Ringing through the streets of Michigan City on Saturday, July 6, was the sound of Bugle Corps from around the country. Ames Field filled up, and the crowd was eager to hear the beautiful music and watch the unique formations being made by each Corp.
Michigan City has had the honor of hosting the Drum Corp International for many years. Along with Michigan City being the venue, The Cavaliers have always sister-hosted, this marking their 53rd anniversary. Drum Corp International, (DCI), was founded in 1972. One of the first shows was held in Michigan City during Summerfest, making the city one of the founding fathers.
DCI is for musicians up to the age of 22. They actually pay to be in the Corp. Each group travels from early June to late August. They sleep in schools and practice around ten hours a day and then are on their way to the next competition. Each Corp gets to travel the country while performing.
The Corps that competed were: Blue Stars (La Crosse, WI), The Cavaliers ( Rosemont, IL), Colt Cadets (Dubuque, IA), Crossmen (San Antonio, TX), Legends (Kalamazoo, MI), Madison Scouts (Madison, WI), and Spirit of America (Atlanta, GA).
The Cavaliers are five time DCI champions. They are known nationally. When a musician reaches the age of 22, they move on to the brother Corp known as the Classic Cavaliers. These gentlemen perform in parades and at other venues to raise money for the junior group. The Cavaliers truly represent a brotherhood with one of the members being close to 70. At the end of the competition, the Classic Cavaliers performed a series of songs for the crowd.
The big rivals represented tonight were the Madison Scouts and the Cavaliers. These groups were the last two to perform. The Scouts had a tribute to the soldiers, and the Cavaliers followed with their Secret Society piece.
Each Corp had very intricate formations, and each performance told a story. To help raise money, there were 50/50 drawings and donations that were made. The 50/50 raffle was to raise money for the Brubaker Scholarship fund. The Cavaliers are trying to raise $5000. Also available was fan gear for each Corp.
The competition was scored and the top five Corps were recognized on the field. Coming in 5th place, with a score of 72.5, was the Crossmen. Following in 4th place, with a score of 72.55, was Blue Star. Taking home bronze, with a score of 75.6, was Spirit of America. Taking silver, with a score of 78.75, was the Cavaliers. Awarded gold, scoring 79.2, was Madison Scouts.
Celebrating anniversaries were both the Cavaliers and Scouts. The Scouts reached their 75th anniversary and the Cavaliers celebrated their 73rd. After the awards ceremony, the Cavaliers took the field again to recognize their anniversary and played to honor the brothers before them.
The units’ next stop will be in San Antonio to compete in Regional’s. The next time Michigan City will see DCI is August 5-6. City will host prelims and finals for DCI. Corps from all over the country will be competing, along with a Corp all the way from Taiwan.
Dave Hack, chairman for the Michigan City SummerFest Pageant of Drums, said, “We have different drum corps every year. Michigan City is very drum corp friendly. We always have a huge crowd. Here tonight we have between 2500-3000 people.”