Drum Corps International Field Pass

Drum corps' unique legacy of "stuff" — artifacts, collectibles, old uniforms, pictures, publications, and more. There's a whole cadre of people working behind the scenes to preserve DCI's storied history, and a significant collection is currently being prepared to display as part of the 2022 DCI World Championships in Indianapolis. Featuring special guests Sue Kuehnhold, Steve Vickers, Blake Crenshaw and Bill Ives.

Dan Potter delves even deeper into the storied history of the DCI World Championships on television, including some of the most memorable lines ever delivered on the airwaves, "like taking a bath in chocolate." With special guests Steve Rondinaro, Dennis DeLucia, Michael Cesario and Tom Blair.

Dan Potter returns for the summer of 2022 with a special-edition series of the Field Pass podcast. "Traditions" celebrates 50 years of Drum Corps International, Episode 1 exploring the storied history of the DCI World Championships on television. Featuring guests Steve Rondinaro, Dennis DeLucia, Michael Cesario and Tom Blair.

Volunteers don't get paid not because they're worthless, but because they're priceless. On this episode, host Keith Kelly finds out more about these priceless pillars of the activity—What drives them to give so much of themselves, what brings them back every year, and the voluntary history of this entire activity. This week we're paying tribute to the volunteers, the hidden heroes of drum corps. Special guests include: Natalie Steele, Tim Hinton, Bob Jacobs, Pat Seidling, and co-producer Mallory Anderson.

This week on Finding Drum Corps, we're visiting a part of the ensemble that host Keith Kelly is not the only newcomer to, as we learn about the enigmatic and the mysterious front ensemble. This week, we enter the pit.

In 2020 the marching arts world adopted the phrase, “March On,” and in 2021 DCI and its corps will do just that. This year Drum Corps International will present the DCI Celebration Tour with corps designing unique performances for this noncompetitive year. In this episode we look at the challenges facing the performers and corps—What does a noncompetitive season even look like? And most importantly, what are we looking forward to seeing on the field in 2021? After a year of no live drum corps, it's time to celebrate the past, present and future of Marching Music's Major League. Special guests include: Chris Holland, Geneva Le, Joshua Hecht, Dan Potter, Michael Cesario, Paul Doop, Rick Brown, Tim Hinton and Mallory Anderson.

With drum corps set to return to the field this summer for the DCI Celebration Tour, Keith returns to the microphone for this long-awaited eighth episode that explores how 2020 has impacted the drum corps activity, how it moved things online, and how the ingenuity and talent of this community will ensure that members and fans will have spectacular shows to look forward to in 2021 and beyond. Special guests include: DCI CEO Dan Acheson, River City Rhythm executive director Bojan Hoover, Crossmen CEO Natalie Steele, Bluecoats CEO Mike Scott, and Ben Schroeder, director of Varsity Performing Arts Training Education and Events at Varsity Spirit.

The drum corps season is a crescendo that ends in a truly magnificent display of talent and skill each August. It's DCI Finals Week, and Keith Kelly turns his gaze to Lucas Oil Stadium to explore the season-ending events of each DCI Summer Tour. Special guests include: Santa Clara Vanguard brass caption head Nark Nichols, Bluecoats drum major Peyton Grunzke, Blue Devils brass arranger John Meehan, DCI CEO Dan Acheson, DCI Judge Administrator John Phillips, Old Bridge Elementary Drumline director Colin Bell, Crossmen drum major Lydia Marshall, and former Blue Knights member and Finding Drum Corps co-producer Mallory Anderson.

In Episode 6 of Finding Drum Corps, Keith explores the drum corps activity as it exists outside of the United States and how ensembles around the world are inspired by DCI and its corps. Special guests include: Chair of Marching & Performing Arts UK Alan Thompson, Inbhear Mór Performance Ensemble director Oisiin Molloy, Brazilian band director Leandro Pascui, Calgary Stampede manager of bands Ryan Hancock, Jubal director Hans Kloppert, Beeches Performance Ensemble director Andrew Dallison, DCI senior director of global business development John DeNovi, and former Blue Knights member and Finding Drum Corps co-producer Mallory Anderson.

In Episode 5, Keith Kelly explores the competitive aspects of Drum Corps International from both the perspective of judges and of fans. Special guests include: DCI judge administrator John Phillips, Santa Clara Vanguard brass caption head Marc Nichols, Bluecoats alum John Weldy, Marching Arts Education podcaster Tim Hinton, DCI CEO Dan Acheson, and former Blue Knights member and podcast co-producer Mallory Anderson.

After months of preparation practice and planning, it’s time to take the show on the road! In Episode 4, Keith looks at what it takes to put a drum corps on the road and what that experience is like for performing corps members who travel thousands of miles across the country on their annual summer tour. Special guests include: DCI senior director of global business development John DeNovi, Madison Scouts alum Austin Armstrong, Blue Devils director Pat Seidling, former Boston Crusaders drum major Thompson Vou, and former Blue Knights member and podcast co-producer Mallory Anderson.

What is it about the drum corps experience that drives young people around the world to dedicate their lives to a moment, that while fleeting, will endure in memories for years to come? In Episode 3, Keith looks at what makes a great performer or performance. Special guests include: Marching Arts Education podcaster Tim Hinton, Crossmen drum major Lydia Marshall, Santa Clara Vanguard brass caption head Mark Nichols, former Boston Crusaders drum major Thompson Vou, Bluecoats drum major Payton Grunzke, and former Blue Knights member and podcast co-producer Mallory Anderson.

In Episode 2, Keith has an eye on the past to better understand the future, tracing the history of the drum corps activity from before the founding of Drum Corps International through changes and developments that have shaped the way we experience marching music performances today. Special guests include: DCI CEO Dan Acheson, DCI Hall of Fame member Michael Cesario, Marching Arts Education podcaster Tim Hinton, DCI judge administrator John Phillips, and former Blue Knights member and podcast co-producer Mallory Anderson.

Keith Kelly takes the reins of the Field Pass in his special edition series, “Finding Drum Corps.” In Episode 1, Keith talks through his introduction to the drum corps activity and learns more about the drum corps origin stories of a bevy of special guests including: Mark Nichols, Oisin Molloy, John DeNovi, David Glasgow, Dan Acheson, John Meehan and Mallory Anderson.

DCI's Dan Potter sits down with Irish musician and podcaster Keith Kelly to preview a new multi-part series, "Finding Drum Corps," coming to the Field Pass this summer.

Coming this summer in a special edition multi-part series, Irish podcaster Keith Kelly tells his personal story about how he discovered drum corps. "Finding Drum Corps" debuts on the Field Pass June 24!

Blue Devils, Blue Knights, Spirit of Atlanta, Spartans. The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series.

The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series this week covering Genesis, Pacific Crest, Blue Stars and Bluecoats.

The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series this week featuring Santa Clara Vanguard, The Cadets, The Academy and Legends.

The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series this week covering Gold, Colts, Mandarins and Carolina Crown.

The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series this week covering The Cavaliers, Crossmen, Madison Scouts and Music City.

The 2019 DCI World Championships were full of incredible musical moments. Dan Potter teams up with DCI's Michael Boo and Jeff Griffith in this six-part series this week covering Boston Crusaders, Phantom Regiment, Troopers, Jersey Surf, and Seattle Cascades.

It’s been an unusual season for a couple of Open Class powerhouses. Blue Devils B and Vanguard Cadets have both stayed in California and their seasons are already over. You might think the members and staff would be disappointed by that, but you’d be wrong. Dan Potter talks with directors Efrain Hinojosa of Blue Devils B and Rob Shetland of Vanguard Cadets in the afterglow of their Golden State-centric 2019 tours.

The traditionally all-male Madison Scouts announced that they will allow all genders to join the corps starting in 2020, and it’s news that has all of drum corps talking. Dan Potter gets insight on the organization’s decision-making process with Madison’s CEO Chris Komnick.

A lot is expected of you when you're the defending DCI World Champion. Through the eyes of head drum major Andrew Arbouzov and color guard captain Cheslee Morgan, Dan Potter finds out Santa Clara Vanguard is handling the pressures of the summer of 2019.

Sacramento, California's Mandarins have picked up where they left off in 2018 — and then some — fresh off of an inaugural trip to the DCI World Championship Finals. In the latest Field Pass Podcast, Dan Potter caught up with Mandarins creative director Mario Ramirez and second-year mellophone player Catie Burtch about the corps' progress and its 2019 production, "subTerra."

One of the last corps to release info about their 2019 competitive production, DCI's Dan Potter catches up with Bluecoats program coordinator Dean Westman for the full reveal.

The 2019 Drum Corps International Tour steps off in a matter of days. Before you head to Ford Field in Detroit, or one of hundreds of movie theaters nationwide to watch the premiere, take a look behind the curtain at what last year's Top 12 World Class corps are putting on the field this year with DCI's Dan Potter and DCI artistic director Lee Carlson.

It’s a season of change for the seven-time World Champion Cavaliers, and the executive director position is no exception. As the corps gets set to begin its 2019 campaign, find out what is drawing Monte Mast to the Rosemont corps, just weeks after his retirement from a more than 30-year career as a music educator and administrator.

Just over a month since the DCI World Championship Finals wrapped up in Indianapolis, Dan Potter takes a look and listen back through 2018’s Top 12 with DCI.org columnist Michael Boo.

The Cavaliers' 2018 show, "On Madness and Creativity," was inspired by the stories of composer Maurice Ravel and painter Anne Adams, both of whom were thought to suffer with the degenerative brain disease progressive aphasia. One of the early symptoms of the disease is a flood of creativity. In this Field Pass podcast, Dan Potter finds out how one song held the final key to completing The Cavaliers' production and why the corps' artistic director Danny Wiles thinks this year's top six corps could be the best top six ever.

Tonight will be the 15th "Big, Loud and Live" cinema broadcast of the DCI World Championship Prelims. 15 years is impressive. But, it's just a fraction of the total time that DCI Hall of Fame member Steve Rondinaro has been broadcasting drum corps. Tonight marks Rondinaro’s 40th broadcast as the main host of a DCI World Championships, first on PBS, then ESPN and now in movie theaters. In a Finals Week Field Pass, Dan Potter chats with Steve about those four decades in the "air chair" and learns some things about “Reliable Rondo” we didn't know.

Santa Clara Vanguard is currently enjoying its most successful season in almost two decades. The California corps looks to have a competitive edge heading into the final week of the season and could be on track to claim its first World Championship title since 1999. Some of the credit for the corps' return to the top of DCI's World Class goes to second-year artistic director Michael Gaines. In this week's Field Pass podcast, Dan Potter goes in-depth with Gaines about the design and performance of Vanguard’s 2018 production "Babylon."

A funny thing happened to the Field Pass when it went in search of barbacoa and breakfast tacos on Sunday after the DCI Southwestern Championship in San Antonio. We ran into The Cadets doing their laundry. And, we were reminded for the first time since we marched in a drum corps, laundry sucks. We also re-discovered the one joy of laundry day, the chance to just hang-out and chat about drum corps, and life, for a while.

Two of the reasons why 2018 has quickly become one of the most memorable drum corps seasons ever are Megan Hutera and Olivia Hayter. Megan is the flugelhorn soloist for the Madison Scouts and is the traditionally all-male corps' first, full-fledged, female member. Olivia is the remarkable vocal soloist belting out tunes by Joni Mitchell and Billie Holiday in Bluecoats' production "Session 44." Dan Potter introduces us to both in this edition of DCI's Field Pass podcast.

By almost any measure, Music City of Nashville is having a hugely successful first year in its first season performing in Drum Corps International's World Class division. Dan Potter chats with Music City executive director Kent Baker and Drum Major Patrick Nelsen in this week's Field Pass.

The Blue Stars are hard at work, framing and finishing their 2018 production, "The Once and Future Carpenter." Dan Potter found out, it's a show that reboots the music of The Carpenters, merging it with the contemporary compositions of John Alden Carpenter, and mixing in the soundscape of a carpenter's workshop.

After jumping from a 12th-place finish at the DCI World Championship Finals in 2016 to sixth place in 2017, a lot of drum corps fans are closely watching the Boston Crusaders this summer to see if they can continue their climb. Dan Potter visited the Crusaders as they prepared for the DCI Tour Premiere in Detroit to find out about this year's corps and its 2018 production "S.O.S."

The start of the 2018 Drum Corps International Tour is upon us! In the latest episode of DCI’s Field Pass podcast, Dan Potter sits down with first-year DCI artistic director Lee Carlson for an in-depth look at some of the new and innovative ideas corps will be bringing to the field this summer.

This past Saturday, spring training for the entire 2018 Drum Corps International tour came to parade rest as the community paused to consider the topic of mutual care and respect. This week's Field Pass with Dan Potter gives us backstage access to the event, which was webcast live from Bluecoats' spring training at Indiana Wesleyan University. Then, Dan hits the road to check in on The Cadets at their camp in Ada, Ohio.

In the Arizona desert, a new creative hand is guiding The Academy into the 2018 Drum Corps International season. Lindsey Vento, well known in the marching band and winter guard worlds for her contagious energy and groundbreaking show designs, is the corps’ new artistic director. The interview is one in a new series of profiles highlighting the leadership of women in drum corps, as part of DCI's IN STEP: Women in DCI initiative. In this special edition of DCI's Field Pass, Dan Potter has a candid discussion with Vento about everything from her unconventional path to the marching arts, to recent current events, to The Academy's 2018 production "Academic."

The #MeToo movement has affected businesses and organizations of all sorts around the world, and Drum Corps International is no exception. In today’s Field Pass podcast, Dan Potter talks with DCI board member Kathy Black on the efforts of the Women in DCI committee and Carolina Crown drum major Elayna Youngson on her recently-published essay addressing #MeToo in drum corps as a microcosm of society. Potter is also joined by DCI executive director and CEO Dan Acheson who talks about a major reset in the wake of recent events and what is developing into a positive culture shift for all activities and programs within the DCI community.

This summer marks a changing of the guard for Drum Corps International. This will be with first season with Lee Carlson as DCI's Artistic Director. In this month's Field Pass, Dan Potter helps us get to know Lee in a pair of in-depth interviews exploring how he'll approach the job and his vision of the future of drum corps.

It was the hot topic of January's Drum Corps International Annual Meeting: A rules change proposal that would have put limits on the amplification of horn lines. While the rules change itself was voted down, the discussion it sparked will echo in stadiums for years to come. Dan Potter "amplifies" some of what was said by the activity's top directors, designers and instructors in this edition of DCI's Field Pass podcast.

The 2017 Drum Corps International season is in the final days of what's been a spectacular season. In today's Field Pass, Dan Potter takes us to two events bound to be remembered as highlights of the last week of the 2017 tour: The Open Class Championships in Michigan City and a very special tribute in Allentown.

It's one of the biggest lightning rods for criticism of drum corps in the last 10 years. It's the elephant on the front sidelines that few people discuss in-depth unless they’re complaining about what they don't like: Amplification. In today's Field Pass, Dan Potter takes a look at how the Blue Devils are making the most of electronics and amplification in 2017, including one audio effect that brings a piece of the corps’ past into the future.

Drum Corps International’s 2017 Open Class tour is underway and if you miss these OC corps this summer, you're missing some of the most energetic and entertaining ensembles on the planet. Dan Potter sets the stage for the final run toward the Open Class World Championships and chats with a few of this year's iconic World Class performers from The Cadets and Bluecoats in today's Field Pass.

The Mandarins have been DCI Semifinalists the last six years but they've never been able to crack the elite “Top 12.” They could this year. Dan Potter looks at the Sacramento-based corps' 2017 production "Inside the Ink" in today's Field Pass.

The thermostat gets turned up on the DCI Summer Tour this week as corps invade the baked earth of the Lone Star State. Texas is known for its weather extremes and, as we hear in today's Field Pass, more than ever before DCI is ready for whatever the forces of nature throw at us. Dan Potter talks with Dr. Kevin Kloesel, meteorologist at the University of Oklahoma's Office of Emergency Preparedness, and DCI executive director Dan Acheson.

Formed in 1967, Santa Clara Vanguard is celebrating its golden anniversary this summer, and the corps is definitely in pursuit of gold on the road to Indy, topping last year's champs the Bluecoats for the first time in three years at DCI Minnesota. But, success rarely comes without controversy. Dan Potter looks at the debates Vanguard's show, "Ouroboros" is sparking in its 50th year, as well as how the corps is answering its critics, in today's Field Pass.

The performers of The Academy seem to be having a lot of fun staging their 2017 production, "By a Hare." Dan Potter shares some laughs with drum major and longtime member Sierra Rogers in today's Field Pass.