A number of recent discussion threads have talked about corps instructors from two angles... great visionary contributions to drum corps and the ability to TEACH!

A few of the noted people were able to achieve both!

Some of the visionary arrangers/ instructors: Bobby Thompson (SAC), Bill Hayes/ Jim Day (SAC); Sal Farerra (Cavaliers); Rick Maass (Imperials); Ray Baumgart (Madison); Ken Norman (Kilts). There were MANY others.

But, another aspect is even more important .. the ability to take young, inexperienced street kids and mold them into a performing unit, teaching them somemthing about music and performance along the way!

While many of the "great arrangers" were also very good at this, there are many in this other important group who just did a solid job of teaching. Some which come to my mind are: Bill Strauts, Paul Wojtena
and Ed Riemer (all of Imperials); Al Lemert (many corps), Tom Sorenson (Kilts), Forest Creson (Black Knights); Dave Richards (many corps) and the list goes on.

These are the people who made drum corps what it is (and was).

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958- 63

Another instructor I have to mention is DICK BROWN.

He taught a LOT of corps, including the Imperials. In fact, he taught the Imperials on several occasions: 1959-61, 1968-70, and later in the 1970s.

He was a great arranger ... arranged music for a lot of corps (Skokie Indians, Cavaliers, Royal Airs ...). But, he was also an excellent teacher. Able to take a bunch of "dumb kids" and build them into a respectable drum line.!

Along the way, he taught us all a lot about LIFE!

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958- 63

I think we could add Gary Czapinski to that list. He has worked with too many groups to count and done the activity much good. Also Truman Crawford and Jim Wren from Phantom. Jim Wren was one of the guys who really created a particular sound for Regiment. Now without him, they just sound like all the other corps in DCI, just cleaner and louder than most, but their sound isn't distinctive or unique anymore since Wren stepped down.

What did you do in the Corps? Brass Instructor, Corps Manager

You can also add to this list Don Angelica and
Jim D'Amico of Hawthorne and the Garfield Cadets,
not only were they Great Instructors and Music
Arrangers and two of the finest soloists there was.

Dave in response to your reply about how a bunch
of kids off the streets could be transformed into
marching unit,playing musical instruments,kids
that didn't know their left foot from their right
foot,not knowing what they where getting
themselves into when they joined Norwood or for
that matter some other Drum Corps,but after weeks
and months of long practices,a lot of effort,the
result was finally realized,when you lined up on
the starting line for that first contest,shaking
in your white bucks.

That's what made Drum Corps so unique during that
time,"it was kids off the streets".The majority of
the membership.And this created some of the best
Drum Corps of all time,both junior and senior.

What did you do in the Corps? French Horn

What years were you a Corps member? 1957 thru 1963

You're right Bob. What might have happened to many of these kids hadn't they had the discipline of drum corps to teach them how to be a good citizen? Quite possibly that is one of the problems with today's kids. They don't have activities like drum & bugle corps, baton and bell corps, drill teams, etc. to help mold their character. That is one of the sad commentaries of today. DCI, in it's haste to forward the quality of the drum and bugle corps within their membership completely forgot WHY the activity was there to begin with.

For the above reasons it is extremely important to support any of the groups that are trying to build the activity back from the bottom up. Groups like SCDA and even Steve Vickers who is trying to start independent drum corps need our support. It might be a way to restart the activity independent of any DCI influence or interference. Something to think about.

What did you do in the Corps? Brass Instructor, Corps Manager

Just recently we were talking to our grandson about
our days in drum corps (my wife and I both marched and
met thru this activity). . . .In telling him about some of our experiences his comment hit it right on the head when he said "So that was like your gang, huh Pops". Out of the mouths of babes. Maybe if there was more street level drum corps there would be less time for gang involvement. We could only wish. . .

What did you do in the Corps? Bass Drummer

What years were you a Corps member? '57-'62

Paul Wojtena was my instructor for 1980 - 1981. In 1982 we had Kevin Donka (sp) for awhile, then most of the 1982 season we had no one. We did our own warm ups, practices, exercizes, etc.

Brian Vergin was our key board player. Ross was our tympani player. That was our entire pit, 2 people. Brian Vergin was basically our Drum Sgt & ran the section.

I was in the basement digging out the Christmas stuff (32 bins I might add) and I found my old Drum Corps music. Brought back a lot of memories.

I remember the very first day I walked into the Imperials. They were practicing at Niles East High School. Scott Levin brought me. They asked what I wanted to play, I said drums. Then they put me with Jean Sterna (sp) who was the cymbal player. She actually taught me the basics. We practiced by clapping our hands.

In 1981 Jean moved onto Bass drum & I was the solo Cymbal player

What did you do in the Corps? Cymbals, Bass Drum, Tenor

What years were you a Corps member? 1980 - 1983

You cannot forget Sandra Opie of Argonne Rebels and Brian Pennington of Argonne, Norwood and Aurora.

Opie and Pennington produced some great hornlines (National Championship in early 70s) with talent from a relatively small town in Kansas. Brian also got Norwood competitive with a relatively young brass line in 1964 and we had strong brasslines in 1965 and 1966.