Crossmen will return to Finals after only Friday night shakeup
In the only shakeup in Semifinals competition Friday, Aug. 10, Crossmen (84.90, 12th) passed up Blue Stars (84.60, 13th) for the first time in the 2012 season, claiming the last coveted spot in the Finals."It's an amazing feeling," Crossmen brass captain Josh Sears said about qualifying. "I'm so excited. So happy. I've stuck with the corps, working, pushing for this to happen, and it's finally happened."
He said alumni — “Crossmen Nation” — are thrilled to see the corps back in Finals. Their last appearance was in 2004, back before they moved to San Antonio from Allentown, Pa.
"As soon as the news broke, everyone just went crazy," Sears said. "My phone has already been blowing up with alumni texting me."
Blue Stars has appeared in Finals for the past four years, reappearing in the lineup after falling out beginning in the 1980s. The corps was a founding member of DCI, placing second in the first DCI World Championship.
"Our corps motto is 'Finis Coronat Opus,' or 'The End Crowns the Work,'" Blue Stars color guard captain Kekoa Amteo said. "And if this is the end, then our work crowned it. I'm just as gracious and as blessed to be with these people than I have been any other part of my life."Blue Stars snare drummer Luke Sesker said their Semifinals performance, although not perfect, was solid and a strong finish to their 2012 season.
"Considering where we started and how far we came, we can do nothing but hold our heads high and be proud of where we're at," Sesker said.
Blue Devils (98.20) kept their death grip on first place, keeping Carolina Crown (97.45) in second. Crown narrowed the gap between the two corps by two-tenths of a point. Just .75 now separates the corps.
"Today's performance was excellent," Blue Devils' horn sergeant David Reaver said. "I thought we threw down last night, but there's always that first-time jitters when you get to Championships. We stomped all that out, and we're primed for tomorrow."With their penultimate performance in the books, Blue Devils are now one step closer to completing another perfect season and claiming their 15th World Championship title. The corps' last title was in 2010.
"Being a Blue Devil is always great, but we're undefeated and this week especially has gone great," Reaver said. "The Blue Devils always finish off strong. Finals week is always the best week to be a Blue Devil."
Phantom Regiment (95.70, 3rd) maintained their lead over The Cadets (94.10, 4th), with the margin increasing to 1.60 points. Phantom Regiment increased their score by 1.10 points, and The Cadets increased by 0.05. Santa Clara Vanguard (93.70, 5th) and Bluecoats (92.80, 6th) followed behind, each with an increase of roughly half a point.
The Cavaliers (89.40, 7th) were one of only three corps to go down in score from Prelims to Semifinals. With Boston Crusaders (89.30, 8th) increasing their score by three-tenths, the gap between the two corps closed to one-tenth of a point."Tonight's performance was great," Boston Crusaders drum major Thompson Vou said. "There was so much more clarity and energy, and it felt great coming off the field."
After their performance, he said he was hoping his corps would move up one spot in the rankings.
"We'll keep on pushing for that," Vou said. "But we don't get bogged down too much. We've just got to max out what we can do."
Boston Crusaders director Tom Spataro said the corps had a great Semifinals performance, better than their Prelims run. He said on the second night of performing, everybody is more comfortable and keyed into the acoustic environment.
Although still in 10th place, Blue Knights (87.65) inched closer to Madison Scouts (88.80, 9th) and further distanced themselves from Spirit of Atlanta (85.65, 11th).
Following Crossmen and Blue Stars was Glassmen (82.25, 14th). In 15th place, The Academy (81.90) broke the 80-point barrier for the first time this season. The corps also posted the largest score increase from Prelims to Semifinals.And after a season of swapping spots, Pacific Crest (80.25, 16th) ended up ahead of both Colts (79.20, 17th) and Troopers (77.65, 18th).
"Tonight's performance was a culmination of all the hard work we've put in all season," Pacific Crest drum major Tim Yao said. "Every show we've been getting better. Every run through, we're better and better. Tonight was the pinnacle of all our hard work this year."
For Troopers drum major Alex Lackey, Semifinals was his last performance with his corps of four years, a group he said he feels an indescribable amount of love for. In his leadership role with the Troopers, Lackey gained notoriety due to his "slow walk" at drum major retreats.
"It's something that's been going on forever," he said. "I guess I made a couple of people mad. I heard about the online message board threads and stuff like that, but it's just tradition. And I was going to uphold that whether people liked it or not."
Oregon Crusaders (77.45, 19th) increased their lead on Jersey Surf (75.45, 20th) and stayed ahead of their Open Class brethren Blue Devils B (73.60, 21st) and Vanguard Cadets (72.75, 22nd). Mandarins (71.60, 23rd), Spartans (70.75, 24th) and Cascades (68.75, 25th) rounded out the bottom three spots. Cascades drum major Caitlin Heber said despite not having their signature Cascade-green plumes or shakos for their Semifinals run, it was a fantastic performance.
"Our plume boxes somehow got misplaced and got left at our school," she said. "So we performed without shakos, because the uniform really isn't complete without the plume and shako."
In her second year with Cascades, Heber said she plans to return for a third.
View all scores from this event.
View a complete schedule of World Championship events.
Contributing to this report: Christina Mavroudis, Jessica Skogh
Showing posts with label glassmen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label glassmen. Show all posts
Saturday, August 11, 2012
DCI Semi-Finals
Another great night for Drum Corps. Here is a recap from DCI
Friday, August 10, 2012
DCI's Prelim competition
Many of you know that I LOVE Drum & Bugle corps and follow it every summer. Well, it's hard to believe that the summer is almost over for the corps as they round the next 2 nights of competition.
Top 12 'shuffle' at Prelims competition
Blue Devils (97.55) took first place at the World Championship Prelims, Friday, Aug. 10, and took one more step to adding another perfect season to the corps' record books."The focus right now is just getting better every time we have a rep," Blue Devils drum major Matt Williams said. "Keeping our eyes on the prize and really pushing to the end."
Williams said the corps was itching to go and raring to take the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. As they look forward to the Semifinals, he echoed a sentiment from corps director David Gibbs after their performance.
"Those last couple of points aren't necessarily going to come from cleaning tiny things up," Williams said. "It's just that little extra something — that Blue Devils sparkle you've see in years past."
Carolina Crown (96.60, 2nd) made small headway on closing the gap on Blue Devils and put two points between themselves and Phantom Regiment (94.60, 3rd). The Cadets (94.05, 4th) returned to fourth place after finishing ahead of Phantom Regiment at their last three events.Santa Clara Vanguard (93.20, 5th) drum major Noe Gomez said they had a solid Prelims run throughout, from color guard to brass to percussion.
"I feel like tomorrow night is going to be nice and solid," Gomez said. "A nice solid performance just like we had tonight. Nothing too crazy for us. We're just going to come back and try to do it consistently."
Bluecoats (92.25, 6th) were the last corps to break 90 points on Thursday. In 2011, eight corps broke the 90-point barrier by Finals night. The Cavaliers (89.50, 7th) found themselves half a point away from joining the club.
Boston Crusaders (89.00, 8th) kept themselves ahead of Madison Scouts (88.55, 9th), while Blue Knights (85.85, 10th) made their move on Spirit of Atlanta (85.20, 11th). Blue Knights and Spirit of Atlanta swapped placements from where they finished at the DCI Eastern Classic last weekend.In turn, despite falling behind Blue Stars (83.75, 12th) on Sunday, Aug. 5 at the Three Rivers Summer Music Games, Spirit of Atlanta surged past Blue Stars for a little more secure spot in the top 12. All the while, Crossmen (83.40, 13th) held on to the 13th spot.
Glassmen (81.25, 14th) drum major Adam Shrock said his corps' Prelims performance went really well, with corps members showing a good amount of energy out on the field.
"I'm thinking if the energy is sustained than all we need to do is do what we've always done," he said. "Wake up tomorrow morning and treat it like another show day. Not like Semifinals trying to make Finals. Just treat it like a show day and have the same focused energy that we always have."
In his first year with the Toledo corps, Shrock will return to the Glassmen next year once again as drum major. He's previously marched with Pioneer and has two seasons left before aging out."It's crazy," he said about how the current season has gone. "This season feels faster than the last. It feels like just yesterday you're moving in and suddenly you're moving out."
The Academy (79.95, 15th) Director Mark Richardson said their 2012 field show "Left of Spring" is a story about rebirth — a story mimicked by the corps this year, in regards to their growth and evolution in the past 11 years.
The score gap between Pacific Crest (78.95, 16th), Colts (77.45, 17th) and Troopers (76.35, 18th) widened in comparison to the 1.35 points that separated the trio at the DCI Eastern Classic last weekend. And in their first post-Open Class Championship performance, Oregon Crusaders (75.90, 19th) kept their lead on all other Open Class corps.
In their first performance without the Bridgemen Alumni backdrop, Jersey Surf (74.50, 20th) landed ahead of the silver and bronze Open Class-medalists Blue Devils B (73.45, 21st) and Vanguard Cadets (72.95, 22nd).
It was also the first indoor performance for Blue Devils B this season."I don't think it was too much of an issue," Blue Devils B color guard captain Danelle Porter said. "I think maybe at first it might have caught a couple of people off guard, but besides that I think they handled it very well."
She said overall their season has been going well, pushing harder at this time than they have in any other season.
With Mandarins (71.70, 23rd) qualifying for the Semifinals once again, it was surely a happy birthday for cymbal player Adrian Sarmiento, who turned 22 on Thursday.
"This is my first time ever marching DCI," he said. "I've been marching WGI for a really long time. So being in my age-out, and my bonus year at that, I had to march at least one year."
Spartans (69.35, 24th) was the fourth and last Open Class corps to qualify for the Semifinals. Cascades (68.65, 25th) secured 25th place and the last spot in Friday's competition. In their first World Championship performance, Gold (66.35, 26th) missed out on Semifinals by 2.30 points. Their place ahead of 7th Regiment (64.45, 28th) and Genesis (63.50, 29th) was the only change in the rankings from the Open Class Finals two days earlier.
It was the last performance of the season for Pioneer (66.20, 27th), and the last performance ever in a junior drum corps for Pioneer age-out Steven Wright.
"I've been marching Pioneer for three years, but this is my 13th year doing drum corps," he said. "I marched in a drum corps back in England called Concord Drum and Bugle Corps. And I started in their junior corps 13 years ago."
After his England-based corps folded, he contacted DCI Hall of Fame member Steve Vickers, who let him know about an opening with Pioneer. Wright joined and said he hasn't regretted the decision since. As for his last performance with Pioneer, he said his corps was outstanding, pulling out an amazing performance."It was just a brilliant experience for everyone," Wright said. "I'm more than happy to have that as my last show."
Legends (63.40, 30th), Music City (62.85, 31st) and Raiders (61.05, 32nd) all broke the 60-point barrier on their first time being judged on World Class judging sheets this season. Rounding out the bottom three spots were Colt Cadets (57.95, 33th), Les Stentors (52.75, 34th) and Blue Saints (49.10, 35th).
View all scores from this event.
View a complete schedule of World Championship events.
Contributing to this report: Christina Mavroudis, Jessica Skogh
Friday, August 12, 2011
Celebrate Indy Arts! Parade
Celebrate Indy Arts! Parade
A part of the 2011 Drum Corps International World Championships
Date: Saturday, Aug. 13, 2011
Time: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET
Location: Downtown Indianapolis
Admission: Free and open to the public
About: Hosted as part of the annual Drum Corps International World Championships, the first-ever Celebrate Indy Arts! Parade will bring more than 30 of the world's finest marching music ensembles from around the world together with members of the local Indianapolis arts community in the most musical, creative and fun-filled parade to ever hit the streets of the Circle City.
Stepping off at 11 a.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 13, the parade will wind through the streets of downtown Indianapolis, ending on the Indiana War Memorial Mall (431 North Meridian St.). Concluding the event in the early afternoon will be a tribute to America, as more than 2,000 brass musicians assemble to play an en masse rendition of "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Drum Corps International will host its annual World Championship Finals later that evening at Lucas Oil Stadium.
A part of the 2011 Drum Corps International World Championships
Date: Saturday, Aug. 13, 2011
Time: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET
Location: Downtown Indianapolis
Admission: Free and open to the public
About: Hosted as part of the annual Drum Corps International World Championships, the first-ever Celebrate Indy Arts! Parade will bring more than 30 of the world's finest marching music ensembles from around the world together with members of the local Indianapolis arts community in the most musical, creative and fun-filled parade to ever hit the streets of the Circle City.
Stepping off at 11 a.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 13, the parade will wind through the streets of downtown Indianapolis, ending on the Indiana War Memorial Mall (431 North Meridian St.). Concluding the event in the early afternoon will be a tribute to America, as more than 2,000 brass musicians assemble to play an en masse rendition of "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Drum Corps International will host its annual World Championship Finals later that evening at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Parade Route
The parade will start at North and Pennsylvania and head south on Pennsylvania. A right turn on New York and another right turn on Meridian will bring it all to an end at St. Clair. The route from start to finish is just under a mile long.Wednesday, March 24, 2010
DCI Minnesota's Drum Corps at TCF Stadium UofM
I know I keep talking about Drum Corps or airline stuff, I just can NOT wait for July 17th to come. Even though there will be the annual drum corps show in Stillwater on June 27th, Minneapolis Pride will be taken place and I'll be pretty busy there. To give a little more info on the corps who will be in attendance on July 17th, I went to each corps' website to give you a brief synopsis of who they are.
In one of the biggest events to hit the upper Midwest since the 2006 DCI World Championships, the 2010 Drum Corps International Tour will roll through Minneapolis, Minn. on Saturday, July 17, for a first-ever event at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Home of the University of Minnesota’s Golden Gophers, this brand new venue will host a whopping lineup of 24 World, Open and All-Age Class corps during one fun-filled and exciting evening.Taking place two weeks earlier, don’t forget to purchase your tickets to Drum Beauty in Stillwater, Minn. on June 27.
The Blue Devils offer young men and women between the ages of 7 and 21 quality educational and performance experiences in the areas of musical and dance performance. Founded in 1957, The Blue Devils’ objective is to develop personal character through challenging physical, emotional, mental, and social activities while promoting the values of dedication, hard work, and commitment to a team effort. Over 450 young people currently participate in The Blue Devils programs, and over 8,000 young people, in 2,000 families, have been served by The Blue Devils organization since 1957.
DCI World Champions: 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1986, 1994, 1996*, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2009
The story of the Blue Knights began in an improbable way. The corps was founded by Fred and Fae Taylor, ex-vaudeville comedians and musicians who had appeared at many east-coast nightclubs (including the famous Palace Theater) and on the Ed Sullivan Show. Growing tired of life on the road, the Taylors moved to Denver in 1951 to look for steadier work. Shortly after they arrived, Denver’s first television station, KFEL Channel 2, hit the airwaves and was in desperate need of programming to fill up its airtime. Fred and Fae talked the station’s owner into letting them produce a teen-age “Soda Shop” show, which quickly drew the loyal following of many Denver adolescents after they got home from school.
Blue Stars provide the membership with educational and performance opportunities in the area of performance arts to help them to develop life skills. Members learn through teamwork, dedication, a strong work ethic, setting goals, and discipline, that success can be achieved both on and off the performance field.
The Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps provides a program for youth in music and performance training. Leadership, personal, character and social development skills are emphasized through the challenge, excitement, and self-discipline presented by the corps through travel, competition, and pursuit of excellence.
The Boston Crusaders Drum & Bugle Corps, founded in 1940, is the third-oldest junior drum and bugle corps in the nation and is proud to be a founding member of Drum Corps International. The corps, composed entirely of brass players, percussionists and color guard members under the age of 22, travels over 10,000 miles each summer, performing in more than 40 competitions and exhibitions before a combined audience of over 300,000 fans.
The organization started in January 1988 as the Charlotte Drum Corps Association. Originally, the Carolina Crown organization resembled a fraternal organization, holding periodic meetings at the Holiday Inn -Woodlawn or a local Charlotte (NC) restaurant. The association members, made up of drum corps enthusiasts and/or alumni originally from the Northeast, Midwest and South, watched videos and discussed the happenings of the day in the activity.
The Colt Cadets are an outstanding performing group primarily made up of members in middle school and high school from Dubuque and the tri-state area. Founded in 1967, the Colt Cadets are one of the few remaining cadet corps in the country!
The Colts are comprised of 135 members, 30+ staff, and hundreds of volunteers who all care deeply about this activity. Membership comes from all over the nation and overseas. We begin rehearsals and auditions in December, meeting one weekend a month, and twice in April, for a rehearsal “camp” until June, when we go on tour until mid-August.
Formed as a result of the merger in 1975 between two smaller corps in the outskirts of Philadelphia, the 507 Hornets and Keystone Regiment, The Crossmen Drum & Bugle Corps has grown to become a perennial Drum Corps International (DCI) World Champion Finalist, reaching the DCI Finals 22 times in the corps' brief 35 year history.
Dutch Boy experience is to provide a positive atmosphere to build leadership and citizenship qualities in youth through music, the arts, travel and competition.
The GLASSMEN provide opportunities that promote and develop life skills and personal enrichment through education, participation and performance.
As one of the oldest competing drum corps in the world and as one of only three competing drum corps in the state of Minnesota, the Govenaires are truly good will ambassadors for St. Peter, the State of Minnesota, and the drum corps activity.
The Legends Performing Arts Association was formed on September 18, 2006. Those involved with forming this organization are Ibe Sodawalla of Thoughts In Progress Productions and Patrick W. Flynn of the Portage Central Bands. Their goal is to develop and promote opportunities in performance through music and movement. These ensembles are to include a drum & bugle corps, wind ensemble, and winter guard and percussion ensembles. Members will be instructed in the areas of music and the visual performing arts and will learn important life lessons in leadership, commitment and teamwork.
For over 70 years the Madison Scouts has developed and shaped young men’s lives through musical enrichment and performance arts. Values such as honesty, integrity and accountability are taught and practiced through the activity that is modern day drum & bugle corps. A commitment to personal excellence and altruism serves as the foundation for the ultimate goal of teaching our members important life changing skills that will guide them now and in the future.
World Champions: 1975, 1988
Minnesota Brass is a nonprofit volunteer charitable corporation. Each year members elect a board of directors which in turn appoints the administrative staff. "Admin" recruits the support staff and hires the design and instructional staff.
The Phantom Regiment is a youth organization dedicated to the development of self-esteem and self-reliance. It encourages team work, sportsmanship, civic pride and contributions of one's personal best to a group effort. These lessons are learned through a musical and marching activity in which there is a blending of the arts and athletics.
World Champions: 1996*, 2008
Pioneer prepares and inspires young adults to serve as leaders and role models for their peers by maintaining a strong emphasis on instilling positive leadership traits and principles, the development of individual moral character, goal setting and teaching the importance of responsibility and maintaining a strong work ethic.
Founded in 1927, the Racine Scouts are the oldest, continually competitive Junior corps in North America. Originally formed as a Boy Scout organization, the corps continues to promote scouting values in today’s highly competitive marching music activity.
Drum and bugle corps is a highly specialized musical art form. Originally organized as a musical and social outlet by veterans returning from World War 1, most groups were community based. Drum corps of the 21st century draw members from around the world and represent many socio-economic backgrounds.
Drum and bugle corps is a highly specialized musical art form. Originally organized as a musical and social outlet by veterans returning from World War 1, most groups were community based. Drum corps of the 21st century draw members from around the world and represent many socio-economic backgrounds.
Since 1967, the Santa Clara Vanguard has set the example and provided the opportunity for young men and women to grow, mature, and compete in the drum and bugle corps activity. Recently our programs have expanded to extend this experience into the winter guard arena and the Santa Clara community through "Children's Adventures in Movement."
World Champion: 1973, 1974, 1978, 1981, 1989
Established in the fall of 1976, Spirit Drum and Bugle Corps was the creation of Freddy Martin, a successful suburban Atlanta band director, and his wife, Lynda. That summer, That summer, they and Bob Hoehn partnered with a local network television affiliate to realize their dream of an Atlanta area junior drum and bugle corps.
The original corporate vision of the organization included new drum and bugle corps across the country, wherever sister television stations to the one in Atlanta were based. This dream was short-lived and, in fact, Spirit was on its own by 1979.
The Teal Sound is located in the River City of Jacksonville, Florida and represents the state as “Florida’s Premier DCI Touring Drum & Bugle Corps”. The corps is made up of 135 of the top talented high school and college music students from all over the southeastern U.S. Each year we audition more than 200 prospective students from the ages of 15 – 21 for a chance to participate with the Teal Sound as we tour across the United States competing against other drum & bugle corps. These students come to us as dedicated musicians that want to excel at the visual marching arts.
We provide and offer top quality instruction by a staff that is made up of both college and high school band directors as well as others from the fields of dance and the arts. We would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the activity of Drum & Bugle Corps and invite you to take a minute and learn about Drum Corps International (DCI); “Marching Music’s Major League”.
The Cadets are one of the oldest and most honored marching music ensembles in the world. Formed in 1934 in Garfield, N.J., as the Holy Name Fife and Drum Corps, the Cadets are nine-time Drum Corps International World Champions and 19-time National Champions.
World Champions: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2000*, 2005
The mission of The Cavaliers is to provide the members with life changing experiences, educationally and socially, which help each individual member gain realworld life skills, musical training and performance experiences. Through the development of the character traits of dedication, discipline and teamwork, each member of this close knit, all male fraternity learns what is required to be successful on and off the performance field. Participation in the Cavaliers instills confidence, quality of character and a strong work ethic that cannot be taught in any college or university and is desirable in the real world workplace.
World Champions: 1992, 1995, 2000*, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006
The Troopers are the only competitive junior drum and bugle corps in the state of Wyoming. The corps was founded in 1957 by Casper businessman James E. Jones. The Troopers represent the state of Wyoming in numerous performances and events during the year and competes in the Drum Corps International Summer Music Games tour during the summer months. The Troopers are a 9-time DCI World Championship finalist and have a long history of excellence and innovation on the field.
*Co-Champions
Friday, November 20, 2009
2010 Drum Corps International Tour Schedule
It truly feels that it was just yesterday when I saw my only 2009 show in Stillwater, MN. It was all over before I knew it. Now, it's starting all over again with annual banquets, auditions, and instructional camps one weekend a month until move-in, usually around Memorial Day weekend.
Drum Corps International today announced the schedule for the 2010 DCI tour. I'm extremely happy, no, ecstatic, to see that DCI will be here in Minnesota not just for their normal Stillwater and Mankato shows, but also a new show at the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium.
I am so excited for this show as it will be the first biggest show with 24 corps that I have seen in a long time. (actually since I was volunteering with The Cavaliers in 2003) I may not be able to watch the first show on June 27th in Stillwater (which is a great location for a show) because it is Twin Cities Pride weekend here in Minneapolis, but you can bet your sweet bippy that I will be inside the TCF Band Stadium to witness a great night of drum corps!
New events, new locations, new venues and the unprecedented excitement that only the corps of Marching Music’s Major League can deliver are all on schedule for another spectacular summer! The 2010 Drum Corps International Tour will be comprised of an impressive lineup of 113 events in 39 states taking place over a 58-day span from June through August.So be sure to check out DCI's website to see if there is a Drum Corps show in your city!
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