DCI

I sent a message recently to one of my friends from high school who marched in a DCI drum corp. I asked him to give me a blurb on what it was like - if he liked it or hated it, how challenging it was, if there were any good band stories, etc. I asked him just to describe the experience in general. What I received back was the following:

"Life-changing."

When I was part of my high school marching band (a pretty mediocre one at that), I had a million words to say about it. If after only two years of marching with the same corp this was all he had to say, then there's no way this phrase can be taken lightly or dismissed as cliché.

DCI is short for Drum Corps International. In essence, it's as close as you can get to professional marching band. I first stumbled across this organization the summer before my freshman year when four friends and myself went to a local show. The only way I can describe it was like I was the little 11-year-old Harry Potter discovering Hogwarts and asking, "Oh my tea and crumpets! Whatever could this 'Quidditch' be?" (to be said in a dainty English accent). It was a completely new and completely complete world of its own. With quite a large fan base, there were multiple merchandise stands selling shirts, mugs, jewelry, and pins for the "Cavies" and "Bluecoats." Needless to say, I was blown away by how in depth the marching world was considering I had absolutely no experience in the subject.

DCI consists of three divisions with Division I (World Class) being the most followed (there is also Open Class [div.II/III] and International Class [corps from countries other than the US). Members of the corps are between the ages 13 and 21, and all must go through auditions for whichever corp they are interested in performing with. For a list of DCI drum corps, click Mhere. Auditions for groups are usually held in the fall and winter through camp sessions. By spring, the members are selected, and the competition season kicks off in June. The season culminates with the DCI championships, which, beginning in 2009, will be held at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. If you can't make it out to view the action live, ESPN2 usually broadcasts the competition. However, I encourage everyone to get out to see a DCI show at some point in your life. The high level of musicality, drill-execution, and overall performance will blow you away.

For more information, check out the Drum Corp International website. The "Drum Corps Planet" site is another valuable resource for DCI information.