The 2017 drum corps season is kicking into high gear as DCI begins its stretch of major regional events. This also means that drum corps is coming back to the Midwest soon! In two weeks, I’ll be providing LIVE From the Stands! coverage of the 2017 Emerald City Music Games competition in Dublin, Ohio, on Monday, July 31st. If you’ll be at the show, be sure to say hello!
That’s me in the honor guard of the San Francisco Renegades all-age drum and bugle corps. During the 2008 DCA World Championships, the Renegades put out a call to anybody interested in participating in their honor guard. Notice how smart they were not to give me a weapon. Ironically, I was carrying the Renegades flag in my very first participation of the corps, but it made more sense than carrying the California state flag since I’m an Ohioan, don’t you think?
Now, almost a decade later, I’m going to be a Renegade once again, at least for a day.
On February 11, the Renegades will take part in the 2017 Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade. Taking place in downtown San Francisco, the corps will march past over one million spectators with many more people viewing the corps in action on television. As with their 2008 honor guard, the Renegades have put the call out to anybody interested in performing with them in the parade. I’ve been wanting to join in for years but schedules and budgets have not always lined up. What’s more, the 2016 parade looked like the last time the Renegades would take part, so I’m definitely not going to throw away my shot this year!
If you’ll be in San Francsico from February 10-13, let me know. I’ll be in the parade on the 11th, of course, and I’m flying on the 10th and 13th, but I made sure I had the 12th to enjoy my first visit to The City By The Bay. I’ll also be visiting my sister and her family, but would love to see people I normally don’t get to see because we’re in different parts of the country.
With the completion of the 2016 drum corps season in North America and Europe, the withdrawal symptoms are starting to set in. I may or may not have searched for videos of corps performances on YouTube and I’m sure you may or may not have, also.
In order to tide you over for a little while, here are the various reviews I wrote for Drum Corps World, the LIVE! From the Stands coverage I performed for Drum Corps Planet, and the photos I took at many of the shows I attended this season. Please feel free to enjoy and share these as we count the days until the 2017 season is upon us.
Whether you are on the field, in the stands, or following the action from home, be sure to join me LIVE From the Stands! for the 2016 Drum Corps Associates Championships Finals Competition! I will be live from the Sahlen’s Stadium press box, giving you live coverage of each performing unit from the first step off to the last note in the Drum Corps Planet discussion forums.
Joining us from the field and giving us incredible performance photos will once again be Charlie Groh. Charlie will also provide commentary from the press box, adding his experience and wit to an already stacked coverage team.
Once Finals is over, watch for my review of the show in Drum Corps World!
If you’re going to Finals, be sure to check in on the event’s Facebook page!
Whether you are on the field, in the stands, or following the action from home, be sure to join me LIVE From the Stands! for the 2016 Drum Corps Associates Alumni Spectacular! I will be live from the Sahlen’s Stadium press box, giving you live coverage of each performing unit from the first step off to the last note in the Drum Corps Planet discussion forums.
If you’re going to the Alumni Spectacular, be sure to check in on the event’s Facebook page!
Whether you are on the field, in the stands, or following the action from home, be sure to join me LIVE From the Stands! for the 2016 Drum Corps Associates Championships Preliminary Competition! I will be live from the Sahlen’s Stadium press box, giving you live coverage of each performing unit from the first step off to the last note in the Drum Corps Planet discussion forums.
Joining us from the field and giving us incredible performance photos will once again be Charlie Groh. Charlie will also provide commentary from the press box, adding his experience and wit to an already stacked coverage team.
If you’re going to Prelims, be sure to check in on the event’s Facebook page!
UPDATE: DCA has released the schedule for Prelims here!
Now that WGI is over, it is time to look forward to the upcoming drum corps season. I’ve gone through the calendar and here are the shows I plan to attend, either as a spectator or as a reviewer, in 2012:
I may attend the Tour Premiere cinema event on June 18th. Since I’ll have seen the shows live two days earlier, I’d be going more because of the social aspect. I may also attend the Music Under The Stars DCA show in Hornell, NY, in July 28th. That will depend more on whether DCW needs somebody to cover that show. I’ll update this post once I have word on that show.
If you plan on being at any of these shows, let me know in the comments below. I would love to meet fellow drum corps fans.
