DCI Today Spring, 2004

Spring, 2004

Shining the Shoes An Interview with JW Koester

Parallel Lives A son’s transitional drum corps career mirrors his father’s

2004 TOUR OF CHAMPIONS!

Spring, 2004 VOLUME 29 • NUMBER 3

INSIDE 16 Parallel Lives ✦ A son’s transitional drum corps career mirrors his father’s

19 2004 SUMMER

MUSIC GAMES ✦ DCI’s Major Events

25 Tour of Champions ✦ by Chris Hollenback

31 Shining the Shoes ✦ An interview with JW Koester

38 Free Day ✦ Taking ownership of drum corps

DEPARTMENTS

Bring it in

by Dan Acheson

7 DCI Merchandise ✦ 2003 World Championships

9 Pit Break ✦ News in the world of DCI

21 Tickets ✦ On sale now

ON THE COVER Jersey Surf members (left from back cover to front) Justin Brooks, Abington, PA; Joe Costable, Poughkeepsie, NY; Alexandra Aldrich/Thorpe, Alexandria, VA; Matt Piatek, Harleysville, PA; Erin Brittingham, Upper Darby, PA; Nick Bell, Blacksburg, VA; Jillian Burlingame, Bridgeton, NJ performing their 2003 program “Down the Shore with the Jersey Surf ” at the 2003 DCI Division II & III World Championships in Orlando, Florida.

DCI.org Get all the scores — and the rich stories behind the scores — FAST at DCI.org all year long.

THE COVER of this issue of DCI Today says it all. Jersey Surf members living the drum corps experience. WOW! Let’s clear the cold of winter and get them back out on the field. I am as hyped as I have ever been before an upcoming season and you’d think I would settle down after three decades plus of drum corps. We had a great meeting in Denver a few weeks ago that brought all the directors from Division I, II, & III together for the first time in many years and the reports about each corps progress this winter are staggering in the most positive way.

That is a credit to amazing performers, well prepared staff and designers, and volunteers and administration teams that keep raising the bar on how spectacular the drum corps experience can be.

I know it just sounds like me doing my job to sell tickets to events, but I am telling you, don’t wait until late July or early August to see what these corps have to offer. They will be on fire at their first show.

So plan on getting off your couch from a long winter of watching DCI DVD’s and get to a stadium in June where the live action will cause you to stand and shout “I love drum corps!” Okay, a little corny, but I bet you stand and shout something. I’m looking forward to sharing another great drum corps season with you all. See you in the stands

Publisher: Drum Corps International Co-Editors: Monica Simon and Dave Wilson Design and Production for Drum Corps International: DesignAura, Martinez, California Art Direction: Laura Bratt and Nicole Bratt Contributing Writers: Dan Acheson, Marco Buscaglia, Andy Dittrich, Chris Hollenback, Monica Simon, Dave Wilson Performance Photography: Sid and Linda Unser

Drum Corps International is a non-profit organization formed to service the North American drum and bugle corps activity. Editorial and business offices are located at 470 South Irmen Drive, Addison, IL 60101, phone 630.628.7888, fax 630.628.7971.

DCI TODAY is published in Fall, Winter and Summer each year. Non-profit organization U.S. postage paid at Madison, WI permit #2223.

3

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2003 Division I World Championships DVD 4 Disc set featuring Top 12 corps ....................$ 98.00 Top 6 corps: Blue Devils, The Cavaliers, The Cadets, Phantom Regiment, Santa Clara Vanguard, Boston Crusaders features include Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Corps Designer Commentary, Percussion & Color Guard Judge commentary to accompany the corresponding camera angles Video: Multi-Camera, High Camera, Percussion Iso, Color Guard Iso For Bluecoats, Madison Scouts, Carolina Crown, Crossmen, Magic of Orlando, Spirit from Jacksonville State University features include Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1Surround Video: Multi-Camera, High Camera

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ORDER NOW! 2003 Division I World Championships Video 3-volume set featuring 22 corps’ Quarterfinals performances ............$ 59.00

2003 Division I World Championships CD 3 Volume set featuring Top 21 corps ........................$ 39.00

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2003 Division II & III World Championships DVD Featuring Top 12 corps ..............$39.00

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7

Pit Break NEWS IN THE WORLD OF DIVISION I Agent 007 — The Cavaliers A Carolina Crown Camp Report For the sixth consecutive year, The

Cavaliers audition turnout has surpassed the year prior. Spots for the 2004 Cavaliers have been set for nearly every section, as well as placing some potential members into a few alternate positions. The corps will again be very experienced with nearly 80 veteran members in the ranks, after graduating 46 at the conclusion of the 2003 summer.

The corps’ new drum major is fifth-year member Aaron Brizuela (trumpet). He will be assisted by new guard sergeant fourth-year member Jose “Pepe” Ochoa and assistant drum major, third-year member Chris Lugo (baritone). Fourthyear member Ben “Seaver” Collins was named drum sergeant.

Through the past winter months, Carolina Crown has been hard at work on their 2004 program.

Plans are to be playing all of the show music within the next couple of camps as they prepare to move outside for the spring months when the color guard returns.

While the show continues to develop from a design standpoint, everyone involved with the 2004 Carolina Crown is very

excited about this summer. All of the members enjoy playing the music and can not wait to start spring training to see the entire show develop.

Carolina Crown has concluded the audition process that started back in November with a record number of people auditioning at the camps, including their new remote camps in Indiana and Texas.

The large number of talented kids that attended these auditions continues to better Carolina Crown. With four more camps left before spring training everyone at Carolina Crown is working to make this summer the best in the corps history.

— Drum Major Bob Beasley

“Out of Control!” An account of The Cadets’ camp The weekend of January 30, at Pennsville Middle School in the town of Pennsville, NJ, The Cadets continued building the foundation for what will surely be an amazing summer.

The Cadets were greeted by corps administrators and volunteers who had been there for hours preparing the school for inhabitation. Director George Hopkins welcomed the corps at 9 p.m. Friday night, as some straggling Texans sauntered in from the airport. By 10 p.m. rehearsal was under way.

Throughout the weekend, the corps continued building on the high standard set at the very first camp with tremendous work on the first two charts of the show, “Songs from the Wood” and “Bouree.”

The Cadets visual program is taking a very different approach from earlier years, focusing on exercises the to prepare their bodies for the extreme physical demands of marching a Cadets show.

Brass arranger Jay Bocook (1993-2001) is back with the Cadets after being away

for two years, so you can expect three years worth of mellophone runs this summer. After his first listen of the opening drum feature he laughed, “The music this year is completely out of control!”

The weekend concluded with an ensemble rehearsal, and the final run of the show tunes erased all worries about the all-time low number of winter camps.

The corps is in great shape.

— Drum Major Will Plenk

Kiwanis Kavaliers Family Values “This year will be a blast I can feel it. I felt it on the first night of auditions!” said Kiwanis Kavaliers drum major Ryan Couch after the January camp held in Babson Park, Fla. With outstanding interest throughout all sections of the corps, the Kavaliers are looking to hold a strong and promising season as they continue learning their 2004 production ‘West Side Story’, which promises to be a crowd pleaser – some-

thing the Kiwanis Kavaliers never puts out of reach.

“Kiwanis is more than a place to march and play music, the Kavaliers to me is a home where I can always be myself and not have to worry for three months what other people think, because here everyone is equal.”

New horn line member Jenn Peterson, had this to say about her first experience with the Kiwanis Kavaliers: “I’ve went to

two camps so far and I have yet to meet a Kavalier that doesn’t make me feel welcome. Everyone seems to be part of a very close-knit kind of corps family.”

February Camp attendees also got their first chance to perform as the 2004 Kiwanis Kavaliers for the local town of Lake Wales to lead the Lake Wales Mardi Gras Parade.

— Drum Major Ryan Couch

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Pit Break NEWS IN THE WORLD OF DIVISION II & III Off to a Jazzy Start Blue Devils ‘B’s 2004 show, “Blue Fusion,” will be taking them back to their Jazz roots. Playing in the Brazilian/Jazz genre, the ‘B Crew’ will be playing the music of Pat Metheny and the New York Voices. Musical selections include: “Baroque Samba,” “The Sultan Fainted,” “Third Wind,” “Letter from Home,” and “6/8 Minuano.”

The Blue Devils ‘B’ have had its strongest start in years! With their first return to the DCI World Championships since 1997, membership has increased in all sections, most notably the horn line!

Under the direction of newly appointed Director Rick Odello, Blue Devils ‘B’ are in good hands with an experienced staff.

Charles Crisostomo returns as program manager, with music staff in their third year together: John Meehan (brass arranger/music director), Shawn McElhany (brass caption head), Vinnie Angelo (percussion caption head/full percussion arranger), Shannon Church and Willie Meagher (percussion). Recent Blue Devils age-out Ryan Odello, and current Blue Devil percussion member Marco Nicola join the staff this year.

In her sixth year, Lindsey Leibig-Bazua will also return as Blue Devils ‘B’ color guard caption head.

P.S. Congratulations to Lindsey! She recently married former Blue Devils member and staff member, Adrian Bazua. Best Wishes!

East Coast Jazz Excitement in the depths of winter Albert Camus once said: “In the depths of winter, I finally learned there was within me an invincible summer.” That sentiment summarizes the excitement throughout the 2004 East Coast Jazz family.

The audition camp attracted high numbers from all over New England and as far away as Virginia, Indiana, North Carolina and Japan. With nearly everyone being, in essence, a rookie, it was obvious that this

year would be different for East Coast Jazz.

Each section has a new caption head from the year before: Jeff Buldoc took over arranging and heading the brass. Charlie Poole Jr. took over the battery arrangements and is heading the percussion section. Veteran Dana Atwood is arranging for the pit, and Maureen Kelly (with help from Andrew Hanenburg and Brandon Block) will run the color guard.

The parts, the expectations, the dedication, and the enthusiasm throughout the entire organization are an improvement on years prior. So far, the corps has ensembled a small segment of “Armando’s Rhumba,” their second selection in “The Heart of Jazz,” as well as completed threequarters of the show, with the horns needing less than 30 seconds to complete the finale, “Spanish Fantasy, Part IV.” — Malika Stepasiuk, snare

Jack of All Trades The weekend of January 17, 2004 was a busy one for LuAnne Funmaker, Jada House, and Debra Santiago, of the Racine Scouts. In addition to having a corps camp that weekend, these members performed in the Wisconsin Middle Level Honors Choir, as part of the Wisconsin Choral Directors’ Convention weekend. It was the first time that students from the Oneida Tribal School had been selected to perform with this prestigious chorus. The girls sang in choirs that were larger than their entire middle school, and performed music in French, Hebrew and Filipino.

After a vigorous day of singing and a fabulous concert, it was time to hop into the car for the drive to corps camp. For Jada House, this is a totally new experience, and one she thinks she will stick with. Jada also plays first trumpet in the school band and has had the honor of sounding TAPS at several veterans’ events on the reservation.

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Pit Break Memphis Sound For its 2004 season, Memphis Sound presents “Elements of Blue”. Elements of Blue is an original composition in four movements by Terry Jolley and is based on musical elements of blues and jazz with a

“Elements of Blue” symphonic flavor. Elements of Blue is a tribute to the rich blues heritage of Memphis, incorporating elements of the 12-bar blues, pentatonic scales, blues notes, jazz textures, and musical conversation between different voices in the ensemble. Elements of Blue will appeal to the jazz lover, blues lover, drum corps lover, and everyone in between.

Consider it an exploration of the elements of jazz and blues, with a hint of symphonic texture, developed to excite the senses of a drum corps fan.

Memphis Sound promises to bring a fresh, new look and flavor to the drum corps arena. The corps has attracted a very talented instructional staff and support group. The corps has also scheduled a very ambitious summer tour. According to Moore, “if you are going to ask kids to give up their summer, you better provide them with plenty of performance opportunities.

We decided early on that we would not be a part-time or weekend corps. Of course, you have to have the resources to get through a full summer. That’s why we put as much emphasis on our board as we do our instructors.”

NEWS IN THE WORLD OF DIVISION II & III Meet The Academy Drum corps fans will be seeing a new face on the field this summer. From Arizona, the Academy will make its Drum Corps International debut. The organization has been in development since 2000.

Originally named The Academy Summer Brass & Percussion Ensemble, they began performing in the summer of 2001, marking the return of drum corps to the state in more than six years. The group performed as a standstill group in 2001 and 2002,

added a little marching to the production in 2003, and this year will field a color guard.

The Academy’s December auditions drew more than 180 kids from all over the state. The corps will be marching 122 members: 56 brass, 32 percussion, 32 guard and two drum majors. The corps will be touring to California, performing their debut program. Their show features Alfred Reed’s “Symphony for Brass and

Percussion,” Morley Calvert’s “Chanson Melancolique” and Herbert Haufrecht’s “Symphony for Brass and Timpani.”

The corps is proud to have designers Peter Gomez (visual/guard) and J.D. Shaw (brass), as well as brass clinicians Patrick Sheridan and Sam Pilafian, percussion clinicians Glenn Crosby, Ralph Hardimon, and Jim Ancona, and performance clinician Shirley Dorritie to help make their inaugural season a success. Best of luck!

Be a part of the excitement!

Experience the 2004 Drum Corps International

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TUESDAY August 3, 2004 Preliminaries All-City Stadium 10:00 am

WEDNESDAY August 4, 2004 Individual & Ensemble Downtown Denver

THURSDAY August 5, 2004

SATURDAY August 7, 2004

Division Finals All-City Stadium 4:00 pm

Grand Finals All-City Stadium 11:00 am

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see page 21 13

Parallel Lives A son’s transitional drum In 1972 my father had just finished his third year as a member of the White Tornadoes from Momence, Ill. That was a year of adjustments in the drum corps community, but the turbulence brought about what we now know as Drum Corps International. And this coming August, we will celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the formation of that entity.

BUT A LESSER-KNOWN FACT about the many transitions that took place in the drum corps community in 1972 is that the White Tornadoes were involved in a merger that made my dad a member of the Kankakee Blackhawks. Even back then, corps mergers and changes were part of the everyday parlance.

Two years later, in 1974, he finished up his second year in the Blackhawks. That year, drum corps fans were fortunate to witness DCI’s first two-time champion (the Santa Clara Vanguard), and the first championships held outside of Whitewater, Wis. (championships were held that year at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.).

But the Blackhawks folded. In 1975 my dad would join the Schaumburg Guardsmen, and march four years, marching in two sets of DCI finals.

Little did I know it, but my drum corps career would soon parallel the drum corps career of my dad — a career practically defined by transitions.

Headed South In 2003 I had just finished my fifth year as a member of Capital Sound. We had recently been through some transitional periods, with a new corps director, some new concepts, and a lot of new faces. We made our first DCI Division II & III finals show in 2003.

But due to financial constraints, the corps was placed on hiatus in

14

by Andy Dittrich December. If I was to continue on in drum corps, I had to make the transition to a new corps.

About eight days later I found myself in a car with a group of friends driving to Kentucky to audition for Southwind. We had made a decision, although hasty, to take matters into our own hands. That weekend I was headed for the biggest transition I had ever made within the activity — I had to find a place to march.

I am no stranger to changes. I have been met with just about everything that could come at an 18-year-old this year. For instance, I moved from a moderately sized suburban high school to a big ten university in a rural community. Through this, and through other life-altering changes I’ve endured, I found that sometimes we are prepared for change, and sometimes we are stubborn, unwilling and scared to make changes.

I became determined not be scared of this transition. I come from a background rooted in drum corps. I had just been through a lot of changes, so I was not going to let something like this just pass me by. This was an opportunity! It was time for another adjustment.

Built to change Change and transition in our activity are defining aspects. I would stand to believe that there is no activity that has gone through as much change in the past 32 years as has the drum and bugle corps activity. Just look at the rules. From the creation of the pit, to adding a valve, then adding two valves, then adding three valves, to multikey instrumentation, the expansion of corps size, and the changes in the age-out rules, we are changing awfully quickly.

But again, I contend that the activity is built on the basis of change. From a big-picture perspective, every year we see a new innovation in design, or something that changes our outlook on the activity in general.

Meanwhile, on a small scale, every day someone’s future in this activity changes. Every day a director makes a show adjustment, a member decides to march, a potential member decides not to march, a staff member has to make a decision on someone’s fate, a kid picks up the sticks for the first time, a rifle spins, and the last dot is written in some set book. Every day one of those things happens at least once, if not a hundred times. A lot of followers of the activity see the summer as the time of change, the time where the talk gets big, and the time where things get laid down.

Auditioning What happens in drum corps in the winter are all of the big things that we only end up noticing in the summer. There are DCI meetings, like the ones that just wrapped up in Denver, show selections, uniform changes, sponsorship changes, instrument purchasing, staff hirings, and the all important audition weekends.

We were fortunate that Southwind held its first camp in December, unlike a majority of Division I drum corps that hold

of drum corps far away from their homes, but for me, it was really something I am not very used to.

Meanwhile, I have to prepare mentally for a greatly altered tour schedule. I marched the last five years in a Division II drum corps that toured part-time. Instead of traveling for 65-80 days over the summer as a full-touring corps would, we would travel about 35-45 days. So my time on the road this summer might easily double.

Change and change again These are just some of the transitions I have had to make. Our activity is a bastion of change, and my story is just one of thousands of stories that have been created already, before any drum corps have strapped on, suited up, and stepped onto the field.

I cannot wait to step onto that bus for 70 days, and see what I can make of the full tour, and seeing that pay off at some point. If any of us are to remain true to the activity, and true to its members, staff, fans, and followers, we need to be ready, willing, and able to change with it. I will not let myself be afraid anymore, and I am ready to show

corps career mirrors his father’s their first camp over Thanksgiving weekend. We decided to go to auditions about a week before camp, and worked our tails off in preparation. I was not exactly used to the drum corps audition process, as I had been in the same drum corps for five years, but I did all I could to prepare for the weekend. My friends from Capital Sound, Rob and Neil, joined me.

We traveled to Kentucky on a Friday evening and played our individual auditions on Saturday and continued playing in a group setting for the rest of the weekend. The snare room was cut down, and Neil and I were still in for the percussion camp in January. Rob was lighting up the front line room, and was offered a contract. We drove down again the first weekend of January, the first camp that the snare tech attended, and pushed hard again. They offered the first set of contracts to snare drummers, and Neil and I were in that first group.

The rest of the snare line was set at the third camp.

Division I is very different. I don’t know if I can necessarily define the intensity level as being higher than at Division II, but it is definitely a different level of intensity. We make videos between camps to demonstrate our progress. We have to go through several levels of self-evaluation. It seems like we have so much more time to work on the show, yet we take more time to perfect all of those little things right off the bat.

There are also those very subtle differences that haven’t even come up yet for me. This is going to be a 135-member drum corps, and I’ve marched in corps with about 70 to 95 members. I have to ride in a car to Kentucky every few weeks for drum corps, which is a lot different than driving the two hours up to Madison, Wis. The second January camp, which saw me on our winter break in Chicago, forced me to fly on a turbo-prop airplane to Lexington, Ky., which was a special experience for me. I know that thousands of members fly from all over the country and the world to be a part

that to this activity, and to anyone who has doubted what I can overcome.

Thirty years ago my dad had to make a decision, and make a change. He took his White Tornadoes uniform off for the last time without even knowing it.

Changes happened, the activity adjusted, it was a flurry of transition, and he came out the next summer in a new uniform, but stepped out onto those same football fields, and was a small part of laying down the basis for the activity: Change.

Two summers later he would do it again. For four summers after that the Guardsmen changed the activity themselves, by jumping nearly 20 places in one year. Less than ten years after that, the Geneseo Knights would take the field with him on their staff, and he would vote on the subject of the abolition of the tick system, one of the most-discussed and influential changes in drum corps history.

Twenty years later I have found myself having to make much of these same transitions, but hoping to do it as well as the people in my past have done it.

This activity is based on change, but sometimes I have found it so difficult that all I want to do is go back to where my comfort zone is, and let everything come to me. Fortunately though, I am at a point way past that now, and there is no time, room, or even opportunity to look back.

One of the best feelings I have ever gotten about change has been from a friend of mine in the drum line at the University of Illinois, and a member of the Glassmen. “Change something!” he often says.

Transition is a necessity, and drum corps is running at it, full speed. “Change something,” and don’t get left behind.

Andy Dittrich attends the University of Illinois and marches with Southwind. Andy is also a regular DCI.org columnist.

15

It’s Time to

Wake

the Neighbors!

DCI DeKalb • June 20, 2004 • DeKalb, IL • NIU Huskie Stadium • 6 pm DCI Central Illinois • June 25, 2004 • Bloomington-Normal, IL ISU Hancock Stadium • 7 pm

DCI Louisville • June 26, 2004 • Louisville, KY University of Louisville Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium • 7 pm

DCI Southwestern • July 10, 2004 • San Antonio, TX • Alamodome • 7 pm DCI Central Division Championship • July 10, 2004 • Kalamazoo, MI WMU’s Waldo Stadium • 6 pm

DCI Orlando • July 16-17, 2004 • Orlando, FL • Florida Citrus Bowl • 7 pm DCI Eastern Classic • July 23-24, 2004 • Allentown, PA J. Birney Crum Stadium • 7 pm

DCI Masters of the SUMMER MUSIC GAMES • July 30, 2004 Murfreesboro, TN • MTSU Stadium • 8 pm

DCI Midwestern Championship • July 31, 2004 • Indianapolis, IN RCA Dome • Noon*

Drum Corps International World Championships • August 3-7, 2004 Denver, CO • INVESCO Field at Mile High & All-City Stadium

**

Place your order online at DCI.org 470 South Irmen Drive, Addison, IL 60101 800.495.7469 x3 • International Calls 630.628.7888 x3 • Fax 630.628.7971 Shipping & Handling Information: Ticket orders will include $5.50 shipping and handling per order.

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Drum Corps International presents

the

2004

SUMMER MUSIC GAMES! DCI DeKalb

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Masters of the SUMMER MUSIC GAMES Friday, July 30, 2004 MTSU Stadium, Murfreesboro, Tennessee 8:00 pm Premium Seats ________@ $40.00 Super Seats ________@ $30.00 Value Seats ________@ $20.00 Group Seats* ________@ $15.00

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DCI Midwestern Championship

Saturday, July 31, 2004 RCA Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana Noon & 7:00pm Premium Seats ________@ $45.00 Super Seats ________@ $35.00 Value Seats ________@ $25.00 Group Seats* ________@ $15.00

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DCI Central Division Championship

Saturday, July 10, 2004 WMU Waldo Stadium, Kalamazoo, Michigan 6:00 pm Super Premium Seats*** ________@ $60.00 _____________ Premium Seats ________@ $35.00 _____________ Super Seats ________@ $25.00 _____________ Value Seats ________@ $18.00 _____________ Group Seats* ________@ $15.00 _____________

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DCI Eastern Classic

Please Print

Friday and Saturday, July 23 & 24, 2004 J.Birney Crum Stadium, Allentown, Pennsylvania Friday Tickets Premium Seats ________@ $30.00 _____________ 7:00 pm Super Seats ________@ $25.00 _____________ Value Seats ________@ $20.00 _____________ Group Seats* ________@ $15.00 _____________ Saturday Tickets Premium Seats ________@ $30.00 _____________ 7:00 pm Super Seats ________@ $25.00 _____________ Value Seats ________@ $20.00 _____________ Group Seats* ________@ $15.00 _____________ Two Day Tickets** Premium Seats ________@ $50.00 _____________ Super Seats ________@ $40.00 _____________ Value Seats ________@ $30.00 _____________ Group Seats* ________@ $30.00 _____________

DCI World Championships August 3 – 7, 2004 All City High School, Denver Colorado Division II & III Preliminaries Tuesday, August 3rd 10:00 am General Admission ________@ Group Seats* ________@ Division II & III Division Finals Thursday, August 5th 4:00 pm General Admission ________@ Group Seats* ________@ Division II & III Grand Finals Saturday, August 7th 11:00 am General Admission ________@ Group Seats* ________@

$7.00 $4.00

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INVESCO Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado Division I Quarterfinals Thursday, August 5th $40.00 N/A 3:00 pm Super Premium Seats ________@ Premium Seats ________@ $30.00 Super Seats ________@ $20.00 Value Seats ________@ $15.00 Group Seats* ________@ $12.00 Division I Semifinals Friday, August 6th $50.00 N/A 4:45 pm Super Premium Seats ________@ Premium Seats ________@ $40.00 Super Seats ________@ $30.00 Value Seats ________@ $20.00 Group Seats* ________@ $18.00 Division I Finals Saturday, August 7th $125.00 N/A 5:00 pm Super Premium Seats ________@ Premium Seats ________@ $75.00 Super Seats ________@ $55.00 Super Value Seats ________@ $35.00 Value Seats ________@ $25.00

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19

August 3-7 Denver, Colorado So – you’re coming to Denver.

You have your tickets, and you’ve already begun discussing the possible outcome of the 2004 World Championships.

But – where will you be staying?

Where will you rest while drum lines ring in your head?

Don’t fret!

Drum Corps International is here to make that a whole lot easier — so you can just concentrate on which corps is going to have the most exciting drill moves.

Reservations for the listed hotels can be made on DCI.org by clicking on “Hotels” in the “Denver 2004” section.

Official Headquarters ADAM’S MARK 1550 Court Place • Denver, Colorado 80202

If you’re staying at the Adam’s Mark, you’re a DCI VIP. The Adam’s Mark Hotel is the official headquarters of the 2004 Drum Corps International World Championships and the venue for the 2004 Individual & Ensemble event.

Amidst the bustle of the nearby 16th street mall stands the Adam’s Mark. As the largest hotel in Denver, the hotel’s multiple amenities include a year round swimming pool, sauna, and state of the art fitness center. And how better to enjoy an afternoon or evening than by visiting your choice of three restaurants, two lounges, 2004 DCI World Championships and one exciting nightclub without ever leaving the grounds!

Official Headquarters Located in the heart of Downtown Denver, The Adam’s Mark is just minutes away from the DCI World Championships excitement at INVESCO Field at Mile High.

Make your plans today to be a part of the 2004 DCI World Drum Corps International 20

470 South Irmen Drive • Addison, IL 60101 •

DOUBLETREE DENVER 3203 Quebec Street Denver, Colorado 80207

The Doubletree Hotel Denver is located just 20 minutes from the Denver International Airport (DIA) and six minutes from downtown. Complimentary transportation is available to and from DIA, downtown Denver and the Cherry Creek Shopping District. The hotel’s spacious 563 guestrooms include six suites and a business level floor. All rooms feature the amenities that you would expect from a first-class hotel including beautiful views of downtown Denver and the majestic Rocky Mountains.

HOLIDAY INN 4849 Bannock Street Denver, Colorado 80216

Holiday Inn Denver Central offers a great central location near I-25 & I-70. Only 3 miles from downtown Denver, INVESCO Field at Mile High Stadium, Six Flags/Elitch Gardens Amusement Park, Ocean Journey and many other attractions. It’s the perfect “home base”. The hotel is known for its great nightclub, “Teddy’s”, where “It’s a party every night!”

FOUR POINTS SHERATON 600 S. Colorado Blvd Denver, Colorado 80246

The Four Points Sheraton is located in the heart of the Cherry Creek Shopping district in Denver, and within walking distance of restaurants, theatres, stores and art galleries. This hotel is 8 miles from downtown. It is also conveniently located only 5 miles from most area attractions including INVESCO Field at Mile High Stadium and Six Flags/Elitch Gardens Amusement Park.

RED LION CENTRAL 4040 Quebec Street Denver, Colorado 80216

Red Lion Central is adjacent to INVESCO Field at Mile High Stadium, and only one mile from downtown. The 170 spacious guestrooms feature all the amenities you’d expect of a first-class hotel, with stunning views of the city. The Red Lion Hotel is committed to care, comfort and value.

GUESTHOUSE HOTEL 3737 Quebec Street Denver, Colorado 80207

The Guesthouse Hotel is a full service, first-class hotel close to Denver International Airport and conveniently located off I-70, less than 7 miles to downtown Denver and the World Championships at INVESCO Field at Mile High. The Guesthouse Hotel is located near the heart of the city and it is walking distance to major shopping and entertainment.

RED LION – INVESCO FIELD 1975 Bryant Street Denver, Colorado 80204

The Red Lion – INVESCO Field is adjacent to the home of the 2004 DCI World Championships. The hotel is one mile from downtown Denver. The Red Lion offers complimentary shuttle service for up to three miles. The 170 spacious guestrooms feature all the amenities of a first-class hotel. The Red Lion Hotel is committed to care, comfort and value.

RENNAISANCE HOTEL 3801 Quebec Street Denver, Colorado 80207

The Renaissance Hotel is centrally located to downtown, Denver International Airport, and the 2004 World Championships action at INVESCO Field at Mile High. The hotel provides convenience, quality and outstanding service to its guests. The hotel is home to the Brassier Restaurant, and features a parking garage that offers over 500 free parking spaces.

Championships!

Order your tickets on page 21!

800.495.7469 • 630.628.7888 • FAX 630.628.7971 • DCI.org 21

S UMMER 2004

TOUR OF CHAMPIONS SIX DCI CHAMPIONSHIP CORPS

TO MARCH AND PLAY ORIGINAL ARRANGEMENTS TOGETHER ON THE TOUR OF CHAMPIONS

B Y C HRIS H OLLENBACK YOU NEVER run out of memorable things to do in California. In just a couple days, you can: • Drive down the Pacific Coast Highway, the best stretch of road in North America • Check out tough guy John Wayne’s handprints in the sidewalk at Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood • Ride the Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland and pretend you’re Johnny Depp • Surf the wild oceanic beauty of Monterey • Enjoy a burrito in Santa Barbara at a beautiful beachside restaurant • Go whale-watching under the Golden Gate Bridge And this August, you’ll be able to add “Enjoy a spectacular late-season drum corps show” to this list of things to do while you’re out there. That’s right — DCI’s Tour of Champions is shaping up to be one of this millennium’s key drum corps events.

Stay tuned to DCI.org to find out how to purchase tickets for the first chance ever to see the six

DCI championship corps — Blue Devils, The Cadets, The Cavaliers, Phantom Regiment, Santa Clara Vanguard and Madison Scouts — perform during the four-show stint in California from Aug. 9-14.

What’s in store? Well, have you ever wondered what it would be like if The Cadets and Blue Devils or Madison Scouts and The Cavaliers combined to march and play as one super-corps? Or have them play original works together?

You may be thinking, “I’ve already seen them play songs together during retreat.”

But this is bigger than just a standstill. This is all six corps marching and playing new arrangements en masse. This is three outdoor shows — including one at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena — followed by a unique indoor theater production in northern California. It’s color guards from powerhouse corps combining to create unique ensemble performances. It’s drummers from famed lines rolling off together. It’s each corps performing its full field show, plus an immediate encore.

Dave Gibbs, director of the Blue Devils, says that West Coast fans should expect an excellent show. “The West Coast fans are going to see drum corps as they’ve never seen it before. It’s going to be a oncein-a-lifetime experience. We’re going to see drum corps at its highest level,” Gibbs said.

Drum corps personality Michael Cesario, a familiar face from DCI broadcasts (and well-known in both Broadway and Las Vegas circles as a talented costume designer), is coordinating the first-ever Tour of Champions.

“We have a who’s who of drum corps making this come alive,” Cesario says. “Jay Kennedy is writing an original piece based on

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groups. And, of course, the West Coast is a fun place to visit, so that alone is exciting.”

The corps will leave together the Monday after the DCI World Championships, traveling as one caravan, rehearsing together and sharing food.

According to Dave Gibbs, director of the Blue Devils, members of that corps are excited the Tour of Champions. “They’re excited.

A lot of our kids come from California. For them, it’s performing in front of their family and friends. They’re excited about touring with the other corps in unique traveling situation,” Gibbs said.

Gibbs himself is looking forward to the fans’ reactions.

“I’m looking forward to me watching the faces of the fans out here as they watch world-class drum corps at its best. It’s going to be

famous American themes — a symphonic, heroic work. Michael Gaines is going to put together the visual product.”

Gaines is the Cavaliers’ drill designer, and Kennedy has arranged music for several drum corps.

“We’re going to shake the place,” Cesario says. “We’re going to do a totally new arrangement of a drum corps favorite by Frank Dorritie and Dennis Delucia.”

Dorritie is a Grammy-award winning music producer and Delucia is the DCI telecast commentator who arranged the Bridgemen’s famous “Black Market Juggler” drum solo that featured the snare line playing blindfolded.

Tuesday, August 10th ✹ 7:30 PM “At the outdoor venues, all the trumpets will herald TBA Long Beach, California the beginning of the “Star-Spangled Banner,” arranged

by JD Shaw,” Cesario says. “We’ll have a snare soloist Wednesday, August 11th ✹ 7:30 PM from every corps and the combined color guards. I’m Rose Bowl Pasadena, California making sure all 60-plus contras are along the front Friday, August 12th ✹ 8:00 PM sideline at one point. We’ll have a real surprise for the Flint Center Cupertino, California percussion community. It’s going to be a real hoot.”

The tour will not feature a scoring system, but it will Saturday, August 14th ✹ 7:00 PM take full advantage of technology like jumbotrons and Spartan Stadium San Jose State University, San Jose, California state-of-the-art sound systems. The *Tentative Schedule of Events indoor performance will feature solos, ensembles and unique presentations.

“We’re looking for an opportunity a totally new perspective for them. It’s going to be to show drum corps in a different exciting,” Gibbs said light,” Cesario says. “The corps mem“Some of the best times on the road have been bers will have the chance to stretch those impromptu parking lot jams with massed their muscles in a different way.” corps, and those occasional retreats where two corps If you’re getting excited, you’re not serenade each other,” Seidling says. “Doing it on this alone. The performers are, too. scale will certainly be memorable.” “(They’re) more excited than I even “Usually, these corps compete against each other,” expected,” says Pat Seidling, executive Cesario says. “I’m excited to see what they can do director of Phantom Regiment. “They when they’re working together and cheering each really seem most excited about travelother on. It’s going to be magical.” ing with five other corps as one big Chris Hollenback marched bass and snare in unit. They have so many school the Northmen from 1988-1990, and bass for the friends, even siblings, in the other Madison Scouts from 1991-1993 and snare for

2004 TOUR OF CHAMPIONS

the Scouts from 1994-1997.

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WGI Sport of the Arts

World Championships

Cox Arena Center

San Diego Sports Arena

April 15–17, 2004

Tickets On Sale NOW! The best seats are going fast!

Toll-Free 877/WGI-Tick • 937/434-7100 • wgi.org

SOLD OUT!

The Interview Name: JW Koester Age: As old as the hills!

Family: Wife Roxanne (married 17 years), daughter Laura

(14 years old), son Joshua (2 years old).

Education: Major studies in technical drafting, industrial model building.

Current occupation: Business manager for the San Jose Raiders Winter Guard; DCI Division II & III coordinator.

Drum corps background: Marched nine years with the Santa Clara Vanguard (two with the “B” corps, seven with the Vanguard). Instructed the SSF Conquistadors, the Valley Fever, the Mandarins, director of the Vanguard Cadets, director of the Santa Clara Vanguard, tour director for the Glassmen, percussion judge for Drum Corps West (years ago).

Favorite actor or actress: Clint Eastwood.

Favorite pig-out food: Ice cream — Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food.

The last good book I read: Piers Anthony, “On a Pale Horse”.

Two CDs I’d have if I were stranded on a desert island: Dave Mathews Band – “Busted Stuff,”

Chicago – “Greatest Hits,” Aaron Copland – “Compilation of Hits” (I chose three, so sue me!).

Most prized possession: My family and spending time

with them.

Favorite non-drum corps activity: Camping with family

and friends.

Best advice I’ve ever been given: Former manager Mario Denning said, “Just do it, what have you got to lose? If you really want to do something then you have to try it and give it your best shot.”

The thing I like most about my job: Interaction with the marching members, their youthful excitement is exhilarating!

The thing I like least about my job: Not enough time to do all that I want.

Shining the Shoes An Interview with JW Koester

Two people I admire the most: Dale Lofgren, fellow marching

member/instructor, godparent (to my daughter Laura) and my best man, Ray Mar, director of the Mandarins.

I’d give anything to meet: John F. Kennedy.

Favorite drum corps show ever: Marching – SCV 1975; Others: SCV 1980 and 1999, Blue Devils 1976 and 1990, Star of Indiana 1989, Glassmen 1994, The Cavaliers 2000.

Best drum corps anecdote: Late ‘80s at the Flamingo Hotel in Reno, Nev., for a Drum Corps West meeting with Gail Royer, Jerry Seawright, Parker Silva, Jim Jones, Jack Bevins and Al Piepho all in attendance and I’m sitting in the suite having a beverage with all of these drum corps legends listening to them tell stories and tall tales of the “good old days” and other great times. Although I can’t really remember the specific stories, my sides still ached the next day when the meeting started (not to mention my head).

Favorite drum corps memory: 1997 at Night Beat in Charlotte, N.C. SCV took third that night behind Cadets (.10) and BD (.20). When SCV’s score was announced the entire audience started booing, the corps staff and members were shocked — they had done a great show and were very happy with their performance and the crowd was booing! Then like a wave throughout the stands the audience started cheering and 10,000-plus fans gave SCV a standing ovation — all this took place before the last two scores could even be announced.

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Drum Corps International Presents

Masterful Performances of the SUMMER MUSIC GAMES

Re-live the television broadcasts from 1974-1999 with the DCI Legacy Collection DVD Series!

Order the ultimate drum corps viewing experience for long time and new fans alike NOW! For more information and complete listings of the DVDs, visit

DCI.org.

To place an order contact: Drum Corps International 470 South Irmen Drive, Addison, IL 60101

800/495-7469 x3

For phone orders outside the U.S. please call 630/628-7888 x3

FAX 630/628-7971 DCI.org Shipping & Handling Information Merchandise orders will have a $3.00 handling charge in addition to shipping charges based on weight of package.

Please visit DCI.org or call 1-800-495-7469 x3 for exact cost. Allow 3-4 weeks for delivery. Š2004 Drum Corps International. All rights reserved.

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Free Day

by Marco Buscaglia

Taking Ownership of Drum Corps.

Drum corps, like anything else, is in a constant state of flux. Rules change, styles evolve, some corps improve while other struggle, fans come and go.

But some of the changes in the activity in the past year or two seem to have polarized fans of the activity like never before.

Whether it’s amplification, any-key instruments or guard uniforms, fans have differing opinions about where the activity is headed. And they want everyone to know it.

But I think there’s more to these opinions than meets the eye.

It’s not about what’s wrong with the activity — it’s about what’s different. Like it or not, most drum corps fans are a bit xenophobic — we don’t like anything that’s not the status quo.

Granted, our status quo has tons of legroom, considering the different styles of corps one individual can appreciate. But somehow, we want things to remain as they were when we first marched or stumbled across our first corps.

It’s a lot like “discovering” a rock band in high school. You’re the first to buy the debut album, see them in concert at a small club and memorize every lyric. By the time they sign a major label deal, play to sold-out arenas and become mainstays on MTV and radio, you force yourself to no longer care. And if you catch your little sister listening to one of their CDs, you’re quick to write them off as sell-outs.

Drum corps works on a similar level. We like drum corps because it is our activity. We have ownership in it, whether we’re long-time boosters, corps alumni, parents of corps alumni or fans.

We can reminisce about the 1983 Garfield Cadets, the 1972 Troopers or the 2003 Blue Devils. There is a language we share that transcends normal definition, with terms like “starting line,” “gym floor” and “tickless.”

It’s our club, but we should not decide who gets to join. That’s not our job. And we can’t begrudge the kids who do it today because it’s different from when we were around.

Instead, take ownership in the activity by taking ownership of your era. Share your history with others and try to be open to the evolution of the activity.

We want drum corps to retain the same things we fell in love with. However, I’m not sure that the objects of our affection ever were valve-rotor bugles, six-foot flagpoles or marching tympanis.

Rather, I would argue that we fell in love with the activity as a whole— music and movement on a football field.

On a national level, drum corps is a small fish in a big pond of music, entertainment and pop culture. But in its own pond, drum corps is a blue whale. We cram ourselves into packed high school football stadiums, wait in long lines for a Diet Pepsi at college stadiums and time our bathroom breaks to avoid crowds.

Parking lots are packed, corps-related Web sites buzz with opinion and thousands of relationships are formed.

Still, the Average Joe may not know what we’re all about. Enter marching band.

Although I learned how to play the horn in the Cavalier Cadets (and I haven’t picked one up since playing the last note of “Gloria” in Kansas City in 1989), I still have to reach out to that kid from Texas who actually wants to make music part of his future personal and professional life. In hindsight, that sounds like a pretty great way to live, and I’m glad he or she wants to spend a summer or three or four marching corps.

At the beginning of my drum corps tenure, band kids were sometimes looked down upon and picked on. Then we began to realize that these were the guys who would help make us better.

And before we knew it, we came to realize that they were as obnoxious, driven and irreverent as the rest of us. There was a time when we, as members, labeled ourselves by musical training, but as friends today, we make no distinction based on careers. In hindsight, I realize that there’s an entire base of fans in marching bands out there just beginning to appreciate what we’re all about.

Beyond band, Average Joe might still not grasp drum corps.

That’s when a more personal approach might work to convert the uninitiated.

When I marched, I’d usually hear from my neighborhood friends when the broadcast aired on PBS — something like, “Hey, I saw that thing you do on channel 11 last week — it looked pretty cool, but does anyone go to those things?”

I’d point out the thousands of fans at DCI finals that year, and would always get the same response: “The stands I saw looked pretty empty.” I’d explain about the back stands for a second or two, but to guys who never attended a show, it didn’t make much sense.

My age-out year, three guys I grew up with finally decided to come to a local show to actually see what I’d been doing with my summers for the previous 12 years. But thanks to a stocked cooler in their car’s backseat, the unfamiliar concept of actually spending money on a ticket and a wide assortment of female guard members warming up outside the gate, they never made it into the stadium. Alas, drum corps lost its chance at three new fans.

There are just some fans that won’t be won over, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. Let’s just suppose my Jefferson Park pals actually shelled out a few bucks and watched me perform at the Cavaliers’ home show in 1989. I can almost see Rob, Pat and Russell in the parking lot now after the show. “It was pretty cool,” they’d say, “but what’s with all the dudes? And don’t you guys know any REM?” Marco Buscaglia marched with The Cavalier Cadets from 1978-83, and The Cavaliers from 1984-89. He is currently an editor with Tribune Media Services in Chicago.

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