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Time to Say Goodbye, after 15 years


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25 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

it's very easy to see how it worked out....like many predicted. allowing amplification led to synthesizers, laptops, boom mics, wireless mics and everything else you see on the field today or hear coming through the speakers. And after the high of attendance in 2007, then there was a drop for a few years, and now attendance is back up, pretty much holding steady the last few years. So yes, it is pretty easy to see how it worked out. As myself and several other predicted in December 2002 when the vote was taken to start use in 2004. Yes fans left. we've seen the angst filled posts here and elsewhere, and we all know people that left that never came here. We've also seen LOS go from maybe 12k in 2010 to the first side basically filled to the endzones, with several regionals breaking attendance records along the way.

If it were going to be all the doom and gloom many predicted back in 2002, DCI would be dead by now. It's not.

Like I said, it would be incorrect to assume anybody "knows how it worked out".  You prove my point.  The "attendance high of 2007", eh?  :doh:

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7 hours ago, greg_orangecounty said:

Wow. In 2019 I had no idea high school marching bands could be this good. No wonder many here think adding WW to Drum Corps is no big deal, as bands look like Drum Corps now.

I may have to re-think my position on “Bandos”

I felt the same way once.  Now I look forward to what these kids are doing.  The level of talent from high school marchers is amazing.

Look at the attached group.  No props, just a bunch of T-rex. 

T-rex

Edited by Continental
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1 hour ago, Continental said:

I felt the same way once.  Now I look forward to what these kids are doing.  The level of talent from high school marchers is amazing.

Look at the attached group.  No props, just a bunch of T-rex. 

T-rex

OK, maybe this is one of the reasons why jocks feel justified in ridiculing band kids.  (And thanks for the link, BTW!)

And major fail with their snare line playing matched-grip.  THOSE directors and percussion techs are likely the same ones who demanded the pit be amplified to save the keyboard player's technique, then fail to teach their kids the grip used by 99% of the music world.

But the T-rex costumes were cute.

 

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23 hours ago, Mello Dude said:

I miss VK's cymbal lines.... 😛

 

 I miss all Cymbal  lines. For many years SCV and the Scouts had the most entertaining Cymbal lines and I would always encourage people to watch them for a while,  they were great.  Scouts Cymbal line was the heart and soul of our drum line in 1981. Every one of them were hilarious cut ups.

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20 hours ago, garfield said:

OK, maybe this is one of the reasons why jocks feel justified in ridiculing band kids.  (And thanks for the link, BTW!)

And major fail with their snare line playing matched-grip.  THOSE directors and percussion techs are likely the same ones who demanded the pit be amplified to save the keyboard player's technique, then fail to teach their kids the grip used by 99% of the music world.

But the T-rex costumes were cute.

 

 Match grip should be against the law. I absolutely hate it. Unfortunately I had the march one season playing match grip and it just didn't feel the same.

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On 11/5/2019 at 6:41 PM, Ray Kimber said:

Some marching history from Utah.  Bruce Bastian was the director of BYU marching band for a while, IIRC the band was struggling.  Bruce might have been the/a father of software to plot marching patterns.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Bastian

Ray,

Firstly, as a long time customer, I cannot tell you how much you have improved the many hours of listening I have done over the years. Many thanks for the incredible innovations and excellent quality.

It was actually though Bruce (very indirectly) that I first come across your work. I happened to be at an event that Bruce was also at back in late 90's and he brought up DiAural in discussion. Very curious and fascinated, I began to explore a bit more about the company and tech behind it (Doppler-encoding distortion), which lead to me discovering Kimber Kable.

My father was actually an early employee of Word Perfect, back when it was still called SSI and in the little building behind the Winchell's.

It was at the height of the Word Perfect era that I ventured up to Odgen to see my very first drum corps show in the summer of 1986. That single event made such an impression, that I've remained just as hooked today as I had been as that 12 year old kid.

To your original post, I do absolutely understand your concerns and quite frankly do share in some of these sentiments. I do also understand the possible frustration given how you have very actively supported the activity locally.

I would, however, like to offer a bit of perspective and propose something of challenge.

In perspective, sound reinforcement, electronic instruments, sampling, etc. are all very new to drum corps and the marching activity as a whole. There is much to learn and best practices to more consistently implement. Beyond this, there is the very unique challenge of coverage and balance in a scenario where there are new and radically different venues each day with no opportunity for proper sound check prior to performance.

Given that drum corps is very much a not-for-profit activity and certainly small scale in comparison to other events utilizing sound reinforcement in these very same stadiums, there is not an ability to draw on the expertise of the top professionals in the industry and the activity is instead much more homegrown and self-taught in this particular area. There is a certainly so much still to learn regarding sound reinforcement and audio in general, but there are so many, so eager to know more.

This is where the challenge comes in...

Rather than walk away, what about becoming more engaged, but in a different way? You have a very unique understanding of this very topic and could make a genuine impact that could result in very immediate and tangible improvements in the balance and consistency of sound reinforcement within the activity.

There is a very practical way to become engaged and influence real change here.

During the summer there is the Amplify Marching Arts Audio Seminar produced by Lone Star Percussion. This is a seminar where some of the current thought leaders in the segment get together and share their knowledge, discoveries, and explore ways to continue to improve the overall quality of audio and sound reinforcement within the marching activity. We sponsored this event last summer and hope to continue to get even more engaged moving forward.

I would like to personally invite you to be my guest to this seminar this next summer. I would be very curious to get your insights on how the activity may continue to refine and improve this aspect of the experience.

I do believe that the activity as a whole would clearly benefit from knowledge and insights, as well as your unvarnished feedback.

 

Edited by danielray
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