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Time to Say Goodbye, after 15 years


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14 hours ago, Lance said:

same thing people who were fundamentally against adding the first valve thought.  then later the 2nd valve and 3rd valve.  "then it ceases to be drum corps" is exactly what they said and believed as well.  

Except in those cases, there was an immediate, obvious counterargument.

14 hours ago, Lance said:

yes, they argued they ceased to be bugles with those additions.  even before that, people referred to it colloquially as just "drum corps".  i think almost everybody does. 

the underlying argument that instrumentation defines what differs "drum corps" from "just a regular marching band" is the key here.  

And with woodwinds, instrumentation would no longer be different.  So why keep calling it "drum corps"?  Why spend 99 years changing everything about the activity, but leave the name outdated and irrelevant?  Why make changes purposely to align with the scholastic marching band community, then refuse to adopt a more accurate name that better aligns with the scholastic marching band community?  

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13 hours ago, denmum said:

You might be right, but would that necessarily be a bad thing? If they could fill all 100 yds. with brass players and big sound wouldn't the "whole" audience appreciate that and not just the center section?

They could do that any time they want.  What is required to make that happen, however, is to fill all 100 yards with judges.

Scatter the judges all over the concert side, and shows will play to the entire concert side.  Keep them concentrated in the press box, and shows will play only to the press box... no matter how many performers are on the field.

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So did the OP leave and if so why are we changing the path of this post? LOL SMH

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11 hours ago, garfield said:

54 new bodies on a bus is something like $200,000 in additional revenue.  Subtract expenses and one gets net.

The activity has been supplementing student tours since day one with every donated dollar, hour, or instrument.  The last I looked, show budgets for 150 kids are averaging close to $1million.  150 members x $4,000 tour fees is around $600,000 (plus some for camps and stuff).

I don't think anyone seriously considering the idea is thinking that new MM positions will pay for themselves.  But then, they haven't thought that for a long, long time (in WC anyway).

You beat me to it.

Drum corps is not innately profitable.  Bussing 154 kids around the country doing drum corps is a net cost, not a net profit.  Corps have to raise additional funds through charitable contributions just to make ends meet.

Adding another busload of kids would therefore be an added cost.  Why would DCI do this in the midst of a strategic plan that seeks to raise the financial tide, not lower it?

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To understand why changes are made it is important to understand who/what powers the decision. We can all provide opinions, but as individuals, even small groups of individuals, we have very little sway. So far, I’ve been pleased with most of the new enhancements over the years. Except for needless electronic amplification to the extent we sometimes hear now, most of it abrasive, off-putting, even deceptively fake.

I also ask, does DCI really need to replicate the full, traditional style marching band we see by the thousands all across America? I think not.  I prefer something more unique and special. Better, more thrilling, in its own way.

Rows of moving clarinets will likely cause me to lose interest. As it is, I don’t watch BOA, or WGI. But, I accept thousands and thousands do. I won’t be missed. 

 

 

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24 minutes ago, cixelsyd said:

You beat me to it.

Drum corps is not innately profitable.  Bussing 154 kids around the country doing drum corps is a net cost, not a net profit.  Corps have to raise additional funds through charitable contributions just to make ends meet.

Adding another busload of kids would therefore be an added cost.  Why would DCI do this in the midst of a strategic plan that seeks to raise the financial tide, not lower it?

After coming back from a trip with 2 buses and seeing the logistics problems that occurred. Corps are having problems finding housing and practice sites with 3 bus loads. Adding a bus load would only make that harder as more bodies for host site to worry about. Can just see a site saying roughly 200 people is too many... bye.

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9 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

so food, insurance, equipment, , transportation, staff, fuel, housing, uniform/costume/whatever they call it....doesn't guarantee net now does it? after all, we don't see many corps swimming in cash now

Of course there's no guarantee, but there's never been one and, while kids will pay fees, you can't ignore from the equation the 2.2 new sets of eyeballs that those MMs drag along for several years.

Corps have been fielding for years without member costs covering member expenses and I wouldn't expect that to change with a new busload of members.

 

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On ‎10‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 1:08 PM, cixelsyd said:

Your two cents will be out-voted by the dollars of the instrument suppliers.

Many have speculated in the past that woodwinds would be added via foot-in-the-door tactics like solo-only, pit-only, or other restrictions (saxophone-only was actually proposed once).  But ultimately, the suppliers will once again drive the direction this otherwise rudderless activity takes.  They partner with DCI in order to use it as their marching arts showroom, featuring their products.  The real market is the wider marching band activity.

 

The idea of adding a few dozen instruments to a few dozen corps is not even close to a needle mover for the sponsor's bottom line.  There are thousands of marching bands that are already purchasing clarinets, flutes etc. from Yamaha, Vandoren, Selmer, Giardinelli, Etude, et. al.  Adding a few dozen more won't move the needle in the slightest. 

Yes, I get that it would allow them to "feature" their instruments on the "grand stage" of drum corps.  However, drum corps is a very small part of the music industry.  We can't even get 50,000 to a finals performance and maybe 100K watching on a screen.  Any given weekend in the fall, there are dozens of stadiums with over 50K people that get to see the marching band.  Does that improve the sales of Yamaha?  Minimally at best.  The risk analysis by DCI should include the amount of lost customers (Fans) against the possibility of a minimal gain in sales for the sponsors.  The sponsors should do the same and I expect they will.  Adding marching woodwinds is far different from adding a different type of bugle (Contras in the 60s).  last time I checked, this is still "Drum & Bugle Corps" and not marching band.

The OP stated one of the reasons for leaving had to do with amplification.  As stated earlier by Fran, the amplification of woodwinds can be done successfully.  The question is "At What Cost"? Losing someone like our OP is exactly what is at risk.

Edited by Old Corps Guy
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I think OP has a bit more vested interest than most as he used recordings of corps (among other things certainly) to demo the cables and other gear that he sells. Amplification ruins the nuances that could have been recorded. So it’s obviously less interesting to him. 

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