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Original Music...the future of drum corps


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I believe original music compositions is the future of drum corps. It is becoming increasingly common to hear corps performing original music, composed specifically for the corps. I believe corps will be rewarded for original music within the scoring system. It’s a great opportunity for growth and advancement of the activity. What do you think about this?

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29 minutes ago, larry333 said:

I believe original music compositions is the future of drum corps. It is becoming increasingly common to hear corps performing original music, composed specifically for the corps. I believe corps will be rewarded for original music within the scoring system. It’s a great opportunity for growth and advancement of the activity. What do you think about this?

Before they go to original music, I hope someone is looking into the licensing and rights. "Publish" through a DCI entity so that steaming rights are clear. I was in an a band that did originals. A local brewery wanted only original music because the assumption was that they wouldn't have to pay ASCAP, BMI, SESAC performance fees. That's not actually case if the originals were published through something like CD Baby or whatever. Even if the original artist is performing their originals, performance rights still come into play. It sucks, but they have lawyers on staff that go after venues all day, every day. So, if Blue Devils come up with all original music for a year and it's published through something that filters up through BMI, streaming rights are still an issue. I guess Phantom is in the clear for a lot of their music which is considered in the public domain.

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54 minutes ago, larry333 said:

I believe original music compositions is the future of drum corps. It is becoming increasingly common to hear corps performing original music, composed specifically for the corps. I believe corps will be rewarded for original music within the scoring system. It’s a great opportunity for growth and advancement of the activity. What do you think about this?

I think most original drum corps music is uninteresting. I also think it was more common in the past than it is now.

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2 minutes ago, N.E. Brigand said:

I think most original drum corps music is uninteresting. I also think it was more common in the past than it is now.

 

Well, in my "original band" mentioned in my comment above. Yeah, people want to hear what the know and enjoy. It's far easier to pick a top song from the millions of songs in existence than to come up with something great on your own.

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Last week in the mini corps competition at DCA championships, the Freelancers, who won, played what is still the best music ever written specifically for drum corps, and that was more than 30 years ago.

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While I think we're likely to see some all original shows, particularly in Open Class where it may be easier to pay a composer than secure rights, a wholesale shift in the activity doesn't seem all that likely.  That said Key Poulan has done some nice work. 

We'll probably see specific segments of original composition that bridge us between pieces of shows as arrangers go for more 'seamless' arranging though.  How do you get from a 19th Century Romantic piece to a 21st century K-pop piece will stop being abrupt as arrangers compose a few minutes of music to get from A to B.   Whether they start listing it in the reps as some have, or simply consider it part of the arranging as they pull from motifs in the both pieces to make the bridge may depend on the person doing it.  

In Open Class I can see the appeal of going all original not only because of rights hassle with less staff and board expertise, as well as less funds, but also from an instructional point of view wanting to get a show that challenges the members and grows their skills in specific ways.  In World Class, I think there's too much GE to be gained in 'quickly remembered tunes' and enough resources and staff to arrange as the want for instructional goals to take the all original route that often. 

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I hope it's not the future, at least entirely. 

Drum Corps couldn’t be any more of a niche activity than it already is, and from what I can tell the niche is getting even smaller.  Give the crowd something they can at least recognize and maybe tap their toe to.  Isn’t that what helped the Blue Coats?  People knew the music and could relate in a positive way.

Give the people/crowd what they want, not “show designers” and wannabe composers.

 

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1 hour ago, cybersnyder said:

 

Well, in my "original band" mentioned in my comment above. Yeah, people want to hear what the know and enjoy. It's far easier to pick a top song from the millions of songs in existence than to come up with something great on your own.

Which brings up the question of who should corps play for? The people in the stands or corps staff....

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2 hours ago, N.E. Brigand said:

I think most original drum corps music is uninteresting. I also think it was more common in the past than it is now.

Original music worked for the Cavies in the early 2000's.  Wasn't it composed to fit their great visual drill?

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