"Hey Mom and Dad! I'm joining a drum corps. I'm going to spend my summer with 149 other people traveling 10,000 miles across the country.We'll be rehearsing 10 hours a day, sleeping on gym floors, and on the weekends we'll perform for thousands of screaming fans. Love yah! See you in August!"



For those uninitiated to the drum corps experience, an exchange like this may be akin to hearing that your loved one is about to run away with the circus! A decision that may seem spur of the moment, and a wild and crazy idea at best, is more than likely anything but that for your child. When your son/daughter decides to join a DCI corps, he/she is making a deep personal commitment that will be the performance, education and personal foundation of a lifetime.



To help you better understand what "drum corps" is all about, Drum Corps International has assembled a new section of the DCI.org Web site dedicated specifically to parents. What is DCI? How is it different from marching band? Is my son/daughter the right age? What's it going to cost? How will they travel? Are there ways we can get involved? Find the answers to all of these questions and more.



Check it out at DCI.org/parents.