A Legend is Born

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:07:00 -0700

In 1956, a legendary drum corps was formed. The Rockford Rangers (with an all-girl color guard named the Rangerettes) was born because people wanted to see a competitive corps. Now, have you ever heard of this group? Probably not, because they are now the group who has all of us shouting "I AM SPARTACUS!" Yes, the Rockford Rangers thought that the name did not suit them. They took their new name from Stetson D. Richmond's records, so before the corps had made any public appearances, they changed to the Phantom Regiment (the all-girl color guard now the Phantomettes).

You now see them winning the World Championships, but back in 1962 that was not the case. When they decided to buy some high quality horns from the Commonwealth Edison Drum and Bugle Corps, their performances began to improve. In 1964, the Phantom Regiment had their best season. The corps was quickly becoming what you see them as today, but what happened next was a terrible tragedy. A fire in the corps set them back, and when they tried to perform in the 1965 season, they had to back out due to the lack of finances.

In 1967, on September 11th, the corps was reborn. [Okay, don't get mad at me for getting off track or anything, but look at that date. Thirty-four years later, exactly on the date they were reborn, America lost 2,976 people from a terrorist attack. Who knew that they had something in common?] "The reorganized Phantom Regiment began its first season in three years with a small corps that signed the first roster Jan. 10, 1968. There were 28 charter members." As the years past and the 1970s crept into view, the Phantom Regiment was on it's way back up the drum corps ladder.

The 1974 season had 128 members, one hundred more then only four years before. During this year, they made it into the Drum Corps International World Championships for the first time, finishing in 11th at Finals. "In 1975, the corps placed 10th. In 1976, it placed 4th. And in 1977, 1978 and 1979, the corps placed second, only a tenth or two from becoming World Champion." Almost 20 years later, they tied for first with the Blue Devils.

In the 2008 season, the Phantom Regiment got a lucky break, and won (not a tie, but actually won) the World Championships. When the announcer announce that the Blue Devils had gotten second, the noise was so loud, that you could probably hear it in the next state over. They crowd wasn't cheering for the Blue Devils- oh, no. They were cheering because Phantom had gotten first. Just writing this is really exciting; remembering how it all went down. I was there, my first time being at Finals. And my god! That, along with many other reasons, makes me want to come back for my second year, and third, and fourth. I never want to leave.

Oh, by the way. I think the announcer knew what was going to happen, because he said "the Blue Devils" really fast, so he could say it before the fans started screaming. And, lol. When he actually announced that Phantom had won, you could barely hear it. I think everyone in the corps world was cheering for them. They finally got what they deserved.

*All quotes are taken from http://www.regiment.org/

A Little Drum Corps History

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:04:00 -0700

Drum Corps International (DCI) fans, rejoice!

If there wasn't a military, there would be no such thing as DCI.

The first drum corps started out as drummers and fifers sending alerts and signals for the Army. A company of 100 men would have about two fifers and two drummers each - partly to sound signals and alarms, but also to play music when they marched so the men wouldn't get bored. The fifers and drummers from the different companies marched together at the head of parades, playing popular songs from home.

Finally, in 1890, the last American military group stopped using fifes and drums in formations. Musical ensembles descending from these popular military drum units were created by veteran organizations. They got the surplus equipment from signaling military units when they became obsolete. Classic drum corps can be traced to these old veteran organizations. Soon corps were created by more groups, such as Boy Scouts of America and Police Athletic Leagues.

In the late 1960's, the rivalry between corps started the competitive path to DCI. The Veteran of Foreign Wars (VFW) and American Legion (AL) both ran successful competition circuits until 1970. The VFW and AL had meeting halls where veterans formed musical ensembles to entertain. The Golden Age of Drum and Bugle Corps was between 1960 and 1970. After 1970, there were some arguments about how the competitions were run by the veterans' organizations. The differences between the Veteran of Foreign Wars and American Legion were subtle, but the pressure increased to find a common judging system. In 1972, Drum Corps International was founded.

Now, in 2009, Drum and Bugle Corps has become a great sport, not only in America, but also internationally. DCI only allows people between the ages of 13 and 21 to participate. After a performer has completed his or her final year, they usually participate in an Age-Out Ceremony after their last show, and then can move on to better and bigger things. They could become an instructor for a drum corps, or maybe they would march in an all age corps in the Drum Corps Associates (DCA) circuit.

The Age-Out ceremony is conducted in a fun and caring way. The people too old for another year of DCI gather in the middle of a circle formed by the rest of the corps, and they play the field show from that year ... just for them. Most likely there are other ways to perform this ceremony, too.

This sport brings all of us together in one place. A place where music and love can be together. A place where families can gather, and friends can become family. This place is the Drum Corps International World Championships, held sometime in the first two weeks of August. Drum Corps from all over the world come to compete against one another; a tradition dating back to over 40 years ago. There are some corps that date back to an era before that, such as the Boston Crusaders (Boston, MA), originally known as the Most Precious Blood Crusaders. Some corps are totally new to the scene, or have come back from being disbanded. One of those reincarniated groups are the Velvet Knights from Pasadena, CA. The original group, from Anahiem, CA, left the performance field in 1997. They, along with the many other Drum Corps from California and across the nation are now holding auditions and clinics as they prepare for the new season and this year's journey to the DCI World Championships.

So - pick up your mallets and drum sticks. Raise your horns and flags.

Rejoice! The 2009 Drum Corps' season is here!

Drum Corps 101 - Drum Corps History

A Legend is Born

A Little Drum Corps History