How did you discover DCI?

[ozarkbugler]

I discovered DCI the season after I aged out. I wanted to keep up with my corps and my friends.

[84Cadet]

I started marching in a little parade corps when I was in the fifth grade and the first time I saw a DCI corps (on PBS in 1980) my mind was blown. In 1981 I saw my first live show and I was hooked.

[TxBigfoot]

My director in high school made the entire band watch a recording of the 1980 PBS broadcast. I was wowed.

[mmjt]

In August 1987 before my sophomore year. A cute girl invited me to go to the show at West Chester University. I had no idea what I was in for. I was a saxophone/clarinet player. I saw Garfield and SCV in a late season battle. It was unbelievable. I tried explaining what I saw to my parents, but it was difficult. A few days later, I was flipping channels and I came across those same corps on TV - the PBS broadcast.

Fast forward to two years later. My high school band director changed - Scott Litzenberg - who happened to also be the director of the Crossmen. He brought the corps to my high school for rehearsal.

A few of us were in the stands watching rehearsal when a staff member came up to talk with us (Mike Dennis). He asked if any of us were interested in marching. I said absolutely. I was turning in my sax for a baritone my senior year so I could march the following summer. Mike asked me, "why not this summer, we have a hole". I told him I couldn't march because I didn't know how to play. Mike said they would teach me and I'd be the best player at my school after the summer. I asked how much would it cost. Mike said that they would pay for me. Huh?

Mike asked me how old I was. I told him I was 16. He told me to bring my parents the next day (Sunday) and that the staff would take care of convincing them and answering any questions and that I should dress for rehearsal.

So, I did. I walked down to the field. Eric Kitchenman introduced himself to me and then introduced me to the corps. He said "this is Reynold, this is Pete. You are in between them at 4 step interval. We are going to jazz run that way for 16 counts. Do you know how to jazz run?" "Yes I said". "Very good then".

We left for tour that Friday. I was in the show. I was playing the full show within another week. I still remember the first time I saw SCV's buses. I took a picture of them. I was in awe. But what REALLY got me was when I had someone ask me for MY autograph and they wanted a picture with ME. Crazy.

I aged out in 1993. Some of the best summers of my life.

[RetiredJedi]

I went to a local show in '79 and I was blown away by Phantom. My band director had '79 & '80 PBS broadcast on VHS tape and let us watch them to help us understand the direction he wanted to take our marching band. Loved '79 Guardsmen, '80 SCV, and '80 Spirit but my biggest influence was watching those awesome Bridgemen drum lines. A small group of us made the 9 hour drive to Whitewater in '81 and what an incredible trip it was!! That's where I fell in love with Garfield and the rest, as they say, is history.

Edited August 20, 2011 by RetiredJedi

[DTrooper77]

I guess it was destiny for me. I was playing trumpet my senior year in the High School band in the fall of 1976 when our band director showed us a film to get us pumped up for the upcoming marching season. That film was "Here come the Troopers". I was in awe. I don't have to explain why, you all already know. I knew right then that field competition was what I wanted to do. We did do a couple of competitions with the HS band but we were mainly a parade band. I lobbied my band director hard to do more but to no avail. So in protest I decided that I would forego our trip to Pasedena to march in the tournament of Roses parade.

So, while I was sitting at home over the New Year feeling sorry for myself and wondering what I had accomplished with my "rebel without a clue" protest, I decided to write to the Troopers. My letter was just to inquire about where and when I might be able to see them in person. A few weeks later I received a letter from them containing the schedule for the upcoming season and telling me that if I would send them a brief cassette tape demonstrating my trumpet playing they would consider me for membership. That was not my intention for writing, but I thought what the heck. So I sent one. You can imagine my astonishment when about 4 weeks later I received another letter saying that if I planned to march, then I needed to be in Casper by June 1st at the latest. The letter also contained the lead soprano sheet music (handwritten) for the show with instructions that I have it memorized by the time I arrived.

My parents decided that my graduation present would be airfare and member dues for the summer and put me on a plane.

WOW...what a leap of faith especially on their part.

What a great summer it was. Funny thing is that the 1st corps I actually saw live was the Blue Stars right after we had come off of the field. (unless you count seeing it in the middle of the Trooper hornline. Another plus was that since I arrived so late in the spring all of the housing was gone when I arrived. What luck.... I spent the summer with 3 other members living in Jim Jones house. I will never forget all of the wonderful memories on the road with "America's corps" that summer in 77

I packed up at the end of the season and returned home, got a job and thought that would be my only drum corps experience.

Fast forward 3 years to summer of 1980. I had attended 2 semesters at E Carolina Univ in 78-79 and met some people in the marching band who were marching with Spirit that summer. After a trip to visit family in Georgia, I had a couple of extra days so I stopped by Atlanta on my way home and caught up with them. They were just coming back from lunch break when I arrived at the practice site. They had to get back to rehearsal so I climbed up to the top of the stands on the fifly to see how they looked. After a brief warmup they set for the start of the show with full horns. I sat there as the arc slowly rotated and then was floored by the initial hit of Georgia on my mind pinned my ears back. HOLY ####! All those memories from the Troopers and what drum corps was all about came flooding back.

Again destiny called.

That night, my friends told me that they had 4 holes from the 1st tour and I absolutely had to fill one of them. I kept saying no, I have a job, car payments and I have to be back to work next week. Well....late in the night and many drinks later, I decided to see what I could work out.

I've already gone on too long, so I will just say. three days later, I marched my 1st show with Spirit and finished out the season.

Man...what a dream come true to march in Jim Ott's hornline and by just sort of stumbling into it.

I have drifted away from drum corps at times over the years but I always seem to come back.

PS I finally attended my 1st finals since 84 Atlanta in 2008 in Bloomington . I was invited to the DCI breakfast on Saturday and almost did not go due to a very late Friday night. I did go however and man am I glad I did. After the breakfast and some words from the Indy tourism people and Dan Acheson we were given a special treat. What do you know, but into the hotel ballroom marched the Troopers in full uniform. They treated us to a standstill of their show and I don't need to tell you what it sounded like in a ballroom where the arc almost reached around the whole room.

One last note...

The Troop did an encore for us......Battle Hymn.

By the time it was over, the tears were flowing for me.

My friend asked if I had had a "full circle moment"......I guess I did.

[CQuinn]

My father has been a big DCI goober since the 70s. He got me hooked at 13. He just blabs about the drums but I was always fascinated with the guard - and still am!

Edited August 19, 2011 by CQuinn

[TerriTroop]

PS I finally attended my 1st finals since 84 Atlanta in 2008 in Bloomington . I was invited to the DCI breakfast on Saturday and almost did not go due to a very late Friday night. I did go however and man am I glad I did. After the breakfast and some words from the Indy tourism people and Dan Acheson we were given a special treat. What do you know, but into the hotel ballroom marched the Troopers in full uniform. They treated us to a standstill of their show and I don't need to tell you what it sounded like in a ballroom where the arc almost reached around the whole room.

One last note...

The Troop did an encore for us......Battle Hymn.

By the time it was over, the tears were flowing for me.

My friend asked if I had had a "full circle moment"......I guess I did.

Wow...... WOW. Thank you for sharing the whole story for how you wound up with both of those fantastic corps. And thank you for spurring my own Battle Hymn memory tears from this year. (I got to hear it from afar after Troop's last rehearsal on Friday before semi's.)

I'm still loving all of these stories. Keep posting, folks!

[DTrooper77]

Wow...... WOW. Thank you for sharing the whole story for how you wound up with both of those fantastic corps. And thank you for spurring my own Battle Hymn memory tears from this year. (I got to hear it from afar after Troop's last rehearsal on Friday before semi's.)

I'm still loving all of these stories. Keep posting, folks!

It felt good to tell this one....thanks for starting this thread...it's the best one I've ever read on DCP.

DTrooper77

[lowbrass89]

It was towards the end of my freshman year (03-04)in Anaheim, California and my brass instructor had asked if anyone would like to go to a drum corp show in the summer. I was like "what's drum core?" He explained that it was like a marching band with just brass, percussion, and guard. Being a trombone player, I was disappointed to hear that they had no trombones in drum corp but the though of an all brass section really piqued my curiosity.

We ended up having some car problems on the way there. The car that we traveled in decided to give out about a quarter left to get to the show. We waited with him until help arrived. When we arrived, the first group was playing Pirates of the Caribbean.

I don't remember the name of the show but I think it was the RCC show. I remember watching some of the division 2 corps and being amazed by their marching style and the music. My friend told me that I hadn't seen anything yet, to wait for the division 1 corps. I recall Esperanza and Pacific Crest putting some great shows but when Santa Clara Vanguard hit the field, I was blown away. At the time I had no idea that their rendition of Scheherazade would be so big, heck I didn't even know the source of the music but I just fell in love with the corp. I thought to myself that nothing would be able to cap that performance but here came the Blue Devils, who at the time only had 11 championships.

Their show was entitled the Summer Train Blue Mix and I was like great, what are they going to base it off Take the A Train? As they started performing I got more and more involved into the show. I was amazed and how clean they were, and how great they sounded. What sold it for me though was the trumpet screamers. Heck I even enjoyed their version of Take the A Train. It was a very memorable night for me.

The previous year we did a drum corp themed show based on Pictures of Spain and Malaguena. It was my brass instructors last year before he got married so he finally got his wish at a drum corp show. It was a great and fun year and now I was even more excited for marching band that I forgot about Drum corps. Well at least until me and my friend started talking about what show to do next year.

He brought up Dvorak's New World Symphony and the first thing I asked was are there any good trombone parts? So that same night I did a google search for New World Symphony and happened to stumble upon Phantom Regiment. After viewing the show I though to myself, "How could this show have possibly received second place?" I looked up the first place show and stumbled again on my old favorite corp Santa Clara Vanguard. 6 years later and both are still my two favorite corps.