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See you at DCA World Championships!


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2 hours ago, lcarlton said:

We have another school; very friendly overall but we're not allowed to actively recruit their kids. We have members from the school in the program starting as 8th graders and staying in the corps for years, but cannot actually have more from the band. These are just examples but it goes on and on. For us, the focus has been on rural schools of 50 or more; it seems to be that happy medium where directors see the value... the challenge is just convincing the kids they actually have the skill and that we'll teach them how to be better. For many it's been the gateway to getting into WGI, DCI World, and College band which the directors see and appreciate and still support programs. This isn't just an issue for our corps; had the same challenges when a lot of us marched at Tradition. 

And that's what is needed. 1) Proper outreach to show the value and 2) Directors and Boards that are willing to listen. DCI and DCA should be ACTIVELY involved at some of the larger band conferences.

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2 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said:

Question for the above posts (except Frans lol)....

If a band member does corps and comes back a better player/marcher how much of that shows on a field full of band members? Yes the person themselves improves but how much does the band improve?

thought here is some directors care about the band lot more than what good is done for the individual

In our experience; we tend to get members from schools in clusters instead of one offs. So like we'll get 3-6 kids from the same school. They return to their schools in the fall, and are able to not only perform better; but take the organizational values back which sometimes helps. In our case, our founder/CEO pushes the community angle and the idea "a rising tide lifts all boats" so the expectation is the member will go back and just be supportive of everyone with the understanding they aren't any better than the next person; they just had an opportunity. When we were just a drumline and drill team 16 years ago, it was very very effective; now we're a little smaller and a drum & bugle corps so it's not as effective but still works at some of the schools. We also offer assistance for local schools; send staff and alumni to help work band camps for free/cheap while also loaning equipment when needed to try and build relationships.

What has happened at some locations is the directors get on board and we'll get kids for a few years till a few graduate, or the director leaves and we start from scratch. We have a cluster of kids that come from Cincinnati and have twice as many from the school than before. It tends to go like that and runs through a cycle but the scheduling is still an issue as that Friday for DCI or DCA is always a conflict. 

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1 hour ago, BigW said:

Interesting comments about the good old TBDBITL. Still remember that 23 page official report about their antics and I've never looked at them the same way with near as much respect since then. They're no angels.

Well, the culture has changed overall, and from a few members and alumni we have involved it's changing still and some students like it while others dislike it. The performance quality is still so high and they have such a huge dominance in the area it's really hard to change opinions on that. Youtube has amplified that further by showing the band regularly, while also making skull sessions a wider known thing. We did rehearse at the Band Hall early season which was nice to have that support even though their members can't participate. 

 

I also agree Bullfrog Brewery. Good drinks. Food was very good.

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10 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said:

Question for the above posts (except Frans lol)....

If a band member does corps and comes back a better player/marcher how much of that shows on a field full of band members? Yes the person themselves improves but how much does the band improve?

thought here is some directors care about the band lot more than what good is done for the individual

some kids pass on what they learned at corp...especially from an attitude/work ethic standpoint

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On 8/13/2019 at 5:51 AM, BigW said:

Nothing wrong in growing a young audience. It's essential to any activity. MLB is desperately trying to do just that.

What makes me wonder is the perceived  very short shelf life of the new fans with DCI.

No major sports that I know if have a fan base that's a 3 year expendable crop. They want people to follow for a long time from young on. They try to get the new fans in, but then they try to keep them. I really can't see the model as healthy unless it's more of a throw the hands up and run with the HS Band model, which is a weird duck to begin with in so many ways. Might explain why I feel Bandma Jones and Aunt Mabel are shoving me out the door while they scream "THEY'RE ALWAYS READYYYYY!!!!!!!!!" for you know who. :sleep:

the group discounts for bands at DCI is pretty good. Especially if you have a large band.  It gets butts in seats from the hotbed that is marching band in the midwest.  when i taught bands in KY and IN, most all of them ended band camp with a trip to see DCI whether it was semi's or finals.  There's just loads of good bands in that area, that feed into the corps as well as the audience. 

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20 hours ago, C.Holland said:

the group discounts for bands at DCI is pretty good. Especially if you have a large band.  It gets butts in seats from the hotbed that is marching band in the midwest.  when i taught bands in KY and IN, most all of them ended band camp with a trip to see DCI whether it was semi's or finals.  There's just loads of good bands in that area, that feed into the corps as well as the audience. 

The Midwest was alwaya great for the activity. It's tapered off a bit in the South. I would love to see discounts for streaming for high school band directors if nothing else.

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1 hour ago, Weaklefthand4ever said:

The Midwest was alwaya great for the activity. It's tapered off a bit in the South. I would love to see discounts for streaming for high school band directors if nothing else.

group discounts could be good for DCA...in an area where you're close to lots of groups. Allentown gets them because of the closeness to Harrisburg, Allentown, Philly suburbs and into NJ. Williamsport is 2 hours northwest of Allentown, surrounded by a lot of rual areas in which competitive bands aren't flowing forth

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On 8/9/2019 at 6:23 PM, Jeff Ream said:

no, I'll be there

as will I. first trip to DCA weekend since 2014. 

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19 minutes ago, C.Holland said:

as will I. first trip to DCA weekend since 2014. 

find me. I'll be one of, oh,  1300

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20 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

find me. I'll be one of, oh,  1300

I'll buy you a beer if you wear a Waldo hat so we can spot you Jeff.

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