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Honestly, I agree fully with the elephant. I realize that they don't often score well, but Pioneer would be a good corps, especially for beginners. A handful of the people in that corps have gone up to Phantom, and they wouldn't be there without the experience that was given to them by Pioneer. There are many new people each year, but often enough vets to help. The brass book this year was the hardest brass book of DCI...and that came from the judges mouth. The staff does care about you as a person. They often beat you down when rehearsing, but they're cool when you're off the field...
Up in that category of corps for beginners?
Mandarins
Southwind (should be back in '09)
Troopers
A good one for tuba players? Academy. Hands down. Check the team of Sheridan and Pilafian for your techs, and you'd have a good tuba section...
However, if you're really good, you could go for a few of the upper corps. Heck, if I were you, I'd go for the Glassmen, since they're nearby.

If you wish to join a "local corps" Cincinnati has the DCA Cincinnati Tradition. It is a great learning ground for a young player to start off with. PM if you want the contact info.

If you want to make it into a top 6 corps then the most important thing is to learn how to march! They value your marching skills ahead of your playing skills. I remember a Blue Devils tech talking to some of the kids in my youth band at a show once, and he told them "if you can't move, don't bother showing up to the audition." These top corps feel that they can teach you to play better fairly easily, but learning how to march at the skill level they want takes years of experience. In drum corps it is now visuals first and music second!

the elephant wrote:

Bandmaster wrote:In drum corps it is now visuals first and music second!

And that is absolutely sad, IMO.

It's the same way in marching band. sigh

the madison scouts (an all male corps) is a great choice. it's definitely a brotherhood of strong willed MEN. the santa clara vanguard is also a very good corp that ranks in the top 6 (usually). these two are examples that look for good playing and teach you to march. the blucoats are great and close (as stated). go check out http://www.dci.org" target="_blank and look at their world class corp page. there is tons of info to be had there.

-CT

tubaguy9 wrote: Southwind (should be back in '09)

Nope, they announced that they are remaining inactive...

*sigh*

Don't forget to consider smaller corps, too. In his masterclass at ITEC this past summer, Gene Pokorny suggested studying with great players/teachers before they win the "big job" and become increasingly busy. The same is applicable for choosing a corps.

For example, André Feagin was recently named the brass caption head for the Santa Clara Vanguard for the 2009 season. In 2007, Feagin was the brass caption head (and a couple of other important positions) for the Memphis Sound, a corps that was then Division III (now open class). I'm sure there are things he will do differently with SCV now than he did with the Memphis Sound in 2007, but I would bet that his teaching philosophy and brass pedagogy hasn't changed that much since then. Marching with a smaller corps doesn't always mean that the staff will be less qualified.

Another corps that was previously mentioned in this thread is the (Arizona) Academy. The corps didn't score great last year, but there is no way you can march under Sam Pilafian and Pat Sheridan and not become a better tubist, musician, etc...

Just remember that while the activity is highly competitive, the biggest and highest-scoring corps might not be the most rewarding for you.