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We were no performing art majors!


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I just keep thinking back to a time there were hundreds, no thousands of corps at all levels, from the small  local corps to the Giants, like the hawthorn or the skyliners.  They were local corps and it was just as much about the spirit of the corps as the music.  We took in anybody who was eager to be a part of the corp.  We taught them how to play an instrument.  Now it seems it is only available to select few who have to audition for a spot in a limited number of corps.  I can't celebrate the future that excludes a lot of people who cannot make a slot in a corps.  Drum Corps was as much about the spirit of working together as it was the music.

 

Grenadier

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On 7/8/2017 at 7:16 PM, Grenadier said:

I just keep thinking back to a time there were hundreds, no thousands of corps at all levels, from the small  local corps to the Giants, like the hawthorn or the skyliners.  They were local corps and it was just as much about the spirit of the corps as the music.  We took in anybody who was eager to be a part of the corp.  We taught them how to play an instrument.  Now it seems it is only available to select few who have to audition for a spot in a limited number of corps.  I can't celebrate the future that excludes a lot of people who cannot make a slot in a corps.  Drum Corps was as much about the spirit of working together as it was the music.

 

Grenadier

It's a very different time for the activity. It's been said a thousand times and I find either some accept it, some don't ,others try to re- create. A few facts though. I was one of those back in the day, local kids. I don't think my dues when i was a very young kid were more than 100 bucks, and this was a major corps of then as well as today. AS kids, drum corps " kept us off the streets", remember that saying? Well today kids have alot more choice than we ever did. Often we never ventured out of our own towns let alone travel cross country to march somewhere. I still teach today on many levels, in all aspects of the activity and as much and as basic as we can say kids are kids and the same, that is not the case. How can they be? Many believe local corps died due to DCI.Or is it that DCI might have saved drum corps from itself and a changing world. Would drum corps like many things of the past just be a post WW2 hobby long gone. I guess that can be debated somewhat. Many facts of very good hearted people of the past who couldn't , or wouldn't accept that the world in itself was changing might have been the very reason so many corps folded.

It's very easy to blame those of today for what we miss of yesterday BUT how much were we responsible for making today what it is?Things don't change over night.

Boy Scouts have 1/2 the membership of the 70s and had to change rules you would never think just to survive, CYOs gone, church sponsorship's, gone, Legions and VFWs barley surviving, Donation or cheap rehearsal sites, totally gone.

One can look at this and be very depressed BUT the flip side of this is through all of it Drum Corps is still here, a very high level, and through reinvention still can attract MMs . A good thing imo.

Edited by GUARDLING
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On 7/8/2017 at 8:16 PM, Grenadier said:

I just keep thinking back to a time there were hundreds, no thousands of corps at all levels, from the small  local corps to the Giants, like the hawthorn or the skyliners.  They were local corps and it was just as much about the spirit of the corps as the music.  We took in anybody who was eager to be a part of the corp.  We taught them how to play an instrument.  Now it seems it is only available to select few who have to audition for a spot in a limited number of corps.  I can't celebrate the future that excludes a lot of people who cannot make a slot in a corps.  Drum Corps was as much about the spirit of working together as it was the music.

 

Grenadier

at most that has been tracked, there were 450 or so corps total in north america

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I know lack of funding has been brought up as a reason why corps have gone in active.  Most corps have at least three tractor trailers they use for equipment and chuck wagons.  Those rigs have saddle fuel tanks that hold minimum 75 gallons of fuel each.  so two tanks at 75 gallons is 150 gallons per rig.  Now take that times the national average for the price of diesel which is $2.50 per gallon.  Now you are looking at a fuel bill of $750 per rig times three which comes out to $2,250.00 just for one fill.  That is just fuel to get from point a to point b.  To get to point c might require another fill depending on how far they travelled, how much climbing they had to do to get there plus how the driver runs the vehicle.  This is just on three rigs, I did not include charter busses in this.  Compare this current price to the price of Diesel back in, say 1980 when it was just $0.82 per gallon and not as many rigs being used at that time.

 

Hey Big W, for the record, New Cumberland told Larry they could go out of their way and pay us $50 to do the parade.  I, like you was digging for cash.

Edited by buzzgok
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I didn't want to burn the Borough too bad, my friend.

 

'specially since I'm playing and singing at one of the churches there this morning.

 

It figures after I moved out after 21 and a half years they want me there now and again:laugh:

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1 hour ago, BigW said:

I didn't want to burn the Borough too bad, my friend.

 

'specially since I'm playing and singing at one of the churches there this morning.

 

It figures after I moved out after 21 and a half years they want me there now and again:laugh:

Just didn't know if you remembered or not :whistle:

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