The happiest corps after prelims had to be Minnesota Brass, Inc., from
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, who made finals for the first time after many
years of trying! The last time--and the only time--a Mid-western senior
made DCA finals was in 1970, when Boys of '76 from Racine, WI, did it. The
Minnesotans certainly deserved to make it this year! A large, very
talented corps played and marched a good, up-to-date show that featured
good soloists, such as the gal on mellophone and the guy on soprano horn.
Traveling the longest distance to compete at DCA, Minnesota Brass scored
72.35 for ninth in finals.
The Matadors from Providence, RI, are currently
acknowledged as the top senior corps in the New England states, and have a
new look and sound to go with new uniforms. (For those of us who had never
seen the new look, it was much more appealing than their old Spanish
uniforms.) The Matadors won special awards for best color guard and for
the fact that their guard went undefeated all season. A touch of real
class was when their horn line lined up at the end of the field after
their finals performance and cheered their dazzling color guard as it came
off the field. This guard very much deserved their honors, but were pushed
mightily by some other great guards, especially Bushwackers, Buccaneers
and Sunrisers. The Matadors placed tenth, 72.05.
The
Royalaires from Guelph, ONT, Canada, are the first senior corps from
Ontario in five years to make finals. They had been finalists three times
previously in the 1970s. Their large corps also presented a
"modern," up-to-date show, with a blend of old and new tunes.
It's great to see them back! The white-and-red-clad Royalaires scored
71.85 for eleventh place after having been tenth in prelims.
Eliminated in prelims was six corps who each brought their own special
brand of entertainment to Allentown this year. The Connecticut Hurricanes
from Shelton, CT, just missed making finals by less than two points, but
are rebuilding nicely and should be back next year to finalist standing.
Their reprise of great hits of Hurricanes from the past, dedicated to the
late Harvey Olderman, touched everyone, and the return of Magnificent
Seven was welcomed by the crowd, who cheered the courage of these new
Hurricanes and urged them to keep on working for the future. Placing
twelfth in prelims with 73.40, the Hurcs earned the right to go on in
exhibition at finals, where they were very warmly received.
The
solidly rebuilding Westshoremen of Harrisburg, PA, presented a strong show
of quite varied music and has made good progress this year. West Shore,
another corps of dedicated people who are steadily improving and moving
along in their development, should also be back to finalist status soon.
This large and entertaining corps scored 69.55 for thirteenth place.
One
of the surprises of the prelims was Les Ambassadeurs of Quebec City, QUE,
Canada. Although not as technically proficient as most of the other corps,
this large group entertained the crowd so well that they got the first
standing ovation of the day at about 9:30 AM! Les Ambassadeurs placed
fourteenth with a score of
Another
swell surprise was the Maine Warriors of Lewiston, ME, who presented an
up-to-date show with a relatively small corps that had a strong level of
proficiency in many areas. They plan to enlarge and be back next year. The
Warriors scored 54.25 for fifteenth place.
A
former junior corps, the CMCC Warriors of the Bronx, NY, were a welcome
addition to the contest. Although their show wasn't finished, they showed
good entertainment value to the audience. Keep at it, CMCC! We're glad to
see you on the field! CMCC placed sixteenth with a score of 51.90.
The
Milton, PA, Keystoners had a sophisticated, entertaining show with a small
corps. Their guard really worked, using many different pieces of
equipment. Music was very appealing from start to finish, too. Keystoners
scored 49.85 for seventeenth place.
The Knights of Noble Callahan from Albany, NY, are
another small corps, now in its second year, is presenting an entertaining
musical and visual program for the audience. Glad you were here and we all
got a chance to see your show! The Knights scored 47.95 for eighteenth
place.
All
in all, I felt this year's DCA Championship was the best I had ever seen,
and certainly the best run show in DCA's long history. Most encouraging
was the way the corps all managed to keep audience appeal I their programs
while satisfying today's demanding adjudication standards. And,
congratulations to retiring DCA judging coordinator Larry Hershman, who
managed to gather together a group of judges who weren't afraid to give a
score according to a unit's performance. Some of DCA's previous seasons,
years ago, were marred by charges and countercharges of real and alleged
collusion on the part of some judges--but not anymore! It is hoped that
Hershman's successor will be just as demanding of honest standards as he
was.
Bushwackers
take DCA title in first win ever
By
Ed Cagney
August
31, 1986--Allentown, Pennsylvania ...
High
excitement, strong emotion and great entertainment marked the 22nd annual
Drum Corps Associates (DCA) Senior World Championships held here today.
Among
the highlights were these: two corps tied for first place in prelims;
neither corps won finals; the new champions had never won a contest before
today; there was more changing of places than ever before in a DCA finals
contest; the close scoring of the regular season got even tighter at the
championships; and a majority of the corps' performances in prelims were
as hot as the bright, sunny day today in Allentown!
The
atmosphere and ambience of the annual DCA Championships is something which
all drum corps fans should experience periodically--or at least once in
their lifetime!
This
year, a total of 18 senior corps competed in the championship prelims, and
at least 12 of them received standing ovations during and/or after their
performances. The emotional interplay between the corps and the audience
was beautiful to behold, with many units producing their most emotional
and intense shows of the year, and the fans loving their efforts and
telling them how much they enjoyed them. None of this "laidback"
stuff, which sometimes exists in junior corps shows--this was raw emotion
given for raw effort! And virtually every one was happy about it, too.
Most
fans spent the time between prelims and finals comparing the relative
merits of the two excellent corps that tied for first place in
prelims-Steel City Ambassadors and Hawthorne Caballeros. Neither corps won
finals! With a superb technical performance in drumming and in bugling,
the Bushwackers surprised everyone, and pleased themselves by flying up
from third to first in finals.
The
Bushwackers, actually from New Jersey but having a lot of fun this year
getting themselves announced as hailing from "Thermopolis,
Wyoming" at each contest, won the 1986 DCA title on the strength of
high drum scores from all three drumming judges, which put them almost one
and a half points over the rest of the units in drumming. With the judges
in the other captions scoring it close between the top units, the drum
scores thus pushed the Bushwackers into the title. (A very similar
happening occurred in 1982 at DCA finals, when the Sunrisers won the
championship after the Westshoremen had been undefeated all year up to
that point. The difference then, too, was in drumming.)
Also
taking high overall bugling score, the Bushwackers were clean, smooth and
powerful in music throughout their performance. Their drum solo, Egyptian
Danza, was one of those very special productions, which blended sound and
visual effects into a very exciting and pleasing event to witness. The
highly talented Bushwacker color guard was impressive both in design and
in performance, particularly in finals. So, congratulations to the new
1986 DCA champion Bushwackers, who scored 92.45 to chalk up their very
first, win!
The
Steel City Ambassadors of Pittsburgh, PA, made a strong bid for the title
this year, turning in two strong performances at Allentown and winning
high overall general effect, while missing high M&M by just one-tenth.
This very appealing corps was the favorite of many to win, and had only
lost one contest prior to today. After the tie for first in prelims,
The great Caballeros of Hawthorne, NJ, were the
other corps that had won a number of contests this season and were the
only unit to defeat Steel City prior to today. The Cabs did a very strong
prelims performance that made the crowd happy, but didn't have that same
edge in the finals. Taking high M&M honors, they presented an
up-to-date show, visually and musically, while still including a bit of
their heritage as one of DCA's greatest corps over the years. Their
wonderful, fast Spanish and Latin music, highlighted by a great soprano
soloist, proved very infectious to the crowd and added true excitement to
their show. Winners of the last two DCA titles, the Cabs placed third this
year, scoring 90.90.
The
Buccaneers of Reading, PA, really geared up for the title show this year,
presenting a show full of a variety of styles in music and visuals. This
intricate show was perhaps a bit too difficult for them to master in the
final analysis, but the fans were treated to some great performances
nonetheless. This corps is another one of the class acts in DCA today, and
is always strong musically. The Buccaneer color guard was large, and while
not quite mastering a tough show, was still one of the best guards on the
field. Especially liked were the long-distance tosses over the contras and
the sensitive dance portions. The Bucs placed fourth in finals with 87.55.
The
Rochester, NY, Crusaders served notice that they are moving up in the drum
corps world! Their strong performances of Theme from Star Trek, West Side
Story and America were audience-grabbers. The color presentation was very
well received at the end, and "Miss Liberty," with dozens of
tiny electric lights flashing on her costume, appealed to everyone's sense
of patriotism. The Crusaders' final score was 85.45 for fifth place.
What
can one say about the Sunrisers? Their show was so hot, so sophisticated,
and so innovative and so well presented that many in the audience were
emotionally moved to tears at such a thrilling integration of music and
visuals around a single theme! Fiddler on The Roof was unlike anything
ever seen in senior corps. Full of wonderful bits of entertainment that
helped portray many moods, the 1986 Sunrise production set new standards
in the area of theme shows. Their version of the Bottle Dance at the end
of the show was typical of their inventiveness—we certainly knew they
might dance that number, but who could have guessed how the flag work
would add a thrilling new dimension?! Hooray for the Sunrisers! L’Chiam!
Sun's score was 85.30 for sixth place.
The
high-spirited Skyliners of New York City won a standing ovation for just
coming off the left end zone in a company front at the start of their
show! DCA fans went delirious and got excited with the emotion of seeing a
good corps perform an old-time entry so well. Sky could do no wrong after
this start, and even though their scoring might not be as high as some of
the other corps, their entertainment level was terrific! The ending
"traffic jam" and push to the front sidelines won another
standing ovation, full of joy, from an audience who truly loved them.
Skyliners also won two special awards: best drum major--Butch Anderson,
one of the classiest and most personable leaders today; and best honor
guard (or A-squad, as we used to call it!). The class of Butch Anderson
shone at the Reading exhibition show the night before; when that audience
was also moved to an emotional outburst of love for Sky at the end of
their show, he paused to thank the crowd for their affection, because it
had been such a tough and difficult day and year for Sky up to that point.
The ever-popular Skyliners placed seventh with a score of 79.20.
With the smallest corps in the finals, the Empire Statesmen of Rochester, NY, won the hearts of the crowd with their fun antics and appealing music. Unique features included segments with the Three Stooges, the Andrews Sisters singing group and the indomitable Pepe Notaro making a guest appearance as a mace throwing drum major!
It was all done in good taste and thoroughly delighted the crowd, as this corps has done all year. One week earlier, the Empire Statesmen had won the International Corps Associates (ICA) title in Erie, PA. They have successfully carved their own special niche in the drum corps activity. Score, 74.20 for eighth place.