Today Drum Corps International CEO Dan Acheson joined seven other speakers in presenting at the 8th Annual Hilliard Discussion (HD8) hosted by the Huffines Institute for Sports Medicine and Human Performance at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center on the campus of Texas A&M University.

Invited presenters are national leaders and thinkers in the fields of human performance and sports medicine, sharing ideas on what is the cutting edge in each industry.

Dan AchesonDCI CEO Dan Acheson on stage at Texas A&M University on Friday, November 2.


Acheson provided information on the highly demanding aspects of marching music, making marching bands the largest “teams” on most high school and collegiate campuses. He also showed how adding cutting-edge designs and ever-greater challenges of physicality in the various marching, playing, and performance aspects of DCI’s marching ensembles makes marching arts performers elite athletes in their own right. As such, they share needs for the same intensity and urgency of sport teams for the health, wellness, and safety of all team members.

“I was honored to be invited to be a part of this prestigious forum," Acheson said. "It’s a tremendous opportunity to share information on the marching arts with our colleagues in the sports medicine industry and to collaborate on the newest resources available to sustain health, wellness, and safety for all athletes.”