CrownBariDad Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 Unless we totally move indoors, woodwinds don't fare well in less than ideal weather. I agree -- let BOA and WGI and SoundSport have woodwinds. Let's leave them out of Drum Corps please. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) Thought experiment: say you bring someone who has never seen drum corps before to the theater showing tonight, but is somewhat musically inclined. They enjoy the performances, but they're puzzled when you tell them there are rules against featuring woodwinds for the solos (amped, as they always are nowadays), or even marched for parts of the show as trombones now are. They want to know the reasoning. How do you justify that decision to them, given everything else about modern drum corps? I would tell them that at the moment DCI allows woodwinds in their Soundsport Division, with their International Corps in the Quarterfinals at Championships, and in the I & E component competitions, and most likely will soon in the Field Competition side of DCI as well. I do agree with you however that it is odd to have marching bands without woodwinds. I would explain this to someone unfamiliar with DCI that there are lots of varieties of marching bands however ( for example, Mummers Marching Bands, Bagpipe Marching Bands ,etc and so forth) that have decided not to utilize some instruments by choice as well. I think if you explain it in this fashion, that they would understand this new DCI concept to themselves without much difficulty, would seem to me. Edited June 24, 2016 by BRASSO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E. Brigand Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 Unless we totally move indoors, woodwinds don't fare well in less than ideal weather. Absolutely correct, but strangely most marching bands play, with woodwinds, in worse weather than most drum corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E. Brigand Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 I do agree with you however that it is odd to have marching bands without woodwinds. Ohio State's marching band, one of the most well-known groups, has no woodwinds. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bawker Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 We have woodwinds in drum corps, except we call them synthesizer patches. Agreed. . . .although Phantom needs to really look for some better, less "thin" string patches. Might as well do what Cadets did and go get someone to play an electric stringed instrument. Having an entire section of that might be interesting, depending on the show concept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lance Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 We have woodwinds in drum corps, except we call them synthesizer patches. I remember a rival high school band that put all of their flutes on piccolos for marching. You could actually hear them, which was new, but it was not pleasant. The only woodwinds I can ever hear at marching band shows are saxophones, and they're completely drowned out by the brass and battery when playing in unison. I just don't see the point in DCI outside of maybe featured soloists or patches like you're talking about, Mr. Boo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 I remember a rival high school band that put all of their flutes on piccolos for marching. You could actually hear them, which was new, but it was not pleasant. The only woodwinds I can ever hear at marching band shows are saxophones, and they're completely drowned out by the brass and battery when playing in unison. I just don't see the point in DCI outside of maybe featured soloists or patches like you're talking about, Mr. Boo. My highschool marched 30 piccolos. Yes, we were a large 300 member band. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) Unless we totally move indoors, woodwinds don't fare well in less than ideal weather. I agree -- let BOA and WGI and SoundSport have woodwinds. Let's leave them out of Drum Corps please. Any marching band that competes with the prohibition from the use of ANY musical instrumentation, is limiting its creative abilities, imo. Why the DCI discrimination of ( for example ) the clarinet over that of ( for example ) the violins and the rock guitars ? Can you explain this discrimination to me ( and others ) ? What is it about the sound of the clarinet that you and DCI do not like over that of ( say ) the rock guitar ? ( that is DCI approved for field competition ). We are not getting the reason for such discrimination on the part of the musicians who play the clarinet for example, for field competition in DCI. Isn't the clarinet musical instrument in academia considered a more acceptable musical instrument than the rock guitar in academia ? Edited June 24, 2016 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hrothgar15 Posted June 24, 2016 Author Share Posted June 24, 2016 (edited) Any marching band that competes with the prohibition from the use of ANY musical instrumentation, is limiting its creative abilities, imo. Why the DCI discrimination of ( for example ) the clarinet over that of ( for example ) the violins and the rock guitars ? Can you explain this discrimination to me ( and others ) ? What is it about the sound of the clarinet that you and DCI do not like over that of ( say ) the rock guitar ? ( that is DCI approved for field competition ). We are not getting the reason for such discrimination on the part of the musicians who play the clarinet for example, for field competition in DCI. Before DCI adopted amplification and moved inside (for most big shows), it was relatively easy to defend instrumentation being all bell-front brass instruments in the same key designed to project outdoors. These days, it's almost impossible to justify disallowing featuring any instrument at all. Part of me wishes DCI started a separate division like SoundSport, but with '90s DCI rules, just to gauge interest. Who knows, maybe performers would have utterly zero interest. But those types of ensembles were so unique it's a shame we don't get to see them anymore, especially with talent levels as high as they are now. Edited June 24, 2016 by Hrothgar15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drumcorpsfever Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 because there aren't enough mics on earth Amen. And did you hear all the mic issues last night? Cavies, Cadets, Crown - all experienced mic issues. Especially Cavies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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