focusthe offi cial news of wgi sport of the artsspring 2008

SuccessSanta

RECRUITMENTTOOLS & TIPS

wgi

inin

Clara Clara FANTASTIC FANTASIABrings home the gold... a sixth time!

RHYTHM X MARKS SPOT FOR FIRST WORLD TITLE

Congratulations to Independent World Gold Medalist Rhythm X and Independent Open Gold Medalist Tyler Junior College!

Hear more at sabian.com

The latest reading...

… and to all the SABIAN ensembles who performed at the 2008 WGI Indoor Percussion Championships:

Centerville High SchoolChoctawhatchee High School

Father Ryan High SchoolGateway Indoor

Great Lakes PercussionLEAP

Matrix

North Coast AcademyNovi High School

Odyssey Percussion TheatrePulse PercussionSurround Sound

Twin Cities Area Independent Percussion Ensemble

RHYTHM X

creo

Time sure does fl y when you’re having fun, and the 2008 WGI season seems to have passed by in the blink of an eye. With anticipation built through each passing regional weekend, the energy and emotions brought to Dayton, Ohio, were at an all-time high.

A round of applause is truly deserved for all the individuals who partici-pated in any and every aspect of these spectacular events. The memories of an amazing season are sure to live on in the hearts and minds of every volunteer, instructor, sponsor, fan, and most of all in each performer. It is only with the combination of these many different personalities and posi-tions that activities this unique can thrive and evolve.

We are always trying to support an environment where young men and women can grow, laugh, learn, and meet challenges as a group, and we urge you to continue to support our young performers as many of them continue their performance dreams this summer and fall. Before you know it, we’ll all be back in Dayton in 2009 to witness the thrill of the Sport of the Arts again.

Ron NankervisExecutive DirectorWGI Sport of the Arts

Directions

SPRING 2008 Volume 22, Issue 2

Winter Guard International

Ron NankervisChief Executive Offi cer

Bart WoodleyMarketing Manager

Aaron JenkinsMarketing & Communications

Coordinator

Published By:In Tune Partners, LLC

Irwin KornfeldCEO

Will EdwardsPresident

Angelo BiasiPublisher

Ken SchlagerEditor-in-Chief

Jackie JordanCreative Director

Robin SteinProduction Director

Don HelselOperations Director

Tia LevinsonBusiness Manager

Contributing Writers: David G. Hill, Scott Markham,

Melinda Newman, Michael Reed

Photography: Jolesch Photography, Robert Cawthorne,

Julia Higbe, Dan Scafi di, Linda Unser, and Sid Unser

WGI FOCUS is an educational publication of WGI Sport of the Arts. Its purpose is to broaden communi-cation within the family of color guards and percussion ensembles. FOCUS is published three times per year.

WGI FOCUS is a free publication with a circula-tion of 14,000 copies. All members of the WGI

family may submit articles for consideration. WGI reserves the right to edit all submitted material.

If your address has changed please notify the WGI offi ce. Failure to do this could result in the loss

of your WGI FOCUS subscription. We don’t want to lose touch with you!

For advertising information please contact Aaron Jenkins; phone: 937-434-7100 x33;

email: aaron@wgi.org

WINTER GUARD INTERNATIONAL7755 Paragon Road, Suite 104

Dayton, OH 45459937-434-7100

offi ce@wgi.org www.wgi.org

focusfocusthe offi cial news of wgi sport of the arts

www.wgi.org

A Season to Remember

4 WGI

Percussion Scholastic World’s Centerville HS at the 2008 World Championshipsin Dayton

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WGI FOCUS 7

9 ENSEMBLEEmmy-winning choreographer Mia Michaels takes in the action at Dayton ... New details about the 2009 event calendar and 2008 championship DVDs … Glendora High’s stylish campaign to raise funds for breast cancer research … the names and faces of this year’s 13 WGI scholarship winners ... and much more!

14 CLOSE-UPAfter a 20-year absence from winter guard events, the Santa Clara Vanguard is back in a big way, scoring high with a powerful blend of tradition and innovation.

16 SPOTLIGHTDave Marvin of Colorado’s Northglenn High and Jay Webb of Indiana’s Avon High tell us what it took to become the newest members of WGI’s Hall of Fame.

20 2008 COLOR GUARD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DETERMINED SPIRITS Gold medal winners Fantasia and Flanagan HS made history, but the high level of tal-ent and dedication displayed by every competitor was the real story this year.

24 2008 PERCUSSION CHAMPIONSHIPS: SWEET SIXTEENWith a record number of attendees, competitors, and fi nalists—led by Rhythm X and Dartmouth HS—the WGI percussion championships have entered a new age.

30 CLINICThe success of every winter guard unit depends on its members. So how do you fi nd them? Five top program directors describe the tools they use for recruitment.

34 WGI IMAGES Relive the excitement of the 2008 fi nals with these snapshots from Dayton.

INSIDE

9

16

30

20Fantasia’s

Independent World team

goes for the gold

Cover photos, clockwise from top left: Rhythm X, Santa Clara Vanguard, Plymouth Canton HS, and Fantasia.

focusthe offi cial news of wgi sport of the arts

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www.wgi.org WGI FOCUS 9

NEWS FROM THE FLOOR AND MOREEnsemble

Among the excited spectators at WGI’s recent Color Guard World Championships in Dayton, Ohio, was Mia Michaels. The Emmy Award-winning cho-reographer got her fi rst taste of color guard last year and could not resist coming back for more.

“I was so intrigued by it, because it’s so grand, and it’s so big,” Michaels said when interviewed at the fi nals. “I’m so connected to it because of the movement, but then there’s another layer on top, because of all the weapons and the fl ags. As a creator, I fi nd it to be a great challenge to create something like that and keep the artistic integrity and the vocabulary and the tricks.”

Michaels, who was the featured clinician at September’s WGI Spinfest!! in Orlando, Florida, sounds like she would love to get further involved with WGI activities. “When I look at it, I see all the possibilities of staging and the use of props, so it just opens my eyes to actually create,” she said.

As impressed as she was at the fi nals, Mi-chaels believes she has something important to offer WGI participants. “Not only working on dance and technique and movement, but also fi nding the more unique movement for the performers,” she said. “Some of them aren’t as technically trained as some of the dancers I work with, so I would really try to fi nd new ways of approaching movement with their props. I would love to really open their eyes to new ways of get-ting around that stage.”

So does Michaels expect her exposure to color guard to infl uence her own work? Absolutely, she said, “If I ever decide to throw somebody in the air!”

The 2008 WGI Championship DVDs are coming soon. The DVDs, produced once

again by John Flower Productions, capture all the great moments from the recent

Color Guard and Percussion fi nals in Dayton, Ohio. This year’s titles also include

special behind-the-scenes montages.

Volumes 1 and 2 cover the Independent World and Scholas-

tic World color guard fi nals, respectively. Volume 3 is dedi-

cated to Open Class color guard, while Volume 4 gathers up A

Class color guard highlights. Volume 5 focuses on Independent

World and A Class percussion. Similarly, Volume 6 handles

Scholastic World and A Class percussion. Volume 7 is all Open

Class percussion. Lastly, Volume 8 documents the 2008

Percussion Concert.

The DVDs will be available for delivery in early August; most

are priced at $59. Orders are being taken now at wgi.org/store.

CHAMPIONSHIP DVDS AVAILABLE SOON

WGI RELEASES 2009 CALENDARThe 2009 WGI season fea-tures 46 events in 19 states and London, England. The season begins Feb. 7–8 and runs through the color guard World Cham-pionships on April 2–4 with the percussion fi nals on April 16–18. There are fi ve color guard Power Regionals in March, including a return to Dallas, Texas. For a complete calendar, visit wgi.org.

MIA MICHAELS:

MAKING ALL THE RIGHT

MOVES IN DAYTON

Ensemble GUARD FOCUS

MAKING A POINT WITH BREAST CANCER PINS

The Glendora High School Tartan Band and Pageantry have found a unique way to give back. The group’s members have raised more than $5,000 since February 2007 selling pins, lanyards, T-shirts, and sweatshirts with their spe-cially designed Guard Against (and Band Against) Breast Cancer logos. Funds are donated to the City of Hope for breast cancer research.

Brenda Butterfi eld, a group mom who spearheads the drive at the suburban Los Angeles school, says more than 2,400 pins, 850 lanyards, and 1,300 sweatshirts and T-shirts have been sold to date. The group has a booth to sell the items at the students’ performances, including WGI

events, such as the recent color guard World Championships. (The pageantry members march in Scholastic A color guard.)

Butterfi eld says the program is greeted with applause wher-

ever the group goes. The pro-gram also has caused great excitement among the band members. After the students’ fi rst competition last year, “They

talked more about the breast cancer booth than about their own perfor-mances,” Butterfi eld says. One of the most enthusiastic is Butter-fi eld’s daughter Krissy, a Glendora senior and color guard member.

Roland Rolls Out New Digital SnareRoland introduced its new RMP-12 battery-powered snare drum at WGI’s Percussion World Championships weekend. The RMP-12 features Roland’s multi-layered mesh head, a built-in sound module with a variety of sounds, and Rhythm Coach functionality. Sounds from the unit can be sent out to headphones or through a wire or wirelessly to a sound system. That makes the RMP-12 suit-able for practice or for performance. The unit fi ts on standard marching carriers or drum stands. For more information, visit rolandus.com.

Sonic Impact iPod SpeakersMake Your Music MobileSonic Impact makes it easier to play recorded music anywhere, indoors or outdoors, with its i-F2 portable iPod speaker system. This tiny all-in-one unit (eight inches wide, four inches deep, two inches high) includes a 30-pin dock connector compat-ible with most iPod models, two neodymium speakers, and a Class T amplifi er. The three-phase recharge-able lithium ion battery runs for up to 15 hours on a single charge, and the durable hard case, available in a

variety of colors and designs, provides both protection for the components and portability for the user. For more information,

go to si5.com.

10 WGI FOCUS www.wgi.org

The WGI DVD booth will be on tour this summer, offering sneak previews of the 2008 World

Championship DVDs and great deals on past championships DVDs. The booth will appear

at DCI shows in San Antonio, Texas (July 19), Atlanta (July 26), Allentown, Pa. (Aug. 1),

and at the DCI World Championships in Bloomington, Ind. (Aug. 7-9). There will be another

opportunity for deals at the Texas Band Masters Association in San Antonio (July 27-30).

WGI BOOTH HITS THE ROAD WITH DVD DEALS

PERCUSSION FOCUS

Congratulations to Dartmouth High School,

WGI Percussion Scholastic World Champions

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S c h o l . Wo r l d : M i s s i o n V i e j o H S ( S i l v e r )

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I n d e p e n d e n t A :P i o n e e r I n d o o r ( G o l d )

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Dartmouth High School Cymbal Line

Ensemble

Thank You To Our Partners and Sponsors

A total of $23,500 was awarded in April to 13 deserving young people under the WGI Scholarship Program. The 13 lucky youths were introduced at the WGI World Championships in Dayton, Ohio. Since its inception, the WGI Scholar-ship Program has provided more than $250,000 to WGI participants. The scholarship money comes from the 50/50 raffl e at the World Champion-ships, $1 of the purchase price of each World Championship program, and individual donations.

Each unit registered to compete at the World Championships may nominate one compet-ing member for the scholarships. A nine-member Scholarship Committee reviews the applications.

All of this year’s scholarship winners are pictured on this page, including Steve Dailey of Northcoast Academy, winner of the Yamaha/Dennis DeLucia Scholarship, and Alicia Walter of Marion Catholic High School, winner of the Bob Wiles Scholarship.

12 WGI FOCUS www.wgi.org

Presenting Sponsors

CorporatePartners

World Championship Sponsors

Stategic Partners

Steve Dailey

Northcoast Academy

Jacqueline

Pascual

Fantasia

Chelsey

Allen

The Cast

Alicia Walter

Marion Catholic HS

Valeria Estrada

Americas Independent

Melissa

Crandall

Alter Ego

Lauren Gentile

Chippewa Valley HS

Cassandra

Hawkins

Palm Desert HS

Ethan Brooks

Santa Clara Vanguard

Anna

Hatzispiros

Forsyth Central HS

Sebastian

Galleguillos

Blessed Sacrament

Chelsea

Bollman

Norwin HS

Deanna Reed

Flower Mound HS

SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS TAKE A

BOW AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

14 WGI FOCUS

The Santa Clara Vanguard’s Independent World winter guard leapt over the competition this season. At the 2008 Color Guard World Cham-pionships, the California organization placed

fourth with a 95.0 score and received a standing ovation from the audience. SCV, which returned to winter guard activity in 2005 after a 20-year absence, also fi nished in the top 10 of the world fi nals in 2006 and 2007.

“It’s a terrifi c feeling,” says SCV director Dave Meikle, who arrived in 2005 with the goal of reinstating the winter guard program. It was a homecoming of sorts: Meikle marched in Santa Clara’s drum corps years ago. “The SCV organization already supported a world-class drum corps, open class corps, and dance program,” Meikle says. Therefore, it had to evaluate its fi nancial and organization-al resources before adding the

knowledge, passion, talents, and love for this activity are evident not only to the staff, but members as well.”

Of course, having a top-notch staff would mean nothing without members. As it relaunched the winter guard, SCV turned to its own corps members for recruitment. “We have a consistent nucleus that performs in both winter and summer programs,” Meikle says. “We also have strong high school programs in the area, and once their members are fi nished performing with their high school, we usually see many at our auditions.” One reason for restarting the winter guard, he adds, “was to develop a strong member-ship base who would be offered training for both winter

and summer programs from the same staff.” Additionally, Meikle recently brought on perfor-

mance coach Shirley Dorritie to conduct master classes. “She’s not just a color guard icon, but a master in her professional fi eld. Her techniques, mixed with her

incredible understanding of the color guard activity, are proving to be a huge tool for the performers.”

The results show with the success of this year’s pro-gram, “On a Breath,” which combines tradition with the contemporary. “Jon Vanderkolff created a very organic soundtrack full of emotion, intrigue, and passion, utiliz-ing the music of Damien Rice’s ‘The Blower’s Daughter,’” Meikle says. “We wanted to offer a program that would keep our audience on the edge of their seats.”

Tradition is important, but, as Meikle notes, “the word ‘vanguard’ can be defi ned as ‘being in the forefront,’ which is what we strive to be. The mix of the two is always our goal.”

Close-Up

www.wgi.org

Santa Clara Vanguard BuildsSuccess in Its Guard

Program Grows Quickly Around Strong NucleusBy Melinda Newman

winter guard. Denise Bonfi glio and Meikle made a propos-al to the board of directors, which passed in September 2005. Shortly thereafter, they began building a staff, which includes Jon Vanderkolff, Jim Moore, Carol Abohatab, Kathy Pearson, Andy Mroczek, and Suko Quan.

WGI Hall of Famer Bonfi glio is SCV’s staff coordinator, which means “she lends her input to the designers, tech-nical staff, and administration,” Meikle says. “Denise’s

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16 WGI FOCUS

Two more names have been added to the membership roll of the WGI Hall of Fame. Dave Marvin is the longtime percussion director at Northglenn High School in Colorado. Jay Webb

is director of bands at Indiana’s Avon High School. The two join 28 other individuals who have earned WGI’s high-est honor since the Hall of Fame was established in 1992.

Marvin began marching with the Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps at age 11. He has spent a lifetime in the activity, which has become a family affair. His wife Kathy teaches the pit for Northglenn; their daughter Chandler and son Taylor perform in the ensemble.

As a youth, Marvin also marched with and taught for the Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps. By age 17, he was teaching and writing for Northglenn. He became percus-sion director when he was just 18. In his 30 years at the school, Northglenn has earned 19 state titles, as well as WGI bronze, silver, and gold medals.

Marvin also directs the Longmont High School march-ing percussion section and, from 1999-2005, handled show development for the Blue Knights,

which won four WGI championships in that period.“I write for a lot of groups, and I write in Colorado for

groups that are in the same class,” Marvin says. “For me, it’s so much less about the competition than it is about trying to create a great environment for the kids.”

Additionally, Marvin is director/arranger for the Denver Broncos Stampede, the fi rst offi cially endorsed drumline in the National Football League. He also has served on the WGI board and the Percussion Steering Committee.

Jay Webb fi rst marched with the Florida Vanguard, then moved to the Bayonne Bridgemen Drum and Bugle Corps. He also taught at Bridgemen, Star of Indiana, Bluecoats, and Dutch Boy. He came to Avon High School as band director in 1993. Under Webb’s guidance, the percussion program soared up WGI’s ladder of success, entering percussion competition in 1995, winning PSA in 1996 and 1997, moving to Open Class, winning PSO in 2001, moving to World Class, and winning that in 2002. “It was a learn-ing process,” Webb says. “The activity itself was very young and immature. Every year we came out we were

trying to do something different.”Like Marvin, Webb has been active in advanc-

ing the activity, serving on the WGI board and the Percussion Steering Committee.

Both men are humbled by their selection to the Hall of Fame. “Frankly, it’s a little embar-

rassing,” Marvin says. “So much of what we do requires so many people. I feel guilty that I can’t really share that.”

Adds Webb: “I was kind of surprised. I don’t think of myself as that old yet.”

www.wgi.org

Two Roads Taken To Hall of Fame AcclaimMarvin, Webb Receive WGI’s Highest HonorBy Ken Schlager

It’s so much less about the

competition than it is about

trying to create a great

environment for the kids.

Spotlight

Dave Marvin with wife Kathy, daughter Chandler, and son Taylor. At left, Jay Webb.

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GREAT LAKESPERCUSSION

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- Jamel Taylor, DirectorTim Church, Pit Caption HeadJustin Smith, Battery Caption Head

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Tears streamed down the face of a guard mother, her hand gently resting on the shoulder of her friend in the next row. From the fl oor of the arena, the radiant

face of a performer beamed like a klieg light, her eyes catching those of her mother.

The soundtrack was a daughter reading a letter to a dif-ferent mother—a letter that expressed the journey, the perseverance, and the strength the mother had shown dur-ing her battle with breast cancer. It was just another of the many emotional moments experienced by the sell-out crowd of entranced onlookers at Winter Guard Internation-al’s 31st Color Guard World Championships, held April 10–12 in Dayton, Ohio.

If the color guard arm of WGI is not the fastest growing youth activity in the country, don’t try to convince anyone af-

20 WGI FOCUS

fi liated with the more than 300 units that competed at the championship weekend. And if witnessing the talent, disci-pline, and dedication on display for the event is not life-chang-ing, don’t try to tell that to the fans and supporters on hand.

No one would listen. The unmistakable signs of color guard competition were

everywhere, from the makeup-streaked faces of the cast members mingling with the audience, to the walls of the famous UD “tunnel,” which were painted with lip marks from the performers. It is tradition to kiss those walls for good luck as the performers make the fi nal walk to the championship fl oor. Emerging from the tunnel “for compe-tition,” the cast and staff members go eye-to-eye with the adoring audience and astute adjudicators alike.

And for all the competition at hand, the unit’s fl oor is like-

DeterminedBY DAVID G.HILL

Fantasia

Pride of Cincinnati

Northeast Independent

Flanagan HS

Avon HSCenter Grove HS

2008

Color Guard World

Championships

Independent WorldScholastic World

2nd

3rd

1st

1st

2nd 3rd

WGI FOCUS 21www.wgi.org

ly being unfurled by members of another guard, offering hands-on support and encouragement before the an-nouncement: “You may take the fl oor in competition.”

The competition this season showcased the astoundingly talented individuals who produce and perform shows in ev-ery classifi cation and at every stage of development. Yes, World Class represents the ultimate in achievement, but the crowds at the arena were no less enthusiastic for their favorite A and Open performances.

Both World Class results were history-making: Fanta-sia’s IW gold medal score was within fi ve hundredths of a point of the highest one ever recorded. Fantasia’s intimate, introspective production and performance, titled “The White Table: A Refl ection on Youth,” gave the California team its sixth World Championship.

Meanwhile, Flanagan High School’s gold made the team from Pembroke Pines, Fla., the fi rst new SW winner in 10 years. Flanagan’s previous highest placement was fourth. The ensemble moved to the gold with an emotionally charged performance, posting secrets for all to see.

Three-time IW champion Pride of Cincinnati (Ohio) gar-nered the silver medal with a human bridge over “troubled waters,” while fi rst-time world class medalist Northeast In-dependent (Florida) took the bronze with an overwhelming performance. In SW competition, Avon High School (Indi-ana) earned its third consecutive silver medal with witching accusations, while three-time champion Center Grove High School (Indiana) embraced the tenuousness of nature to move back into the medal round, for the bronze.

“I like them all,” a self-professed newbie mother smiled

Fantasia maintains

its winning ways,

while Flanagan grabs

Scholastic golded Spirits

Northmont HS

Freedom HS

West Orange HS

Alter Ego

The Academy

Diamante

Independent OpenScholastic Open

1st

2nd

3rd

1st

2nd

3rd

as the finals competition progressed ever closer to her daughter’s unit’s appearance. “i’m just not sure how their show will be perceived,” she worried. “it’s not like any of these.” A silver medal answered her concern.

open classes showcased units on the cusp of joining the activity’s leaders. The number of entrants in io was so great that a semi-finals round was added, matching that of the 40-guard so process. Northmont High school (ohio) dominated so all season, capping it off with a heart-felt gold medal performance. freedom High school (flori-da) had no blinders in its quest for the silver medal, and west orange High school (New Jersey) was literally po-etic in winning the bronze medal. Alter Ego (New Jersey) drew from 9/11 and its in-terpretation of angels to overwhelmingly win the io divi-sion. silver medalist Diamante (california) offered an an-gel requiem, and the Academy (Arizona) went “into the mist” for the bronze medal.

The looking glass of future success magnifies the A class competition and no more so than this year. cascades inde-pendent (washington) stretched its boundaries to wrestle an iA victory, while interplay (Michigan) braved the weather to the silver, and capella winterguard (Tennessee) and fahrenheit (florida) tied for the bronze position. colonial High school (florida) was “over the moon” with its sA gold medal performance, while Mt. carmel High school (califor-nia) hip-hopped its way to the silver, with no strings at-tached. Pope High school (georgia) presented an elegy on the history of immigration for the bronze medal.

The week before the championships, Dayton-area fans

22 wgi focus www.wgi.org

posted online, “The tent is going up in uD’s parking lot!” if seating was tight inside the university of Dayton Arena, the lines of people were four-across and snaked through the vendor tent—much like a follow-the-leader drill. com-merce was crackling, from the wgi-produced preliminary performance through its 31-year history DVDs, to champi-onship-emblazoned clothing, to the variety of companies

and units that bring business to the industry, it was the sec-ond most popular place to see and be seen.

Technology has allowed the activity to go real-time via the wgi channel online, with a live championship webcast and the season-long regional championship “replay” avail-able at wgi.org.

Before the championships began April 10, the Dayton Daily News reported on the importance of the event to the local scene. According to the report, the two weekends of wgi championship events bring nearly 40,000 visitors and $15 million in revenue to the area. This was the 22nd year out of 31 that the event has been hosted in Dayton and wgi has committed to keeping the championships in Dayton through 2014.

from the community, an online post regarding the an-nouncement: “There’s just a buzz and excitement in the guard community when it’s in Dayton and it’s not because Dayton has an ocean or great weather (we don’t), it’s be-cause memories are made here that can be shared with someone who had the same experience 20 years ago in the same city, venue or arena…it’s special. wgi should not be in any other place other than Dayton.”

The 2009 color guard championships are set for April 2–4.

“Memories are made here that can be shared with someone who had the same experience 20 years ago in the same city.”

Interplay

Colonial HS

Cascades Independent

Mount Carmel

Mount Carmel HS

Pope HS

Scholastic aindependent a

1st

2nd

1st

2nd

3rd

Capella

3rd

Farenheit

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There is a moment in every parent’s life when a moth-er or father looks at their child and thinks “my baby is all grown up.” WGI experienced something similar

with this season’s 2008 Percussion World Championships. Long-time fans can remember the days when the musical sport of indoor percussion was in its infancy. Back in 1993, when WGI was celebrating its 16th color guard champion-ship, the organization decided to sanction drum line compe-titions to add to its successful color guard circuit. According to Michael Boo, the announcer at the fi rst event, “it was ex-citing to see this new development, and wondering how big this would become. It’s amazing we’ve grown from just a few lines to closing in on 200.”

Beginning with nine lines from four states performing on an auditorium stage, the activity took its fi rst baby steps in moving to a high school gymnasium the following year, grew

24 WGI FOCUS

and matured in the Nutter Center (with detours in Phoenix, Milwaukee, and San Diego), and came of age with this year’s April 17-19 Championship event.

Recognizing the event had outgrown the seating capacity at “The Nut,” the decision was made to hold this year’s fi -nals at University of Dayton Arena. UD Arena is no stranger to hosting percussion competitions, with numerous A and Open class prelim contests and at least one percussion re-gional having been held there over the years. However, this year the percussion ensembles offi cially called the arena “Home” for the fi rst time. The Nutter Center still plays a critical role in the success of the event, hosting preliminary and semifi nals contests on Thursday and Friday.

The concerns some had over the infamous ramp at the arena proved to be a non-issue, as all the instruments and props made it in and out of the building in one piece. There

Sweet SixtBY MICHAEL REED

RCC Aimachi

Flanagan

Mission Viejo HS Claremont HS

Rhythm X

Dartmouth HS

2008

Percussion World

Championships

Percussion Scholastic World

Percussion Independent World

1st

2nd

3rd

1st

2nd 3rd

WGI FOCUS 25www.wgi.org

were no runaway marimbas rolling onto the fl oor during performances.

So, was the event a success? If audience size and num-ber of competing units are a measuring stick, the answer is an unqualifi ed yes! More than 175 groups entered this year’s championships, and the World Class fi nals on Sat-urday night reached near sell-out status, even with an en-larged seating capacity. The World movement classes fea-tured 15 fi nalists for the fi rst time, matching the fi nalist numbers in the guard classes. The PSW division actually had 16 fi nals performances due to a tie.

The thousands of fans fi lling the stands for that memo-rable evening witnessed Rhythm X of Columbus, Ohio, win its fi rst PIW title, overcoming 2007 champion Riverside Community College, which won the prelim round. Fan fa-vorite Aimachi made the event truly an international affair in

coming all the way from Japan, narrowly edging out Music City Mystique of Nashville to repeat its third place fi nish from 2006, with North Coast Academy (Michigan) fi nishing fi fth and Blue Knights (Colorado) in sixth.

In the PSW division, Dartmouth (Massachusetts) cap-tured its fi rst gold medal since 1999, defeating 2007 winner Mission Viejo (California) and fi rst-time fi nalist Claremont. The latter group, also from California, made a dazzling fi -nals debut with a bronze medal fi nish, moving up from a fi fth place prelim placing. Choctawhatchee (Florida) and Centerville (Ohio) earned top fi ve recognition, coming in fourth and fi fth respectively.

Speaking of Claremont, calling its weekend successful would be the understatement of the year. Not only did the school medal in the marching division, but it also took the title in the PSCW class. Goshen (Indiana) improved on its

xteen

Trumbull HS

Fountain Valley HS

Tyler Jr. College

Stryke

Penn State

Rhythm X, Dartmouth

Take the Cake as Percussion

Finals Reach a Milestone

Percussion Independent Open

Percussion Scholastic Open

Pacifi ca HS

1st

2nd

3rd

1st

2nd

3rd

2007 third place position to earn the runner-up spot, with Tunstall (Virginia) taking third in the class.

In the PIO division, Tyler Jr. College (Texas) earned a hard-fought victory over Penn State, with Stryke (Florida) taking the bronze with its best-ever fi nish in WGI fi nals. British Columbia-based Pacifi ca pulled off a three-peat in PSO, coming up from third in a tightly contested semifi nals event that saw the top three groups separated by a razor thin 0.4 points. The margin separating the top three in PSO fi nals? The same scant 0.4 points. Trumbull (Connecticut) was rewarded the silver medal, with Fountain Valley (Cali-fornia) fi nishing in third place.

In PSCO, Mansfi eld (Texas) gave a near-perfect perfor-mance to win its second consecutive crown in the division, and received a record high score of 98.9 in the process. Bear Creek (Colorado) took the silver medal and Muscle Shoals (Alabama) earned the bronze in its fi rst fi nals ap-pearance.

Pioneer Indoor (Illinois) won a second PIA title in a row, besting California line and run-ner-up Full Force, with Farm-ington United (Michigan) fi n-ishing third. The PIA class illustrates the growth of the activity as a whole. When the division was started, it took a few years to get up to 10 lines. This year featured 15 PIA units, signaling a bright future for independent lines as a whole.

PSA perennially has the most entrants of any class, and is the only division where the performers have to play twice in one day, with both prelim and semifi nal competitions be-ing held Thursday of the event. When Friday’s fi nale was over, South Hills (California) was named champion of a stel-lar fi eld of lines, with defending champion Greenfi eld-Cen-tral (Indiana) taking the silver medal, and Milton (Florida) taking the bronze.

What were this year’s emerging trends? The most visu-ally striking trend is the number of lines utilizing color to their advantage in costuming choices. Several of the units had one color on the uniform fronts and another on the

backs. The most mature example of this was Rhythm X, whose “Gone” production featured a reddish-orange au-tumn-leaf camoufl age pattern on its tarp and backdrops, matching the backs of its costumes (and even bass drum heads), with the uniform fronts (and corresponding drum heads) in a dark blue. Another notable example was Pen-sacola, Fla., squad Escambia, which effectively used red to depict anger and blue to represent calmness.

Other emerging trends include an increasing profi ciency in the use of electronics, incorporation of vocal music to en-hance the show concepts, the addition of stringed instru-ments (guitars, basses, and in one case, a hammered dulci-mer), and better movement training throughout the classes, as the lines are moving much more fl uidly than even a cou-ple years ago. In the concert divisions, the ensembles are exploring a wider variety of ethnic musical styles, especial-

ly in the Latin idiom. The con-cert units, like their move-ment brethren, are becoming quite adept at exploiting elec-tronics as an enhancement to their programs.

The manufacturer’s midway saw large crowds throughout the weekend. Percussion en-thusiasts could sample the latest drums, sticks, pads,

and mallets, buy souvenirs, get updates from WGI strategic partners DCI, Music for All, and Percussive Arts Society, and purchase DVDs of their performance all under one roof. Even occasional rain showers on Saturday didn’t dampen the enthusiasm, as the large tents did what they were de-signed to do—keep the water out and the thousands of dol-lars of equipment dry.

With the phenomenal success of this year’s event, look for the 2009 WGI Percussion World Championships to be even larger. Plans are underway to increase the amount of available seating for next season’s April 16–18 event. Look for the number of entries to come very close to the magic 200 mark, perhaps exceeding that number. Be sure to get your tickets and hotel reservations early, and we’ll see you in Dayton next April!

26 WGI FOCUS www.wgi.org

The concert units, like their movement brethren, are becoming adept at exploiting electronics to enhance their programs.

Percussion

Scholastic

Concert Open

Percussion

Independent

A

Percussion

Scholastic

A

Percussion

Scholastic

Concert World

1st 1st 1st 1st

South HillsHSClaremont HS Mansfi eld HS Pioneer Indoor

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T he success and endurance of a win-ter program is greatly dependent upon recruitment. With the number of groups in the WGI organization

steadily growing, young performers have vast opportunities to audition for, and perform with, ensembles of their choice. Most programs are constantly working to broaden recruitment and training programs in hopes of gaining larger and more talented pools of performers.

The Miamisburg Guard Program has fi ve groups rang-ing from elementary school to its perennial WGI fi nalist Scholastic World color guard. Relying heavily upon word of mouth, Miamisburg at-tempts to expose its entire district to its performing groups through commu-nity performances, “sign-ups,” summer camps, and advertisements in local Ohio newspapers. Many of the staff members teach together in the fall so techniques and teaching philosophies remain consistent. According to director Jim Olson, “We are always looking at ways to make our program more attractive to students.”

Unlike Miamisburg, Shenendehowa High School has not had a marching band program since 1994, but it does fi eld a “fall guard” for training purposes. More than 100 sixth through 12th graders and 13 staff members participate in four feeder programs and the WGI fi nalist Scholastic World color guard. “Our basic thought process is to build the strongest base of technique we can and once the mem-bers arrive at the World guard, we can take them to the next level in regards to skill,“ says director Scott Snell. The extraordinary success of the color guard has gained the Clifton Park, N.Y., program recognition in local print and TV media, which has helped build student interest.

The Rockford, Ill.-based Phantom Regiment winter

guard consists of 28 members in 2008; 11 are from Phan-

tom‘s distinguished drum and bugle corps. Auditions are held each season, and recruiting occurs year-round. PRWG hosts a clinic every December offering beginning to ad-vanced classes in movement, rifl e, sabre, and fl ag. As for auditions, director Adam Sage says, “It is very important for us to give everyone who auditions an educational experi-ence where they can discover new things, rediscover and

reinforce their background experiences, and meet new people. Fear is OK, just go for your goals and aspi-rations—everything from there falls into line.”

Redline Percussion, a fi rst-year member of In-

dependent Marching World class, took a professional and well-organized approach to seeking out its charter mem-bers. The Canton, Mich.-based group made a website, In-ternet forum postings, staff choices, and advertisements to create a “buzz” about its activities. The organizers also distributed Redline T-shirts. According to director Martin Harrison, that tactic turned out to be a huge “awareness-builder” for the group.

Plymouth-Canton High School’s Scholastic Marching World team depends mainly on word of mouth, understand-ing that conversation among students is an effective meth-od of recruitment. The Michigan school’s program does not turn away any students who are interested in participating, even non-percussionists. “This helps to create an overall feel of inclusion within our marching arts program,” says director Andrew Ebert.

For website links and clinic or audition information for all WGI groups, go to www.wgi.org.

30 WGI FOCUS www.wgi.org

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WGImagesThe WGI world championships in Dayton always offer a visual feast for participants and observers alike. As the following snapshots from this year’s event show, the championship experience is like no other.

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