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Drones are often associated with warfare, espionage and other not very friendly uses. But a company from Illinois shows a very nice use for drones: filming a drum corps show.

The use of small helicopters can give a new dimension to the filming of a drum corps performance. Robert Cawthorne from the company Up High Pictures, who is also the videographer at Phantom Regiment, brought his helicopter to a show rehearsal of the corps at Rockford University and made ​​a music video using only 'flying' images. The result is shown below.

Whether the DCE Video Vault will be using drones in future is not yet known. What is clear is that this way of filming can provide spectacular footage.

The performances of the DCN contest in Roosendaal have been recorded in HD quality and added to the DCE Video Vault. Subscribers to the video platform can view all recordings in full. Free previews are available. 

Eight performances have been recorded by cameraman Bass Vernes and added to the DCE Video Vault. Not subscribed to the DCE Video Vault yet? For less than 20 euros a year you can have a subscription with unlimited access to all videos in the archive.

More information can be found at http://dce.videovault.eu.

The website of Drum Corps Media has been off the air for some time. That does not mean that owner Maarten van het Hof no longer has a platform for the many photos. Facebook is now swarming with drum corps snapshots. 

Not only has Drumcorpsmedia.com been inactive for a couple of month, so has its sister site Winterguardmedia.com. The websites are being redesigned before they go online again. Meanwhile, photographer Maarten van het Hof is not standing still and has uploaded pictures of the DCN contest in Roosendaal - The Netherlands. 288 pictures of the Junior Class are now on DCM's Facebook page and also 263 pictures of the Premier Class have been added.

The photos are low resolution but can be purchased in high resolution. The Facebook page of Drum Corps Media can be found here.

Jubal and Jong Jubal have won the first battle of the season. The corps from Dordrecht were victorious in front of a sold-out stand in Roosendaal in both the Premier and the Junior Class. Hundreds of spectators enjoyed the first contest of the new season at sports park Hulsdonk. 

With 67.45 points, Jubal was way ahead of its competing colleagues Jong Holland (53.30) and the Wölper Löwen (48.35). First place in the Junior Class also went to Dordrecht. Jong Jubal convinced the jury and received 66.25 points. Johan Friso came second (60.55), followed by Jong Beatrix (58.45), Jong-Holland Junioren (53.55) and Confetti (49.15). All scores and recaps can be found on the score page.

The DCN contest in Roosendaal was the first contest of the European Music Games 2014. The next is the DCUK contest on Sunday the 15th of June in Bradford.

Juliana Drum & Bugle Corps from Middelburg, The Netherlands will be travelling to the United Kingdom to compete at the DCUK Championships in the Premier (Open) Class. The Corps will arrive on Thursday September 18th and will staying in Wilmslow at the Wilmslow Phoenix Sports Club.

Harrold de Raad, Tour Manager from Juliana says: “We try to make travels abroad more often. In 2011 and 2013 we took a 10-day trip to Italy and the members loved it. The members and staff are very excited to compete at DCUK Finals in 2014. It was about time, a Dutch Corps travelled to the UK. Also, it is a great possibility to get some more feedback from the audience and the judges before we go to the DCE Championships.

It has been over 15 years since a Dutch drum corps has travelled to the UK to compete at a DCUK Event. The last time Juliana came to DCUK was in 1997 where they competed in the A-Class.

Alan Thompson, on behalf of Drum Corps United Kingdom, added "We are delighted to welcome Juliana back to the UK and are really pleased that the previous Drum Corps Netherlands Champion Corps (DCN Champions in 2010, 2011 and 2012) will be adding to the spectacle and excitement on Saturday 20th September at the Select Security Stadium in Widnes for the 35th British Drum Corps Championships."

"Friday 16th May provided my first DCE Judges College. Travelling from London – Brussels, I was met by Mark and Helen Bassett who had kindly agreed to collect me from the airport and transport me to the hotel headquarters."

A report by Barry Davis

"On arrival, I was greeted by a number of friends and what would be my fellow DCE judges from here on. Bob Thomas personally introduced himself, and then we discussed my history and Bob’s passion for DCE coupled with the plans and focuses for the judges’ college weekend.

Saturday morning started with the complete judging panel meeting for the first time since DCE Championships. With judges from the UK, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium and the USA, it was clear to see that the judges had formed good friendships, all very pleased to be reunited.

Everyone introduced themselves which was then followed by Mark Bassett and Ann Legon providing information based on administration and best practice. Everyone was very passionate about DCE as a whole, discussions based around the past and the future was all treated with excitement and anticipation for the years to come.

The day then continued with every judge providing a detailed synopsis of their scores and commentary from the Championships, both Prelims and Finals. Bob led this session, encouraging and supporting every judge to explain their reasons as to why they awarded both their rates and rankings and their understanding of how that fell in line with the criteria/system. It was certainly an interesting session but all judges spoke with real conviction and honesty. We then split into two groups (visual and music) where both groups drilled down even further to produce even more detailed analysis.

The groups then re-joined to set the 2015 paradigms – a very professional process led by Bob with all judges providing input to ensure their captions had the best possible paradigm for the up and coming season.

The evening was completed by a number of judges sitting their recertification tests, plus I sat my certification test. The test is designed to test the judge's understanding of the system, check everyone has the level of understanding required to provide high quality judging.

Sunday Morning College was an opportunity to view a live drum corps as Jubal kindly dropped by to provide live sessions for the judges work shop. This proved to be very insightful for every judge, splitting into brass, percussion and guard sections allowing every judge the opportunity to ask direct questions and clarifications.

The weekend was designed and delivered in a very informative and supportive manner. Every judge was encouraged to interact throughout whilst a great deal of respect to all was clear to see. The judges left feeling very excited for the 2015 season and extremely eager to provide their first assignment."

Last year, the World Music Contest in Kerkrade brought considerably fewer visitors to the Parkstad Limburg Stadium than expected. The organisation had hoped for 70,000 visitors, but in three weekends 41,000 people came to the marching and show competitions. A decline of over 40 percent. 

Business leader Hans Bosch of the WMC blames the decline in the number of visitors on the distribution of the corps over three instead of four weekends, so one weekend was cut. There was also a lack of crowd pleasers from the United States last year. For the next WMC in 2017, the organisation will try to get more crowd pleasers for the stadium. They will also change the schedule.

The concert competitions in the Rodahal did attract more spectators. According to Bosch, this is a sign that wind music still has a great appeal.

This weekend DCE accredited judges from across Europe will meet in Zwevegem - Belgium for the 2014 Judges College. The college is an annual event held in May, which follows the conclusion of the winterguard and indoor percussion seasons and provides an opportunity for judges to ready themselves ahead of the new drum corps season.

"This year we have all but 2 of our close to 30 member team in attendance", says DCE Adjudication Manager MArk Bassett. "I’m pleased to say that we also have two trainees attending in the hope of becoming accredited." The objective of the college is to explain the changes of the Competition Manual, continue the education process, the transfer of knowledge and to reinforce the foundation of the judging process. This year’s theme is ‘Enhance the Experience’.

"I am very much looking forward to meeting with friends from the judging team this weekend", Mark Bassett continues. "We have a full agenda to cover, with topics that will help us continue to provide a professional service to the drum corps community in Europe. It’s hard to believe that almost 8 months have passed since championships in Kerkrade and the first competition in Roosendaal is just around the corner. I hope that this weekend’s college will be a fun and educational experience, which will focus and energise all judges for the upcoming European Music Games."

Drum Corps Europe is always looking for new judges to join the team. If you are interested, please drop me an email at judges@drumcorpseurope.org.

The schedule for the first contest of Drum Corps Netherlands has been published. Next Saturday from 7pm, eight corps will appear at the starting line at sports park Hulsdonk in Roosendaal to kick off the Dutch and European drum corps season.

Confetti from Goes will be the first to get on the field in the Junior Class, followed by Jong-Holland Juniors (Zwijndrecht), Jong Beatrix (Hilversum), Johan Friso (Middelburg) and Jong Jubal (Dordrecht). The Premier Class will feature Wölper Löwen (Neustadt am Rübenberge), Jong-Holland (Zwijndrecht) and Jubal (Dordrecht).

The judges are Edwin Beens (Chief Judge, Visual Effect), Bob Kanne (Music Effect), Twan Trienekens (Field Music), Erwin van Gemert (Field Percussion), Theo van den Elshout (Ensemble Music), Marcel Klok (Visual Field), Tony Read (Colour Guard) and Mathieu Meulenaere (Visual Ensemble).

The DCN contest in Roosendaal is the start of the European Music Games in 2014 with a total of 15 contests in the United Kingdom (DCUK), Ireland (IMBA), the Netherlands (DCN) and Germany (Rasteder Musiktage and German Open), culminating in the DCE European Championships.

In a few weeks the European drum corps competition will start again, and there will no doubt a stream of videos will be uploaded again. For years, DCE Cinema has collected videos of drum corps and associated activities. Have you seen a nice video? Pass it on! 

Video editor David Baden regularly scours YouTube on the lookout for nice videos to put on DCE Cinema, on the homepage of the DCE website. If you have seen a great video, David and the viewers of DCE Cinema would love to receive the link to the video from you via email.

The videos can of course be your own videos, as long as they are more or less related to drum corps and have not been on YouTube for longer than two weeks. Only YouTube videos can be used in DCE Cinema. Video material that is subject to copyright will not be linked to, but everything else is welcome. You can email us at cinema@drumcorpseurope.org.

Roda JC football club has been relegated from the Dutch Premier League. A victory against Go Ahead Eagles was not enough for the host of the DCE European Championships on the last day of the competition, due to a draw of competitor NEC against national champions Ajax. 

Roda JC had been in last place in the league for several weeks already and, despite a victory, did not manage to change their fate. It is the first time in history that the club from Kerkrade has been relegated to the Dutch first division. Drum Corps Europe is very sorry for the friendly hosts of the European Championships and wishes Roda JC the best of luck in a speedy return to the Premier League ('eredivisie').

The DCE European Championships have been held at the Parkstad Limburg Stadium of Roda JC since 2008. Last year, DCE and Roda JC concluded a new five-year contract, which means that the European Championships will take place in Kerkrade until 2018 at least. You can order tickets for this year’s DCE Championships here.

Drum Corps United Kingdom has revealed the show entries for the 2014 contests. All shows are well attended. The British drum corps season starts in Bradford on 15th June.

Eight corps will enter the field at the contest in Bradford on 15th June. Two weeks later, ten corps enter the show in Woking (29th June). The third show, in Leicester on 13th July, will have eleven corps on the field. The last regular show of the DCUK season is in Romford on 7th September, again with eleven participating corps.

This year, DCUK welcomes the following corps in competition: 37th Kingswood, Black Knights, Cadence, East Coast Elite, Kidsgrove Scouts, Liberty, Nexus, Revolution, Spirit of Coventry, Staffordshire Knights, The Company, The Pacemakers (Premier Class/Open Class), Black Knights Cadets, Cadence Cadets, Cadence Juniors, Concord AllStars and Thurrock Marching Brass (Junior Class)

All entries per show can be found at www.dcuk.org.uk.

Once again, the ticket sales for the DCE Championships have resulted in a massive run on tickets this year. Traditionally, many fans throughout Europe are already in the starting blocks well in advance. Within 2 minutes the entire Section A was sold out and after fifteen minutes Section B was also full. In total, 1,350 tickets were sold online within the first few hours.

Drum corps fans have had Saturday the 27th of September marked in their diaries for months. Twenty European top corps are back in action. In total, there will be more than 30 amazing drum corps shows at the Parkstad Limburg Stadium in Kerkrade - The Netherlands.

It should come as no surprise that Sections A and B were sold out in no time. Forgot to get behind the computer at the start of the ticket sales? Don’t worry, there are still plenty of tickets available in the other sections, all in the main stand. Visit the DCE Ticket Shop now to make sure you get a ticket!

The prices for seats range from 17.50 to 30 euros, and tickets offer you access to the stadium throughout the day and evening. And there are also Super Seats available. If you want to attend the event in complete luxury, you can order a Super Seat for 125 euros, with overnight stays at the stadium hotel as an optional extra. In addition your own seat in the best area of the stadium, a Super Seat also offers complimentary refreshments, lunch, dinner and a DVD as a nice souvenir.

The ticket sale for the DCE European Championships will start tonight at 8pm London time (GMT) / 9 pm Amsterdam time (CET). We know from experience that the tickets will sell incredibly fast in the first few hours, so be on time if you want to secure a seat in the middle of the stand.

Every year thousands of drum corps fans come to the DCE European Championships for the best that Europe has to offer in drum corps. Are you coming too this year? Order your tickets tonight via the DCE website and enjoy 30 amazing drum corps shows at the Parkstad Limburg Stadium in Kerkrade on Saturday the 27th of September.

Prices for seats range from 17.50 to 30 Euros, and tickets give access to the stadium throughout the day and evening. If you want to attend the event in complete luxury, you can order a Super Seat for 125 Euros, with overnight stays at the stadium hotel as an optional extra. In addition to your own seat with a great view on the field, a Super Seat also offers complimentary refreshments, lunch, dinner and a DVD as a nice souvenir.

Orders can be paid using PayPal, credit card (via PayPal), iDeal (The Netherlands), Mister Cash (Belgium) and SofortBanking. The DCE Ticket Shop will open at exactly 8 pm London time (GMT) / 9 pm Amsterdam time (CET).

This year DCE hopes to welcome both supporters groups of corps and individual corps drum corps fans to the DCE European Championships again. One change has been made: the supporters groups will be more evenly distributed in the stands.

For years, a number of corps has brought along a large group of loyal supporters to the DCE Championships, and this year even more corps seem to be doing this. Drum Corps Europe is, of course, very pleased about this, because the fuller the stand, the more people can enjoy the top acts on the field. DCE’s survey held last year after the DCE Championships showed that many drum corps fans felt that the 'blocks' with hundreds of supporters were very large, and perhaps somewhat intimidating.

DCE would like everyone to have a great experience of the DCE Championships, and that is why supporters groups will be divided into blocks of up to 50 people. In this way, supporters will remain surrounded by other people from their corps, but is there a better distribution in the stands.

Ticket sales for the DCE European Championships will kick off next Thursday the 1st of May at 9 pm European time (CET) / 8 pm UK/Irish time (UTC). From that point onwards, the online ticket shop will be open.

This year marks exactly 40 years since the Juliana Corps Middelburg started using De Hoop windmill as their corps home. The corps will celebrate this on the 6th of June, the date on which in 1974 it received the key of probably one of the most striking clubhouses in the world.

De Hoop windmill, simply abbreviated as 'the mill' in the musical world of Middelburg, was built almost 300 years ago and is the oldest existing mill in Middelburg. The mill remained in operation as a windmill until 1920. The building has been the property of the city of Middelburg since 1948, who gave it a special purpose in 1974: the rehearsal space for Juliana. The extra thick walls come in handy to reduce noise.

Middelburg has a tradition of housing corps and bands in former windmills. Blue Spirit Drum & Bugle Corps and drum band MTV, both also from Middelburg, were also assigned mills in the area as their corps homes in the 1980s.

On Friday the 6th of June, the Juliana Corps Middelburg are planning a party to celebrate '40 years at the mill'. Exactly what the festivities will comprise is not yet known.

The ticket sale for the DCE European Championships has started for VIP members. VIP Members can order tickets before the general ticket sale starts on 1st May. No VIP Member yet? Join now and secure the best seats at the Parkstad Limburg Stadium in Kerkrade on 27th September!

Drum Corps Europe introduced their VIP Membership last year. For a fixed amount per year, drum corps fans will get free access to video platform The DCE Video Vault and the opportunity to order tickets (up to 2 per person) for the DCE European Championships before the official ticket sales start.

The VIP Membership is the perfect opportunity for those hard core drum corps fans to enjoy watching European top drum corps both at home and in the stadium. You can be a VIP Member from 29.95 euros per year. Get the VIP Membership now! You can then order tickets for this year from 24th April.

As always, the standard ticket sales for the DCE European Championships will start on 1st May. Note: for the first time, these are starting at 8pm (Ireland/UK time).

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 March 2014, including the Corps Page Top 5.

The Drumcorps.org.uk Hot News Top 5 from March 2014:

1. DCUK announces member corps in 2014
Date: 14th March. Views: 919

2. DCN announces its list of participants for 2014
Date: 15th March. Views: 834

3. Mayflower beats Dutch competition at WGI Regional
Date: 3rd March. Views: 763

4. Mosson opts out of DCE Championships
Date: 10th March. Views: 710

5. Kidsgrove Scouts are WGUK Open Class Champions
Date: 31st March. Views: 679

The Corps Page Top 5 from March 2014:

1. The Company
2. Jubal
3. Johan Friso
4. Heartliner
5. Juliana

Three members of Besana Secutores will be marching in a DCI corps this summer. All three will enter the American contest fields in a top 12 corps.

Davide Villa will be marching with the Blue Coats to euphonium, Lorenzo Viganò will play the baritone with the BostonCrusaders and Andrea Rovelli will play the trumpet at Spirit of Atlanta. “We are really excited to see them getting ready to start what is going to be a challenging, educational and life-changing experience and we are really glad to support them,” said Secutores. “We wish them the best of luck and we will be cheering for them during the summer.”

According to Secutores, the drum corps activity is still growing. “When Davide, Lorenzo and Andrea return, their experience will contribute to this growth.” Secutores itself will take part in the DCE European Championships in Kerkrade in September.

On 1st May, the ticket sales for the DCE European Championships will start again. Don’t want to wait that long? Get a VIP Membership and make sure that you get your tickets before the start of the official ticket sales.

Drum Corps Europe has introduced their VIP Membership. For a fixed amount per year, drum corps fans will get free access to video platform The DCE Video Vault and the opportunity to order tickets (up to 2 per person) for the DCE European Championships before the official ticket sales start.

The VIP Membership is the perfect opportunity for those hard core drum corps fans to enjoy watching European top drum corps both at home and in the stadium. You can be a VIP Member from 29.95 euros per year. Get the VIP Membership now. You can then order tickets for this year from 24th April at 9pm.

As always, the standard ticket sales for the DCE European Championships will start on 1st May. Note: for the first time, these are starting at 8pm (Ireland/UK time). On Saturday 27th September, all the top European drum corps will be back in action at the Parkstad Limburg Stadium in Kerkrade. Prices for standard tickets this year are as follows: section A: 30 euros, section B: 27.50 euros, section C: 25 euros, section D: 22.50 euro, section E: 20 euros and section F: 17.50 euros. These tickets guarantee you a full day of top drum corps. Seat numbers apply only from 5:30 pm.

Want to follow the European Championships with a snack and a drink from a real skybox? Get a Super Seat! For 125 euros you can enjoy the DCE European Championships in perfect comfort from a perfect place in the stadium’s skyboxes.