The 2009 Drum Corps International Tour brought breathtaking shows to fans at more than 100 events in nearly 40 states. Whether long-time supporters or first-timers, no DCI event would be complete without the excited and sometimes eccentric fans from around the country who come out to support their favorite corps. Don’t miss a second of the exciting action from the world’s most elite marching music ensembles next summer—join these extraordinary fans at a DCI event near you in 2010!
These fans attended the DCI Eastern Classic event at J. Birney Crum Stadium in Allentown, Pa. on Friday, July 31 …
Frederick Omega Pye, from Philadelphia, is a Madison Scouts and State Street Review alumnus and marched with Kevin Eubanks of the Tonight Show Band in high school. He now works with the George N. Parks Drum Major Academy, the University of Massachusetts marching band, and is a founder of Penn State Syndicate Winter Guard. “We have a lot of memories of performing here,” he said, explaining that he met lots of old friends at the competition. “When we marched here with the Madison Scouts we won prelims and my mom was able to watch. It’s an incredible venue.” Pye said he was most impressed with Carolina Crown’s programming and how the show was designed in advance to connect with the audience.
Carol Smith, a band director from New York, has been to the Allentown competition “many many” times. “The atmosphere is just wonderful here. I just love it,” she said. “It’s great to see such excellence.” Smith met up with her college roommate and former coworkers from the Drum Major Academy at the event, which she said is just as much a social function as a great drum corps show.
George Dohner has attended the DCI Eastern Classic event every year since it began in 1977 and said the weather has almost always been cooperative. Dohner remembered one year when, like Friday, the rain stopped just before the competition started—but the field needed a little more help to recover then. “They stopped the show and brought in a helicopter, which hovered over the field and blew all the water out to the sides. It was enough to drain the field and continue the show,” he said. Dohner explained that he comes out to the “beautiful venue” every year to have a great time and meet up with old friends from his marching career with the Reading Buccaneers.
Debbie Vincent, who came out to both nights of the show with her brother, said going to the drum corps competition in Allentown is a family tradition. “We used to come with my parents, so I remember laughing and joking around with them, making comments about what we liked in the shows and rooting for our favorite coprs,” said Vincent, who has attended the show in J. Birney Crum Stadium for the past 17 years. “I enjoy seeing all the things the corps come up with in all the different shows. It’s just amazing how creative they are and how different they are from year to year.”
Vincent Tromatore was introduced to drum corps by his father-in-law, who marched with the Pennsylvania-based Bangor Yellowjackets. “I had never seen anything like drum corps before. I love the music, the precision, just the technical things that they do. It’s incredible—I see new things every year,” said Tromatore, who has been coming to the Allentown show since 2000. “The athleticism and the talent that these youngsters have and their incredible drive and passion—you can see it and almost feel it from 33 rows up.”
Cadets alumna Elizabethann Lander decided to help out the corps for their 75th anniversary year. Lander is spending three weeks on tour with the corps working on the food truck to feed the corps members. “It’s just such a special year and the corps has done so much for me, so I really wanted to give back to the corps this year. It’s been great to help the kids out and see their work ethic,” she said. “It’s a lot of work! You don’t realize what goes on behind the scenes until you actually do it.” Lander said everyone should experience the rewards of volunteering because “there’s so much to learn from this organization other than marching on the field.”
George Roos, who has been coming to the DCI Eastern Classic since 1977, enjoyed sitting in the newly-opened and renovated upper deck at J. Birney Crum stadium. “It’s an amazing vantage point. The biggest change is that the comfort of the seats is so much better. The old wood benches were splintered, but you dealt with it because it was the best place to see the shows, because you could see the entire thing,” he said. “I would compare it to seeing a ballet, when you go to the ballet you go to the top so you can see the entire stage. When you come to Allentown these are the best seats because you can see the entire corps … you can hear it and see it the best of any place in the entire stadium. I’m local and this is a great place to come see drum corps.”
