From: timc@diva.Berkeley.EDU (Tim Castro)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.marching.drumcorps,rec.arts.marching.misc
Subject: Re: Marching Bands vs. Corps
Date: 28 Jan 1993 19:13:05 GMT
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
NNTP-Posting-Host: diva.berkeley.edu

In article <1k79teINNi3m@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> cf123@cleveland.Freenet.Edu 
(Christopher Leigh Putnam) writes:

>No contest.  Corps would win hands down.  Most top 6 corps could put out as
>much power as almost any college band, regardless of size.  The fact that
>corps use only brass, projection instruments and college bands use
>everything is enough.  Not too mention that the corps players are generally
>in much better playing shape than most college players.  Volume goes to the
>corps.

Agreed for the most part (although Ohio State is all brass and
percussion.  They can probably blow away a good number of drum corps.)
However, it all depends upon your priorities.  Is sheer volume a
determining factor in deciding what is better?  I should hope not.


>Corps also win in the area of precision.  A college band that could compete
>with the volume of a corps would have to be HUGE.  This leads to a great
>deal more mistakes.  This also makes moving much more difficult, so there
>goes any chance of doing real drill.  

I'm not sure I totally agree with the precision point.  A lot of college
bands (mostly corps style, though) are just as precise as any drum
corps.  Also, it only makes sense that the corps should be more precise.
They're working on one show for 6-8 months (Sure, things get added and
the drill might change a bit, but for the most part, it's the same).
A band will put out a new show every 2-3 weeks.

Also, what's this obsession with volume?  I'd rather see a small, soft
corps execute well than a larger, louder one execute poorly (i.e.
Mandarins vs. Arizona Sun(?))  Volume does not equal quality!!!


>Color guards are no contest, corps win hands down.

That's okay, you can keep them.  (Reminds me of high school. :-)


>General effect goes to the corps

Total disagreement here.

To be brutally honest, I know a lot of people who can't stand
drum corps because IT'S BORING.  Sure, to a drum corps enthusiast
(which I consider myself) it's a lot of fun.  We look for and
appreciate the small details which make up a fantastic performance.
However, the average person could care less about stick technique,
horn angles and pit percussion.  They just want to be ENTERTAINED,
and this is where the corps fail compared to bands.  Many shows
do not take the audience into account and are just too esoteric for
the average taste.

I'm not saying that this is good or bad, or that the corps should
change (in fact, I hope they don't), it's just the truth.

>Crowd?  Coming from a wanna be Star member, who cares what the crowd
>thinks?  

My point exactly.

>-- 
>Chris Putnam (still a Blue Devils lover at heart)
>Euphonium/Baritone
>Star in '93?????
>Go Devils Winterguard!!!!!


--Tim Castro
Cal Band 1986-1990


-- 
Tim Castro		    *   "When the air becomes uranious
U.C. Berkeley               *    We will all go simultaneous
timc@diva.Berkeley.EDU      *    Yes we all will go together when we go." 
timc@ocf.Berkeley.EDU       *           --Tom Lehrer, 1958
Newsgroups: rec.arts.marching.drumcorps