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This weekend, Paul Rennick from Santa Clara Vanguard will join the IPE judges panel at the Scandinavian IPE percussion regional. This Saturday, nine percussion units from Sweden and Denmark will enter the competition floor.

Paul Rennick is currently the University of North Texas (UNT) percussion coordinator and percussion arranger and he is on staff as the percussion arranger of Santa Clara Vanguard. He will judge the Ensemble Music caption during the IPE Scandinavian percussion regional in Mölnlycke - Sweden. Rennick is already familiar with IPE, he did a clinic during the 2011 IPE European Championships. His University of North Texas drumline performed at the event.

At the regional in Sweden there will be performances by GOT Motion, Gislaved Drum & Drill Corps, Göteborg Drum Corps, Hule Sharks, Mölnlycke Drum Corps, Hinnerup Garden, Mölndal Drum Corps, Ungdomsorkesten Göta Lejon Drumline and Nuclear Devils Drumband. Details of the event can be found at www.indoorpercussioneurope.org.

The Kidsgrove Scouts will be returning to Drum Corps Associates in 2015. The corps will compete in regionals and the DCA Finals in Rochester - New York. It will be their third tour since 2010.

The tour will be from Monday 24th August until Monday 7th September 2015 and will be family friendly as in 2010 and 2012. "We’ll use hotels for accommodation and there will be a balance of hard drum corps rehearsal and free time", according corps director Rob Swindells. "We fully expect the interest to be very high so in order to plan early we are going to set a limit on marching members for this tour." The limits are 54 brass, 16 percussion, 12 front ensemble, 30 guard and 2 drum majors.

"There are fantastic plans been worked on to make it an unbelievable experience for all who participate", Swindells continues. "The DCA community suits our organisation perfectly and once again I am sure they will welcome us with open arms and very loud receptions. Fantastic and exciting times are ahead once again. I hope to have you as part of the team and living the dream."

More information on the 2015 DCA tour can be found at www.kidsgrovescouts.com.

Drum Corps Europe has released the DCE Competition Manual 10.0. The manual will be the basis of the European Music Games 2014. Here is an overview of the changes compared to version 9.2.

Clarifying competition times (page 8)
The rule about competition times has been rewritten to clarify it better.

Introduction of ‘competition area’ (page 6 and 8)
The term ‘competition area’ has been introduced in the manual. This is the area of a venue where the contest field and staging area are situated. Corps have 18 minutes (Premier Class) or 15 minutes (Junior Class) to use this area after a signal given by the contest staff. It’s is possible that the corps is placed on the competition area while another corps is still performing. This isn’t included in the 18 (15) minutes. After 18 (15) minutes the competition area should have been cleared (all corps members, corps staff and equipment should have left the competition area).

Age limit rule changed (page 7)
The maximum age of 16 year (Junior Class) counts on the date of the DCE Championships. Should the DCE rules be applied by a national organisation, a corps with members aged 17 or over at the date of the DCE Championships may request dispensation from their national organisation. The acceptance of such requests are at the discretion of the national organisation.

Position sound engineer (page 7)
It’s allowed to have the sound engineer placed outside the competition area.

Explanation of the use of paradigms (page 19)
The explanation on how paradigms are used has been added.

Responsibilities of staff and judges (page 22)
A new diagram has been added to make clear where responsibilities of judges start.

Effect captions changed (various pages)
The names on the two sub captions of the Effect captions have been changed from 'Content' and 'Achievement' to 'Design Effectiveness' and 'Performance effectiveness'. The captions themselves have not been changed. The new names connect better to the content of the captions.

Junior Class sheets removed (all sheets)
The Premier Class sheets are now also used for the Junior Class, the Junior Class judging sheets have been removed. The Junior Class is judged is based on a different paradigm.

Wording box 2 changed (all sheets)
The wording in box 2 has been changed from 'fair' to 'some'. This is based on experience of the judges with qualifying what is meant by the word 'fair' - which is in itself subjective. 'Some' is more objective in the way it’s more countable. It also fits better in the range of boxes (little, some, good, excellent, superior). This change accommodates judges and corps staff better in understanding box 2.

The DCE Competition Manual can be downloaded here.

Germany's biggest international music festival this year will be a DCE certified show. Currently, five corps have already registered for the 59th internationale 'Rasteder Musiktage' (5th and 6th July). Beatrix from The Netherlands will be one of the competitiors at the German music event.

Corps that have registered are Carpe Diem Marchingband from Bremerhaven (Germany), Showband Sprit of 52 from Rastede (Germany), Beatrix Drum & Bugle Corps from Hilversum (Netherlands), Wölper Löwen Drum & Bugle Corps from Neustadt am Rübenberge (Germany) and Starriders Drum & Bugle Corps Bad Münder (Germany). The event has about 2,500 spectators.

"We are pleased to offer the drum corps scene the possibility to face a big audience and show so many people the beauty of our activity" said Torsten Wilters, President of the Rasteder Musiktage. Stefan Scheffler, responsible for the execution of the music festival, continues: "The corps will find perfect conditions, free rehearsal places in the local area, and free accommodation. A very reasonably priced meal is also offered."

Currently have about 30 bands in Europe, registered for this unique music festival. The bands can aply until 1st March. Some interested bands from overseas will probably be present too. Corps from Colombia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and China are currently planning the trip and collect the money to come this year to Rastede.

The two first corps from the DCE competition are qualified to the European Open Championship on Sunday in the WAMSB (World Association of Marching Show Bands) class 'Show'. In addition, they qualify for the WAMSB World Championship 2015 in Copenhagen - Denmark. "We have agreed with the board of WAMSB that all participants can make their stay in Europe as cheap as possible", Wilters concludes.

Corps that want to start this year in Rastede, can email to info@rastedermusiktage.de. More information can be found at www.rastedermusiktage.de.

The music of the new show by Kadoudal Drum & Bugle Corps from Quiberon will sound familiar to many drum corps fans. The show 'Por Favor' contains a number of drum corps classics. 
 
Kadoudal, which is returning to the Junior Class this year, brings a show full of dance and colour. It has chosen music pieces that were regularly performed on the contest fields in the 80s and 90s of the previous century. They have chosen 'Malagueña' (Ernesto Lecuona), 'Conquistador' (Jay Chattaway / Mayanard Ferguson), 'Concerto d'Aranjuez' (Joaquin Rodrigo) and 'La Fiesta' (Chick Corea). 

Oscar Hevbyn is in charge of both the musical arrangements and the show design. Kadoudal has been participating in the Junior Class of the DCE Championships for years. Last year, the French Corps made ​​their debut in the Premier Class, but will be back in the Junior Class this year.

René Conway, DCE judge in Asia, passed away on Wednesday at the age of 50. He was a valued judge for the Asian judges panel.

René (Bachelor in music from SAM State University Houston) marched Phantom Regiment in 1984 and was a percussion instructor at numerous high school bands in the United States. He was active in Indonesia since 1991, and in 1992 he became instructor of Pupuk Kaltim Marching Band from Bontang - East Borneo.

"The DCE Judges were saddened to hear of the passing of René Conway, who was a valued and respected member of the DCE judging team in Asia", DCE Adjudication Manager Mark Bassett says. "I am sure that René, and his vast experience and success in our activity, will be greatly missed by all who knew him. On behalf of DCE, I would like to offer our condolences and best wishes to René's family and friends."

The IMBA Winter Guard and Indoor Percussion Championships were held in the National basketball arena in Tallaght last Saturday. There were seven participants in all catagories, and all entrants are affiliated to IMBA bands that compete on the DCE circuit.

The competition was held in association with Winterguard UK and IPE. In the winter guard competition, Vickettes (Tallaght Youth Band) were winners of the Cadet Class. In the A-Class Infinity (Clondalkin Youth Band) made great progress since their debut performance in this competition in 2013, and their show 'Sticks and Stones' placed 2nd. A-Class winners WinterFestival (Talaght Festival Band) are taking a full part in the UK winter guard circuit with their show ‘How Do You Feel’.

In IPE, Tallaght Festival Percussion made their debut performance in the compeititon however it was Mór Blue (Inbhear Mór Marchers) who retained the IMBA IPE championship.

This year there is a lot of interest in the German Open. Already, more participants have registered with the organisation compared to last year.

The organisation of the event has already signed up eight participants. Last year, seven corps participated in the contest in Hameln, which is part of the European Music Games. Like in previous years, the judging will be provided by the European judging team of Drum Corps Europe.

Participants so far include Starriders Cadets (Junior Class), Blue Bandits, Kriftel, Red Stars (Concert Class), Carpe Diem, Spirit of 52, Starriders and Wölper Löwen (Premier Class). Registration is still open. The German Open will be held on Saturday 6th September in the Weserbergland Stadium in Hameln. The competition is open to German and non-German corps.

A lot of drum corps fans are qorried about DCI's recent rule change to allow any type of brass instruments on the field. An online petition has been singed by almost 5,000 fans so far.

On 7th February 2014, Drum Corps International passed a new rule stating that all brass instruments are allowed to march on the drum corps field. This includes French horns, sousaphones, and trombones. "Those who have followed drum corps for years know that this change is not only breaking many traditions, but is moving the activity to be a lot closer to high school and college marching band", according to the anonymous creator of the petition.

"Drum Corps International is always looking to innovate the activity, which is great and sometimes needed, but this new change is unnecessary and some would say even sad. Help us in our journey into keeping DCI unique and for maintaining the traditions that has made the organization and activity what it is today."

At this moment, 4,941 people signed the petition.

Drum Corps International will allow any brass instrument in the competition, even those not traditionally considered to be of the 'bell-front' variety as stipulated in the DCI rulebook. The proposal passed overwhelmingly by the voting membership at the DCI Winter Business Meetings last weekend.

"Similar to how a percussionist can play any percussion instrument including those which would be considered to be 'non-traditional' in a marching music setting, or to how guard members can manipulate any type of equipment or prop as a part of their performance, why not let the brass player play any type of instrument within the brass genome?”, Komnick said explaining the intent of the proposal initiated by Madison Scouts Artistic Director James Mason. “This allows the musical palette to extend ever so slightly beyond its current boundaries.”

This is the first major change in brass instrumentation to affect the DCI rulebook since a proposal allowing 'any-key' brass instruments was implemented in 2000. The rule will take effect with the start of the 2014 Drum Corps International season, but it is still to be seen if and how corps designers will take advantage of the opportunity to expand their playbooks to incorporate the different brass sounds now available.

The Executive Director of the South African Field Band Foundation, Retha Cilliers, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 57. She was the driving force behind the organisation that tries to give disadvantaged young people from show bands a chance at a better life.

Cilliers was the Executive Director of the Field Band Foundation for fourteen years, and in that role she put her heart and soul into building up the organisation and the opportunities for young people from disadvantaged neighbourhoods to give substance and normality to their lives. In her time as Director, the Field Band Academy was set up to train instructors too.

Last week, she took a step back due to health problems. At the time, the board of the organisation appointed her as 'Ambassador Extraordinary'. In this role, Cilliers would remain in contact with sponsors and donors as long as her fight against cancer would allow.

No less than nine European countries are represented in the competition of Indoor Percussion Europe this year. The organisation has announced that 21 drumlines will compete. The season details have been published.

Indoor Percussion Europe welcomes units from the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Belgium, France and Italy. IPE has an impressive line up with three units in the International Marching Class, seven in the European Marching Class, nine in the Concert Class and two in the Junior Concert Class.

The first IPE show this year will take place this Sunday 15th February in Tallaght - Ireland, in conjunction with the Irish Marching Bands Association. The full schedule can be found at www.indoorpercussioneurope.org.

The American cabler VH1 has given the green light to a TV movie follow-up to ‘Drumline’ (2002), the network announced. The sequel will have a female lead character.

‘Drumline: A New Beat’ (working title) will focus on a new set of characters at a fictional New Orleans university. The new story will follow Dani Bolton, an upper-class Brooklyn girl who defies her parents in order to attend a college in Louisiana so she can join and revitalize their once-prominent drumline. Dani’s quest to become the first female section leader of the drumline in the school’s history will be hampered by upperclassmen, her feelings for fellow band mate Jayven and the school’s crosstown rivals.

Lead character Nick Cannon (lead character Devon Miles in the original Drumline movie) will have an onscreen role and executive produce alongside feature producers Wendy Finerman, Jody Gerson and Dallas Austin. Regina Hicks and Karin Gist will pen the script for the new take, with production set to begin in the spring for a fall 2014 premiere.

"Drumline has become one of those beloved cornerstone films for a generation, always generating high ratings when we air it on VH1," VH1 executive vp original programming and production Susan Levison said. "We’re beyond excited to revisit that Drumline magic with Nick Cannon, Wendy Finerman, Dallas Austin and Jody Gerson to create a film that features a strong, relatable storyline, great music and a little nostalgia. All of which viewers have come to expect from a VH1 original movie." (Source: Hollywood Reorter)

The European percussion championships of Indoor Percussion Europe will not be held in Tournai this year, but in Wevelgem which is also in Belgium. The organisation has found a venue there that better meets the needs of the participants. 

Evaluations from groups showed that the venue in Tournai did not have all the facilities that were important to the participants, including an indoor warm up area and changing rooms. Indoor Percussion Europe therefore went looking for a venue that could provide such facilities and found 'De Vlaschaard' hall in Wevelgem. This sports hall has now been booked.

The hall is located just 20 minutes from Tournai. Nearby there is an additional hall available where participants can warm up in case of bad weather. There are also changing rooms that the groups can use. The IPE European Championships will be held on Sunday 6th April.

This year’s contest of Indoor Percussion Europe in Ireland will go ahead. The contest is a joint event of Indoor Percussion Europe and the Irish Marching Bands Association.

In the European Marching Percussion Class, Tallaght Festival (Tallaght Festival Band) will compete against Mór Blue (Inbhear Mór Marchers). The percussion event is part of the IMBA Winter Guard and Indoor Percussion Championships.

The championships will be held on Saturday 15th February at the Tallaght Basketball Arena in Dublin. As well as the two percussion groups, five winterguards will also present their shows: Infinity, Inbhear Mór and Winter Festival (A Class), Vikettes and Crusaders (Junior Class). The winter guard contest is held in cooperation with Winter Guard United Kingdom.

For the full IPE season information, please visit www.indoorpercussioneurope.org.

Heartliner are planning to host a Drum Corps Show in Ludwigshafen. Starting in 2014, it will be a permanent show in the European Music Games.

Drum Corps in Germany has never been as strong as it is today. The only thing lacking is a proper number of show events like the ones in Hameln and Rastede. "We are very convinced that an additional offer will receive much interest, especially from other German corps", Heartliner's Corps Director Uwe Baum said. Like in Hameln, there will be a Concert Class in addition to a Premier Class. The show will be held on 14th June.

In order to make this show even more attractive, Heartliner have a supportive partner at hand. LUKOM, a Ludwigshafen-based marketing and congress corporation, is working together with the Corps to create a unique show experience.

Two show sites have been offered by LUKOM: The local 'Südweststadion', which is an outdoor stadium, and an indoor venue called Friedrich Ebert Halle. This indoor show site would offer enough space and a large stand, comparable to the sites used in Japanese drum corps shows. A campaign, advertising the show both locally and nationwide, will not only attract fans from the drum corps scene, but also local citizens. Posters and ads will spread the word in the next weeks.

Drum Corps Europe has certified the event and a the DCE judging team will judge the performances based on the DCE Competition Manual. This show and the chosen date are not clashing with any other drum corps show dates in Europe.

Official invitations are being sent out shortly to all interested corps.

The design team of Juliana Drum & Bugle Corps from Middelburg has started designing the new show. The corps will be asking itself lots of questions, with the appropriate show title “What If?”. The inspiration comes from extraordinary people for whom the question “What If?” led to great things.

What if there was only one religion? What if gay was straight? What if left was right? What if people were measured in kindness instead of weight? “We ask ourselves other questions so that we might be able to find better answers,” according to Juliana. The corps was inspired by people like Rosa Parks, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Steve Jobs. People who dared to take a stand when nobody else did, and chose their own way against the grain.

This will be the main theme of the show. Juliana explains the theme as: “A show about daring to think differently and choosing to see the glass half full. The many possible answers combined with the courage of extraordinary people give us hope for the future.” The musical programme this year is a combination of work by Key Poulan and the corps’ own arrangements. As always, the remaining design work is entirely their own. It has not yet been announced what musical pieces will be used in the show.

Cadence Drum & Bugle Corps have announced their summer 2014 programme entitled 'Nightscapes'. Thew corps will take the audience through the night in the big city.

Explore the chaos, the fun, the parties and the heartbreak before Cadence hit the calm and the promise of the new day that follows. The four musical and visual movements in the programme are: 'Rush Hour', 'Nightlife', 'Moonlight' en 'New Day'.

The in house, 100% UK based, desgn team is returning in 2014, including The Knightrider (brass arranger), Bobbie Clifford (visual design), Roxanne Bicknell (auxiliary design), Vicky Batley-Spalding (battery percussion arranger) and Andy Bradbury (pit percussion arranger).

Cadence will be competing once again on the BYBA and DCUK contest circuits in 2014.

Every month, we will be giving you an overview of the most watched drum corps news of the past month. Here is the list of the most popular news items from December 2013, including the Corps Page Top 5.

The Drumcorps.org.uk Hot News Top 5 from December 2013:

1. DCE publishes the corps list for 2014
Date: 14th December. Views: 1822

2. "Drum corps sound can be damaging to hearing health"
Date: 12th December. Views: 613

3. Crown will perform on national television Christmas Day
Date: 21st December. Views: 534

4. Mark Bassett is the new DCE Adjudication Manager
Date: 4th December. Views: 532

5. Watch Crown’s performance at Disney parade online
Date: 26th December. Views: 525

The Corps Page Top 5 from December 2013:

1. The Company
2. Beatrix
3. Jubal
4. Jong Jubal
5. Juliana

The year 2013 was a good 'social' year for DCE. Both on Facebook and on Twitter, the number of followers of the drum corps organisation grew considerably. 

This growth is partly due to the introduction of the multilingual Facebook pages of Drum Corps Europe. In April, Dutch, German, French and Italian Facebook pages were created alongside the English page. The number of 'likes' increased from 1448 on the 1st of January to 3891 by the 31st of December. The English-language page, which is the main page, remained the most popular.

On Twitter, the number of followers also increased sharply. The total number of followers on all DCE Twitter accounts has now almost reached 4000. No liker or follower of DCE yet? Do it now, it only takes five seconds!

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/drumcorpseurope (English)
www.facebook.com/drumcorpsnl (Dutch)
www.facebook.com/drumcorpsde (German)
www.facebook.com/drumcorpsfr (French)
www.facebook.com/drumcorpsit (Italian)

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/drumcorpseurope (English)
www.twitter.com/drumcorpsnl (Dutch)
www.twitter.com/drumcorpsde (German)
www.twitter.com/drumcorpsfr (French)
www.twitter.com/drumcorpsit (Italian)