GaryD

Check out our classified ad and radio commercial: Radio Ad Newspaper ad

Check out our classified ad and radio commercial: Radio Ad Newspaper ad

Oh...thanks. I meant that I am looking for a used horn.

If anyone can point me to a 3-valve Kanstul G-soprano, please respond to me here. Power bore (preferably), but either of the standard models will do. Thanks, Gary

Looking for something a little different? Swing House rehearses in Penns Grove, NJ (near the Delaware Memorial Bridge) ~2 times/month, performs at alumni drum corps functions, jazz festivals, and other special events. We are all brass, key-agnostic. Membership includes drum corps alumni from pre- and post-DCI eras, and from bands and orchestras, from VA, MD, DE, PA, NJ, NY, CT and beyond. We recorded a CD last year (available from the Swing House web site), a sample of which can be heard here: Swing House Sampler. Music is by Larry Kerchner. Our next rehearsal is Friday, 28 October, at 7:30PM, at PGHS (Map to PGHS). Full schedule is on the web site. Come check us out!

Greetings! It was a gorgeous day in North Jersey today (Sunday, 16 October), where drum corps history was made once again. Today the Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights performed at St. Lucy's Parish, Newark, on the occasion of the Feast of St. Gerard. The drum corps world no doubt recalls the rivalry that existed between the cross-town corps Blessed Sacrament and St. Lucy's during the latter 1960s. "Who would have thought?" - is an understatement! Alumni of St. Lucy's Cadets were on hand, joking that the rest of their corps was on the roof of the Community Center, ready to pelt the gold blouses with eggs and the like (...all jest, and all in good fun). It was great to chat with our old rivals. The truth be known, several St. Lucy's alumni were also Blessed Sacrament alumni - those who marched with BS in 1970, after St. Lucy's folded at the conclusion of the 1969 season. If you have never attended such a festival, note that it is a scene straight out of "The Godfather" trilogy, with priests and dignitaries escorting a statue of the patron saint through the neighborhood. But instead of the typical Italian band that accompanies the procession, it was the Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights that welcomed the procession with "National Emblem March," "In the Still of the Night," "Free Again," "Give Me the Simple Life," and "America, the Beautiful." BSGK was large, clean and powerful on this beautiful Fall day. Veteran snare drummers Bill Lundy, Bart Carrique, Joe Fontana and Mike Teleczewski dazzled the dense crowd with vintage Bobby Thompson drum solos and backsticking, while the amazing lead soprano line did its magic on the many exciting solos. The "Battle Hymn" dixieland quintet was also a favorite today. The corps is busy preparing for the 2012 season, having already completed two new numbers. It will be an exciting season, as the corps will be performing at the 2012 DCA Alumni Spectacular in Annapolis, Maryland. It's a show you will not want to miss! Here are a few photos from today's show: For more information on the Golden Knights, see Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights

This 4-valve King BBb marching tuba was used for one season by a World Class DCI corps. The 1141 model has three standard valves, plus the fourth horizontally opposed, left side. Excellent condition, with only a single dent in the bow (visible in the first photo). $1750. Please respond to GaryD here if you are interested.

The 21st Annual Dixie Stinger will be presented this year under the sponsorship of Swing House, Inc. Details are in the poster below. Note that you can purchase tickets online by clicking here (or on the poster below), as well as download the Dixie Stinger Program Ad Book literature. There is also a special offer for two tickets at half price with the purchase of a Swing House CD. (If you haven't heard the CD, click here for the sampler.) Since this is the first year that Swing House is sponsoring the event - and with a smaller organization than the Yankee Rebels had, the group is hoping that alumni corps enthusiasts will help us to make this, the traditional season opener for the alumni activity, a huge success. Visit the Swing House site and check it out! All the best - GaryD Yankee Rebels (alumni) Swing House (tuba, communications) Blessed Sacrament (brass arranger / instructor) Drum Corps World (writer)

Swing House has released its first CD, available at http://www.swinghouse.org/swinghousecd.html. A sampler mp3, including clips of all 12 tunes, is available at this link.

...the first winning season: ...and the final competing season. Note: BSGK was a founding member of DCI, but decided not to attend the first DCI championship in Whitewater.

October, 1958

The drawing was created by Harold Davis, a student of the late Bobby Thompson - when Harold was 11 years old. Bobby was Harold's first drum instructor. Harold relates that Thompson "...told me about Blessed Sacrament and gave me a Dream contest album...maybe 1959 or 1960. I played it all the time, practicing the [rudimental] bass drum solos.... I would draw pictures in crayon of some of the top drum corps. ...I was visiting my Mom in NYC a couple of months ago [and found that one of the pictures had] survived. I marched with St. Roccos Cadets, then the New York Skyliners. I'm now a studio drummer, recording sound tracks for movies and for jazz and pop artist, including Les McCann, Stevie Wonder, Average White Band, the late Grover Washington, Jr., and others. I'll always remember Mr. Thompson - the man who helped a poor kid from NYC!" Many thanks to Harold for sharing his picture and the story behind it.