TubeNet

http://www.dci.org/news/news.cfm?news_i ... 738e242d11


I just wanted to let any drum corps fans about this program this evening.
TJ

I won't be able to see it tonight, but I have my Dish DVR ready to go.

Cool -- I was just about to post a thread, too.

Right on

Bad things about this -- ESPN2 is a second-rate cable channel that not everyone gets. Every household has access to PBS, so it was possible for everyone -- even without cable -- to watch the DCI broadcast in the past. Plus, who knows what ESPN's going to do to the format, possibly filling up with commercials and whatnot.

Good things -- it's a national "brand" of television with generally more hyped-up visibility than PBS. A lot of the public doesn't seem to take advantage of PBS's programming, so something more visible is nice.

And, it's guaranteed to be broadcast, unlike in the past where fans relied on their local PBS affiliates to decide whether the DCI show was worthwhile. Up through last year it was like a season of UFO sightings with people catching the PBS broadcast of DCI at various dates across the country. Honestly, it was fairly annoying.

Many thanks, guys. I would have missed it had you not posted. Where are my blank tapes.... @$&%!!

Dang it -- first commercial!

Okay... we'll see how the rest of this goes...

The features are nice, but SHOW THE DAMN CORPS, ALREADY. It's an hour into it, and at least 70% is behind-the-scenes features. Not a one of the corps shown has featured as much as 40% of their show.

Yeah, I know...

DCI's been throwing together highlights-only programs for something like the last decade. For a while, they were showing the complete show of the winning corps, but even that got pushed aside.

I suppose the good thing about all the behind-the-scenes stuff is that it's like a Drum Corps 101 primer for people who haven't marched.

But, still, I'd rather see some complete shows, and with more musically-oriented camera direction; I don't want to see the color guard bounce around while missing the drums rocking out (but that's another rant.. lol).

Boy, that was a double helping of "whatever." Ten minutes of drum corps thinly spread over a broadcast spanning two hours of my life that I'll never get back. I get more drum corps standing on the north end of the 8th & I parade deck on Friday night than I did from this show.

Props to the chick with the artificial heart. Flush the rest.

Tom Holtz wrote:I get more drum corps standing on the north end of the 8th & I parade deck on Friday night than I did from this show.

And in G, with two valves, no amps, .. and just two feet away during the pass-through.

Leland wrote:And in G, with two valves, no amps, .. and just two feet away during the pass-through.

You see? What's not to love? Nothing says "whoop-***" like an 18-year-old kid with a 30-year-old GG contrabass bugle sporting a titanium Bayamo coming straight at you.

Hehehe...

Ah, is it May yet?

yup

Pros: I knew when and what channel it was coming on. The move to ESPN2 was a great idea. I believe more people, ne: high school- college marching kids, could watch it. I missed the 2004 broadcast on PBS because I couldn't figure out when it was coming on (even emailed my local PBS station, they didn't know when). The bits about the sections and the "heart girl" segment was great.

Cons: If I knew nothing about drum corps, I would guess that the shows were 3 minutes long and there are only 12 corps. They never mentioned that the shows are 11 1/2 minutes long. Since the mid 90's, DCI's broadcast has been about showing less corps and more behind the scenes segments. When you're trying to sell $98 dvd's, your not going to give your product away for free. I didn't see much of a production change since I've seen my last one I saw in 2003. They showed one corps in the first 20 minutes of the broadcast.

Overall: Not bad for the first time on commercial TV. DCI needs to decide on these broadcast if they're going to recruit for corps or just sell DVD's and CD's. Nothing against Dennis DeLucia, but I'd rather have a Mike Cesario back that made the show entertaining. BTW, my 11 year old son liked it and wants to march, so I guess it worked.

ai698 wrote:
Cons: If I knew nothing about drum corps, I would guess that the shows were 3 minutes long and there are only 12 corps. They never mentioned that the shows are 11 1/2 minutes long.

Wow. I really didn't know that. Are the complete shows on the DVDs?

DP wrote:Yeah, well they show poker and billiards on ESPN too.....

... and cheerleaders, and spelling bees, and some other things that I can't even remember right now.

The point is, it's publicity. A lot of people still don't know that it even exists, and of those who do, many still believe that it's stuck in the "loud at all costs" mentality of the past.

I think they did a good job of putting together an introductory program. It's weird to see commercials in between shows, but at least they're not 20-minute PBS fundraising breaks. TV will never be as good as seeing it live, though; there are too many things to watch, and the sound is never as good (no home theater can reproduce what is effectively a hundred "speakers" spread out across the field).

Doug@GT wrote:Wow. I really didn't know that. Are the complete shows on the DVDs?

Yuppers -- from DCI's website ( www.dci.org ) :

"Video Options: Multi-Camera, High Camera (1-12 placing corps), Color Guard and Percussion Isolation Camera (1-6 placing corps only)

"Audio Options: 5.1 Digital Surround (1-12 placing corps), Design Staff, Color Guard, and on-field Percussion commentary (1-6 placing corps only)"

They're rebroadcasting it, but in TWO parts...

"And for those of you that missed it, or who want to tune in again, ESPN2 will reshow the first hour of the DCI broadcast on Sept. 21 from 3 to 4 p.m. Eastern time. The second hour will be reshown on Sept. 23 from 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern time."

from http://dci.org/news/news.cfm?news_id=dc ... bd9faabb03

ai698 wrote:Cons: ... and there are only 12 corps.

No mention of Division II/III, no mention of DCA (senior corps - dcacorps.org ), nothing outside of Top 8 highlights and 30-second clips of 9-12.