INDIANAPOLIS — The Drum Corps International Drum Major Leadership Summit — an annual event focused on education and networking for drum corps student leaders — served as a key element of the collaborative 2026 DCI Annual Meeting, held January 8-11.
Led by DCI Hall of Fame member Gene Monterastelli, alongside a group of former DCI drum majors, the summit featured a full weekend of programming, including presentations from prominent voices within the drum corps activity, educational sessions, interactive workshops, and social events. In total, the summit served 48 drum majors from nearly 30 ensembles across DCI’s competitive classes.
Ultimately, the summit was geared toward the development of community and leadership skills.
“This weekend has all been about getting to know the drum majors in my activity, and getting to meet new people and make all sorts of connections,” Spirit of Atlanta drum major Emma Shiffer said. “I got to meet all sorts of board members and judges and others, who I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to get to know had I not come to the summit this year — so really, just making connections and getting to know the people who love this activity as much as I do.”
While business meetings took place in Indianapolis throughout Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, drum majors arrived for their portion of the weekend Friday evening. Their first order of business was to take in a compelling keynote message from Ian Weinberger, a prominent voice in the musical theater industry, with credits the likes of “Chess” and “Hamilton.”
From there, drum majors were off and running, getting to know one another and taking part in an array of sessions and activities.
Summit elements ran the gamut from informational to interactive; drum majors were educated on a variety of topics including mental health, conflict resolution, tour event details and nuances, media training, and much more, all intended to equip them as the student leaders of their respective corps.
“I think the biggest highlight for me has been the activities that we do with all the other drum majors that involve speaking to each other and doing fun games where we have to talk to every single person and get to know everyone,” Impulse drum major Lana Zeilinger said. “One of the activities had one drum major leave the room and then come back in and try to command everyone into a certain shape, but the people inside were told to oppose them. It was like a simulation of how your corps could react to you as a leader.”
Attendees also had the opportunity to work directly with one of the DCI Annual Meetings’ sponsors, Silent Command, an organization dedicated to equipping student leaders in the marching arts community.
“This may be the only time that all the corps, at least from a drum major perspective, get to interact with each other,” said Silent Command executive director Jared Geer. “The amount of times that we’ve heard people say, ‘Thank you for providing this perspective to us,’ and seeing that tangible access, is truly amazing.”
Many drum majors expressed specific examples of lessons learned that would help inform their approach to the summer season ahead.
“I think the biggest thing that I’ve learned this weekend is just to be open and to be honest, not just with my teammates, but with the people around me,” Shiffer said. “And knowing that I can communicate with any of the drum majors across this community now and with any of the staff members.”
“I like hearing from all the different drum majors from all the different corps and all the different ways they like to lead,” Zeilinger added. “I think constantly learning is the key to success in this sport, and that’s how you keep growing, and how you get your drum corps to grow as well.”
However, as is often a sentiment shared by Drum Major Leadership Summit attendees, community was the key.
“To be a part of the drum major community means the absolute world to me, as somebody who came from a place where drum corps wasn’t really as known or wasn’t as familiar to most people,” Shiffer said. “It helps me feel more comfortable in inspiring the people back home that they can do whatever they set their minds to.”
