In Part ONE, we covered brass.

In Part TWO, we covered electronics.

Next, we look at the evolution of Repertoire:

Part THREE – Repertoire

Back in the day, drum corps played complete songs. Remember that? It was common for a corps to play a march or martial-type song ‘off the line’, a Spanish Jazz piece for concert, and a ballad for their ‘exit’ with a production number in a completely different idiom. Back then, it did not matter if those songs were related in any way. This meant you could get a variety of musical styles in a single corps’ performance. With a few exceptions, programs did not have a ‘common thread’ or theme. Take, for example, the Madison Scouts 1975 Championship program: ‘Slaughter on 10th Avenue’ (Broadway show tune), ‘MacArthur Park ‘(pop), ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ (classical with jazz influence), ‘Dueling Banjos’ (bluegrass), and ‘The Way We Were’ (ballad). This type of mixed idiom program was the standard up through the mid 1980s.

When the ‘total show concept’ emerged in the 1980s, it promoted the idea of a central ‘theme’. By the end of the decade it was gaining favor, and by the early ‘90s the approach had been adopted by every DCI World Class finalist. With the advent of themes, productions had more continuity with music that was either idiomatically homogenous, or had a common thread through the distillation of film music, Broadway show, or concept. Examples include Santa Clara’s 2013 ‘Les Miserables’ show, the Cavaliers’ 2004 ‘007’ production featuring music from that film series, and the Blue Devils’ 2003 ‘Phenomenon of Cool’ that featured the jazz stylings of Dave Brubeck and Miles Davis.

2004 Cavaliers

One of the beneficial developments from the ‘total show concept’ was a significant improvement in coordination. The seamless melding of all elements caused a ‘sum is greater than its parts’ competitive advantage that became a driver for many top corps. ‘Caption bleed’, the ability for one aspect – brass/percussion/visual – to affect scores of other captions emerged. The more effective the coordination, the more likely it was to produce the effect. This fed upon itself as it became apparent that well-coordinated shows were garnering higher scores. There was recognition that certain standard approaches, the result of better coordination, were now essentially required. A few examples; integration of the guard, musical / visual mirroring, staging of ‘full corps’ pictures, percussion features where visual intensity matches the music, and more emphasis on drama. While these approaches all existed before, they had not previously been necessary to get top scores. ‘Caption bleed’, a result of synergistic design, really accelerated in the ’90s. The best visual designers had immense influence here and the tops corps in the visual captions led the way.

With the entire activity focused on themes, it became necessary to have one, even if it seemed somewhat contrived. Consider Phantom Regiment’s 1994 ‘Songs for a Summer Night’; (Ritual Fire Dance, Claire de Lune, Talking Drums, North by Northwest, Death Hunt), a collection of music without a common thread. And yet, it was one of the best shows on the field that year. That repertoire would have fit right in during the 1970s, but in the age of themes it had to have a tag assigned. The title ‘Songs for a Summer Night’ offered no real insight into the content, but they needed a theme, so they concocted one. Although the songs were unrelated, the content was effective (box checked) and it had a ‘theme’ (box checked). As a top 3 show that year, the theme didn’t really matter. It just needed to exist.

1994 Phantom Regiment

Another example is the Boston Crusaders 2000 program, ‘RED’, which conjoined their repertoire to that color. It was an unusual way to tie the music together and was heavily reliant on visual content to validate and promote the theme. If you were to witness some of the shows being performed today without being made aware of the theme in advance, you might not ‘get it’, but most drum corps fans ‘learn’ what the various themes are through publications and over the course of the season. Several of the top corps organizations publish videos that help explain their theme. There are also Forums on Drum Corps Planet and articles in Drum Corps World that contain combinations of news and analysis of themes as repertoires are announced in the spring. FloMarching (the streaming service that has broadcast DCI competitions) has segments devoted to reviewing aspects of corps’ repertoires. Some corps’ themes these days are so arcane that they actually require research to understand.

The most prominent example of this approach is the Blue Devils, who routinely build tremendous sophistication into their programs. People who watch the Blue Devils on a single viewing, without watching the videos they produce to explain the backstory, often walk away amazed by the corps’ performance while somewhat unsure what it intended to convey. A perfect example is their 2018 ‘Dreams and Nighthawks’ which was essentially a 12 minute puzzle that culminated in the assembly of Edward Hopper’s famous painting titled ‘Nighthawks’. Without context it was difficult for the average fan to fully appreciate that performance. The last 5 Blue Knights’ shows have been similarly mysterious. They presented content that was highly philosophical, with cryptic messages not easily understood without digging in and doing research to identify their underlying meanings.

2018 Blue Devils

Every year, on my first viewing, I try to witness each corps’ show without ‘learning’ about it simply to see how well it might translate to the less informed. I have rarely understood the full message of the Blue Devils or the Blue Knights on a single viewing while shows like Carolina Crown’s 2016 ‘Relentless’, Boston’s 2018 ‘S.O.S’, The Bluecoats’ 2014 ‘Tilt’, and Academy’s 2016 ‘Drum Corpse Bride’ were all self-explanatory.

The Cavaliers’ 2018 show, ‘On Madness and Creativity’, used a layering technique with competing melodies, to support their theme and exemplify it through complexity. Without some explanation the average viewer was likely confused by the cacophony that was laced throughout that show with Maurice Ravel’s ‘Bolero’ an omnipresent anchor. The objective included a portrayal of a type of creative genius (in this case Ravel’s’) and what it can produce. Ravel had ‘primary progressive aphasia’, a brain disease that affects the ability to communicate but unleashes a surge of neural activity that can promote tremendous creativity. The drum corps fans that knew this recognized the context and chaos of the dueling melodies while others were likely scratching their heads. Appreciation of that show was dramatically different for those unaware of the background. A well-crafted theme that is understood by the audience – either because it is self-evident or is gained through research – can be very effective. Unfortunately, many drum corps fans attend a single show, are unlikely to do any research, and are probably not clued into the more complex themes. Those fans cannot appreciate the performances as much as the ‘drum corps nuts’ that have acquired the context.

2018 Cavaliers

One positive development from the adoption of themes is that every year now brings an entirely new program from every corps. Back in the day, it was common to hold songs over from one year to the next. There were instances when multiple songs or even an entire repertoire was held over. Some corps had ‘signature’ songs that they played in competition repeatedly over the years. Examples include the Racine Kilties, who played ‘Auld Lang Syne’ as their exit 15 times between 1963 and 1979, and the Boston Crusaders, who played ‘Conquest’ 20 times from 1969 to 1998. The 27th Lancers played ‘Danny Boy’ 11 times between 1971 and 1986, and Santa Clara played the ‘Bottle Dance’ from Fiddler on the Roof for many years to close their show.

Although the nostalgic aspect was admirable, there were times when many in the audience would have preferred something new. Most people feel that signature songs are now best suited for encore performances or exhibitions where they can be appreciated more earnestly. Corps that play their signature song regularly in encore or exhibition include the Bluecoats, Santa Clara, Madison, and the Cavaliers. As the activity progressed it became obvious that ‘new and improved’ was where things were headed on the field and we rarely see any repeated pieces now. New material is often better than a ‘retread’ and finding new content can challenge organizations to be more creative. For fans who want to relive the music or visuals from previous years we have the luxury of the professional CDs and Blu Rays that are produced by DCI (highly recommended). (Note: Phantom Regiment recently announced their 2021 show, ‘Harmonic Journey’, and it is a replica of their 2003 show with the same title and music. This repeated repertoire appears to be an anomaly because of the effects of the COVID pandemic.)

2011 Boston Crusaders

Overall, I believe the rise of themes has been a positive development. With all captions working together and focused on ‘selling’ the theme, coordination has risen to an entirely new level. In many cases, color schemes, props, music, staging, and visuals all coalesce to create a synergistic effect. At its best, superb coordination can produce elegance and entertainment many of us would not have imagined a few decades ago. It is not always clear when the themes drive the design or the other way around, but the best programs on the field these days leverage the power of collaboration, culminating in the achievement of shared artistic vision.

No discussion about repertoire would be complete without addressing melodic content. There have been times since the mid ‘90s when some corps apparently decided that straightforward melodies were a bit too trite, so they opted for more sophistication. During this time some corps selected music that was so esoteric that it was beyond the grasp of the audience. We also witnessed arrangements that enhanced and embellished melodies to the point that they were barely recognizable. This resulted in some repertoires that were rather obtuse and barely accessible for the average fan. (Some of us would have preferred a retread or even a corps song to those ‘how many notes can I squeeze into each measure without having a melody?’ ‘innovations’ we had to sit through!) Initially, corps did not see lower scores with this approach so it gained favor for a while. One remnant remaining from this ‘innovation’ is an apparent difficulty requirement that each corps’ brass section must play an 8 measure feature of sixteenth notes somewhere in their show (usually played while stationary). To be fair, although some of these ‘difficulty’ features can seem contrived, many of them are brilliantly coordinated and appropriately integrated. With performance levels extremely high, these segments meet the unwritten requirement while offering the opportunity to showcase technical proficiency.

The veer toward complexity in the ‘90s made it appear to some that shows were being designed much more for the judges than the audience. Fortunately, more accessible content has been the direction lately. Several top units have found ways to score well with both judges and audience with presentations that appeal to the average fan while delivering challenging and intricate content. Three clear examples of this from the past decade include these DCI championship productions: Crown’s 2013 ‘E=mc2’, The Blue Devils’ 2017 ‘Metamorph’, and SCV’s 2018 ‘Babylon’. The Bluecoats’ 2019 Beatles themed show (which lost the Championship by less than a tenth) featuring 19 familiar melodies, is another case in point. This trend is important because a large segment of the audience is not in favor of excessive sophistication. Many fans see 80 brass players and 30+ percussion pieces on the field and fervently hope they will be used to entertain and thrill us without making it too cerebral. It appears that a corps’ ability to couple complexity with the crowd’s desire for entertainment can reap high acclaim and competitive rewards. A key piece of this is offering melody, whether familiar or not.

2013 Carolina Crown

In recent years, some of the top units are leaning toward leveraging melodic content to reach the audience and boost GE scores. Carolina Crown, The Bluecoats, the Santa Clara Vanguard, and the Boston Crusaders are becoming known for offering repertoires with broad crowd appeal that includes both sophistication and highly relatable content. It’s not quite the same as ’back in the day’ when you could hum the melodies walking out to the parking lot, as much of today’s content is less familiar, but it has been a welcomed development. One aspect of the drum corps activity I have always applauded is the fact that you can experience a wide range of content, styles, idioms, and expression at a single contest. Being exposed to unfamiliar music offers new avenues of entertainment and can open our eyes to different composers and genres. Exposing fans to these new musical vistas can be wonderful when it is made easy to absorb. The top 6 units over the past 2 decades have, with a few exceptions, figured out ways to achieve this. Some corps lower in the standings appear to still be a work in progress in this regard.

In assessing the state of repertoires in DCI today, it is undeniable that an evolution has transpired. Most of the repertoires in the activity are effective, whether helped by themes or simply because the design and coordination aspects of the activity have matured. Spurred on by ingenious innovators, we are witnessing some excellent productions with new and exciting content, year after year. Even when the music is unfamiliar, drum corps audiences are finding more of what is being presented on the field to be quite compelling. Some recent top 6 repertoires have blended crowd appeal with intricate content brilliantly and the vast majority of programs on the field these days are expertly coordinated. The trend is moving toward a healthier balance between sophistication and accessibility. With the outstanding performance levels in the activity today, that balance is the sweet spot a majority of the drum corps audience craves.