KingJoeVII Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 We already have "Sponsored by YEA!..." thats different...YEA! is a non-profit that was started basically as a support group for the corps in the program Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvertrombone Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 I'm starting to notice a theme from yesteryear. I'm not being ugly here either. Clue me in. It sounds like marching band began gaining in popularity roughly equivalent to DC's long-term recession. I mean, DC used to be locally based and you learned to play your axe in the corps. Drums, brass, whatever. MB's and band programs in general sound like they came into the mainstream roughly equivalent to the same time that DC's began to decline, for the opposite reasons. Where MB's are generally school-specific and basically taxpayer-supported, DC's are individually-supported, etc and have no tax support from a community, etc. Am I accurate or anywhere near close to the truth here? I realize it may differ from state to state. But am I close? If so, this changes the conversation a lot and I will continue if I am correct. Let me know and fill in the gray areas, please. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelloDisciple Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Man If I only had a handy DeLorean to give to the DCI conservative naysayers and skeptics. I'd push you to 88 myself if it would make us both happy. I get a kick out of reading the "it was better when I marched" arguments. It's the older generations that are designing the product now. Seems like the influential people from previous generations don't share the same conservative view. I, for one, love seeing something new that I've never seen before. It would be extremely difficult to deliver innovation every year if nothing changed. Besides, this tale is as old as time anyway. Something old changes or gets replaced by something new. Drum corps isn't the only thing to undergo modernization. If you ask me, we are only scratching the surface right now as to what new things can be done especially using technological innovation. As for the technological innovation not directly effecting the product on the field...amps. I suppose it's debatable whether the amps improved drum corps, but it certainly made things possible that weren't possible before. That's growth in some direction. We've yet to see the "member cam" on the DVD camera angle features. The amps and mixing boards aren't being utilized to their full potential. They are now only being used to enhance the acoustical aspect which is great. I enjoy the acoustic nature of drum corps shows. That doesn't mean I wouldn't like to see what can be done creatively with the amps. This one's for you DrumCorpsFan27 and Tekneek. Tuonela, the members are already pressured into smoothing it out. I would be willing to bet it'd be smoother than the judge cam. Especially with the whole separation of upper and lower body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 I'm starting to notice a theme from yesteryear. I'm not being ugly here either. Clue me in.It sounds like marching band began gaining in popularity roughly equivalent to DC's long-term recession. I mean, DC used to be locally based and you learned to play your axe in the corps. Drums, brass, whatever. MB's and band programs in general sound like they came into the mainstream roughly equivalent to the same time that DC's began to decline, for the opposite reasons. Where MB's are generally school-specific and basically taxpayer-supported, DC's are individually-supported, etc and have no tax support from a community, etc. Am I accurate or anywhere near close to the truth here? I realize it may differ from state to state. But am I close? If so, this changes the conversation a lot and I will continue if I am correct. Let me know and fill in the gray areas, please. Thanks. Well, basically true in terms of timing. It's not necessarily true that MB's rose BECAUSE DC's declined, or really which caused which, (or whether the reasons for one were entirely the same as the reasons for the other) but the rise of MB does pretty well coincide with the decline of the # of corps. And somewhere along the line, there was a switch from DCs leading MB innovation to the other way around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 (edited) And I can't speak for now, since I'm not really involved in the HS MB scene anymore -- but in the late 70s/early 80's when this switch was beginning to manifest, the HS MBs were still largely self-funded -- meaning candy sales, other fund-raisers, etc. The operating funds for the top bands came partly from the public school fund, but largely from the same type of fund raising that DC's did (and do). It was only later, when the HS MB scene became so popular and competitive that schools started funding like any other sport (football team, etc). This might add a little more credence to the "one filled the gap for the other" line of thought .... Edited June 25, 2007 by Liam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 (edited) Last quick thought on this -- I was in a highly competitive HS MB and back then, all we wanted to do was blow like Spirit of Atlanta, march like the Garfield Cadets, swing like the Blue Devils and have fun like the Bridgemen. In other words, it was all about being like Drum Corps. We "borrowed" at will, and so did our competitors. So, from my perspective anyway, we were on the forefront of BOA (formerly MBA), national championships and all that stuff and yet to us it was all an homage to DC. Who knew that in honoring DCs we might someday be (inadvertantly!!!) replacing them? Edited June 25, 2007 by Liam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orpheus Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 It sounds like marching band began gaining in popularity roughly equivalent to DC's long-term recession. I mean, DC used to be locally based and you learned to play your axe in the corps. Drums, brass, whatever. MB's and band programs in general sound like they came into the mainstream roughly equivalent to the same time that DC's began to decline, for the opposite reasons. Where MB's are generally school-specific and basically taxpayer-supported, DC's are individually-supported, etc and have no tax support from a community, etc.Thanks. No, I think you're right on target. That's not the only factor, of course, but I think it's a big part of it. I mean, the small local "community" corps basically doesn't exist anymore. And largely, it seems that what they used to provide to a community is now provided by the local school bands. I mean, in the old days, there were corps that were (more-or-less) "mom and pop" type operations. That's really just not feasible today, even if you stayed close to home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzmanSA80 Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 I think in most places though, HS MB's are still self sufficient in terms of funds with little to no help from the schools. It's a rare thing that the school systems actually fund anything at all band related besides the cost of gas to get to away football games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dccorpsfan Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Why should DCI have to pander to the general public? Listen, I'm not a huge fan of the current direction of drum corps; but for DCI to have mass appeal, it'll have to be something it's not (i.e. the movie Drumline) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triple Forte Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 Bands today are the local corps of yesterday that helped fill the stands at small shows around the country.DCI should indeed market to the band kids...they are the future of the activity. Not to repeat what DrumCorpsFan27 has said but but don't you think it would be in DCI's best interest to target/market to other groups of people ?? They are in pretty good shape at the moment with attracting MB members/fans.....how about making an attempt to bring back some of the fans who have left or are on the verge of leaving? This can be accomplished.....DCI just needs to change a bit..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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