DrumCorpsFan27 Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 That is truly hyperbole. I attended, on average, 15 shows per season and finals just about every year. To say that drum corps almost died in the mid-90's is revisionist history. No it's not. I was there as well, going to severas shows a year, buying cds and videos. DCI nearly went bankrupt. That's a fact. Ask anyone in the know. There was barely 17,000 people at finals in Buffalo in 2001. If you attended 15 shows a year, then DCI owes you a great big THANK YOU. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 DCI should be going after both, IMO. They don't need to be mutually exclusive. Note: They = current fans and future marchers.... No argument from me, but everytime I heard "It's all about the kids" as a response to criticism I see a giant finger being flashed to anyone over 21. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X DM Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 (edited) I do tend to agree with the original poster. The activity seems far less entertaining than it once was. There seems to be far less variety amongst the corps. The arrangements seem far less accessible than they once were, even when choosing songs that people are familiar with. About the only thing that seems to be better about the activity is the visual program, but some of these drills don't seem to flow as well with the music as what was going on 10-15 years ago. Nothing gets close to 1988-1994 for me. I think the 70-80's period Corps shows tended to be focused more on the musical component of shows, and the visual lagged. Then we moved into the Visual Age in the Drum Corps activity in the mid 90's thru to the early 2000's where the Visual component of shows took a giant leap, but because of the more visual demand, the musical component suffered a bit. Recently, I have seen an ever so slight recognition that perhaps a balance needs to be struck where melody and harmony are not lost in a gallant attempt to develop 15 different visual patterns for every 3 minutes of the show. I'm somewhat encouraged the last few years that, in my opinion, some of the most appealing ballads ever played in Drum Corps have been played in this more recent time frame of these last few years. Edited June 25, 2007 by X DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmonious Cacophony Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 IMO, Mass appeal is not neccicary for the continuation of DCI. In the Internet Age, it is much easier to reach out to a small audience and maintain activity. DCI will never appeal to the average American, and it shouldn't try to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 That is truly hyperbole. I attended, on average, 15 shows per season and finals just about every year. To say that drum corps almost died in the mid-90's is revisionist history. To be more precise, DCI almost went broke in the mid-1990s. If you think that's not true, please contact Don Atchinson as that's what he said in an interview a few years ago. Mid 1990s also a horrible time for DCA as they only had 13 to 16 corps show up for Prelims. What turned DCA around was creation on Class A (small) corps division which helped smaller corps start up and survive. Not to mention Mini corps which gave start up corps an even lowest place to start. Not to mention allowing three established corps a place to perform when they couldn't make the field for a season (Westshoremen, Crusaders, Skyliners (in 2007)). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl306 Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Other activities continue to prosper despite these issues. Good show designs will counteract these challenges. I can see your point, but I don't agree with it. Still failing to see how good show designs would counteract those other obstacles. Also (not directed at you Dave), I think that "Mutual respect amongst different eras" thread should be looked at again. Lots of bashing :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingJoeVII Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Is every post an opportunity for you to Dog on The Cavaliers? CoughYOUcough??? yes... :P We get it, you hate the Cavaliers. just to clarify... I don't hate the Cavaliers, I dislike their choice of programming over the past three years or so. And it is not a blind hatred or a token dismissal (as you have seemed to do to me) but I have actual reasons I have gone over many times before as to why I dislike the choices they make in the musical and visual program. BTW 2002 Cavies is probably in my top 3 shows of all time, and 2004 isnt far behind that, I also listen to the '88 Firebird when I really want to get pumped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fincis Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 Also (not directed at you Dave), I think that "Mutual respect amongst different eras" thread should be looked at again. Lots of bashing :( I was thinking the same thing myself. It sparked for me when the term 'borg' came back again. I'll admit I show my bias and that I'll typicallly defend The Cadets to the end. I also know I'm not nearly as outrageous as some are on here. However, the borg if you will, are on here giving their opinions with as much validity as anyone else. I've enjoyed reading the last few pages with the arguements back and forth because it's been well written and makes some great points from the "opposing" side. I can't really say opposing because I agree with a decent chunk of it. It has come across to me actually as a bit elitist though, something that seems to be the prime accusation of the borg. The arguments have a lot of merit but they are being written as though the are fact and that they are the only way to think. That's how it seems to me at least. I find it suprising that I've enjoyed reading them so much because usually I enjoy reading from someone more eager to be open-minded. Y'all get lots of credit though for some good arguments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dir_en_X Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 (edited) Is it just me, or do I want to see Finals DVD's in the Sports section in FYE.And also seeing more than just highlights of finals on ESPN? Fixed. I wanna see the whole show, from every corps. Edited June 25, 2007 by Dir_en_X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 IMO, Mass appeal is not neccicary for the continuation of DCI. In the Internet Age, it is much easier to reach out to a small audience and maintain activity. DCI will never appeal to the average American, and it shouldn't try to. why shouldn't dci try to appeal to more people? more fans is a bad thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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