PECKVILLE - Live Stream

[JimF-LowBari]

2 hours ago, Poppycock said:

My observation after watching two of those DCA corps yesterday on Flo from Atlanta. Both had people too old or in poor physical condition laboring throughout.

Seattle Cascades will most likely be 22nd in Open Class followed them and was noticeably a step up. When Ramon ask why the corps are so small Stephan said it’s probably because they have their Championships on Labor Day weekend.

Aren’t the majority of DCA members of like age as those in DCI back in school at that time? That can’t possibly help with recruiting younger high school or college marching band members for those training organizations. 

IMO the younger members being back in school is one of the big issues facing DCA and it’s getting bigger. In DCAs early days (translation during my time) schools and football games started after Labor Day and not that many bands competed. Now you have school and game conflicts and band directors being hard nosed due to competing. So on one side you hear make DCA weekend earlier but other side says season is too short already. (And competing season used to start weekend after Memorial Day weekend)

[Jeff Ream]

1 minute ago, JimF-LowBari said:

IMO the younger members being back in school is one of the big issues facing DCA and it’s getting bigger. In DCAs early days (translation during my time) schools and football games started after Labor Day and not that many bands competed. Now you have school and game conflicts and band directors being hard nosed due to competing. So on one side you hear make DCA weekend earlier but other side says season is too short already. (And competing season used to start weekend after Memorial Day weekend)

Competing isn’t the issue on Labor Day. It’s school administration wondering why kids aren’t performing at the first game 

[JimF-LowBari]

Just now, Jeff Ream said:

Competing isn’t the issue on Labor Day. It’s school administration wondering why kids aren’t performing at the first game 

I was thinking of DCA taking time away from mb practice and camps. Especially for the Midwest corps that need a full travel day to get there

[BigW]

2 hours ago, Weaklefthand4ever said:

Thanks BigW. And please don't get me wrong. I think it's a great training ground. And in the top DCA corps you've got to have the talent. Gone seem to be the days of there being a random 1st chair triangle beater or toms/timbale player spot sitting around waiting for someone who can't quite cut it.

You're hitting some nails on the head. I did six seasons in DCA from 16 to 21 years old. I got a great education from some top-notch instructors. DCI was too expensive, and Dad wanted me to go to Phantom, that wasn't my interest. 

 

There was always a cadre of older people that kind of leavened the bread. Now those people are for the most part gone. The Bucs have a few, but they're insanely, insanely, three times insanely, fit.

 

Now... the DCA corps don't have that cadre of say... 20-40 grognards who come back every year well into their early 30's. Any of them that are left are sidelining it. That means it's harder to recruit and maintain numbers. there are fewer and fewer individuals a corps can count on coming back every season.  It affects overall numbers and recruiting. When that cadre at MBI had finally had enough and done enough... look what happened.

 

I tried to go back to Westshore at 25, one of the very few people I loathe from my corps experience pretty much blew me off. Me, play Mellophone? A very funny joke. No one needs me to inflict that on them. Tried to go back at 28, blown off by another individual who said I hadn't 'paid my dues' after six seasons, and getting 2 college degrees in the intervening gap. Laughable, and this person is well known for some of the idiotic things they've said over the years. Still, I could have definitely cut the mustard back then. Now... likely not.

 

I think also, DCA wasn't viewed as much as a 'training ground' back then. It was viewed as a place you could stay and have a great time for a long time if you desired that, if you went to DCI, that was cool, come back when you age out, you have a place here.

 

The genie's out of the bottle and it ain't going back. To make things more interesting, DCI Sound Sport gives those older people some kind of outlet in multiple locations and events. DCA gives them one day. I find it ironic Sound Sport provides more of an 'all-age' opportunity than DCA unless you want to build props and donate money.

 

Hate to sound so down, but this has built up over years where I have observed carefully and kept my mouth shut.

[BigW]

3 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said:

IMO the younger members being back in school is one of the big issues facing DCA and it’s getting bigger. In DCAs early days (translation during my time) schools and football games started after Labor Day and not that many bands competed. Now you have school and game conflicts and band directors being hard nosed due to competing. So on one side you hear make DCA weekend earlier but other side says season is too short already. (And competing season used to start weekend after Memorial Day weekend)

Getting Labor Day snipped off would be another blow on that end. Vicious circle of time, appropriate design for the limited performances... all more and more difficult.

[Jeff Ream]

4 hours ago, BigW said:

Getting Labor Day snipped off would be another blow on that end. Vicious circle of time, appropriate design for the limited performances... all more and more difficult.

they shortened the minimum show length, but no shows seemed shorter last night. and with more and more of the northeast having school ramp up earlier in August, Labor Day weekend is going to be an issue facing all regions.

[BigW]

2 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

they shortened the minimum show length, but no shows seemed shorter last night. and with more and more of the northeast having school ramp up earlier in August, Labor Day weekend is going to be an issue facing all regions.

No argument here. More an observation that there will be one less weekend to rehearse and prepare the program. There aren't many more drops to squeeze out of the orange. It just seems that DCA has been giving and giving and everyone else does the taking... which just presses things to a more and more untenable situation.

[Jeff Ream]

7 hours ago, BigW said:

No argument here. More an observation that there will be one less weekend to rehearse and prepare the program. There aren't many more drops to squeeze out of the orange. It just seems that DCA has been giving and giving and everyone else does the taking... which just presses things to a more and more untenable situation.

be more organized in the winter. As you yourself said, indoor conflicts doesn't slow Bucs down.

[Weaklefthand4ever]

14 hours ago, BigW said:

I think also, DCA wasn't viewed as much as a 'training ground' back then. It was viewed as a place you could stay and have a great time for a long time if you desired that, if you went to DCI, that was cool, come back when you age out, you have a place here

And I think that's truly part of the key. As the level of performance goes up in DCI, the DCA corps are getting talent either as age outs or pre-rookies who are headed up the DCI ladder. Back 25 to 30 years ago, if you had a little talent and a lot of drive, you could march DCI. I remember basically show up at camps until they tell you not to anymore, work your ### off and improve every rep and pay your dues on time. That was pretty much it. Now even I'm top DCA groups (especially in percussion,) you've got to be the real deal. 

[Weaklefthand4ever]

1 hour ago, Jeff Ream said:

be more organized in the winter. As you yourself said, indoor conflicts doesn't slow Bucs down.

Are Bucs guard ans percussion attached to any specific WGI unit? I know CV had CVI and is now associated with another group. That would seem to be the answer though IF it is financially feasable to do so. Get a good solid foundation in the WGI world during the "off season" with ties to specifoc groups.