MikeD Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Yes one of the Al Muras just died and was very involved in the history part of cadets and teaching new members. there is a video of him singing the corps song and talking. i have to look for it. Heart warming for sure. I also had some of those instructors Including Hy Drietzer ( scary to a little Boy) and of course Mr ironlips,lol, Don Angelica and scary Truman Crawford, some of the many. Al Mura was also a music teacher and band director for many years at Mahwah HS in NJ, and I think before that he taught music in Bergenfield, where Dr Baggs was first band director at the HS and then principal at the Roy Brown Middle School. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reallyoldfrt Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Everyone's memory is subjective, and colored by their own experiences. I had the honor to know Scotty Chapelle pretty well. I judged with him for a while in the late 60s-early 70s. We had many conversations about the direction drum corps was heading. As a musician, he was quite pleased with the continuous improvement of the brass sections. And, like many brass men, he wished that the percussion side could be minimized, in the manner of a symphony orchestra. Since I was a drummer, we enjoyed a difference of opinion. He also recognized that the corps were all made up of ordinary kids who did the best they could. I'm sure he would marvel at today.s brass work. He was a wonderful guy, a living legend in the Boston area. But I believe he would be appalled to learn that the number of corps still in existence is so small. We had more corps in the Boston area in 1972, most of whom owed Scotty some percentage of their existence, than currently exist in the entire world. While he always strove for polish and professionalism, he also knew that making a musical experience available to the widest possible number of kids was what he had worked toward all his life. The current exclusivity has been the biggest failure of the DCI era. If that hadn't been their goal from the beginning it should have been. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) Everyone's memory is subjective, and colored by their own experiences. I had the honor to know Scotty Chapelle pretty well. I judged with him for a while in the late 60s-early 70s. We had many conversations about the direction drum corps was heading. As a musician, he was quite pleased with the continuous improvement of the brass sections. And, like many brass men, he wished that the percussion side could be minimized, in the manner of a symphony orchestra. Since I was a drummer, we enjoyed a difference of opinion. He also recognized that the corps were all made up of ordinary kids who did the best they could. I'm sure he would marvel at today.s brass work. He was a wonderful guy, a living legend in the Boston area. But I believe he would be appalled to learn that the number of corps still in existence is so small. We had more corps in the Boston area in 1972, most of whom owed Scotty some percentage of their existence, than currently exist in the entire world. While he always strove for polish and professionalism, he also knew that making a musical experience available to the widest possible number of kids was what he had worked toward all his life. The current exclusivity has been the biggest failure of the DCI era. If that hadn't been their goal from the beginning it should have been. You just dont want to see( which is fine ) what the real demise of drum corps as well as many local things of the 50s-1the 70s. It wasn't dci. You are right though, many many less But as i said most from those era's today would be applalled at the price of gas, cars, homes, food, etc etc. Drum corps today are in a very different and very expensive world. drum corps would have never survived. Edited September 22, 2015 by GUARDLING 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 "Little left"??? Hardly. The state of competitive marching/music is larger than eve. Between DCI and DCA in North America, corps circuits all over the world, the competitive HS marching band scene, indoor guard/percussion like WGI nationally and regional circuits such as TIA, USBands, MAIN...to name a few in my area alone...more kids have the chance to march and compete than ever before...at every level. BS, my personal favorite corps as a kid growing up through the mid/late 60's, folding had zero to do with DCI. The inner city turmoil all over the country, including Newark where BS came from, greatly impacted their ability to survive. The benefited briefly when St Lucy's folded after the 1969 season, fielding their last great corps in 1970. After that it was a quick downhill ride in 71 and 72; even adding a girl guard could not save them. You made a good point that corps were starting and folding all the time...at every level from beginner to local competitive to national...the changes in the economy and overall society through the 70's and into the 80's to today made it impossible for a seat-of-the-pants operation to start. You need to have an infrastructure in place today to operate...insurance, finances, transportation, etc...and that is ONLY a good thing; We were lucky we got down the road alive during the " Good Ole days"..lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I appreciated what the corps members before me did, I liked what we did in the 1970's but I love what is happening today! To many times over the past decade or more, men and women (my age and older, even younger) have blamed DCI for the failings of the activity. I was one of them many years ago until i stepped back and looked at everything. The times were changing! That's all! Drum corps, due to the creation of DCI and the termination of AL and VFW score sheets, changed because the men that led those top groups decided it was time to change. Would anyone of you bad mouth the activity if Gayle, Jerry, Jim and the others were still here today? These were men that were highly respected then and still today. I think they would set a lot of people straight! I dont think anyone is bad mouthing BUT if you really want an answer YES I do think many would challenge those men ( who i knew a few well ). That's another part of today that was different . I was afraid of many of my instructors and right or wrong would never talk back or even challenge. kids today (good or bad of it ) are much more savvy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 We were lucky we got down the road alive during the " Good Ole days"..lol I remember Blue Rock having one bus that 1) had no reverse and 2) had to be pushed to get it started. They had to be VERY careful where they parked, since they could never back up. On our tour in 71, at on point we had to get off the busses and walk up a huge hill in front of them, in case they couldn't make it up the hill. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeithHall Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 Yes I noticed in 1988 or so the young people in corps decided that they didn't have to listen to staff members and would challenge everything! Gone were the days of "do as I say!" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Yes I noticed in 1988 or so the young people in corps decided that they didn't have to listen to staff members and would challenge everything! Gone were the days of "do as I say!" Hmmm...I wonder what happened between 1987 and 1988. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeithHall Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) MTV added rap to their rotation! Think I am kidding? Edited September 22, 2015 by KeithHall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bucbari Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 BS, my personal favorite corps as a kid growing up through the mid/late 60's, folding had zero to do with DCI. The inner city turmoil all over the country, including Newark where BS came from, greatly impacted their ability to survive. The benefited briefly when St Lucy's folded after the 1969 season, fielding their last great corps in 1970. After that it was a quick downhill ride in 71 and 72; even adding a girl guard could not save them. Mike there was also a considerable drop off competitively from 70- to 71 with BS. The 71 corp just wasn't up to the previous versions and that led to their demise as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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