a neighboring community (where's he's the DCI "Ambassador") has received anything from DCI as "outreach". It would seem that show-host schools would be low-hanging fruit, but Dublin music programs didn't hear a peep from DCI.

Did your show reach out to local schools with news about the event, or did they simply discover it on their own? I had mentioned seeing a lot of buses in your lot, and since you mention Dublin specifically, I know Dublin Jerome students were there as a group, because I saw a block of kids wearing shirts for "The Blues", Jerome's BD-influenced show (with 50+ folding chairs) from last year.

Last night at Erie, there was an ad for the Buffalo ToC event in the program, and someone walking around during the show (between corps) who went to every row of seats, handing out flyers for that event to each attendee.

Edited July 29, 2015 by N.E. Brigand

[N.E. Brigand]

I had not heard that "judges are being asked to score scores tighter to create closer competition". Who is telling the judges how to score?

The judges almost certainly are being told to keep scores within a certain range. Whether that necessarily leads to tighter score, I don't know, but without a doubt they've been holding scores down compared at least to last year. For instance, there seems to be universal agreement that Pioneer has a much better show this year than they've had in some time, but compare the corps' five previous scores at Atlanta:

2010 -- 71.70

2011 -- 68.55

2012 -- 66.30

2013 -- 68.85

2014 -- 67.65

To what they earned this year:

2015 -- 64.50

Better corps, lower score? Cesario & co. appear to have dropped the floor.

Edited July 29, 2015 by N.E. Brigand

[Tim K]

What might be interesting to investigate is asking schools that send bus loads of kids to shows whether they hear from DCI or the ambassadors. My hunch is that many of the band directors who send groups to shows probably marched in drum corps themselves or know someone who did. Outreach at WGI, BOA, and YEA may also play a role, but at these events it is the person who seeks out DCI, not the other way around.

[BRASSO]

The judges almost certainly are being told to keep scores within a certain range. Whether that necessarily leads to tighter score, I don't know, but

The scores are verifiably lower than last year... for whatever reason. That much at least is indisputable. But its just speculation alone that someone has told the judges to slot the scores tighter to create closer competition. Then again, perhaps Garfield has anonymous sources that are telling him this... who knows. But thats why I asked him what his sources are for someone telling the judges how they are to score this season.