The 2005 British Drum Corps Championships

Saturday 1st October

Upon waking up on the morning of DCUK 2005 finals, my first task, and I am sure I was not alone in doing this, was to pull the curtains back and check the whether. On this occasion, it was 6.30 a.m. and absolutely pouring down with rain! Typical!

My next task was to check the weather on the TV, which filled me with optimism; cloudy, breezy and no rain. Those who attended last year’s finals will remember the closing ceremonies being washed out. We did not want a repeat of that!

I soon embarked upon my 180 mile journey from the south west to the 26th British Drum Corps Championships at Mansfield. Glorious clear blue sky! Looked like we may be blessed with some good weather!

This was my 23rd consecutive attendance at finals, mostly as a spectator but also as a marching and staff member, and as I travelled I found myself reflecting upon the years gone by, the corps’ that have come and gone and, of particular significance, the priceless memories this wonderful activity has gifted me over the years.

Those who know me will know that I try to cast a critical and constructive eye over what I see on the drum corps field. However, the fact remains that drum corps brings out a child like innocence within me which has remained the same ever since I first witnessed the mighty Imperial Knights on a warm late September morning (9.00 a.m. I think!) at the Hawthorns stadium at the ’83 finals. It was a truly defining moment for a 13-year old boy. That defining moment, forever preserved in time and memory, has influenced so many aspects of my life.

My story is not unique… of that I am sure. Somehow, we have all found the gift of drum corps…and we are all eternally grateful. If you are yet to realise that…. someday you will I promise you. 

Anyway, back to business…..

I arrived in time for Open Class prelims, which was an event in itself that I simply could not miss as I had not attended a show all season. This was the chance to see if the various rumours were true!

The stand offered a marvellous view and the field looked fantastic.

I will say little about prelims at this stage as I will save my words to try and recreate the magic of finals in the evening. There were some great performances, albeit occasionally slightly restrained as some of the magic was clearly being saved for the floodlit finals.

Senators (90.3), as anticipated, won prelims with a 2 point spread over Kidsgrove Scouts (88.3). Black Knights 3rd, Forgemen 4th, Poynton Commodores 5th, Phoenix Coventry 6th and 37th Kingswood Scouts in 7th place. All 7 to go through to finals in the evening, to be joined by the A-Class champions.

At this stage, many people thought (and you would be forgiven for thinking so) victory for the Senators would be plain sailing. I don’t think many predicted the shoot out between the top two in the evening.

Cadet Class

Open Class prelims were followed by Cadet Class Finals. This is the youngest group of marchers to be seen at a drum corps show and everyone should take the time to watch and support these kids. The overall support for these youngsters was excellent.

The Commodore Cadets came 4th in the class with their ‘Aladdin’ show. The themed props and the themed guard uniforms helped them tell their story by adding a distinctly eastern flavour to the show. The young musicians provided a fine musical backdrop allowing the guard to tell this well loved story.

The Avenger Cadets were in 3rd place with a selection of popular tunes, including ‘Hey Jude’, ‘Let Me Entertain You’ and a rousing rendition of ‘Hot, Hot, Hot’! Different elements of the show seemed to allow various sections to truly shine. ‘Hey Jude’ showed how they can handle music and motion, ‘Let Me…’ presented a talented soloist while brining the crowd more into the show. ‘Hot, Hot, Hot’ really suited the percussionists and raised the temperature amongst the enthusiastic crowd.

In 2nd place were the Black Knights Cadets with their ‘Whatever the Weather’ show. ‘April Showers’ allowed the guard to shine whilst reminding us to be thankful that it was not raining! ‘You are my Sunshine’ further cheered the crowd up in the cold conditions. The musicians seemed to be enjoying themselves, particularly the drum line who gave us a pleasing groove and feature. The Black Knights organisation is one of the success stories of drum corps over the past few years as they move forward with strong foundations.

The 37th Kingswood Cadets were the biggest unit in the class and thoroughly deserved the position of 1st place. The manner with which they entered the field clearly showed how thoroughly these youngsters are being taught the basic drum corps rudiments. ‘Old, New, Borrowed and Bond’ gave us a selection of hugely entertaining tunes performed to an extraordinary standard from a corps so young. This performance was strong in all departments; visually very strong with forms being maintained throughout, the brass blending harmonies and melodies very well, excellent use of props by the guard, all driven by an outstanding marching drum line. The crowd lapped up this performance from start to finish.

Junior Class

The Junior Class slots in nicely between Cadet Class and A-Class in terms of age group.

Squires came in 3rd with a show consisting of the eternally popular ‘Birdland’ and ‘Crazy Rhythm’. Some of the young brass players deserved an award simply based on the size of the instruments they were carrying! ‘Birdland’ soon had the crowd clapping along and this gave the members a lift allowing them to grow in confidence, which was apparent through to the end of the show.

Senators Juniors were in 2nd place and they are clearly being well educated in the art of drum corps based upon the manner with which they entered the field. Typical of the Senators organisation really! The show consisted of a number of popular James Bond classics, including ‘Nobody Does It Better’, which was also played by their bigger brothers in open class.

This was a very confident and polished performance with great musical and visual technique on display. The brass gave us a broad dynamic range, the drums gave us some fine grooves and the guard gave us some really eye catching movement and equipment work. 

The Staffordshire Knights came 1st within the Junior Class with a hugely entertaining show based around a number of popular cartoon themes. The show started out with a medley consisting of ‘Top Cat’ which flowed beautifully into ‘Flintstones’ then into ‘Scooby Doo’, including some engaging role play from the guard. ‘Inspector Gadget’ further showed the light-hearted side of junior drum corps. ‘Little Mermaid’ showed a more mature side which was appreciated by the audience but we were soon back in familiar territory with ‘Dangermouse’ through to a rousing finish. A thoroughly deserved victory!

A-Class

A-Class finals featured three corps all of whom have developed through successful building or re-building programs utilising recruitment programs that the whole of the activity could benefit from. Membership seems to be thriving amongst these corps’ and, combined with the level of marching skills and musicianship on display, we were treated to some outstanding performances.

Long-time DCUK members Concord were in 3rd place (66.2) with a show entitled ‘Sinatra – A Man and his Music’ consisting of some well known and not so well known Sinatra songs. I have always admired how Concord go about their business, whether it be from the Open Class powerhouse days of yesteryear, or the more youth orientated approach of recent times. This admiration and respect for Concord stretches throughout the activity, including today’s audience who were right behind Concord from the first note.

The amount of variety and changes of mood within the show was comprehensive, shifting from raw power to laid back grooves with ease. The manner with which all the sections worked together was impressive to say the least with the excellent musical performance being enhanced by broad field coverage and striking images from the guard. And yes, they did give us a slice of ‘My Way’! No Sinatra show would be complete without it!

Great job Concord!

In 2nd place (73.7) were Stafford Lancers. The Lancers are a corps that have been under the microscope and been subject to more discussion hours than most corps’ in the country. This is simply down to there excellent recruitment policy which has seen them grow a corps by developing and maintaining the youth from their area. Discussions surrounding The Lancers will now expand to how well these fine young marchers and musicians perform. To even consider attempting to convey the emotions within ‘Les Miserables’ you must have a considerable level of maturity within the corps and the Lancers are a corps that are certainly maturing at a rapid rate.

Tender moments such as ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ and ‘On My Own’ were handled with respect and control alongside the faster and more aggressive moments.

The staff must also be congratulated as they had given the members a great product to work with and they clearly enjoying performing it, almost as much as the crowd enjoyed it!

In 1st place (80.2) were Southern Aurora who, as a result of A-Class victory, would step up to Open Class finals in the evening to rub shoulders with the big boys and, you never know, maybe take a scalp or two! We’ll talk about that later, all I will say about the mighty SA at this stage is that their A-Class finals performance was stunning….simply stunning!

Cadet, Junior and A-Class retreat followed and offered a magnificent snapshot of respect and comradeship amongst the youth that makes up the future of the activity. You see this and you realise that results are not so important after all! 

Open Class Finals

Southern Aurora were first on in finals and their enthusiastic and vocal following set the atmosphere. Their show is entitled ‘Means of Access’ and I understand that it was composed by the staff. The product is dark, complex and extremely sophisticated and is very stylistic in terms of the trademark sound and look the corps created in the past.

The music is challenging yet always gripping. Powerful one moment yet extremely haunting or tender the next. Whilst the show is very challenging, the viewer is drawn into it with their focus being directed to the right place at the right time as a result of intelligent and gripping show design combined with extreme performance levels.

Since their 2002 Open Class championship year, Southern Aurora undertook a rebuilding program which makes the achievements of the 2005 staff and members all the more unbelievable. These guys are well on the way to becoming a drum corps powerhouse once again…. Correction: they ARE a drum corps powerhouse! 

37th Kingswood were up next. You have to admire these guys as their close season / early difficulties were well documented, yet they are still out there blasting out that trademark Kingswood sound. This year’s production entitled ‘A Day In The Life Of A Jazz Lover’ offered big band jazz classics from the likes of Gillespie and Gerswhin and closing with the delicious ‘Autumn Leaves’. 

This was an exciting and dynamic show well received by an appreciative crowd. A Kingswood show would not be a Kingswood show without powerful brass, ripping sopranos, driving percussion and glamorous guard… they delivered on all counts. Kingswood clearly have a good foundation, as seen with their Cadet Class corps earlier in the day, so I am sure we will see Kingswood grow and develop over the coming seasons.

Poynton Commodores seem to share a similar philosophy to Kingswood in the sense that they want to be out there being competitive but with an uncompromising approach towards entertaining the crowd. Poynton certainly achieve that in spades, as they do every year, with a diverse show called ‘The Extremes of Red’. The show, which included ‘Gloria’, ‘Virgin de la Macarena’ and ‘If We Were in Love’, took the audience on an exciting and emotional journey through some unfamiliar Poynton territory stylistically but without deviating far from the sound and attitude we expect and appreciate from Poynton. Hugely entertaining.

It has been pleasing to watch the development of Phoenix Coventry over recent years and it is great to see them consolidate their place in the Open Class. Their 2005 production is simply called ‘Words’ and the show is a metaphor for how they/we simply cannot put the drum corps experience into words. They have a point, don’t they? Music from Walt Disney’s Epcot Firework Display is the perfect platform for communicating their ‘words’. A wide range of musical moods was needed to successfully tell their story and they achieved that to perfection, taking us through haunting, aggressive, tender and happy territory with numerous other stops on the way. A multi-faceted show beautifully performed.

The Forgemen are another corps that has really developed over the past few seasons. What is particularly impressive about the way Forgemen have gone about there business is the manner with which they have created a specific identity in terms of the sound they create. The show, ‘The Journey’, really did take the audience on a journey across a variety of styles. The music of James Newton Howard, David Holsinger and Howard Shore was used to stunning effect. There were some truly majestic moments, some imposing dark textures, some kaleidoscopic visual pictures, some moments of wonderful organised chaos …the list goes on… all within a truly epic cinematic feel. Overall, the show was a bold statement of intent that I am sure they will carry through future seasons.

I had heard the stories regarding how much the Black Knights had improved over the season. To say my expectations were high would be an understatement, but could they deliver the goods? Well of course they could, and of course they did! ‘The Land Of The Free’, the music from ‘Ragtime’ was perfect for this rapidly improving corps who are swiftly approaching the standards of the past.

What is immediately apparent is the all round strength of the corps. The drums and the brass providing an entertaining yet sophisticated soundtrack, with a visual program which seemed to use tried and tested formulas with an original twist to create an exhausting sense of motion which added another dimension to the show. The colour guard were excellent, continuing a long tradition of fine Black Knights guards, and always seemed to be staged in the right place at the right time to enhance the level of drama and emotion.

This was a hugely enjoyable and accessible show and the audience loved every minute of it. The Knights performed it like their lives depended upon it and made it look like it was one hell of a fun show to march.

Since Kidsgrove Scouts first gatecrashed the upper echelons of the Open Class in 1999 Finals Prelims, whilst being a huge fan, I have found them to be something of an enigma. I have always known what I am going to get from them, yet I also felt that they had not got the credit that they fully deserve for what they do.

They have a trademark sound, possibly more so than any other corps over the past 5-years, and a distinctive look. Maybe this had held them back a little? My personal agenda for Kidsgrove 2005 was to show a little bit more maturity in terms of design and musical balance as well as the magic yet often elusive ingredient…. emotion!!!!

Maybe 2005 finals would provide the moment in time for them to reach for the sky and go beyond all that they have done before?

Right from the first step of ‘The Journey’, something felt a little bit different about the Kidsgrove 2005 edition. We were being teased and tantalised for what felt like an eternity, then BANG, the first impact point! KIDSGROVE ARE ON FIRE!!!! 

As the Latin flavours rush past, the realisation that Kidgsrove have come of age is apparent. Brass achieving new levels…. musicality and maturity of the drums…. stunning guard…. fascinating visual program. 

I don’t think any British corps has utilised colour quite as well as Kidsgrove over the past few years. This year, the all white corps uniforms against the black and fluorescent orange guard uniforms was a design masterstroke. This made a uniquely bold statement before a note was even played. The guard uni’s, combined with perfect staging and impressive equipment work ensured that our attention was drawn to the guard at the right times.

To ensure the full variety of moods, we needed a deeply moving and emotional moment. Music from ‘The Mission’ provided that moment to perfection. This went beyond anything Kidgsrove have achieved before in terms of pure emotion and created one of those classic goosebump drum corps moments. Thank you Kidsgrove!!!

The show through to its conclusion continued with that distinct Kidsgrove Latin sound and feel, allowing us to join them on their adrenalin pumping rollercoaster ride, and what a ride it was!

Yes, Kidsgrove have come of age and truly thrown the gauntlet down to the Senators!!!

In 2000, Senators embarked upon what I consider to be the evolutionary journey which has seen them create a unique identity and a level of unparalleled success, leading them to where they currently are. I felt that 2005 was the time for Senators to take their finest qualities developed between 2000 and 2004 and take things to the next level, thus closing (or commencing!) a new period of evolution. Considering Senators shows from the last two seasons, would it be possible to find an even higher design and performance level?

The Senators took to the field with their new look. The uniforms are new but you can just tell it’s the Senators. Body language I guess. The opening form covered a considerable amount of the field and electricity seemed to be in the air along with a sense of almost tangible anticipation.

Their 2005 production, ‘Mission Incredible’, is built around ‘Mission Impossible’ and ‘James Bond’ musical themes, brought to life visually by a strong secret agent theme throughout. The show demands your attention and will drag you through an exhausting range of emotions all within the confines of a 10 minute show.

‘Who Wants to Live Forever’ took the Senators into un-chartered emotional territory…. ‘Cuba’ showed Senators swinging and rocking like never seen before…. Overlaying ‘Nobody Does it Better’ (4/4 slow time) and ‘Mission Impossible’ (5/4 fast time) was pure genius!!!

I am not sure whether Senators have ever before achieved such a combination of demand and entertainment. Of course, they make it look easy, but they always do. If it looked easy to you, then you should have closed your eyes for a while. What you would have heard would not just have been the greatest brass line Senators have ever produced, but one of the finest brass lines ever heard within DCUK. As well as one of the greatest shows of the modern era.

My personal feeling regarding Senators 2005 is that the whole was far greater than the sum of its constituent parts, i.e. the individual sections, to the point where they possibly transcended the judging system. This is the Senators…but it’s not your fathers Senators! They’ve gone all Rock’n’Roll!!!

Retreat next, which was the usual magnificent spectacle, and it was not raining! Cold yes! Damn cold!!!

The results….

37th Kinsgwood 8th (70.4), Phoenix Coventry 7th (75.2), Poynton Commodores 6th (80.0), Forgemen 5th (83.1)……A-Class Champions Southern Aurora 4th (83.5)!!!!!! Black Knights 3rd (89.2).

Captions: Brass: Senators, Percussion: Kidsgrove, Visual: Senators, Colour Guard: Kidsgrove, Effect: Senators.

It is then announced that the top two scores were 93.8 and 94.4. Only six tenths between 1st and 2nd! Only SIX TENTHS!!! Have Senators been pipped at the post? The tension is unbelievable.

“in 2nd place…….

…..Kidsgrove Scouts!!!!”

But what a fantastic achievement by the Scouts. What was a five point spread for much of the season whittled down to a matter of tenths.

Senators 1st with a score of 94.4!!!!!! Congratulations Senators on securing your 7th title. 

An enthusiastic crowd stayed for Senators static repeat performance. I then embarked upon my journey home still buzzing from such a great day. 

What a fantastic day of performance and competition. A big well done and thank you to all corps members, staff, judges, DCUK and, of course, the audience for making the day possible. See you next season!

Ian Scaife