billj Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 This news is very sad. SCV has been one of my favorites for 40+ years. I have a hard time imagining a recovery based on the numbers we've seen without a miracle. Hoping for one. On a small bright side, gas prices have been dropping, so perhaps the fuel and food costs might be lower for corps in 2023. If drastic measures are necessary for the activity as a whole, I wonder if (indoor?) soundsport might be where things land. Am I misremembering, or wasn't DCI supposed to be reviewing finances of each corps to ensure stability? Or was that only to gain entry to World Class, and once you're in, your on your own? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 Concerning the number of staff - once upon a time, each section of the corps had a member designated "section leader", who would take charge of rehearsal during sectionals or other times when there were not enough hired staff to cover every rehearsal block. Now that so many marchers are music education majors, it seems surprising that we are not letting them apply their training in that same role. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 21 hours ago, MarimbaManiac said: Who says they aren't adding to the visual package? Maybe to you. However I promise the pit spends just as much time trying to look a specific way, as they do trying to SOUND a specific way, and it definitely adds to the overall package. Again, the instruments are basically free, the mallets are HEAVILY subsidized if not free, and they get to collect $3500 in tour fees from 15 additional members. Also again, the 5 marimbas are playing different parts for the majority of the show, which people just seem to gloss over, and doing so in synchronization while looking exactly the same adds to demand. There is literally no substance to the argument that one marimba will have the same overall effect as five. Yes, I like keyboards, but no, they don't really consistently "add" to the visual package in the same way that drill and guard do. ...there are too many of them, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjeffeory Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 11 hours ago, C.Holland said: One of the very first ideas behind elex when we added them in the 00s was that pit could finally play their parts without killing their hands. Ours had to wrap their fingers in tape (they still bled all over their mallets), double parts, and pound on the Instrument to keep up with the sound from the field. Once you added elex, the pit parts became more lush, and timbres way more complex as you could now have the ability to hear more parts with less effort. Cavies had some killer pit moments once the elex were added. Cavies had killer pit moments BEFORE, and they were AGAINST amplification in the beginning because they said they used "outdoor" technique, so.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sutasaurus Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 23 minutes ago, jjeffeory said: Cavies had killer pit moments BEFORE, and they were AGAINST amplification in the beginning because they said they used "outdoor" technique, so.... But did the “Outdoor” technique lead to bloody hands/wrist injuries? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbass598 Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 22 minutes ago, jjeffeory said: Cavies had killer pit moments BEFORE, and they were AGAINST amplification in the beginning because they said they used "outdoor" technique, so.... What is "outdoor" technique other than playing really hard into the bars which is bad for the instrument and bad for the hands? Is there indoor and outdoor technique for a trumpet or other brass instruments or is it just blowing through the horn and playing dynamics regardless if you are in a marching band or wind ensemble? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 49 minutes ago, cixelsyd said: Concerning the number of staff - once upon a time, each section of the corps had a member designated "section leader", who would take charge of rehearsal during sectionals or other times when there were not enough hired staff to cover every rehearsal block. Now that so many marchers are music education majors, it seems surprising that we are not letting them apply their training in that same role. I’m wondering given the educational tact the corps take now if for liability reasons they have to have an adult there. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 45 minutes ago, jjeffeory said: Cavies had killer pit moments BEFORE, and they were AGAINST amplification in the beginning because they said they used "outdoor" technique, so.... Ask those kids how their wrists are now 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbass598 Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 7 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said: Ask those kids how their wrists are now And to bring this back to SCV. The Cavaliers in the 90's always looked very tense. A lot of percussion sections did back in that day. I have to give greater credit to Jim Casella and Murray Gusseck for what they did with the SCV percussion section. Their looser approach of bringing mostly drum set associated techniques for relaxation like the Moeller stroke to modern marching percussion has changed the game for the better. Combining that with the ability to expand front ensemble contribution and musicality with the amplification revolutionized the activity for the better. Just one of the many ways SCV has been the trend setter in percussion through every era and I hope it is able to continue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted December 17, 2022 Share Posted December 17, 2022 11 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said: I’m wondering given the educational tact the corps take now if for liability reasons they have to have an adult there. Fair question. To ask it in more detail: Is a 21-year-old MM with three years of college music ed training not an "adult" in that context? Would that same 21-year-old be an "adult" if they were hired staff instead of a MM? Could any "adult" present satisfy the liability concerns, and permit the section leader to run the sectional? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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