March 7 - Show Me the Way to Go Home
by Jack Bodzas
(Editor's Note: This came along with no added narrative, so I'm adding it).
Especially for those of you out there who haven't been in the area for awhile, here's a link for you:
http://tinyurl.com/OLPAnnex
If your browser has TinyUrl suppressed, here's a link to get to the full link:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/OLPAnnex
I have tested both myself and can assure you they're virus-free (the origin for the link was created by Jackie on Google Maps).
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
March Moments 2009: March 6 - El Khobar Lives
March 6 - El Khobar Lives
by jo
Desert Song and El Khobar are among my favorite memories of what happened OFF the field in 1974.
The winter before, we were all told to report to the Annex to see a movie. No one was excused, and no one was told what it was all about. A couple hours later, we walked out of the Annex with a clear vision of what Desert Song really meant.
For the first time, we were asked to keep a secret about our summer repertoire, and keep it we did. It was the year we really turned the corner as a competitive corps, and I'm still sad about missing half that summer season (again, apologies to those who had to get shots after I got sick!).
At every guard show that winter, Karen and I hung the bright green El Khobar Lives! banner somewhere prominent on the gym wall. Didn't matter who asked about it, we always answered the same way - come see us this summer and find out for yourself. Worth Ake was close to bribing me for the lead on the story, and I wouldn't budge.
Another part of the memory, of course, was the standup recruiting soldier cutout that we -ehem- borrowed from the Armory where we practiced summer drill. He fulfilled his duties admirably at the NJA championships in Wildwood that May, fully dressed for the occasion.
I'll leave the summer season memories for that year to those who were active participants in pulling it off. Looking at what DCIs have become, we were YEARS ahead of the game.
left to right: JoAnne Parente, Soldier Boy El Khobar, Terry Gyorfy
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
by jo
Desert Song and El Khobar are among my favorite memories of what happened OFF the field in 1974.
The winter before, we were all told to report to the Annex to see a movie. No one was excused, and no one was told what it was all about. A couple hours later, we walked out of the Annex with a clear vision of what Desert Song really meant.
For the first time, we were asked to keep a secret about our summer repertoire, and keep it we did. It was the year we really turned the corner as a competitive corps, and I'm still sad about missing half that summer season (again, apologies to those who had to get shots after I got sick!).
At every guard show that winter, Karen and I hung the bright green El Khobar Lives! banner somewhere prominent on the gym wall. Didn't matter who asked about it, we always answered the same way - come see us this summer and find out for yourself. Worth Ake was close to bribing me for the lead on the story, and I wouldn't budge.
Another part of the memory, of course, was the standup recruiting soldier cutout that we -ehem- borrowed from the Armory where we practiced summer drill. He fulfilled his duties admirably at the NJA championships in Wildwood that May, fully dressed for the occasion.
I'll leave the summer season memories for that year to those who were active participants in pulling it off. Looking at what DCIs have become, we were YEARS ahead of the game.
left to right: JoAnne Parente, Soldier Boy El Khobar, Terry GyorfyInterested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
March Moments 2009: March 5 - My First Time, Chapter 1
March 5 - My First Time, Chapter 1
by Verne James
(Editor's Note: Another theme I'm sure will pop up is the one suggested today by Verne. Again, I'm going with the Chapter thing).
So, what's our favorite day this month? March Fourth (forth) of course!
I remember my first field competition (or at least I think I do). It was in New London, Connecticut in 1976 (May - Memorial Day weekend?). We had four Contras (i.e., the Beast), Bluto, Mongo, Bozo and me. It was a foggy night and I recall the lights and the excitement of performing.
Certainly, Garfield must have been there and I believe the Muchachos as well (their last season). It took me years afterward to find the name of the Muchachos tune that stuck in my mind from that season, "Pines of the Appian Way" (any idea on how to get a recording of them playing that?). The sound of a corps playing away from the audience always has a very unique tone to it and this is how I remember hearing this song (didn't we usually sit in the back bleachers after a performance?).
We opened with Grieg and also did Ellington & eventually My Way (I think?). Later that season we changed the finale. I believe this was also the last year of going "Off The Line". Are current drum corps members familiar with this term, i.e., "What is their Off the Line?". I still hold Tom Swan's arrangements in high regard!! They were fantastic. The way he weaved together the Ellington songs was brilliant.
Though it ultimately ended up being a somewhat disappointing season, it was great for me and it was fun to watch Mongo donate to the cause at the end of most shows ;-) I also preferred the traditional uniforms that year and are still in awe at the talents of my fellow musicians and color guard.
Thanks!!
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
by Verne James
(Editor's Note: Another theme I'm sure will pop up is the one suggested today by Verne. Again, I'm going with the Chapter thing).
So, what's our favorite day this month? March Fourth (forth) of course!
I remember my first field competition (or at least I think I do). It was in New London, Connecticut in 1976 (May - Memorial Day weekend?). We had four Contras (i.e., the Beast), Bluto, Mongo, Bozo and me. It was a foggy night and I recall the lights and the excitement of performing.
Certainly, Garfield must have been there and I believe the Muchachos as well (their last season). It took me years afterward to find the name of the Muchachos tune that stuck in my mind from that season, "Pines of the Appian Way" (any idea on how to get a recording of them playing that?). The sound of a corps playing away from the audience always has a very unique tone to it and this is how I remember hearing this song (didn't we usually sit in the back bleachers after a performance?).
We opened with Grieg and also did Ellington & eventually My Way (I think?). Later that season we changed the finale. I believe this was also the last year of going "Off The Line". Are current drum corps members familiar with this term, i.e., "What is their Off the Line?". I still hold Tom Swan's arrangements in high regard!! They were fantastic. The way he weaved together the Ellington songs was brilliant.
Though it ultimately ended up being a somewhat disappointing season, it was great for me and it was fun to watch Mongo donate to the cause at the end of most shows ;-) I also preferred the traditional uniforms that year and are still in awe at the talents of my fellow musicians and color guard.
Thanks!!
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
March Moments 2009: March 4 - Days of the Week, Saints-Style
March 4 - Days of the Week, Saints-Style
(by Pete Chesnovitz)
(Editor's note: This March Moment was submitted as part of last week's Tuesday Trivia bonus question)
All winter season weekends were the same back then:
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
(by Pete Chesnovitz)
(Editor's note: This March Moment was submitted as part of last week's Tuesday Trivia bonus question)
All winter season weekends were the same back then:
- Saturday - horn practice at the Annex, then board the bus for a color guard show
- Sunday - another show
- Monday - a day off (we all hung out at the Annex anyway)
- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - color guard practices that we hung out at
- Friday - was horn rehearsal
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Tuesday Trivia: Saints Winter Guard Show
Here's last week's question:
The summer show that we held was called Music In Splendor. What did we call the winter guard show we sponsored each year?
Bonus points: It was held the same weekend every year. What weekend was that?
First, the bonus points - no one got this part right. The show was held the second Saturday of March each year. Lots of good guesses, though!
Now, to the first part - the show was called Flying Silks. As rightly pointed out by Jackie Bodzas, the name for the show was coined by my all-time favorite boss, Jean French. Also chiming in with the right answer were Jimmy Pic and Pete Chez (who claimed to be too young to remember the weekend we held it ... hmmm).
Thanks to you all!
Given that the postings for this month are now dedicated to our favorite marching moments, Tuesday Trivia will be put on hold until April.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
The summer show that we held was called Music In Splendor. What did we call the winter guard show we sponsored each year?
Bonus points: It was held the same weekend every year. What weekend was that?
First, the bonus points - no one got this part right. The show was held the second Saturday of March each year. Lots of good guesses, though!
Now, to the first part - the show was called Flying Silks. As rightly pointed out by Jackie Bodzas, the name for the show was coined by my all-time favorite boss, Jean French. Also chiming in with the right answer were Jimmy Pic and Pete Chez (who claimed to be too young to remember the weekend we held it ... hmmm).
Thanks to you all!
Given that the postings for this month are now dedicated to our favorite marching moments, Tuesday Trivia will be put on hold until April.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Monday, March 2, 2009
March Moments 2009: March 2 - Tony Fills In, Chapter 1
March 2 - Tony Fills In, Chapter 1
by Jack Bodzas
(Editor's Note: There are lots of times that Tony Cataneo filled in for one of us over the years. To keep all the stories straight, I labeled this one Chapter 1).
In the first season that the Saints fielded tymps, Eric, for probably a better-than-damn-good reason, could not make a show. Tony Cataneo stepped up to help.
He just so happened to have a uniform left over from the previous color guard season (there is a picture in the Photo Gallery to prove this), so we taught him most of the parts on the bus ride to the show (I think it was Moonachie). He taught the marching drill to us originally; therefore he already knew where to go. If he was about to forget a drum part, he just signaled, shot me a frantic look, and I reached over and banged a few notes on his drum.
Ahhh, the good old days +/-.
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
by Jack Bodzas
(Editor's Note: There are lots of times that Tony Cataneo filled in for one of us over the years. To keep all the stories straight, I labeled this one Chapter 1).
In the first season that the Saints fielded tymps, Eric, for probably a better-than-damn-good reason, could not make a show. Tony Cataneo stepped up to help.
He just so happened to have a uniform left over from the previous color guard season (there is a picture in the Photo Gallery to prove this), so we taught him most of the parts on the bus ride to the show (I think it was Moonachie). He taught the marching drill to us originally; therefore he already knew where to go. If he was about to forget a drum part, he just signaled, shot me a frantic look, and I reached over and banged a few notes on his drum.
Ahhh, the good old days +/-.
Interested in submitting your own favorite memories for March Moments? Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com.
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
March Moments 2009 - March 1 (by jo)
March 1 - Off The Line
(by jo)
Call it cliche, but I think we can have some fun with this.
It's March, as in MARCH. How lucky are we Saints - a holy day of obligation named after us (All Saints Day on November 1 each year, on Mr. French's birthday no less), and a WHOLE MONTH named for the thing we loved to do together for about 10 years.
Here's what I'm suggesting - a WHOLE MONTH of your trivia, memories, whatever.
Call it a month of March Moments.
Submit your favorite marching moments. The only two restrictions are that is has to pass my editing sensibilities in a public forum (don't worry - I can clean up MANY a story), and it must be about your time with the Saints. After all, it's only fair. If you have a favorite marching moment that came from another corps or band, submit it to their blog.
Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com. I think you get how to connect the pieces together for the e-mail (trying to keep the amount of spam to a minimum).
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
(by jo)
Call it cliche, but I think we can have some fun with this.
It's March, as in MARCH. How lucky are we Saints - a holy day of obligation named after us (All Saints Day on November 1 each year, on Mr. French's birthday no less), and a WHOLE MONTH named for the thing we loved to do together for about 10 years.
Here's what I'm suggesting - a WHOLE MONTH of your trivia, memories, whatever.
Call it a month of March Moments.
Submit your favorite marching moments. The only two restrictions are that is has to pass my editing sensibilities in a public forum (don't worry - I can clean up MANY a story), and it must be about your time with the Saints. After all, it's only fair. If you have a favorite marching moment that came from another corps or band, submit it to their blog.
- It can be a big deal, a small (up until now) private thing, or anything in between.
- It can be written or a photo
- It will have your name associated with it unless you ask to submit anonymously (I'd offer your name with big shiny lighting, but that's what Sue Brady does for a living and I don't want to compete with an expert!)
Click here to submit, or if that doesn't work, send them to joparente DOT saintsdrumcorps AT gmail DOT com. I think you get how to connect the pieces together for the e-mail (trying to keep the amount of spam to a minimum).
All for now - corpsdially yours from jo!
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