Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps

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The Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps is a World Class competitive junior drum and bugle corps based in Madison, Wisconsin. The Madison Scouts are one of the thirteen founding member corps of Drum Corps International (DCI) and a two-time DCI World Champion. Entering the 2024 season, the Madison Scouts are currently the oldest continuously active junior corps.

Madison Scouts
Drum and Bugle Corps
Former name(s)Madison Explorers
LocationMadison, Wisconsin
DivisionWorld Class
Founded1920
Executive DirectorChris Komnick
Corps DirectorDavid Lofy
Championship titles
  • 1974
  • 1975
  • 1990
  • 1975
  • 1988
Websitewww.madisonscouts.org

Until 2018, they had remained one of only two all-male corps alongside The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps.[1] In 2019, the Madison Scouts adopted a non-discrimination policy that expanded membership for all gender identities to participate in the Madison Scouts, making the corps co-ed.[2]

History

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The corps originated on December 3, 1920 under the direction of Lewis Kessler and maintained an active performance schedule through the end of 1925.

Leadership changes in the Council combined with flagging participation in Scouting resulted in the corps activity being paused in the fall of 1925. Attempts were made in 1928 and 1930 to restart the corps but to no avail, likely hampered by the Great Depression. A revitalization of the Council began in 1935, which saw the return of Lewis Kessler's involvement.

In October 1937, the Four Lakes Council began to actively recruit members to restart the corps.[3] The 1938 revival would have E. J. Hess as its director and Clarence H. Beebe as the corps' director, a position he would hold for thirty years until his death in 1968. The advisory committee to guide the musical unit included none other than Lewis Kessler, the original corps director.

In its early days, the corps performed concerts and appeared in many local parades. During World War II, the corps participated in war bond rallies. The corps was split in 1951, with the older members becoming the Madison Explorer Scouts and the younger assigned to the Madison Junior Scouts, a cadet feeder corps for the older unit.[4]

In 1954, the Explorer Scouts entered field competitions and, in their first national competition, finished second at the VFW Nationals in Philadelphia. They repeated as runners-up in 1955. In 1956, they attended the American Legion Nationals in Los Angeles and again placed second. They were then finalists at VFW Nationals from 1957 through 1962 and made American Legion Finals in 1958 and 1959. In 1969, Bill Howard became corps director.[4]

In 1971, at the urging of Cavaliers founder Don Warren and Troopers founder Jim Jones, the Blue Stars, Cavaliers, Madison Scouts, Santa Clara Vanguard, and Troopers formed the Midwest Combine. This was in reaction to the rigid, inflexible rules of the American Legion and VFW (the primary rule makers and sponsors of both corps and shows), and the low or nonexistent performance fees paid for appearing in the various competitions. The corps felt that the existing competitive circuits stifled creativity and starved corps financially. (A similar group of Eastern corps, the United Organization of Junior Corps, also known as the Alliance, was formed by the 27th Lancers, Garfield Cadets, Boston Crusaders, Blessed Sacrament Golden Knights, and Blue Rock.) The Combine members believed that member corps should be able to make their own rules, operate their own competitions and championships, and keep the bulk of the monies earned. For the 1971 season, the corps stuck together, offering show promoters the five corps as a package. Despite pressure on show sponsors, judges, and other drum corps, the Combine corps booked into a number of shows together.[5]

 
The Madison Scouts in 2008

In 1972, all ten corps from the Midwest Combine and the Alliance—plus the Anaheim Kingsmen, Argonne Rebels, and De La Salle Oaklands—became founding members of Drum Corps International, which remains the sanctioning body for junior corps in North America. At the first DCI World Championships in Whitewater, Wisconsin, the Scouts finished in fourteenth in a competition that featured thirty-nine corps from the East, the South, the West Coast, the Midwest and Great Plains, and Canada. In 1973, the Scouts rose all the way up to fourth place. The following year they were DCI runners-up, and in Philadelphia in 1975, the Madison Scouts became the third corps to win the DCI World Championship.

In 1980, after sixteen previous appearances and ten prior Finals, the Madison Scouts tied for 1st place with The Cavaliers at VFW Nationals in Chicago. At this time the corps started working towards composing the entire staff with Scouts alumni, with Bill Howard stepping down and being replaced by Scott Stewart as corps director.[4]

In June 1988, the Madison Scouts went to Europe as part of their fiftieth-anniversary celebration.[6] They presented clinics and performed in exhibition at contests that included all of the corps from Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Germany.[7] That year, they also won their second DCI World Championship.

 
The Madison Scouts in 2005

In 1990, the organization dropped the name Scouts from the corporate name and allowed the charter for Boy Scout Troop 600 to lapse, although the corps remained affiliated with Scouting. In 1995, the Junior Scouts merged with the CapitolAires Drum and Bugle Corps, an all-girl corps from Madison. The resulting co-ed Capital Sound Drum and Bugle Corps would operate under the Madison Scouts organization. Southwind Drum and Bugle Corps was also brought into the organization in 1997, relocating from Montgomery, Alabama to Lexington, Kentucky.[8] Southwind departed the organization ten years later in 2007.

Since 2017, the organization has also sponsored Mad Brass, a marching band competing in the SoundSport division. In 2018, the organization added Fleurish Winds, a co-ed ensemble that competes in WGI Winds.[9] In 2024, the corps made an appearance in the DCI World Championships Finals, marking not only their first appearance in finals since 2017, but also the first time that women appeared in finals with the Madison Scouts as the corps became co-ed in 2019.

Madison city flag

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Corps members Rick and Dennis Stone, assisted by color guard instructor John Fries, designed a flag for the corps color guard to carry as a flag for the City of Madison, which did not have a city flag. On April 12, 1962, the Madison City Council approved a resolution adopting this flag as the official flag of the city of Madison. In 2007, to honor the Madison Scouts' seventieth anniversary and the forty-fifth anniversary of its adoption as the city flag, the City of Madison presented a flag to the corps, which the Scouts continue to carry on tour.

Show summary (1972–2024)

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Source:[10]

Key
Pale green background indicates DCI World Class Semifinalist[a]
Pale blue background indicates DCI World Class Finalist[a]
Dark gold background indicates DCI World Class Champion[a]
  1. ^ a b c From 1972-1991, the Madison Scouts competed in Open Class; from 1992-2007 in Division I, and since 2008 in World Class. These are the same tier, just renamed.
Year Repertoire World Championships
Score Placement
1972 Civil War Music / Yankee Doodle (Traditional) 77.45 14th Place
Open Class
1973 Ballet in Brass by Vic Schoen / Bajour by Walter Marks & Ernest Kinoy / God Bless the Child by Billie Holiday & Arthur Herzog Jr. / Brian's Song by Michel Legrand, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman / Battle Hymn of the Republic by William Steffe & Julia Ward Howe / Marching Through Georgia by Henry Clay Work / Camptown Races by Stephen Collins Foster / Just Before The Battle, Mother by George F. Root / Jesus Loves the Little Children by George F. Root & Clare Herbert Woolston / Dixie by Daniel Decatur Emmett 83.55 4th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1974 Ballet in Brass by Vic Schoen / Bond Street by Benjamin Frankel / God Bless the Child by Billie Holiday & Arthur Herzog Jr. / Slaughter on 10th Avenue (from On Your Toes) by Richard Rodgers / Brian's Song by Michel Legrand, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman 88.85 2nd Place
Open Class
Finalist
1975 Slaughter on 10th Avenue (from On Your Toes) by Richard Rodgers / MacArthur Park by Jimmy Webb / Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin / Dueling Banjos by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith / The Way We Were by Marvin Hamlisch, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman 92.50 1st Place
Open Class
Champion
1976 Stars and Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa / MacArthur Park by Jimmy Webb / Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin / Dueling Banjos by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith / The Way We Were by Marvin Hamlisch, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman 90.70 2nd Place
Open Class
Finalist
1977 New York, New York (from On the Town) & Selections from West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein 87.30 5th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1978 Malaguena by Ernesto Lecuona / God Bless the Child by Billie Holiday & Arthur Herzog Jr. / Main Theme, Ben's Theme, Princess Leia's Theme, The Last Battle & The Coronation (all from Star Wars) by John Williams / How Deep is Your Love? by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb (The Bee Gees) 89.55 4th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1979 The Sorcerer and the Latin by Vic Schoen / Bohemian Rhapsody by Freddie Mercury / Granada Smoothie by Mark Taylor / Pieces of Dreams by Michel Legrand 84.50 8th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1980 They're Playing Our Song by Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona / New Country by Jean-Luc Ponty / Through the Eyes of Love (from Ice Castles) by Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager 87.05 6th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1981 Numero Uno by Louie Bellson / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona / Down Wind by Pierre Moerlen / Through the Eyes of Love (from Ice Castles) by Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager 92.60 3rd Place
Open Class
Finalist
1982 Slaughter on 10th Avenue (from On Your Toes) by Richard Rodgers / Strawberry Soup by Don Ellis / Downwind by Pierre Moerlen / Through the Eyes of Love (from Ice Castles) by Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager 90.75 5th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1983 Colas Breugnon Overture by Dmitry Kabalevsky / Strawberry Soup by Don Ellis / Calico & Memory (from Cats) by Andrew Lloyd Webber 86.45 5th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1984 Ballet in Brass by Vic Schoen / Waltz of the Mushroom Hunters by Greg Hopkins / Calico & Memory (from Cats) by Andrew Lloyd Webber 94.60 5th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1985 Four Score and Seven & Ballet In Brass by Vic Schoen / Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin 95.00 4th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1986 Alex's Rag by Whistlin' Alex Moore / Harlem Suite by Duke Ellington / Starlight Express by Andrew Lloyd Webber 91.3 7th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1987 Captain from Castile by Alfred Newman / An American In Paris by George Gershwin / Stars and Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa 90.40 6th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1988 Plymouth Hoe-Down (from Concerto For Guitar and Jazz Orchestra) by Paul Hart / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona 97.10 1st Place
Open Class
Champion
1989 Make His Praise Glorious by Bill and Robin Wolaver / Slaughter on 10th Avenue (from On Your Toes) by Richard Rodgers 93.60 7th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1990 Undiscovered Madison
The Lemon Squeeze by Mark Kirk / Remembrance by Paul Hart / I Can Cook Too (from On the Town) by Leonard Bernstein
88.70 9th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1991 City of Angels
Prologue and Theme, With Every Breath I Take, Alaura's Theme, Funny & I'm Nothing Without You
All from City of Angels by Cy Coleman
92.0 7th Place
Open Class
Finalist
1992 City of Angels
Prologue and Theme, L.A. Blues, You Gotta Look Out for Yourself, With Every Breath I Take & Funny
All from City of Angels by Cy Coleman
93.70 5th Place
Division I
Finalist
1993 Reflection and Evolution
Numero Uno by Louie Bellson / Strawberry Soup by Don Ellis / Encore by Scott Boerma & Taras Nahirniak
91.90 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
1994 Santos by Louie Bellson / Cuban Overture by George Gershwin / Malaga by Bill Holman 92.20 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
1995 A Drum Corps Fan's Dream: A Day in the Life of a Bull Fighter
El Toro Caliente by Scott Boerma / Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquín Rodrigo / La Danza Pasillo by Taras Nahirniak & Jeff Moore / Malaga by Bill Holman
95.40 4th Place
Division I
Finalist
1996 A Drum Corps Fan's Dream: Part Dos
A Mis Abuelos by Arturo Sandoval / Bolero by Maurice Ravel / En Fuego (On Fire) by Michel Camilo / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona
91.50 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
1997 The Pirates of Lake Mendota
The Adventure Begins by Scott Boerma / A Day in Port (Songs of the Quay) by Goff Richards / Moods of the Sea (based on Tall Ships Suite) by David Royalance / Confrontation and Finale by Taras Nahirniak
93.90 5th Place
Division I
Finalist
1998 Power, Pizazz, and All That Jazz!
Lupin by Yuji Ohno / Swingin' Peter... Sweet & Hall of the Mountain King (from Peer Gynt Suite No. 1) by Edvard Grieg / Remembrance by Paul Hart
91.90 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
1999 Selections from Jesus Christ Superstar
I Don't Know How to Love Him, Heaven on Their Minds, Everything's All Right, King Herod's Song, Trial and Crucifixion, John 19:41 & Superstar
All from Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice
93.40 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
2000 The Cossack Brotherhood
The Gadfly – Finale by Dmitri Shostakovich / Meadowland (Traditional) / Ballet Suite No. 1 – Galop by Dmitri Shostakovich / Gopak (from Gayane) & Masquerade – Romance by Aram Khachaturian / Taras Bulba – Overture by Franz Waxman
85.50 10th Place
Division I
Finalist
2001 Hot Jazz - Madison Style
The Fire and the Flame; Oh, Those Martian Blues; Symphonie Pour L'Orchestre Americain; Ballet In Brass
All by Vic Schoen
86.55 11th Place
Division I
Finalist
2002 Conquest
Captain from Castile by Alfred Newman / Asturias by Isaac Albéniz / Conquistador by Jay Chattaway / Conquistadores by Jim Centorino / Save El Dorado (from The Road to El Dorado) by Hans Zimmer
84.85 14th Place
Division I
Semifinalist
2003 GOLD, GREEN AND RED: The Music of Benoit Jutras
Jardin Chinois, Distorted (from La Nouba), Atmadja, Urban, Rêve Rouge & Incantation (from Quidam)
All by Benoit Jutras
89.55 8th Place
Division I
Finalist
2004 MadiSonic
Sound Piece for Jazz Orchestra by Oliver Nelson / Malaga by Bill Holman
91.175 8th Place
Division I
Finalist
2005 The Carmen Project
Carmen by Georges Bizet / The Carmen Project by Georges Bizet, Scott Boerma & Colin McNutt / Bolero by Maurice Ravel / Copacabana by Jack Feldman, Barry Manilow & Bruce Sussman / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona / Mambo & Rumble (from West Side Story) by Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim
92.625 6th Place
Division I
Finalist
2006 Primal Forces
Feast Day In Seville by Isaac Albéniz / Harp Concerto by Alberto Ginastera / Gabriel's Oboe (from The Mission) by Ennio Morricone / Malambo (from Estancia) by Alberto Ginastera
87.70 9th Place
Division I
Finalist
2007 Unbound
Uninvited by Alanis Morissette / Kashmir by Jimmy Page, Robert Plant & John Bonham / Pie Jesu (from Requiem) by Gabriel Fauré / Libertango by Astor Piazolla
81.85 15th Place
Division I
Semifinalist
2008 La Noche de la Iguana - Inteligencia, Pasión, Progreso
La Noche de los Mayas by Silvestre Revueltas / Danza de los Duendes by Nancy Galbraith / Estancia Ballet & Harp Concerto by Alberto Ginastera / Danzon No. 2 by Arturo Marquez / Concierto Candela for Solo Percussion and Orchestra by Gabriela Ortiz
85.225 12th Place
World Class
Finalist
2009 El Relámpago
The Forces of Nature by Vince Oliver / Malaga by Bill Holman / Two Left-Footed Mambo – Baron Cimetiere's Mambo by Donald Grantham / Love Is in the Air by Vince Oliver / A Turn to the Dark Side – Candela by Gabriela Ortiz / Relámpago's Triumphant Return – Margariteña by Inocente Carreño
82.40 15th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2010 Slaughter on 10th Avenue (from On Your Toes) by Richard Rodgers / Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin 88.95 10th Place
World Class
Finalist
2011 New York Morning
New York, New York (from On the Town) by Leonard Bernstein / Oh What a Beautiful Morning (from Oklahoma!) by Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II / Beautiful Mourning & Requiem by Robert W. Smith / Empire State of Mind by Alicia Keys
87.55 10th Place
World Class
Finalist
2012 Reframed
Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky / Malaga by Bill Holman / The Way We Were by Marvin Hamlisch, Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman / Through The Eyes Of Love (from Ice Castles) by Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager / Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona
88.00 9th Place
World Class
Finalist
2013 Corps of Brothers - 75 Years of Survival
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 by Brian Tyler / Corps of Brothers Fanfare by Robert W. Smith / Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky / The Battle Rages by Lee Beddis, Nick Pourcho & Robert W. Smith / Afghanistan 2025 by Jack Wall / You'll Never Walk Alone (from Carousel) by Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II
90.10 9th Place
World Class
Finalist
2014 Time Trip - The Music of Stan Kenton and Don Ellis
Fanfare for the New by Hugo Montenegro / Passacaglia and Fugue by Allyn Ferguson / Concerto to End All Concertos by Stan Kenton / Bulgarian Bulge, Open Wide, Niner Two & Final Analysis by Don Ellis
87.575 11th Place
World Class
Finalist
2015 78th & Madison
Fanfare and Opener (from Annie) by Charles Strouse / Gotta Dance (Broadway Rhythm) & Good Morning (from Singin' in the Rain) by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed / I Got Rhythm by George Gershwin & Ira Gershwin / Moses Supposes (from Singin' in the Rain) by Roger Edens, Betty Comden & Adolph Green / The Boy Next Door (from Meet Me in St. Louis) by Hugh Martin & Ralph Blane / Traffic Jammin' (from New York Cityscape for Wind Ensemble) by Jeff Tyzik / Get Happy by Harold Arlen & Ted Koehler / Happy Days Are Here Again by Milton Ager & Jack Yellen
88.750 8th Place
World Class
Finalist
2016 Judas
Overture, Heaven on their Minds, Everything's Alright, Gethsemane, Trial before Pilate, I Don't Know How to Love Him, and Superstar (all from Jesus Christ Superstar) by Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice / Judas by Stefani Germanotta (Lady Gaga) & Nadir Al-Khayat (RedOne)
85.263 13th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2017 The Last Man Standing
Territorial Claim: Pilentze Pee (A Birdie Sings) (Traditional) / Miraculous Mandarin by Béla Bartók
Depletion: Original Music by Nick Pourcho
O2: Original Music by Scott Boerma, Nick Pourcho & James Sparling
Hope & Despair: Original Music by Scott Boerma, Nick Pourcho & James Sparling
The Battle Within: Music for Prague 1968 by Karel Husa / Pilentze Pee Reprise (Traditional)
85.25 12th Place
World Class
Finalist
2018 Heart & Soul
You Are Variations by Steve Reich / Serenada Schizophrana by Danny Elfman / Rhyme of Taigu by Zhou Long / Shape of My Heart by Gordon Sumner (aka Sting) / Aurora Awakes by John Mackey / Ainadamar by Osvaldo Golijov / 34 Klezma by Michael League (Snarky Puppy) / End of the Game by Sting / Heart and Soul by Hoagy Carmichael & Frank Loesser
82.988 16th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2019 Majestic
Afterburners by Chuck Naffier / Backlash (from Euneirophrenia) by Simon Dobson / 715–CRΣΣKS by Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) / Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra by Benjamin Britten / One Voice by Barry Manilow
82.138 17th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2020 Season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021 Between the Lines
24 Caprices, Opus 1, No. 24 in A Minor by Niccolo Paganini / Asturias (Leyenda) by Isaac Albéniz / Caprice No. 24 by Niccolò Paganini / Malagueña Salerosa (Traditional)
No scored competitions
2022 Installation 85
Rubric by Philip Glass & Tyondai Braxton / Love on a Real Train by Tangerine Dream / Bangkok by Steve Vai / Star-Crossed by Dolan Sipes / As The World Caves In by Matt Maltese / 34 Klezma by Snarky Puppy / Original Music by Daniel Montoya Jr.
83.725 15th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2023 The Sound Garden
Rusty Cage by Chris Cornell (Soundgarden) / La Mer by Claude Debussy / Hold Music by Jacob Mann / Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden / 23 Degrees North, 82 Degrees West by Bill Russo & Stan Kenton
82.988 16th Place
World Class
Semifinalist
2024 Mosaic
Unholy by Sam Smith & Kim Petras / White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane / Asturias by Isaac Albéniz / Egyptian Danza by Al Di Meola / Momento Magico by Youn Sun Nah / Sati by Salim–Sulaiman
87.050 12th Place
World Class
Finalist

Caption awards

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At the annual World Championship Finals, Drum Corps International (DCI) presents awards to the corps with the high average scores from prelims, semifinals, and finals in five captions. The Madison Scouts have won these captions:[11]

High General Effect Award

  • 1974 (tie)

High Visual Award

  • 1975, 1988

High Color Guard Award

  • 1983

High Brass Award

  • 1973, 1974, 1975, 1995 (3-way tie)

References

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  1. ^ Worland, Gayle (June 17, 2018). "Group celebrates 80th year — and first female musician". Wisconsin State Journal. pp. A1, A13. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  2. ^ Drum Corps International (July 7, 2019). "Madison Scouts will open ranks to all genders". Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  3. ^ Punzel, Dennis (June 29, 2013). "Madison Scouts: A drum corps brotherhood of 75 years". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Guernsey, Dan; Pilot, Robert (2003). "Madison Scouts". In Vickers, Steve (ed.). A History of Drum & Bugle Corps. Vol. 2. Drum Corps World. pp. 286–291. OCLC 54892759.
  5. ^ Boo, Michael (March 12, 2004). "Determination: Believing in the Midwest Combine". Drum Corps International. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  6. ^ Rath, Jay (June 3, 1988). "Madison Scouts polishing show for European trip". The Capital Times. p. 31. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  7. ^ Merrick, Bill (July 21, 1988). "Madison Scouts end European tour in time for Saturday show". The Capital Times. p. 56. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  8. ^ Copley, Rich (June 20, 1999). "Drum, bugle corps sets down roots in Bluegrass". Lexington Herald-Leader. pp. K1, K6. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  9. ^ Williams, Jack (January 9, 2018). "Fleurish Winds Breathes New Life Into Wisconsin Marching Scene". WGI. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  10. ^ "Madison Scouts: Repertoire". DCX: The Drum Corps Xperience. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
  11. ^ "Caption Winners". From The Pressbox. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
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