Local PBS Broadcast
10AM - September 2, 2002, KQED San Francisco
Drum Corps International Competition 2002
This year's event was recorded August 10, 2002. The annual competition, hosted by Steve Rondinaro, features the finest drum and bugle corps from across the U.S. and around the world who gather to perform and compete. The delayed coverage of this year's championship from Madison, WI is a live-to-tape style program that will allow greater flexibility in choosing the most entertaining and exciting corps performances. It will also provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with the extraordinary young people who not only electrify the screen with their performances, but who dedicate themselves to an almost Olympian ideal of competitive perfection.
Length: 1:20:00 TVG
Live From Camp Randall.
Even if you weren't able to be in Madison, we tried make you feel like you were in the GE Box with us. Blue Devils Director Dave Gibbs told us all about the vibe at DCI - live from Madison both here and in the
Championship forum!! Be sure to check out our blow by blow descriptions of Finals and Semifinals. There are also pictures of the top 17, scores, 360 degree Virtual Drum Corps pics, audio recordings of the BD Drumline's show day warmup and many pictures of the corps as they prepared for their run for the Championship -
Championship Week Page.
Best Performance of the Year the Weekend Before Championships
By: David Gibbs
The Blue Devils had one of our best shows of the year in Philadelphia as we headed into Championships. The East Coast crowd reaction was unbelievable and truly inspiring for our members. It was one of those great drum corps moments when all of your hard work as a performing member pays off - when your performance connects with the audience. It was a great experience for all.
I am so proud of our members. They have endured changes, gruelling travel and practice schedules, intense rehearsals - all with an incredible attitude. They have never given up, and continue to get stronger everyday. WOW!
People always think that winning decides the champion of a particular year. That is only part of the story. Competition boils down to the decisions of eight people on a given night ranking and rating. We understand the game and enjoy to play it. But that is not how The Blue Devils judge the success of a year. If there was ever a definition of a champion, it is this year's members and staff for what they have accomplished and achieved. This has been one of my favorite years as I get to know and enjoy these incredible young people.
We have tried to give our members every chance to reach their full potential and to create a energetic, fun and enjoyable production for the fans. I think that the staff rose to the occasion. And the fans rise to their feet at every show.
Thank you to all of our fans, supporters, family and friends. It has been a great ride. We are busting at the seams and are incredibly excited to perform at the next three shows in Madison. ENJOY! Lets celebrate all of these talented young people.
Changes, Changes and More Changes…
Well, what a year!! We once again traveled by air to give our east coast fans an early look at The Blue Devils. We came back to an exciting two weekends in California and we immediately left for our Nationals tour. WOW ….
The 2002 edition of The Blue Devils “Jazz Music Made in America” was an exciting project to work on. The members have had a great time performing this high energy, very fast and emotional production.
We concluded during the east coast tour that there would have to many changes to realize the full potential of this show and our performing members. It was a hard and risky schedule of changes we put together, but were very confident about this year’s production and members. We wanted to take all-necessary risks to have our audiences enjoy the incredible talent of our members and to put our performers is a position so they can have every chance to reach their full potential.
During the first tour, the staff prioritized the changes and started their creative work reworking the entire show. It as decided that after the northern California weekend we would start the major rewrites. In between the two California weekends we changed the first two productions and put a rip-roaring ending on the “Rhythm” production. That was and incredible week, but well worth the effort.
The next days of changes were the following week in El Paso to work on the third production, “House of the Rising Sun”. That went great and put us in a strong position going in to the big Saturday night show in San Antonio. It was decided that we would wait until after this weekend to change the last production “Channel One Suite” and the ending.
So .. On Wednesday and Thursday of the week heading into Murfreesboro and Indianapolis, the staff and members overhauled the last production, Channel One Suite. What a grueling couple of days. The members worked on little sleep and the staff went the extra mile with their efforts. What a difference. Channel One Suite is a much tighter production and the ending is incredible.
There will be a couple more tweaks and surprises to the ending and throughout the show. The staff is committed to provide the audiences and the members the best show possible!
With all the MAJOR changes done, we feel that the 2002 Blue Devils are now in a GREAT position heading into Madison. Minor additions and finally some quality cleaning time should have us performing on all cylinders heading into the final week.
We are all very excited about this years show “Jazz Music Made in America”. ENJOY!!
Bus Tire Blow Out - ALL OK
Tuesday July 15, 2002
Today at approximately 7:00am, 40 miles southwest of Phoenix, one of the members bus, the "O-Four", had a tire blow out. The bus successfully manage to pull over to the side of the freeway. Consequently the tire over heated and caused a small fire. All on board got off the bus safely and the fire was put out quickly. The damage to the bus was minimal and the bus charter company Sun Diego Express, is dispatching a repair service to fix the bus. The corps is expected to be in El Paso this evening (Tuesday 7/15) without much of a delay.
Contact
David Gibbs with any questions.
Interview With Guard at Memorial Day Performance
The Blue Devil horn line put on a first of the season show before a surprisingly large crowd of several hundred at a park in Grass Valley, CA on Memorial Day and, for a change, members of the color guard were in the audience, rather than on stage.
What was it like to hear the powerful sound of 95 muscians kick into a medley of the familiar jazz tunes featured in the 2002 show, including Ragtime, I Got Rhythm/Fascinating Rhythm, House of the Rising Sun and Channel One Suite.
“I thought it was very exciting, very ‘Blue Devils Jazz,’” said Oscar De Alba, 20, a first year guard member from San Diego. “It was loud and strong.”
Lyndsay Obermeier, 20, from Jasper, Indiana, in her first year with the Blue Devils but a veteran of two years of Carolina Crown Drum Corps and three years of Crown Guard, thought the music was “very theatrical, fun and impressive, really entertaining. “
Daeryck Goldenstein 19, a second year guard member from Fresno, CA, called the horn line “amazing, phenomenal in all ways. The musicality they bring to the show gives it a tonal edge. The speed this year, the velocity of the show, is very different from last year.”
“I was very excited to hear them,” said Kelly Ann Wanner, 19, in her second year with the Blue Devils’ guard from Littlerock, CA. “I felt a burning sensation when they started to play, then I realized I didn’t have any sun screen on,” she joked.
“I can’t wait to be out there on the field in the middle of it all when they are playing that music. I can’t wait to hear the fan’s reactions. It’s going to be a ‘standing O’ all the way.
For the guard, the music is an excuse to move, and second year guard member B.J. Harden Jones, 21, from San Francisco by way of Mississippi, can’t wait to put it all together. “The music is dynamic. It’s upbeat and fun. It’s choreographically exciting; it makes you want to dance. It’s old school Blue Devils, and that’s a good thing because old school Blue Devils is familiar, and brings a lot of great memories to mind.”
Though the guard did not perform in Grass Valley, they are deep into rehearsals, learning drill and choreography. “I am loving the flag stuff we’ve learned,” Wanner said. “The work on “House of the Rising Sun” is fast and fun.”
“The work fits the music,” Obermeier chimed in. “There is a lot of movement,” De Alba offered.
“I like the music this year a whole lot better,” said Wanner. “And I am really excited about the costumes. They sound like they are going to be phenomenal. They are going to be super colorful. The Blue Devils haven’t done that for years. There are three colors: Purple, Orange and Red … and we are going to have red derbies. That is going to be great.”
Typical of this stage of the season, the guard has hard at work learning color guard work, and rumors are flying that the staff will continue to change the show and fine tune the movement so to create the most dynamic effect on the audience.
Memorial Day Weekend A Success
The 2002 BD “A” Corps made its Memorial Day debut to rave reviews! Thanks to the hard work of former “A” Corps director Jerry Seawright and former SCV Booster president Paul Towne, California’s “Gold Country” hosted both The Blue Devils and Santa Clara Vanguard for the traditional Memorial Day camp weekend. After 2 days of hard work in outstanding rehearsal facilities at Nevada Union High School in Grass Valley, the “A” Corps met up with SCV at the Performing Arts Pavilion in Western Gateway Park in Penn Valley. Both corps presented their 2002 programs before a huge crowd of local townspeople, parents, alumni and fans. The two hornlines then joined forces for a combined performance of America/Oh Canada and God Bless America. The combined hornlines and the entire BD performance will be available in mid June on the 2002 current year CD “Jazz: Music Made in America”.
2002 Summer Tour Announcement
2002 will see the 10 time World Champions Blue Devils, once again, embark on an 18-day eastern tour beginning on June 18th. The Blue Devils will depart from San Francisco International and fly to Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport, where they will be met by four charter motor coaches to begin the 2500 mile 12 city tour.
Highlights of the tour will include appearances in Orlando, Florida; Columbia, South Carolina; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Boston, Massachusetts and Bristol, Rhode Island.
During the tour The Blue Devils will be participating in field performances, concerts and parades. 2002 will mark The Blue Devils' third appearance in America's oldest continuously staged Fourth of July Parade, held in Bristol, Rhode Island, as well as Massachusetts's largest July 4th parade held in Wakefield, Massachusetts.
Upon their return to The Bay Area, The Blue Devils will compete in two local shows, then depart for Southern California for the first leg of the 37-day National tour. In addition to many appearances through out the country, The Blue Devils will appear in all four DCI Summer Music Games Regional Championships.
- DCI Southwestern - San Antonio, TX - July 20th
- DCI Masters of the Summer Music Games - Murfreesboro, TN - July 26th
- DCI Midwestern - Indianapolis, IN - July 27th
- The Eastern Classic - Philadelphia, PA - August 3rd
The 2002 season will culminate with the Drum Corps International Championships in Madison, Wisconsin on August 10th.