I don’t know how many of you know this, but at our memorial day camp we were still lacking a 4th bass drummer. So I made the tough decision of learning how to play a new instrument and I made the switch. So I’ve been marching on the bass line this season and to be honest, I think I’ve benefited from this a lot more than I would have on snare.

Oregon Crusaders 2009 Bassline

All days were a pretty tough time for me. I experienced some new things. (chafing, anyone?) And I also injured my foot, which has just recently healed.

We got our rough draft of the show finished by the last day of all days so we were able to present it at our first show which was awesome. (Yet, slightly unsuccessful) Fortunately for a lot of us the show was only exhibition.

Our first judged show was the next day. It was a definite improvement for all of us and we scored a 65.5 overall, with a 15.1 in percussion.

Some how at our next show we managed to score 3 points lower as well as 4 points lower in drums, despite a better run. And from there we’ve slowly increased in score, still slightly under our first score but with a much cleaner program. It’s kind of confusing how our score would go down after a better run.

But ultimately the scores don’t really matter. We have an extremely demanding program for an open class group and we’re improving upon it every day.

Our first tour concluded with a performance at Corps Encore in Ogden, Utah with a score of 64.65 and a drum score of 12.9.

As of right now, the Oregon Crusaders are on a week break before we start back up with our 2nd set of all-days and as we head out east for Finals. I can only hope that we can all come back and pick up right where we started and not waste a second getting our heads back in the game.

Needless to say, there’s some work to be done. But expect to see OC at the top of Open Class this summer.

Oregon Crusaders 2009

Camps have been going really well and they only get better and more fun as time goes on. Drum corps is something that squeezes every last drop of endurance, energy, and heart out of a performer’s body. And it is the performer’s ability to make every drop count both in practice and competition that will carry them and their ensemble to the top. It is a constant struggle to perform throughout rehearsal and then to do it just as well on the field with the uniforms on that night.

Drum corps is not a competition between other drum corps and other performers it is a competition against yourself. Where you have to push yourself to be the best, and always get better no matter what. It just so happens that there are up to 150 other performers in other drum corps doing the same thing infront of the same judges every night. When the numbers come out, it isnt about the number or where you place. Its about how hard you worked and how well you reached your full potential for that day, that performance. Every performer in every drum corps, from the last place Open Class corps to the World Class champion has that in common. They push themselves to the edge of personal perfection day in and day out. In the end that is what we all do this for, and that is what keeps us involved and keeps us going through the hard summer tours that we go on. The rings and medals are just reminders to everyone else.

I’ll post mini-updates along the way from my phone and itouch following shows with any scores or pictures that i have to share. Check us out if you are at any shows, and leave a comment here if you do!

See ya’ll out there.

July 2 - Beverly, MA The Beanpot Invitational
July 3 - Bristol, RI Summer Music Preview
July 5- West Milford HS, West Milford NJ- Exhibition 
July 6 - East Brunswick, NJ Music in Motion

My name is Mike, I’m 18 years old and this is my first summer marching drum corps.  I’ve been ‘playing’ drums since 5th grade, but I never took it seriously until my junior year in high school when I seriously thought about trying out for drum corps.  I started practicing rudimental percussion my freshman year in high school but, again, never took it seriously until a couple years later. I went to my first drum corps show in 2006, the summer before my sophomore year. The corps that were features were Santa Clara Vanguard, Blue Knights, Seattle Cascades, Spokane Thunder, and of course, Oreon Crusaders. This was my first time being exposed to this activity however it didn’t really touch me at the time.

So Novemeber of 2008 came around and I decided to give it a shot. At the first camp, nobody was cut. After a couple camps of being allowed to return, I soon figured out that the line was being set. I had made the line! Keep in mind that this was my first time ever auditioning for anything, so this was a big deal.
And that’s my short story. =] I’m marching on the Oregon Crusaders 2009 snareline.

I can’t tell you for sure what our repertoire is, because I don’t know the exact names of the songs. However, the name of our show this year is Equilibrium, and I can tell you that we’re playing arrangements of music featured in The Philadelphia Story.

For more information about the Oregon Crusaders, or to see our tour schedule, visit the Oregon Crusaders website.

Hope to see you guys at some shows this summer.

-Mike

My name is Geert-Jan and I will write a blog here the next months! This time not about the DCI competition but about DCE, the European drumcorps competition. First I will introduce myself a little.

I’m Geert-Jan, and I life in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands (If you see some wrong sentences, you know why). I’m 20 years old, and this is my second season to march with Jubal. Jubal is a drumcorps, founded in 1911 in Dordrecht the Netherlands. Before Jubal I marched with DAP, a marchingband from my hometown. One of my instructors there had marched Jubal, and The Crossmen in DCI tour in 01, 02 and 03. He told  me about drumcorps and Jubal. Since Jubal had the best European drumline over the last 5 years with exception from 2007, it was no hard decision to choose where I would march. I did audition and made the snareline for the 08 season. After 3 months I was asked to fill a spot in the tenorline, to make 4 in total. That year we toke the High Percussion Award, and placed thirth in DCE Finals.

At this moment were into the 2009 season. We just had our first DCN (Drumcorps Netherlands) contest in Goes. We scored a 66.60 score and took the 1st place. Our percussion score was a 7.85, a tenth below the score of 2008 DCN Finals. A real good start for this season. We’re now preparing for the next big contest, the 27th of June. The dutch top five is present at the contest in Huizen

I will try to take some pictures or movies of the rehearsals. There are a some movies at in the media section. By this blog is a movie of us tracking the opener of our opener Verdwijning/Houdini. The show theme is”Goochelaars & Geesten” which can be translated in something like Magicians & Ghosts. There are 5 parts:

Verdwijning/Houdini. Translated Disappearing/ Houdini
Geesten Ghosts
Zwevende Handen Gliding Hands
Trucendoos Trickbox
Verschijning Appearance

Jubal DCN Goes part 1

Jubal DCN Goes part 2

Jubal Fieldpercussion 2009

I hope you like these movies, and that you have an impression of what the european drumcorps is like. Feel free to ask me some questions because I haven’t talk about a lot of things yet. I will try to give some updates during the season!

Greetings,

Geert-Jan

I’ll be in touch.

The corps got a true workout this weekend as the staff stepped everything up into high gear. With a 630am wakeup followed by a 5k run saturday morning the corps started off the day ready to go. By the end of visual block the second movement was finished. Following lunch the percussion section moved into sectionals, cleaning drill and parts on the field. The line is really coming together quite well as all sections are improving rapidly. That night the full corps ensembled the first two pieces on the field along with the guard.

Sunday was a very productive day as the entire ballad was finished and ensembled as well. The design team has begun adding in body movement and choreography to the show to really embody the theme that they are going for. At the end of camp a full run through of the first three movements was performed to an audience of fans and parents at our concluding “show-and-tell”.

As we prepare for our debut in two weeks the corps is pushing forward into the summer and stepping up their performance level in all aspects. Both staff and members are feeling very good about this show and the season and are looking forward to getting on the road. I cant wait to get on the road and start competing.

There is truly nothing like drum corps. And if you have not experienced it yet, I highly suggest that you check out a corps and march. Its life changing and you’ll never trade those experiences for anything in your life. I love every minute of it, and cant wait for the next 4 years I have left in DCI.

2008 Raiders Battery on the field at World Championships

P.S.: 12 days till our first public performance

This year show is called “ElementALL” here’s a little description:

ElementALL focuses on those “simple gifts” that
are frequently overlooked in daily life. Connecting all
4 elements with the past, the present and the
future and stepping off in great new directions.
Inspiration comes not only from the literal
interpretation of the word but also down to it’s
basic definition. Hear “elements” of things that
have come before as we explore each movement,
but also heed the subtle calls to our future.

Throughout our ten years on the field we inspire to
inspire, teach to lead, and motivate the spirit on the
field and off. Let these “elements” be evident in
2009. Enjoy!

Music from: Metheny, Mancina, Holsinger,
Howard, Glass, and Brackett

So the Movements breakdown to

Ignis (fire)
Aqua
Terra(earth)
Air

So far this camp season we’ve been making big strides and have been getting better every camp. This years hornline has doubled in size from last years and they are sounding good. Anyone else marching see you guys on the field!

Mike
Rev bass 4

p.s.
excuse all the errors i did this in a little rush and i’ll be blogging when i can

My name is Dylan and I come from a small town in central Illinois. This location is very nice because its very close to two of the top 3 Drum Corps; The Cavaliers and Phantom Regiment. I was first introduced to Drum Corps by my mom. At the time i was in 7th grade (I am going to be a junior in the 09-10 school year) and my concept of the activity was about 40 people who had no life, got on a tour bus (when i say tour bus I mean an RV in bus form), and traveled around and played drum set and nothing else. Man was I wrong. If it wasn’t for a kid I had looked up to all my life, someone I had known for a very long time, I would have never gotten into the activity. Kyle invited me to go with him to a colts audition with him and I of course went along. When i got there my eyes were opened and i realized I sucked something horrible. I was so impressed by the power and finesse that the line was playing with. I practiced my butt off and I was then playing Bass for the Colt Cadets in 08. This is were I met some people that would change my life and make me a much better player.

For the 2009 year with the Colt Cadets I will be playing snare. The book is so much better than last year’s, and so much cleaner. It’s some what easy, but it’s early in the season and if our snare tech has his way, most of the show will be Flam Drags and Cheese-Chus at 93 inches. He’s old school and likes to play a lot of notes, high, and very fast. Our show this year is entitled Lullaby & GoodNightmare. The songs are:

Intro- Goodnight my Angle by Bill Joel (only for about 15 seconds)

Opener- Nightmare  Original composition by Ibe Sodawalla and Ron Lagrone

Feature- Pee Wee’s Big Adventureby Danny Elfman

Balled- Where Dreams Come Trueby James Horner

Closer- Hall of the Mountain King by Edvard Grieg

If you haven’t already guessed, this show is about dreams. Its going to be a very exciting show so come check us out. I’ll post a link with the schedule at the bottom. Now i have to drive super fast to get to an overnight camp on time.

-Dylan

P.S. please excuse the grammar and spelling.

Raiders Snare Line 2009

Hey guys, and welcome to my blog for the DCI Summer Music Games ‘09! I’ll be updating this as often as I can and talking about life in a DCI drumline as well as life on the road. Hopefully it’ll give you some interesting stuff to read as well as some insight into the activity, for those of you who have not experienced it first hand. And even for those who have experienced it to relive the glory days a little. 

My name is Carlton i’m 18 years old and I play snare for the Raiders Drum and Bugle Corps in the DCI Open Class division. This will be my second year marching Drum Corps as well as my second year with the Raiders. Before marching drum corps I got started playing in my high school’s marching band. I joined my sophomore year and was on the snare line through my senior year which is now coming to a close. I went to high school at Bridgewater-Raritan HS in New Jersey. We were competitive in Bands of America and won a regional that first year I joined. As well as three state championships. 

Me at DCI Finals before retreat in 2008

This season we’re coming off of a rebuilding year where we placed 9th at World Championships. With a veteran foundation holding the corps down we are looking to expand on our success last season. The corps was paced last year by a 7th place finish by the percussion section, which anchored the corps throughout the season. 

Our program this year is entitled “Isle of Hope”:

As America stands ready to turn a new page in its history, the Raiders Drum and Bugle Corps looks back to a significant time in our past, as they announce their 2009 show titled “Isle of Hope”. The show, featuring the music of Bela Bartok, highlights the entry of immigrants into America through Ellis Island, focusing on Slovak, Celtic and Italian cultures.
Included in this year’s show is the following:

• An American Elegy - Frank Tichelli
• Hungarian Folk Song
• Gan Ainm – Traditional Celtic Lament
• Overture from the Barber of Seville – Gioachino Rossi

The melding of different ethnic groups into one unique American culture is the focus of “Isle of Hope” as the Raiders honor the rich history of our country. 

This weekend we had a very productive spring training camp. As a corps we have our entire first movement as well as a majority of the second movement put on the field both marching and playing. The percussion and brass pushed on as individual sections through the closing piece, Barber of Seville, which is a very fast paced intense ride through many moods and dynamic alterations. 

For those of you who don’t know this already. Open class corps usually only have weekend camps and then go on a small regional tour followed by a week or so of move-ins leading up to a longer 3-4 week tour culminating at World Championships in Indy. While this is easier to have a life while in the corps, it requires a great deal of responsibility on the part of the performers when it comes to being ontop of everything involved in the show despite not having rehearsal every day. 

Our first public performance is an exhibition on June 13th at the Bridgemen’s Tournament of Starts in Bayonne, NJ. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.bridgemen.com or at the show itself. Come on out and watch us put our show to the field as well as in the lot warming up.

Hope to see you guys and gals on the road this summer. Be sure to check us out along the way. I’ll keep ya’ll update with all thats going on.

-Carlton