Drum and Reed Corps

[JimF-LowBari]

However, there have been drum and fife corps. The fife, of course, was a woodwind instrument, kind of like a piccolo. In fact, the Cadets were founded as the Holy Name Fife, Drum and Bugle Corps. And, yes, that meant that they had and allowed woodwind instruments. In fact, many Fife drum and bugle corps had woodwinds, it is a very important part of the history of this country, and of drum corps.

The modern competitive corps did away with them, but the old fife, drum and bugle corps and the drum and fife corps still exist in very small circles today, usually within re-enactment groups.

Any good place to find info on this Jonathan? The History of DC has a few passing references but the fifes seemed to have been phased out before the start of WWII. That is except for a late 1940s reference to a show or recording of Our Lady of Grace fife, drum and bugle corps. Can't remember if I saw the corps listed in preserveourcorpsmemories.com or Dicemans srcorps.com many lists of scores. And my home PC has a problem with pdf files so I can't look at the POCM list of recordings.

History of DC also has a great pic of a 1930s AL Post Senior corps carrying megaphones during a parade. The megaphones were used when the corps did some singing. ^0^

Edited July 26, 2006 by JimF-xWSMBari

[tubacurt]

In Asia, particularly Indonesia, drum and flutophone or melodica corps are rather common. They use it to train children like in cadet corps or for young groups who can't afford brass instruments.

And yes, it sounds darn nasty.

cause of the instrumentation or because it's little kids though?

i don't know what the apeal of reed and drum corps would come from. Who would do it? None of the woodwind players I know would do it, they would rather do music camps, and none of the percussionists i know would do it, they would rather do drum corps.

[JimF-LowBari]

In Asia, particularly Indonesia, drum and flutophone or melodica corps are rather common. They use it to train children like in cadet corps or for young groups who can't afford brass instruments.

And yes, it sounds darn nasty.

LMAO, anyone else old enough to remember those Gad awful recorder (cheap ### plastic flutes) classes that were pushed on 1st or 2nd graders in the 1960s? :sshh: Think they stopped them in our School District because the #### things were passed down for about 50 years and looked filthy as Hades.

[MikeBob]

Never said I wanted them, but I am making a valid and important point.

It just strikes me funny that all these "Traditionalists" who claim that drum corps should be pure and acoustic, and all that stuff they are complaining about, forget that the most "Pure" form of the drum corps involved the use of a woodwind instrument. That we ignore the fact that the fife, bugle, and drum were the three most important elements in the early establishment of this medium speaks volumes about our purposeful blind eye towards certain historical periods that proceed whatever year we hold as the best definition of drum corps.

Hence, most people who say they are traditionalists are not. They are moderate progressives who have accepted most of the changes with the exception of anything electronic. Or perhaps they are Progressive Traditionalists who stopped accepting the changes after the 2-valve Gs were dumped. Either way, the activity since 1972 (DCI's inception) is a very modern adaption of its fore bearers.

That's true, this is an important point. We also should not forget another element of "traditional" music without which we would not have drum corps as we know it: the rock. How easy it is to forget that the earliest musicians beat rocks against each other, and in so doing invented the first percussion instruments. But if you try telling a fan of "traditional" drum corps that we should go back to rocks and ululating, he'll call that "outdated"! Don't people appreciate their roots anymore?

We know that fife and drum corps existed (and exist), and so on, but personally, that has nothing to do with my musical tastes now. We can take this "traditional" thing back much farther than that if we really want to, but what's the point? Most of us consider the high point of drum corps to be whatever it was when we marched or first became fans. For example, I miss two-valved G horns despite having no good argument for their return.

To say that we don't want drum and reed corps is not to say that we have turned a "purposeful blind eye" to other drum and [blank] ensembles that have existed. If I want fifes, I'll go to Colonial Williamsburg.

[Wild Nights]

LMAO, anyone else old enough to remember those Gad awful recorder (cheap ### plastic flutes) classes that were pushed on 1st or 2nd graders in the 1960s? :sshh: Think they stopped them in our School District because the #### things were passed down for about 50 years and looked filthy as Hades.

We had that in 5th grade!!! b**bs They made us buy our own, but the most good they did was as pretend lightsabers at recess.

[RCFKING]

Give it time. You bando,s will get your way sooner or later. Every year the changes get closer and closer.

RF

[Gil-galad]

You couldn't hear a clarinet over drums anyways. You have to have a section of like 75 clarinets to hear them over just a few snares... gar.

[Max Plays Music]

The US Army has a bad ### sounding drum and fife corps out of Washington DC, and i know of a few other joints that ahve them, when they are good, like bagpipes, when they are on, they are on. I love the sound of a fife and drum corps, i just prefer the sound of a drum and bugle corps a lot more

[impulsivemom]

Oh, I totally agree. I don't think it's feasible unless it were some kind of WGI-like indoor thing -- but even if that made it feasible, I don't think it'd be advisable.

As much as I like woodwinds (clarinet from the 60's) I have a percussionist in the house...High School Marching Band in the fall, High School Indoor Percussion in the Spring as well as Independent Class Indoor drumline in the Spring and Corps in the summer. I really can't make the reach for woodwinds other than a high school marching band competition, but hey, anything can happen and when you really think about it, the woodwinds probably need some type of venue to showcase their talents as well. Unfortunately, I just don't see it in a percussion or brass venue.

[Max Plays Music]

#### they even need a french horn in a wood wind qintet