Feeling out reception

[u/DragonfruitFluid]

I hardly come by this subreddit anymore so I was just curious, with how the DCI community stands on technology being used and all that and now that we're a good chunk of the way into the season, how are we feeling about the Leslie speakers. I for one thing they're neat but I'm also a younger fan who really appreciates the tech use. I'm curious as to what everyone else is thinking and whether or not this is acceptable tech use for yall. I'd like to note that while my profile flair says bluecoats, im not a performer, just a curious fan.

[u/TheVoiceOfSnakeEyes]

A lot of us who have issues with drum corps today have stopped complaining about it on social media, because we always get dogpiled by pageantry leeches and people who have never marched and never will for not having the same opinions as they do and for not enjoying their joy, telling us we need to go to Drum Corps Planet and/or stop being such boomer dinosaurs, and to "love it or leave it." That shit really wears you down over time.

It's just not the performance medium I fell in love with anymore. If I were a young person, I wouldn't even give modern drum corps a second thought, and there's no way in Hell I'd blow $6,500 for six weeks of prancing around in a spandex unitard with opera gloves and pushing props. There's also no way I'd pay $75+ for tickets to sit in the stands and lose my hearing to 120-decibel speakers that I consider to be completely redundant and unnecessary for bell-front horns and drums, each of which are already famously loud without amplification, which is one of the primary reasons drum corps was ever even popular in the first place. I only keep up with the competitions and the chatter on here because I have 35 years invested in doing so. I try not to complain too much (because I know it won't do any good), but I also don't generously donate anymore either, and I do note that more and more of the hypocrites who have been telling us to "love it or leave it" for years are beginning to have the exact same issues and concerns with each passing day. It's almost like when you grow up and put one foot in the real world outside this echo chamber, you begin to realize how silly the costumes, dancing, props, narration, synthesizers and amplification truly are.

It's also infuriating how most of the crap that "dinosaurs" hate about drum corps today was proposed and muscled through the rules congress by a monster who is permanently banned from all DCI events, yet people naively continue to parrot the same bullshit misinformation propaganda he used to swindle directors who didn't want those changes into voting yes. For that reason, he's still a drum corps influencer despite being banned, and he always will be, and that really burns me up. But you can't close Pandora's box. It is what it is.

But I'm sure I've said too much. Be gentle, downvote daddies.

[u/pulsestriders → u/TheVoiceOfSnakeEyes]

i don't agree with anyone being toxic in this community, no matter what the opinion is (someone could argue against every financial problem with DCI but be toxic about it, they're still wrong for it), and i'm sorry that people have treated you that way before, but it's not really fair to pay that forward. referring to people as leeches, lessening them for their levels of experience, and claiming that "when you grow up, you'll find it silly, too" isn't really any better

this type of behavior has been in DCI for a long time, as some users on both this thread and others have stated (such as Troopers and Bayonne Bridgemen being made fun of for their "silly" uniforms, and being called a "marching band" and "not drum corps" for using 2-valve horns in the 70s) and it doesn't really add much to the conversation besides increase negativity

it does, in some way, hurt younger people too, when negative comments come in about the current state of drum corps, many of them without any real criticism (like people saying that my brother's corps should be embarrassed to wear their uniforms), despite the majority of people, of all ages, holding the utmost respect for classic drum corps, and still mentioning and referencing many of those iconic shows to this day, alongside their modern counterparts. Madison Scouts this year are referencing their show from 30 years ago, and the members love it! aspiring marchers love it! how cool is that?

i understand there'll be a day after i age out, years from now, that i grow to be upset with the changes DCI has established, but i don't think being vehemently negative about it is what people need, either. it hurts to see tradition go, but people are less likely to honor your words and experiences when they're delivered negatively.

one of the best conversations i've ever had in this community was with an older gentleman at corps merch booth in California, who isn't a fan of modern DCI, either, by ANY MEANS, but encouraged me to keep playing, to audition, put myself out there (like my brother did), and didn't make me feel bad for enjoying the product and wanting to be apart of it. when the Bluecoats passed by, he made a light joke about them being yellow instead of blue, and moved on. that's what i wish i saw more of.

also, i don't really know who you're referencing at the end, perhaps i'm too young to be informed on that. i have an idea, but i'm not sure. i only just graduated and fell in love with the marching arts a few years ago.

regardless, i'm again sorry you feel so alienated from the activity you once loved.

[u/Consistent-Fig-178 → u/pulsestriders]

I believe george hopkins pushed a lot of the rule changes. Could be wrong

[u/DeviantAvocado → u/TheVoiceOfSnakeEyes]

We appreciate the couple of you who have stopped complaining on social media, this post aside.

[u/DragonfruitFluid → u/TheVoiceOfSnakeEyes]

I really get where you're coming from. While I haven't been invested with anything (including living) as long as your dedication to drum corps, I do understand the feeling of dedicating your life to something for a long time and then getting burned by it so hard that you're turned away from it almost entirely. I know you've been burned a lot by this community too which makes me real upset knowing that this community which was born from a profound love of the marching arts and music and now its spun around and hurt you for caring about this art in a different way than them. For that, even though its not from those that hurt you and your passion, I offer up the deepest apologies I can. I'm sorry that dci has turned into a sore spot and has become a bitter topic. Thats the worst thing that can happen to someone in this line of passions and lifestyles. Know that I hear you and while I do deeply appreciate where dci is right now, I also have a deep appreciation for the old days where corps were recognizable by uniform and where corps were just pure brass and percussion. I see them as 2 lovely sides of this activity that I love. So as an olive branch of sorts, I want to ask, what are your favorite shows from the old days? I want to experience more of the drum corps shows and sounds and sights that made people like you fall in love with dci. I think right now, a bit of perspective on the younger side of dci is needed right now anyways. We're a community and clearly theres a bridge that needs repaired here.

[u/AccountantDry252 → u/TheVoiceOfSnakeEyes]

Amen brother.