JimF-LowBari Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Got to add gripe letters to the editorials Andy. Still remember "those tink tink bell players" comment when I was marching in the mid 70s and the bells came back. Might have been a complaint about the DCA recordings as the bells REALLY got picked up when close to the mics. Seemed every year DCA tried something different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornTeacher Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 What caused the tail off do you think? in this area? then again...my other thought to that response is, maybe that's just what this section needs. Maybe it got boring??? idk. I haven't posted much here in the "historical" area...but that does not mean that I haven't been a constant reader. As to your question "What caused...", I would only say SOCIETY happened. Look, I've taught for 35 years...and just as the technological developments which have taken place over those years would (and for many, have) make one's head spin, the societal changes simply in youth over that span of time would make everybody's head spin. Simply put...history (what actually happened, meaningful traditions, etc.) just isn't important to the youth of today. And that does not go simply for the youth...but it is very pertinent to adults as well. I fear that we may all be of a generation which found not only interest, but a certain sense of romance and beauty in what took place before our time. No, everything wasn't romantic...and it certainly wasn't always beautiful. But we knew something...that being, what we were, what we did, and the way things took place were dependent upon what had taken place before it. It answered many of the questions we had at the time....and it provided understanding into the world which we were attempting, in our youthful impetuousness, to figure out. As for now -- we've been replaced by Google. Makes you simply warm and fuzzy all over, doesn't it? Sorry for the lecture. But all this runs through my mind every day at the conclusion of my school day. And some days, as overly dramatic as it may sound...I simply sit at my desk and cry (or at least whimper slightly). I fear that we are losing something that might never be recovered...we're losing ourselves as human beings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 Boy did you hit the head of the nail on that one. very very true...and very very sad. History is why we are where we are today. Funny though....when I was a kid, I hated history. Now I love it! lol That is why I am not quite sure the post was really true. I too was not a history buff when young, but now 1/2 of what I watch is historical shows on TV, and I love to read historical-based novels. In drum corps, while I learned all about my corps history from 1934 up to when I joined in 1970, I was not all that interested in drum corps history in general. I know my son and his friends as they are in their mid-30's are getting more into history too...maybe it is an age-thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) Got to add gripe letters to the editorials Andy. Still remember "those tink tink bell players" comment when I was marching in the mid 70s and the bells came back. Might have been a complaint about the DCA recordings as the bells REALLY got picked up when close to the mics. Seemed every year DCA tried something different. Oh, IMO you are totally on target with that, and I was writing and judging percussion at the GSC level back then. Because of captions like PA, a LOT of the marching mallet parts were overwritten just to give the players something to do throughout the show. So...if you used marching bells...you USED marching bells (and xylos)...ALL the time. I recall arranging the percussion for Berlioz's "March to the Scaffold" for a GSC corps in 77; the King's Regiment (formeerly the Monarchs); it was our opener. I went to the Lincoln Center library and researched the score. I based my marching bells part on the flute part and the xylo part on the oboe part, and then I beefed them up to drumcorps-ize them. Thank goodness for the pit. Edited August 20, 2015 by MikeD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironlips Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) "Sorry for the lecture. But all this runs through my mind every day..." There's no need to apologize. You are a teacher. It's what we do. I have to agree with much of what you say, but you are not alone in those trenches. There are a lot of us pushing back against the encroaching frontiers of ignorance. It's true that many are losing their appreciation for the lessons of the past, and our true adversaries, Apathy and Ennui, have huge armies arrayed against us. As individuals, we cannot defeat them, but if we create enough allies, even one at a time, we can subvert their master plan. To put a fine point on it, if we really do rate the history of Drum Corps (and its associated values) as something more than mere trivia, our enthusiasm will convert others and they will carry it further. And if we do not honor those things, who will? We used to be the young turks and have morphed into the tribal elders (God help us). It's our job to stand up, even against apparently insurmountable odds. In the climactic moment of Nessun Dorma, the tenor sings "Vincero, Vin-ceeeeeee-roooo" (I will conquer!). Bring it on, all ye uninformed. Edited August 20, 2015 by ironlips Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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