DCI Magazine Summer, 2014

DrumCorps

Summer 2014 | Vol. 8 No. 2

The Magazine of Marching Music’s Major League™ $4

International

Rising to the Challenge: Life as a drum corps rookie

Blue Knights Branch Out

SUMMER PREVIEW

POISED &READY Looking ahead to the 2014 DCI Tour

6 REASONS TO TAKE YOUR CLASS TO A DCI SHOW NEW FAN NETWORK WEBCAST FEATURES COLOR GUARD TOOLS OF THE TRADE

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Summer 2014

DrumCorps International The Official Magazine of Marching Music’s Major League Volume 8 Issue 2

Dan Acheson Executive Director/CEO Bob Jacobs Director, Marketing John DeNovi Director, Sales & Business Development Chris Weber Sr. Manager, Communications

Custom Published By: In Tune Partners, LLC Irwin Kornfeld CEO

Madison Scouts

Will Edwards President Emile Menasché Editor-in-Chief Jackie Jordan Creative Director Robin Garber Production Director Barbara Boughton Business Manager Photography Johnny Gilbert, Linda and Sid Unser Contributors Dianne Spoto Ackerman, Geoff Giordano, Danny Miles Drum Corps International is the leader in producing events for the world’s most elite and exclusive marching ensembles for student musicians and performers. Editorial and business contact is 110 W. Washington St., Suite C, Indianapolis, IN 46204, phone: 317-275-1212, fax: 317-713-0690. Drum Corps International Magazine is published twice a year. Nonprofit organization U.S. postage paid at Long Prairie, MN permit #710. Copyright ©2014 Drum Corps International. All rights reserved.

Features

14 2014 Summer Preview: A Winning Formula

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It’s going to be a summer of discovery as drum corps groups experiment with new blends of music and movement to create perfect chemistry on the field. By danny Miles

That Rookie Season

From those first days of winter rehearsal camps to the last notes of the World Championship Finals, spending your first season in a DCI group can be a life-changing experience. By Emile Menasché

Departments 5 Sidelines New and notable on the DCI Fan Network ...

Wilco drummer (and DCI alum) Glenn Kotche plays taps ... DrumLine Battle and SoundSport event schedules ... and more!

10 Gear Guide

The latest weapons in the ever-evolving arsenal of a drum corps color guard.

26 Commitment to Excellence

The Blue Knights organization showcases its talented members at home and abroad.

30 Stepping Off

Fascinating facts and figures about Open and World Class drum corps members.

Genesis

www.dci.org

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News and Notes from Drum Corps International

2014 schedule

June 18 Indianapolis, IN

June 21 Akron, OH (VOD) June 21 Stanford, CA

June 27 Muncie, IN (Live) June 28 Glendora, CA

June 29 Lawrence, MA

July 5 Lynn, MA (VOD) July 5 Michigan City,

July 8 Ft. Wayne (Live) July 12 Denver (Live) July 12 La Crosse, WI

July 14 Warrensburg,

July 19 San Antonio,

July 25 Murfreesboro,

July 26 Atlanta, GA

(Live)

(Live)

(VOD)

(VOD)

IN (VOD)

(VOD)

MO (Live) TX (Live)

TN (Live) (Live)

August 1-2 Allentown, PA (VOD)

August 4 Open Class

Prelims (VOD)

August 5 Open Class

Finals (VOD)

August 7 World

Championship Prelims (Live until cinema event)

August 8 World

Championship Semifinals (Live)

August 9 World

Championship Finals (Live, PPV)

DCI Action—To Go

I

f you like to experience the best in marching music from wherever you happen to be, you’re going to want to check out some new upgrades and additions to the DCI Fan Network’s live and video-on-demand (VOD) coverage of key 2014 events.

For the first time ever, subscribers will be able to stream live video on their mobile devices as well as computers. At press time, more than a dozen shows were scheduled for live streaming, starting with the season opener on June 18. But the online action actually starts even earlier. For the first time in history, a defending World Champion—Carolina Crown—will allow live cameras into its pre-season rehearsal site for a free webcast on June 14. Viewers will get a preview of all that’s in store for the DCI Summer Tour, while being able to look in on Crown’s rehearsal including a full performance of the corps’ 2014 competitive production.

With the exception of the Aug. 9 World Quick Links Championship Finals (which will be offered for just the • Live webcasts via second time ever this summer as a separate pay-persubscription or pay-per-view: view event), all live streams will be available as part of a dci.thefannetwork.org 2014 Fan Network subscription plan.

• World Championship Finals This season will also usher in a number of technowebcast: DCIFinals.com logical improvements to DCI’s live streams: More of the events will use multiple camera setups than ever before to showcase the action from up high and down on the field; and to meet the increased demand, the delivery systems have been upgraded for more reliable performance.

All Fan Network live webcasts in addition to other select events will also be posted as on-demand videos, so you can follow the performances and progress of your favorite corps all summer long even if you can’t make it to the stadium.

Schedule subject to change.

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Sidelines DrumLine Battle & SoundSport Check out DCI’s newest forms of musical competition at this season’s high-octane DrumLine Battle and SoundSport events:

Glenn Kotche

DCI Alum Goes from Wilco to “Water” Music

G

lenn Kotche may be best known as the drummer in the rock band Wilco, but the Roselle, Illinois, native has some interesting side gigs. The classically trained percussionist has collaborated with the Kronos Quartet, cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, members of Nickel Creek, and others. He is also a prolific composer and in 2011 worked with So Percussion on The Drumkit Quartets. Part of Kotche’s training included time in marching band and the 1989 season on snare drum with the Cavaliers.

“Drum corps,” he says, “makes marching band seem like a walk in the park.” Kotche recently demonstrated his percussive skills in an unlikely venue: a TV ad for plumbing fixtures. In it, Kotche plays a “drum kit” of Delta touch-sensitive faucets as water hits various pots and pans to produce different pitches. “I was blown away when I saw the percussion kit. It was a lot cooler than I imagined,” says Kotche, who performed an innovative rendition of “Reach Out I’ll Be There” by the Four Tops. “Most people might know him as the drummer in Wilco,” adds Gabe McDonough, music director at Leo Burnett, the ad agency that commissioned the 30–second spot. “But I first encountered him as an underground, avantgarde performer. So he was exactly right for this project.”

Full commerical: youtu.be/mjFj1df5VNc Behind the scenes: youtu.be/mqHlcCOitCo

Marketplace Check out the latest gear and apparel from Drum Corps International and your favorite corps by visiting the Festival Marketplace at every DCI Tour event. Get a jump on outfitting yourself for the season ahead at dcistore.org.

6

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If you’re planning to bring a group to a DCI show, new for 2014, your ensemble can share the stage with marching music’s best and brightest via SoundSport and DrumLine Battle events at participating locations.

Learn how at DCI.org/perform.

ENJOY DCI ACTION AT A MOVIE THEATER NEAR YOU! 2014 DCI TOUR PREMIERE: MONDAY, JUNE 23 See Bluecoats, Boston Crusaders, Carolina Crown, Madison Scouts, Phantom Regiment, The Cadets, and The Cavaliers recorded at the June 21 Innovations in Brass event in Akron, Ohio. Tickets on sale May 23.

BIG, LOUD & LIVE 11: THURSDAY, AUGUST 7 Experience the top 15 corps at the World Championships Prelims live and larger than life, along with highlights from earlier in the day. Learn more at DCI.org/cinema.

Social Consciousness

Join the conversation about the 2014 DCI Tour:

@DCI

Drum Corps International

DCI Photos

DCI Fan Network

Find Your Seat: For tickets to 2014 DCI events, visit DCI.org/tickets.

For groups of 20 or more, go to DCI.org/groups.

www.dci.org

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Gear Guide

By Danny Miles

The Color Guard Arsenal Flags, sabers, and rifles guard the colors in style

Today’s Drum Corps International color guard members flow across the field with maneuvers that are more balletic than bellicose. Yet the items they spin, toss, and catch trace their history to the weapons carried by military units to protect their regimental colors as they marched into battle. To keep up, their modern ancestors must be light, strong, and durable—and sometimes as colorful as the colors themselves.

1 SABERS Designed to stand up to the rigors of a drum corps season, the Director’s Showcase Excalibur Saber is made from hardened and polished stainless steel, has easily changeable parts for in-season repairs, and now comes with a lifetime warranty. It also has a tapered blade and is specially balanced for easy handling on the field. dshowcase.com

1 CASES Band Shoppe’s colorful new Personal Guard Equipment Bags are designed to make it easy for members to store and transport their gear. Each bag can carry up to six 6-foot poles with flags, plus a rifle or saber. bandshoppe.com

3 RIFLES Guard members feel the same attachment to their rifles that musicians do to their instruments. When they find one they like, they keep it for as long as possible.

Traditional wood rifles, like the Directors Showcase Elite 4 shown here, remain most common. But in recent years impact-resistant plastic models like the company’s Elite Pro have also appeared.

The big difference between wood and plastic? Plastic is durable and has consistent weight (around 2.3 lbs.).

Wood rifles must be taped and can weigh between two and three pounds.

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1 FLAGS provide the color in color guard, and they’ve never been more eye-catching than they are today.

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A Winning Formula

Summer Preview

With music from many different traditions, spectacular movement and heart-stopping competition, the 2014 Drum Corps International season is all about great chemistry.

By Danny Miles n June 18, five drum corps will be in Indianapolis for Opening Night ’14, the official launch of Drum Corps International’s 42nd season. And by the time those same groups come back to Indy for the World Championships in August—where they’ll join more than 30 other units from DCI’s Open and World Classes—they will have traveled thousands of miles and played hundreds of hours of music in front of tens of thousands of fans.

DCI shows offer a unique combination of artistry, athleticism, entertainment, and competition. Regarding the latter, after knocking on the door for several years, Carolina Crown f inally won t he World Class DCI World Championship title in 2013. They’ll be in Indy on opening night, the first official leg of a tour

that will take them to 20 states between Texas and Massachusetts.

In order to repeat, they’ll be facing some stiff competition from the rest of last year’s finalists: Blue Devils, The Cadets, Santa Clara Vanguard, Bluecoats, Phantom Regiment, The Cavaliers, Boston Crusaders, Madison Scouts, Blue Knights, Spirit of Atlanta, and Blue Stars, a group celebrating its 50th anniversary this summer. Blue Stars director Brad Furlano says 2014’s show, “Where the Heart Is” will feature many of the elements that have become hallmarks of the Blue Stars including creative costuming and character development.

If any word defines the music of drum corps circa 2014, it’s “diversity.” As we went to press, many DCI groups—but not all—were unveiling

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Crossmen

their repertories for t he sea son, a nd t he music comes f rom a dizzying array of sources for both World and Open Class ensembles.

Do you like classical music? You’ll hear works by Sergei Prokofiev, Peter I ly ich Tchaikovsk y, Georges Bizet, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, W.A. Mozart, Ludwig Van Beethoven, and Phillip Glass, among others. A nd, as always, drum corps favorite Aaron Copland will be well represented, too.

Spartans If you’re into film scores and Six Reasons to musical theater, there’s plenty of Take Your Band To that, too. You’ll hear music from a Drum Corps Show: The W iz ard of Oz, Ho me ward Attention Music Teachers: Sometimes Bound, Willy Wonka, Mary Poppins, a little inspiration goes a long way. In fact, we often hear from top musiThe Sound of Music, Inception, cians how attending a performance or Pollack, Cirque du Soleil’s Ka, and hearing a piece of music changed their lives. For young musicians, especially more. those being introduced to the world of marching music, there’s nothing more Folk music fans will find works inspiring than attending a DCI show. from Ireland and Eastern Europe, So, why would you consider organizA merican classics, hymns, and ing a band trip over the summer? And how would you go about doing that other sonic influences from around when school is out? Good communicathe world. As for jazz, pop, and tion and family participation are keys.

A complete list of 2014 DCI Tour events rock: There’s music by Don Ellis, is on the back cover of this magazine.

R ad iohe ad , P i n k F loyd , Bi l l Pick one, call for discounted group rates and invite your kids! Here are six Withers, Randy Newman, the reasons to see a drum corps show this Pretenders, and others. summer: Many corps will also premiere Musicians model great players the same way young athletes model original music written specifically does the opposite.

Legends sports stars. If they can see it, they can be it. for their shows, sometimes by staff Coming off its 50thSeeing the quality of marching members, others by composers anniversary season music’s best ensembles shows how who’ve become stalwarts in marchin 2013, for example, serious practice can turn into performance excellence. ing music, like DCI Hall of Fame Colts program coorThe enthusiasm of large DCI crowds member Robert W. Smith (who’s dinator Marc can be inspiring for young marchers a mong t he cont r ibutors to Sylvester is taking who have yet to march with groups performing for such audiences.

Troopers’ 2014 show, “A Peoples the group in a new In addition to watching performancHouse”). direction this year es on the field, groups attending With so much musical diversity w it h a show t hat select DCI shows may be eligible to attend special pre-show educational spread out across all of the corps, decon st r uc t s The events, and even perform themselves. anyone attending a show is guaranWizard of Oz, mixGroup/class trips focused on the teed to get a healthy mix of all of ing rock songs and activities of young musicians fosters camaraderie and shared purpose, inthe above styles, and more. In fact, music f rom t he stilling pride and a sense of belonging. you may hear many of them in one movie. “We’re takThe judging of the performances can corps’ show: For example, the 2013 ing a fresh approach to the typical Oz show as make young marchers conscious of the concentration and technique defending Open Class champions, our story begins after Dorothy has left the needed to be the very best.

(Santa Clara) Vanguard Cadets— Emerald Cit y,” says Colts director Vick i Learn more and plan your trip at DCI.org/groups. who won for the first time since MacFarlane. “The design team has left very few 2008— will play music sourced crayons in the box on this one.” from Beethoven, the Pretenders, and Eastern European folk.

The sound of drum corps has also been evolving and Any longtime DCI fan will tell you that some corps seem broadening in recent years. Last year, Jersey Surf brought a to gravitate to certain composers or styles, but the minute Hammond B3 into the arena. “In 2014, we’ll trade in the you try to pigeonhole a corps as “all about musical theater” Hammond B3 organ for a very unique carillon and arrays of or “Leonard Bernstein aficionados,” there’ll be a show that bell instruments manufactured by the internationally famous

Summer Preview

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The Cadets

Schulmerich bell company,” says corps director Bob Jacobs. “It’ll transform stadiums into cathedrals for portions of our production.”

Ultimately, of course, the music is being played to help tell a story, which is enacted by the color guard (with some help from the marching musicians).

Summer Preview

The Calendar There are plenty of ways to see and hear this all unfold this season. Key dates always include the Premier Events: These are shows produced by DCI at major stadiums, and they all feature a significant number of World Class groups— sometimes all of them— as well as other performances from Open Class and All Age ensembles. Some will also include DCI’s recently launched DrumLine Battle and Sou ndSpor t compet it ions. But there are also plenty of locally produced events that offer the intimacy of a high school field with no less intensit y from the groups. This season, a large number of the most exciting events of the summer will be streamed live on the Internet The Cavaliers through the DCI Fan Net work.

(See “Sidelines” on page 5.)

DCI’s online schedule (DCI.org/ schedule) makes it easy to f ind Learn more about the drum corps competing in 2014 at DCI.org/corps. You will find contact events wit h a number of usef ul info and links to every World and Open search features. In addition to fol- Class corps’ social media and websites, where you can see up-to-date information on lowing the calendar, it lets you performances, repertoire, and more.

7th Regiment sea rch event s by loc at ion a nd corps—the latter option is ideal if ( July 26) and the DCI Eastern Classic you want to quickly see when your in Allentown, Pa. (Aug. 1-2). favorite group will be in your neighThe f irst f u ll week of Aug ust, borhood or wherever you may hapWorld and Open Class corps will conpen to be traveling this summer. verge in I ndiana. Championships To make it easier for fans to plan Week kicks off in Michigan City with their summers, DCI’s schedule makthe Open Class Prelims (Aug. 4) and ers work hard to keep the dates and Finals (Aug. 5) before the action heads places of these shows as consistent as south to Indianapolis. After the new possible from year to year. This seaDCI Performers Showcase (formerly Music City s o n , h o w e v e r, M aj o r L e a g u e known as the Individual & Ensemble Baseball’s All Star Game—held in Minneapolis—will mean competition) on Wednesday, Aug. 6—in which corps memthat the mid-season show that normally takes place in the bers perform solo and in small groups—comes the longest Twin Cities will move to La Crosse, Wisconsin, on July 12. day of cor ps per for ma nces of t he yea r: t he World The switch of location actually gives DCI a chance to salute Championship Prelims (Aug. 7), where World and Open the hometown Blue Stars’ Golden Anniversary.

Class corps will compete head-to-head. Last year, 36 groups In addition to La Crosse and Opening Night in Indy, the performed with a similar number expected to take the field 2014 calendar of Premier Events includes a number of shows at Lucas Oil Stadium this year to compete for a place in the in California, Ohio, Colorado, Indiana, Tennessee, Alabama, following day’s Semifinals. Then on Saturday comes the cliand others, anchored by perennial favorite competitions like max of every season: the World Championship Finals. Who the DCI Southwestern Championship in San A ntonio will reign? There’s only one way to find out. Let the music ( July 19), the DCI Southeastern Championship in Atlanta games begin.

Corps Roundup

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THAT

ROOKIE

SEASON

BY EMILE MENASCHÉ

Every drum corps member was a beginner at some point. Whether they were 12 years old or 21, here’s what it’s like during that first exciting year.

oday, Francis Sefton is entering his fifth season with the Pacific Crest, where he’ll be the tuba section leader. But he still recalls the challenges during his first months in the World Class group. “My first rehearsal camp was one of the hardest things I’ve ever gone through in my life, both physically and emotionally,” he says. “It was the first time I’d been asked to truly push my limits as an individual. The staff members were ask ing me to do things they knew I couldn’t do at the time, and I pushed myself to do as well as I possibly could because I wanted to be part of Pacific Crest so badly. After that first camp I realized I had so much to overcome to be part of the corps, and it inspired me to improve myself.”

According to Matt Mulvanny, director of the Open Class Colt

rancis Sef ton F T I S E R C PACIFIC 2010 AR ROOKIE YE

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NO DRUM CORPS ROOKIE GOES AT IT ALONE. They have the camaraderie of other rookies, combined with the leadership and inspiration of veteran members.

Cadets, the definition of “rookie” depends on the individual the end of the season meant to them,” Litterer says. “This members and the corps they’re joining. “I imagine most really helped to set my mind on what my goals were for the often when somebody uses the term ‘DCI rookie,’ it’s usuend of the summer and what we as a corps and I individually ally taken in a similar context as an NBA or NFL rookie— needed to do to get there.” a rookie to the league, but by no means to the sport or That same veteran leadership exists on the World Class activity, Mulvanny says. “The Colt level. “At each meal the two friends who had encouraged Cadets break that mold every year, me to join the corps had to talk me as we not only have a member into returning for the next base with several DCI rookies but rehearsal block,” Sefton says. many of them also happen to be “Their encouragement, along rookies to the marching arts— with that of a few veterans sometimes even to their instruin my section I met that first ments.” weekend, changed my life.”

On the other hand, rookies According to Tabuchi, one entering a World Class group of the most important things a may come with more experirookie must do is focus on the ence on the field and with their ensemble and not get too caught up in individual goals. “One of instrument. But according to the biggest things that I recomMandarins director Jim Tabumend is for new members to be chi, even they have a transivery observant of how things tion to make. “New members work,” he says. “Try to stay with come into the corps environthe crowd. If you find yourself ment like a deer in the headalone in the gym or cafeteria, it is lights,” he says. “They are highly likely that you should be not really sure about what somewhere else. Don’t stick out is expected of them and musically or visually but try to be a how challenging the corps contributor to the ensemble. Make experience will be. They COLT CAD E TS I Be n lots of friends early. Another recomstart getting accustomed to Lit terer ROOKIE Y E A R 20 mendation that I have is for every it during spring training,” 13 member to come to rehearsal camp Tabuchi says. “The staff continually tries to set expectations and physically fit. They will learn that over the course of the season the light bulbs start going on their minds can be stronger than their in the rookies’ heads. The first show is a great awakening body, but the better conditioned they are the better.” and by the end of the season they are turning into veterans.”

What makes the transition so challenging is the combination of performance and athleticism that defines a DCI ortunately, there’s a big support system in place to help performance. You have to be fit—and you have to be able newcomers first survive, then learn to excel. “No drum to play. As a veteran, Sefton tries to convey what he learned corps rookie goes at it alone,” Mulvanny says. “They have in his rookie year to new Pacific Crest members. “I tell the the camaraderie of other rookies, which combined with the rookies in my section constantly that the harder they work leadership and inspiration of veteran members helps make a in the early season, the easier and more fun the summer truly spectacular experience.” will be. You want to be fine-tuning your playing over the “At the beginning of the season I felt really nervous, but summer, not just building muscle. I tell newer people to take the environment at the Colt Cadets was really positive and feedback from staff members as the law. Even if not directed focused on doing great things, so I knew that I had a lot at them, they should try to apply it to themselves.” to look forward to,” says 14-year-old Ben Litterer, who is In addition to the physical challenges, being a successreturning to the Colt Cadets front ensemble after his rookie ful drum corps member involves a lot of learning. Every year in 2013. “Everyone talked about performing in the Inmoment of a show is carefully choreographed, and for many, dianapolis Colts’ stadium and I was really excited for that.” the drill formations and movement is far more complex In addition to the staff, returning members serve an imthan anything they’ve experienced before. “It was very portant role in mentoring new members. “During one of my overwhelming at first,” says Tori Lew, a 19-year-old color first full days with the Colt Cadets, one of the staff members guard member, who spent her rookie season with Mandarins sat us down and all of the veteran members talked about what in 2013. “I was really nervous and scared that I wouldn’t be 22

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able to learn the show before the first competition. But with support from my family, the staff, and the other corps members, I was able to learn the show on time.”

“It’s great to see the transformation that these rookies make between June and August,” Mulvanny says. “The Colt Cadets take great pride in the fact that come August, you can’t point out any ‘rookies.’ Because whether f course, almost it’s a 12-year-old student who everyone involved in maybe just picked up a trumpet every corps has been through for the first time three months the rookie gauntlet themselves ago, or a seasoned drummer and knows how to help first who is apt to make the [World timers through the transition Class Colts] corps next year, to veterans. “We promise our each and every student is students every year that we as equally as successful.” a staff will set them up to be One of the advantages successful,” Mulvanny says. “The of joining a drum corps at reason these kids are the best at a younger age is that you what they do is because they show get to come back for more. up to rehearsal every day ready “The climax of my season to work hard, and do their best— was definitely at the end,” even if their best isn’t where they’d Litterer concludes. “As a like it to be yet. And when you take w rookie, the beginning of the Le Tori MANDARINS I it one day at a time, fixing one missummer was hard because 3 AR 201 ROOKIE YE take at a time, over the course of I was doing lots of work, three months your staff and fellow but I hadn’t yet felt the payoff,” marching members help you get to Litterer says. “The end of the season was worlds away from a place you maybe once thought impossible.” this. I worked as hard as I could every day: All I was focusing But after the challenges of several months of off-season on was trying to get better and being grateful for every show rehearsal camps and spring training, there’s a big pay-off— and every day I had with my friends. When my season came performing. “The show in Stanford my rookie year is where to an end I was really sad— I had made some really good I fell in love with performing,” Sefton recalls. “The size and friends and found my place in the corps. I couldn’t wait until history of the stadium gave the corps energy. The fantastic next year to be with them again.” crowd reaction made for an electric performance for the “When the first season ended I really wanted to come whole corps. Walking off the field looking into my corps back for another year,” Sefton adds. “I felt like I had brothers’ and sisters’ eyes, I could tell something special something to prove. I felt like I survived the first year, not had just happened to the group. That one show made the performed it. I felt that I wasn’t ‘good enough’ to really months of hard work feel worth it.” represent the same thing as the older veterans I had looked up to so much. I loved performing, the people I met, how much I had grown, but I wanted to perfect my craft, I wanted to be THE ROOKIE TRANSFORMATION the best. I learned that no matter how much I’ve improved, there’s always more I can do.

Just one season in a Drum Corps International group can I still focus on that in my performance and have a major impact on a perin my day-to-day life to this day. No matter son in many ways, including fitness. “This before picture how much I’ve gone through, learned and was taken at trumpeter Joe Emard’s first audition camp applied, I’ll never feel like I’m perfect, but in November,” says MandaI’ll always be striving and looking for ways to rins director Jim Tabuchi.

“The after picture was taken achieve.” at Lucas Oil Stadium during In the end, a rookie’s first journey from World Championships Week in August. Yes, this is the same spring training to the World Championships person! You can see the amazbrings long-lasting life lessons. “The most ing transformation that he made during his rookie year.” surprising thing that I learned was that I’m capable of accomplishing more than I ever MANDARINS I Joe Emard thought I could,” Lew concludes. “I not only ROOKIE YEAR 2013 learned more about color guard, but I also learned more about myself as a person.”

24

www.dci.org

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World Class www.stanbury.com www.stanbury.com •• 800.826.2246 800.826.2246 _DCI_ad.indd 2

Stanbury Stanbury is is aa Corporate Corporate Partner Partner of Drum Corps of Drum Corps International.

International.

STAND STAND OUT! OUT! 4/11/14 9:34 AM

Commitment to Excellence

By Geoff Giordano

The Blue Knights’ Big Family Ascends Being the foundation for a wide range of ensembles lets the Denver organization showcase excellence at home and abroad.

G

etting ready for a new season can be an all-consuming task for every Drum Corps International group’s staff and members. But when the Blue Knights organization was invited to perform in Taiwan in May—right in the middle of pre-season crunch time—the opportunity was too good to pass up. Fortunately, the Denver-based group’s talent pool was deep enough to allow the trip—and the season—to go on.

“W it h t he dr u m a nd bugle cor ps engaged in preparations for the 2014 summer tour, we were able to draw talent from our ot her ensembles to develop our Taiwan program,” explains executive director Mark Arnold. Those ensembles include an indoor percussion line, a winter color guard, and NFL drum and brass ensembles, all growing out of or related to the Blue Knights and, since 2010, under the umbrella of the Ascend Performing Arts youth organization.

“Our brass performers come to us from the Broncos Brass, our percussionists from our percussion ensemble program, and our color guard from our strategic partnership with Opus 10—a Winter Guard International (WGI) Independent World Class finalist filled

26

with many Blue Knights alumni,” Arnold explains.

“We have done many cooperative performances within our organization through the years, but this will be our first experience placing this on an international stage.”

In Taiwan, a 50-member detachment of Blue Knights was asked to participate in educational clinics, march in a parade, and give a spotlight performance. Their program, “A n American Journey,” features the music of Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring. “This music is part of our current repertoire,” Arnold says. “Opus 10 is utilizing this as the basis of its current WGI competitive show. We’ll also draw solo percussion m at er i a l f rom t he Blue K n ight s W i nt er Percussion—a four-time Independent World Class WGI Champion.”

The trip reflects a broad—and often innovative—effort by the organization to get its members performing in as many settings as possible. The Stampede, which plays at Broncos home games, is a good example: “We are proud to say we developed the concept of drum lines as a part of NFL game-day entertainment,” Arnold says. “Today, almost every NFL team sponsors a drum line. In 2012 we began the Broncos Brass, a high-energy performance ensemble that teams up with the drum line and is rapidly becoming a favorite of Broncos fans.”

Whether its providing educational outreach clinics, operating the Friendship Cup Band Series for Colorado-based high school students, or traveling to Taiwan, the organization’s many initiatives share one common goal: to bring music to an ever widening community. That even extends to producing some of the season’s biggest events. “Ascend operates two of the most successful drum corps shows in the activity,” Arnold says.

“Drums Along the Rockies at Denver’s Mile High Stadium and Corps Encore, held annually at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.”

It’s not always easy to balance a longBroncos Brass established practice (spring training) with new opportunities (like the trip to Taiwan).

But by expanding its reach and membership, Ascend has been able to explore fresh ideas while building upon the tradition of excellence that began when the Blue Knights began in 1958. “We are fortunate to have the capacity to create ensembles capable of highly professional performances on an international stage and to be able to offer our membership those opportunities,” Arnold says.

www.dci.org

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42 years covering the WORLD of drum corps . . . so far!

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Featuring historic DVDs and CDs . . . ✔ 226 compact discs from the archives of Stetson D. Richmond, Alf Wateska, Ed Burke and Dave Valvo from the 1950 through 1980 seasons ✔ Seven DVDs from competitions during 1967 (American Legion), 1970, 1971 (VFW), 1972 (DCI), 1974 (DCA and DCI), 1975 and 1976 (DCI) seasons ✔ DCI photo (1972-2006) and history (1971-1981) books

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■ Go to www.drumcorpsworld.com ■ Visit us on Facebook ■ Photo credits (left to right): Bridgemen, Bayonne, NJ (Pat Chagnon); Music City, Nashville, TN (John Matter); Cincinnati Tradition, Cincinnati, OH (David Gwyn); The Company, Barnsley, South Horkshire, U.K. (Richard Wersinger); The Academy, Tempe, AZ (John Matter)

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Stepping Off World Class

484

Number Crunches The young men and women who perform in DCI ensembles every summer are a collection of accomplished and unique individuals. But while there is no such thing as an “average” drum corps member, we do have some interesting averages to share about those who bring drum corps performances to life.

Performer’s Average Age

19.43 Years old

World Class

18.86 Years old

World Class (first year)

17.84 Years old

Open Class

17.41 Years old

Open Class (first year)

The Long and Longer Roads to Excellence Average distance corps members travel to participate in rehearsal

open Class

122

Average group Size World Class

145

Average Number of Shows Per Corps in 2014

open Class

83

27 9

World Class

open Class

Getting In

59

They’re Players!

42% World Class

Percentage of Performers in their first year:

57% open Class

81%

of all World Class performers—including color guard members—play a musical instrument.

58%

of all Open Class Guard performers play a musical instrument.

Total alumni

Number of people who have performed at the DCI World Championships since 1972 across all classes:

The approximate number of performers in both World and Open Classes

5150

World: 3400 Open: 1750

30 www.dci.org

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Percentage of performers who make the roster of their preferred corps on their first try.

113,000

Smart about the Art Over 70% of all Open and World Class corps members study or plan to study music or the arts at a university level.

80%

70%

80% of performers have grade point averages of 3.1 or better.

Sources: 2013 DCI Project Persona and 2013 DCI Research, Historical Participation

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D R U M

1. Indianapolis, IN • 6/18 2. Clovis, CA • 6/20 3. Rockford, IL • 6/20 4. Stanford, CA • 6/21 5. Akron, OH • 6/21 6. Paw Paw, MI • 6/21 7. Lexington, KY • 6/22 8. Bowling Green, OH • 6/22 9. Sacramento, CA • 6/22 10. Merrillville, IN • 6/24 11. Fairfield, OH • 6/24 12. Evansville, IN • 6/25 13. Pittsburgh, PA • 6/25 14. Mesa, AZ • 6/26 15. Muncie, IN • 6/27 16. Oceanside, CA • 6/27 17. Chambersburg, PA • 6/27 18. Jackson, NJ • 6/28 19. Glendora, CA • 6/28 20. Madison, WI • 6/28 21. Rochester, MN • 6/29 22. Riverside, CA • 6/29 23. Lawrence, MA • 6/29 24. Mankato, MN • 6/30 25. Overland Park, KS • 7/1 26. Santa Clara, CA • 7/1 27. Waukee, IA • 7/2 28. New Haven, CT • 7/2 29. Medford, OR • 7/2 30. McMinnville, OR • 7/3 31. Bristol, RI • 7/3 32. Cedarburg, WI • 7/3 33. Sacramento, CA • 7/5

C O R P S

34. Renton, WA • 7/5 35. Lynn, MA • 7/5 36. Michigan City, IN • 7/5 37. Whitewater, WI • 7/5 38. Pleasant Hill, CA • 7/6 39. Tri Cities, WA • 7/6 40. Lisle, IL • 7/6 41. Chester, PA • 7/6 42. Dixon, IL • 7/6 43. Ft. Wayne, IN • 7/8 44. Boise, ID • 7/8 45. Dubuque, IA • 7/8 46. Ogden, UT • 7/9 47. Metamora, IL • 7/9 48. Salem, WI • 7/10 49. Cheyenne, WY • 7/11 50. Eden Prairie, MN • 7/11 51. Denver, CO • 7/12 52. La Crosse, WI • 7/12 53. Laguna Hills, CA • 7/12 54. Bellflower, CA • 7/13 55. DeKalb, IL • 7/13 56. Muscatine, IA • 7/13 57. Omaha, NE • 7/14 58. Warrensburg, MO • 7/14 59. Lebanon, IL • 7/14 60. Wichita, KS • 7/15 61. Bentonville, AR • 7/15 62. Broken Arrow, OK • 7/16

4/10/14

1:12 PM

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I N T E R N A T I O N A L

63. Denton, TX • 7/17 64. Round Rock, TX • 7/17 65. Houston, TX • 7/18 66. San Antonio, TX • 7/19 67. Manchester, NH • 7/19 68. Groton, CT • 7/20 69. Dallas, TX • 7/21 70. Lafayette, LA • 7/21 71. Mustang, OK • 7/22 72. Ocean Springs, MS • 7/22 73. Washington, DC • 7/22 74. St. Louis, MO • 7/23 75. Hattiesburg, MS • 7/23 76. Little Rock, AR • 7/23 77. Opelika, AL • 7/24 78. Johnsonburg, PA • 7/24 79. Nashville, TN • 7/24 80. Murfreesboro, TN • 7/25 81. Huntsville, AL • 7/25 82. Atlanta, GA • 7/26

83. Kalamazoo, MI • 7/26 84. TBA, WI • 7/26 85. Charlotte, NC • 7/27 86. Rice Lake, WI • 7/28 87. Dublin, OH • 7/28 88. Charleston, WV • 7/28 89. Erie, PA • 7/29 90. Salem, VA • 7/29 91. Springfield, IL • 7/29 92. St. Paul, MN • 7/30 93. Rome, NY • 7/30 94. West Chester, PA • 7/30 95. Warrenton, VA • 7/30 96. Quincy, MA • 7/31 97. Piscataway, NJ • 7/31 98. Northern, IN • 7/31 99. Forest City, IA • 8/1 100. Allentown, PA • 8/1 101. Allentown, PA • 8/2 102. Avon Lake, OH • 8/2 103. Pittsburgh, PA • 8/3 104. Buffalo, NY • 8/3 105. Centerville, OH • 8/4 106. Massillon, OH • 8/4

For tickets, group rates & additional info, visit www.DCI.org

P R E S E N T S

Michigan City, IN Open Class Prelims • 8/4 Open Class Finals • 8/5

Indianapolis, IN

World Championship Prelims • 8/7 World Championship Semifinals • 8/8 World Championship Finals • 8/9

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Events and dates subject to change. rev 04/14

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Tour of Champions Series highlighted in blue.

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“2014 TOUR PREMIERE” “BIG, LOUD & LIVE 11” VISIT DCI.ORG/CINEMA The 2014 Drum Corps International Tour

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