Where will the growth take place?

[TheOneWhoKnows]

9 hours ago, TenHut said:

The Drum Corp Activity has had negative growth for 30+ years. It isn't going to change anytime soon. I sure hope that DCI and drum corps brass are meeting to discuss the strategy to maintain the activity.

In my opinion, the following needs to happen:

1. There must be a strategy to recruit local kids.

2. Regionalization. This would basically be similar to the old NCAA football conference set up with regional competitions.

3. Hold all corps camps and tryouts in the corps hometown. 

4. Corps members must be from a specified region. IE: Cavys members must be from the Midwest. 

5. DCI needs to hire someone to solidify sponsor partnerships, and someone to build relationships with schools for housing.  If there are people already in these roles, they are bad at their jobs.

 

 

You’ll never get broad school partnership for housing. Now every school wants to charge for the use and with society being so lawsuit happy, there’s too much liability in someone else using your facilities. 

[TheOneWhoKnows]

14 hours ago, ranintothedoor said:

- I wonder if AI ruining the online digital music landscape (ie, what's even real on the internet anymore) will give live music events/experiences a boost? If DCI can hold on long enough to reach that point.

- The WGI / SoundSport model is interesting.  Smaller, indoor performing ensembles, with any instrumentation.  If you direct money to these ensembles, you will grow the business.  

- Allowing things to naturally take their course and being smart about how to build up what's left.  As organizations fold under the weight of the DCI model, other organizations continue to grow.  Lean into what's left.  Consolidate so to weather the storm until inflation comes back down (40 years... ha).

- Groups like Muete, Youngbloods Brass Bands, Snarky Puppy... they're expanding their imprint on the live music culture from different directions.  DCI has something amazing in its hands... allowing it to move away from "marching band" and toward "broadway" naturally will allow the unique spectacle to reach more and more people. 

- Have you seen the British reaction videos online over the last couple years? What we have is truly special; as long as there's one group producing this kind of art, the culture will appreciate and absorb it.  

- Think about how powerful Banana Ball has become within the baseball subculture.  It might be time for a "Spectacle" division within DCI where the top groups begin making arena-style art that entertains surrounding crowds.  DCI + WGI + Basketball arenas.

- I know this sounds like a G7 thing.  It's not.  Both and... both and.  Keep the touring model (struggling though it is), get SoundSport units paid somehow, and create a cash cow division that moves off the football field and into broadway/basketball stadiums/etc.  Banana Ball is "competitive"... but it's entertainment.  Lean into that for the Spectacle division.  People will pay!

 

AI running the online digital music landscape will bleed into drum corps. Sorry but Bluecoats are already flirting with that line too much for my comfort. 
 

The WGI/Soundsport type model is the logical and feasible path forward. Not the one I desire, but the only one that has a chance of surviving. 

[erroneous]

If you all vote for me for president of the United States I will allocate 40 billion dollars a year to drum corps and marching band. Free tuition for all.

 

 

[TheOneWhoKnows]

13 minutes ago, erroneous said:

If you all vote for me for president of the United States I will allocate 40 billion dollars a year to drum corps and marching band. Free tuition for all.

 

 

Hey im all for just tweet bombing Elon and asking for him to donate. Can’t hurt right? Money is money 🤷🏼‍♂️

[cixelsyd]

9 hours ago, IllianaLancerContra said:

For all these various ideas the default response seems to be ‘No, because…’
 

I propose we take the alternative approach ‘Yes, if…’

In that case:

Yes, if... the leadership of drum corps realizes that we have all been watching the activity kill itself for the past 53 years (task 90% complete), and that nothing short of a total rewrite of DCI bylaws/governance structure/membership criteria will stop this task from eventual completion. 

Look at how many of the "No, because... " are because the decisions are made by top corps, for top corps - to the detriment of other corps and the exclusion of any possibility of growth.  They have spent the entire DCI era raising costs.  But revenue, real inflation-corrected revenue, peaked 50 years ago.

It gets worse.  Now we have another mouth to feed... the DCI office and its staff.  Two dozen people who do some good things, but can the business model afford them?  At some point in the infighting, a corps director not known for exemplary business practices himself double-ironically impugned DCI office leadership for not having the profits and reserves of a thriving business.  Now we are diverting more of the revenue toward that.  Remember that the whole reason DCI was created was to return profits to the corps, instead of the agency running the show.

[MikeN]

1 hour ago, cixelsyd said:

It gets worse.  Now we have another mouth to feed... the DCI office and its staff.  Two dozen people who do some good things, but can the business model afford them?  

Yes.  Two dozen people put on a 10 million dollar tour. The two guys alone that handled housing all those years saved corps infinitely more in labor and travel trying to line up close places to stay.

Mike

[perc2100]

23 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

i have no idea what the answers are. every time i think i find something that will help, five things pop up that kill that idea.

Yeah at this point I feel like it's almost amazing DCI is still going, still seemingly viable to some extent at least, and still selling tons of tickets to regionals and Championships.  Perhaps there is no reasonable solution short of completely just letting it all ride until the wave finally crashes and the juggernaut corps do their own separate thing like Star/Blast.

I still think the most viable option is for corps to do WGI Winds groups: could be more localized, just as innovative and cool, easier financially, etc.  Like, it's floored me that corps aren't doing any of that, but I guess it would stretch them too thin (since some corps have seemingly struggled doing their own percussion or guard groups).  

Maybe old timers can just sit back, enjoy DCI while we can, and just ride until one of us (me or DCI) dies 🤷‍♂️

[perc2100]

22 hours ago, OldSnareDrummer said:

I sure don't have any better ideas and you score points for out of the box thinking, but I don't know if the dinos and traditionalists of the activity would buy into a full season of The Harlem Globetrotters do Drum Corps.

FWIW Banana Ball is absolutely NOT Harlem Globetrotters; they're more entertainment-focused, but the games have specific rules and are 'anyone-can-win-any night' affairs.  The Savanah Bananas lost in the Semis IIRC; they certainly didn't win this year.  And for what it's worth, baseball traditionalists (🙋‍♂️like me) have embraced the Banana Ball org to the fact where MLB stadiums that hadn't sold out in decades sold out super quick for Banana Ball.  There's a TON of dancing and music involved w/games, and a bit of tomfoolery at times to make things fun, but generally they're still doing all of the hitting/pitching/catching/fielding as normal with some rules changes.  Regardless, they sure found a great way to engage both current MLB fans (🙋‍♂️), as well as those who don't normally attend or watch MLB or MiLB games

Also, I think DCI and its corps have made it clear they're not super interested in dinos and traditionalists as it is for the most part

[perc2100]

21 hours ago, mcjordansc said:

I am just looking to start a discussion. I, too, enjoy prelims, but maybe we can find something just as interesting to fill that day. Maybe Open Class Corps rotates into Indianapolis using a two or three-year cycle. I don't have all the answers, but I do know a shake-up is needed. 

Regarding World Class, I would love to see 20 or more, but, considering the cost of touring, I am not sure that is feasible. 
 

Maybe:
- non-Premier (Championship, as someone posted, mirroring the top 2 British pro football levels/leagues) corps can compete early Finals week like Open Class does now, with the Top 3 automatically promoted to Premier level for next season

- Premier Prelims can be all the Championship corps competing for Premier status; in the addition to the Top 3 Champion Corps, maybe an additional three can be added based on Prelim scores; if Premier corps lose to Championship corps, they're Championship corps next year: like olden times, Top 21 = Premier (if that's sustainable; if not, whatever number is sustainable + adjusting the model).  If a Championship corps doesn't want/isn't able to financially sustain Premier level for the following year, they don't compete at Prelims and they're done for the year.

- Semis could be the 'next-year's Premier level' corps in competition to set up Finals.  

Just spitballing since we're all just making stuff up now anyways 🤪

[perc2100]

19 hours ago, Slingerland said:

Spoiler alert - they aren't.

I think since as long as I've known about the activity in the early 1990's, all Admin involved are in some state of treading water and hoping not to go under: just about everyone is one accident or disaster away from financial oblivion: from a lawsuit from awhile ago, bad press, equipment or food truck being stolen/breaking down, etc.  From an outsider's perspective, it's almost fascinating how little long-term growth planning seemingly occurs in the activity, unless things get discussed w/out any press or leaks; if I'm wrong, please show me!