At the start of the 2015 Drum Corps International Tour, Blue Devils B defeated Vanguard Cadets in six of the seven shows in which both corps competed. The two corps then went on separate tours, not meeting again until the DCI Open Class World Championships in Michigan City, Indiana, where Vanguard Cadets reasserted its dominance in both Prelims and Finals, with Blue Devils B ultimately finishing second by just under a point.
Vanguard Cadets won caption awards for Best General Effect, Best Visual Performance, Best Brass Performance, Best Percussion Performance, and Best Color Guard. It was the first time in seven years that Blue Devils B did not win the Best Percussion Award. Spartans captured third place, more than four points under the second-place corps.
The next four corps in Michigan City were Genesis, Legends, 7th Regiment, and Music City, with the fifth-place Legends receiving the award for Most Improved Corps of the year. In eighth place, Gold moved up from ninth in Prelims, switching places with River City Rhythm, a corps that competed as an Open Class corps for the first time in 2015.
Gold’s “Pop Star” essentially took the corps on a rock tour for its 10th anniversary year. The musical production was largely based on the multi-platinum hit song, “Toxic,” by the Swedish songwriting duo of Bloodshy & Avant, which was made famous by Britney Spears who performed the song on her 2003 studio album, “In the Zone.” Several different stylistic versions of the song were heard throughout Gold’s show.
Filling in additional repertoire, Gold’s music composer/designer Scott Director and percussion arrangers Rich Hinshaw and Joe Millea constructed a rock opera influenced by many different pop and rock styles, including hip hop, metal, trance, house, and techno club music. Director composes for film and television in Los Angeles.
The show featured color guard costumes inspired by the global phenomenons of K-pop and B-boy. The members of the guard were intimately involved in creating their own individual attire based on a suggested color palette; designing, ordering, and fitting their own unique costume. The flamboyance of the guard costumes jumped out against the simple black and white of the percussion and brass uniforms.
2015 Gold
A color guard member played the role of the star pop soloist and changed her costume for different segments of the corps’ production. Elevated on a midfield tower, a rock drummer, guitarist and bass player collectively named “Tiger and the Pink Tones” contributed much to the production.
The front ensemble in this case was a midfield ensemble, spread out either side of the tower. A large pink tarp took up the front center of the field, upon which members of the guard often performed as if backup dancers. Spread across seven tall scrims across the back of the field were letters that spelled, “POP STAR.”
The horns and drums formed a five-point star at the end of the opening fanfare, accompanied by fluorescent pink and blue flags emblazoned with a large gold star.
The sound of the electric guitar was frequently heard riffing over the corps throughout the show, sometimes enthusiastically incorporating an overdrive pedal. One of the interesting musical elements of the show was when the rock guitarist joined in during the second half of the drum solo, doubling the snare line with a wicked shredding feature.
Color guard flags were always of bright, flamboyant colors that stood out vividly against the pink tarp, with bright orange and red swaths highlighting the end of the show.
At the very end, the brass section and drum line re-created the five-point star from the opener, in essence proclaiming that the entire corps was the star of the show.
Michael Boo was a member of the Cavaliers from 1975-1977. He has written about the drum corps activity for more than 35 years and serves as a staff writer for various Drum Corps International projects. Boo has written for numerous other publications and has published an honors-winning book on the history of figure skating. As an accomplished composer, Boo holds a bachelor's degree in music education and a master's degree in music theory and composition. He resides in Chesterton, Indiana.