WGI 2010 Winter FOCUS

winter 2010

focus the official news of wgi sport of the arts

What It Means to Be a

TEAM LEADER

Getting to Know

EVENT JUDGES

COASTING

to the Top NorthCoast Academy cultivates international prestige

Veteran Ensembles MAKE A COMEBACK

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the official news of wgi sport of the arts

WINTER 2010 Volume 24, Issue 1

Winter Guard International Ron Nankervis Chief Executive Officer Bart Woodley Marketing Manager Aaron Jenkins Marketing & Communications Coordinator Published By: In Tune Partners, LLC

Francis Howell North HS

Winter Wonderland That chill in the air can only mean one thing: Winter is here! By the time you read this, the first shows of 2010 will be right around the corner. All the hard work, discipline, and dedication of indoor marching arts groups, no matter who they are or where they are from, will soon be on display.

Winter brings us together, if only for a brief moment, and reminds us that we are all inextricably linked to one another by our shared experiences in and out of the gym. Those memories will sustain us in a time of common challenges that impact the very activity we love. In a time when all programs are feeling the financial squeeze, it is a testament that almost 300 instructors and judges came to the recent Spinfest!! in Orlando to share and take knowledge back to their students.

What WGI believes—what each and every one of you believes and what each performer you will see believes—is that this is the season to celebrate accomplishment. Seeing the amazing feats that young people can perform connects all of us, and reminds us that no matter how or where we differ, we all seek our own measure of happiness, fulfillment, and pride in what we do.

Irwin Kornfeld CEO Will Edwards President Angelo Biasi Publisher Mac Randall Editor-in-Chief Jackie Jordan Creative Director Robin Garber Production Director Joan Ferrara Business Manager Contributing Writers: Alex Mendoza, Melinda Newman, Catherine Applefeld Olson, Michael Reed Photography: Jolesch Photography, Robert Cawthorne, Dan Scafidi, Linda Unser, and Sid Unser WGI FOCUS is an educational publication of WGI Sport of the Arts. Its purpose is to broaden communication within the family of color guards and percussion ensembles. FOCUS is published three times per year.

WGI FOCUS is a free publication with a circulation of 14,000 copies and 12,000 online viewers.

All members of the WGI family may submit articles for consideration. WGI reserves the right to edit all submitted material.

If your address has changed, please notify the WGI office. Failure to do this could result in the loss of your WGI FOCUS subscription. We don’t want to lose touch with you!

For advertising information please contact Aaron Jenkins; phone: 937-247-5919; email: aaron@wgi.org WINTER GUARD INTERNATIONAL 2405 Crosspointe Drive Dayton, OH 45342 937-247-5919 office@wgi.org www.wgi.org

Ron Nankervis Executive Director WGI Sport of the Arts

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focus

wgi

the official news of wgi sport of the arts

Volume 24 Issue 1 Winter 2010

20

The Cast is heading back to Dayton in 2010.

INSIDE 9 ENSEMBLE

The color guard connections of two So You Think You Can Dance contestants ...

WGI’s website gets a relaunch ... Centerville High School marches to Europe ...

Promoting the Championships webcast in Japan ... and much more!

14 CLOSE-UP

NorthCoast Academy’s quick ascent into the upper reaches of the percussion category has drawn admirers and lured participants from far and wide.

16 SPOTLIGHT

9

The WGI Fan Network celebrates its first birthday with a historic gift.

20 BACK IN THE GAME

In recent years, several noteworthy independent ensembles had to bow out of competition. But in 2010 they’re staging a major comeback.

25 MEET THE JUDGES

Those folks behind the white tape can be intimidating—especially when they’re scoring your performance. Still, don’t forget: WGI’s judges love the activity too.

28 CLINIC

25

What does it take to be a team leader? And what do you do once you’ve been chosen to lead? The answers to these questions may not be what you expect.

30 SCHOLARSHIP

As a drummer for Riverside Community College, Matthew Regua loved creating new characters, and the experience helped him strengthen his own.

34 WHAT’S YOUR WGIQ?

Find the differences between two photos from the 2009 Finals.

Cover photos, clockwise from top left: Matrix, NorthCoast Academy, Quasar, Emanon.

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Ensemble

Clockwise from left: Ariana DeBose; Sonya Tayeh; Jakob Karr; DeBose and Karr together on SYTYCD.

NEWS FROM THE FLOOR AND MORE

S IN O J D R A U G R O L CO THE “DANCE” Fans of Fox TV’s So You Think You Can Dance were dazzled this past season as some of the country’s most talented dancers showed off their best moves for a worldwide audience. Two of those dancers have a color guard connection.

Ariana DeBose, who made it into the show’s top 20, is a guard veteran, having trained with Avon High School’s Jennifer House Hinshaw. Second-place finalist Jakob Karr doesn’t have a guard background, but he caused a stir when he assisted Joey Dowling at WGI’s Spinfest!! in Orlando last September.

DeBose’s first experience with color guard was as a freshman performer at North Carolina’s Wake Forest High School; for the rest of her high school career, she helped choreograph the guard. “I still work with my marching band from my old high school,” she reports. “I’ll teach dance classes and spin with them. You get the best of both worlds when you’re working in the guard world because you’re learning to be meticulous with your equipment.”

Karr confesses that until he went to Spinfest!!, he “never thought that color guard and contemporary movement could be combined, and then when I saw it, I was blown away. I cannot even imagine trying to throw something in the air and catch it. Whether it’s spinning or not, it’d be hard for me.” Still, he’s interested in continuing some sort of guard involvement: “I’d definitely love to. What you guys [guard performers] do with fl ags is out of this world.”

One more member of the SYTYCD cast will be forging a link with WGI soon; “combat jazz” choreographer Sonya Tayeh is scheduled to teach a master class on April 11 at UD Arena as part of WGI’s “Sunday After” series. Go to wgi.org for more details, and to read exclusive interviews with Ariana DeBose and Jakob Karr.

THE GREAT RELAUNCH

www.wgi.org

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TWEET ALONG WITH WGI

COMPUTER PHOTO: STOCKXPERT/JUPITERIMAGES

You’ve probably noticed that wgi.org looks a lot different these days. After a lengthy period of behind-the-scenes design updating, we gave the website a full relaunch in December. It’s now more colorful and easier to navigate, and best of all, it’s got a lot of new features. The one that’s exciting us most at the moment is the downloadables section. For the first time, users will be able to download a wide selection of WGI-related stuff—videos, screensavers, desktop backgrounds, and more—at absolutely no charge. Of course, all the features you’ve come to rely on are still available, from a detailed event calendar to background information on every WGI ensemble. So log on today!

Looking for the latest info about the 2010 season? You can be among the first to know about all things WGI by following us on our new Twitter page. Surf on over to twitter.com/WGItweets and become a part of the social network.

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GUARD FOCUS Centerville HS at the 2009 WGI Percussion Championships

McCormick’s Custom Flag Puts Dimensions in Motion Textured fl ags are becoming a major trend at WGI events, and this one by McCormick’s, originally designed for Santa Clara Vanguard Drum & Bugle Corps, has a striking three-dimensional quality. Designer Alan Spaeth says, “The inspiration for this fl ag was a pleated skirt, which opens up and becomes fuller with motion. My goal was to have a fl ag that increased in size and created more dimension while it was being spun.” The standard version is available in maroon, burgundy, amaretto, mandarin, and butterscotch Aeroflo II with Aztec lamé. For more about this and many other fl ags, visit mccormicksnet.com.

CENTERVILLE HIGH Y E N R U O J IG B ’S L O O H C S PERCUSSION FOCUS

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Pro-Mark iDPad Lets You Bang Your Own Drum If you’re bored with the look of your plain old drum pads, Pro-Mark has a solution: the new iDPad, which you can design to look any way you want. The process takes place entirely online; upload your own pictures and graphics in sync with a custom color palette to create a pad as personal as your playing style. For further details, go to promark.com.

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The new world representative of US Indoor Percussion is the Centerville High School Winter Drumline of Centerville, Ohio. The group will travel to Europe this spring to compete in the 2010 Indoor Percussion Europe Championships in Crawley, England. Centerville earned this distinction through its long history of success in WGI’s Percussion Championships, reaching the Finals 11 times to date and winning two gold medals, the first (Scholastic Open) in 1999 and the second (Scholastic World) in 2004.

“We are extremely excited and honored to have been selected to participate in this international percussion competition,” says Tim Fairbanks, Centerville’s marching percussion director. “I know that our students will never forget this experience and our community is very proud that the Centerville Winter Drumline is an international ambassador for the arts.”

Although the IPE Championships take place on only one day, Centerville’s trip will last nearly two weeks (March 31-April 11). During that time, the ensemble’s members will also travel to London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Bruges for sightseeing and performance opportunities. “With Centerville High School as our special guests,” says Indoor Percussion Europe’s Erwin van Gemert, “we are certain that the European directors, designers, and fans will experience what indoor percussion is all about.”

WGI GOES WORLDWIDE WITH JAPANESE WEBCAST AD

More than 1,400 participating units in the recent Japan Marching Band Baton Twirling Association Championships received a flyer for the WGI World Championships webcast—WGI’s first ever foreign-language ad (see left). “There is an intense interest in the marching arts in Japan,” says WGI Marketing Manager Bart Woodley, “so the ad to promote the webcast to those attending the ‘local’ championship seemed like a perfect opportunity.”

Americans and Japanese aren’t the only ones watching online, either; the 2009 championship webcast also had viewers in Canada, the U.K., the Netherlands, Belgium, and Sweden. www.wgi.org

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CLAIM YOUR SEAT AT THE CHAMPIONSHIPS Tickets for the 2010 WGI World Championships (April 8-10 and 15-17) are on sale now! The easiest way to get them is online; head to the wgi.org home page, click on the Tickets box, and choose from the available options.

But if you’re looking for the ultimate experience, check out our Color Guard and Percussion VIP Ticket Packages, which guarantee ticket holders the best seats in the house for all finals events. To place your VIP ticket order, call 1-866-589-7161.

Please note that the introduction of a semi-finals round in Scholastic and Independent World Class Color Guard has changed the overall event schedule for 2010.

If you’re planning to see the prelims in these classes, you’ll need to arrive on Thursday, April 8.

“Talent” Lookout

Another sign that the marching arts are becoming more mainstream: Representatives of the hit NBC TV show America’s Got Talent recently contacted WGI’s office to tell us that their talent scouts plan to attend all California WGI events in the coming year. NonCalifornians should note that the remaining open-call auditions for AGT’s next season are in Orlando (February 13 and 14), Atlanta (February 20 and 21), and Portland, Oregon (February 28 and March 1). Visit agtauditions.com for details.

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Thank You to Our Partners and Sponsors Presenting Sponsors

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Close-Up

NorthCoast Academy

Goes Long Distance

Top Percussion Ensemble Draws Members From All Over

By Melinda Newman

W

hen Diane King, executive director of NorthCoast Academy’s award-winning percussion ensemble, notes that musicians come from near and far to join the Saginaw, Mich.based group, she isn’t kidding.

“I once had a girl from Japan fly over to audition,” King says. Although no current member has to hop a transcontinental flight, many participants in this year’s corps travel from as far away as northern Illinois, Indiana, and Canada every weekend for practice. The majority of NorthCoast’s 40 members are in college, although there is the occasional high-schooler.

There’s good reason percussionists come from all over to be a part of NCA’s indoor drumline. In one of the quickest ascents in WGI history, NorthCoast captured the gold in only its second year in the Independent Open class at the 2003 World Championships, under the guidance of Steve Yoder. The ensemble has since moved up to Independent World, most recently coming in seventh in the 2009 finals.

Yoder recruited his best friend King to serve as assistant director as part of an ongoing reorganization that started in 2002, when Yoder reactivated the drum line after a long hiatus. “We were all at another drum line in Canada, and we brought some of our members with us. It was all because of Steve,” King says of the group’s astonishing rebirth. “It was a fresh outlook. We got some older, more experienced kids in there. We could only go up.”

Sadly, Yoder died later that year after an illness and King, a French horn player and public school band teacher, ascended to executive director. She’s been on a fast track ever since with, by her own admission, lots of onthe-job training. Creating a world-class percussion unit takes “a lot of time, a lot of money, and a lot of passion,” she says. “I’m weary just thinking about the time it takes.”

In her few years, she’s already seen major changes in what the WGI judges expect during competition. “There’s a lot more movement,” she says, “Somewhere along the line, percussion ensembles add some dancing. There’s one that does a lot of hip-hop, and another one added ballet moves. We’re not good at either one,” she adds with a self-deprecating laugh.

People don’t just travel to NorthCoast; last summer, the group became the third American WGI unit to perform in Europe. Even its theme song, which the members gather in a circle to sing right before they take the stage, has an international flavor. King says the ditty was composed by a French Canadian member in 2003, and has special meaning to the group.

It takes a lot of time, a lot of money, and a lot ng of passion. I’m weary just thinki

about the time it takes.

14 WGI FOCUS

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Spotlight

A Birthday Treat from the Fan Network 30 Years of WGI Video Now Available Online

By Mac Randall Watch Quasar’s 1978 World Championship gold-medal performance online.

O

ne year ago, the WGI Fan Network made its online debut—and what a year it’s been. At first, the Fan Network offered members the opportunity to view streaming video of select WGI events. Then the ability to download videos was added. Every week, the library of available clips grew.

New developments with the site’s video host raised the quality of the videos and gave users full-screen viewing capabilities. And now, to celebrate its first birthday, the Fan Network has made available, for both streaming and downloading, a historic archive of WGI video: 30 years’ worth of performances, from 1978 to 2007.

This milestone achievement is the culmination of a laborious two-year process. “Getting the entire archive online has been a very time-consuming task,” explains WGI video specialist Amy Racic, who’s been the leader of the research and digitizing effort. “The majority of the past summer was spent digging through old videos and compressing files to the specs that are needed to upload to the Fan Network. There’s around 1,250 videos in the WGI Fan Network Archives alone, and each one needs to be compressed into two different files, one for streaming and one for downloading.”

All that hard work has paid off, creating a treasure trove of footage that allows fans to sample performances from

any time in the history of the activity. As Racic observes, “It’s really exciting to see the roots of where the organization began and to watch the progression of show designs and equipment use.”

Bart Woodley, Marketing Manager of WGI, says that some of the best treats in store for Fan Network members are the oldest. “We are including some streaming video of the 1978 World Championship performances, which have never been available to the public before,” he reveals. “Even though the quality of that vintage video is a little less than par, I know there will be some fans who will love to experience part of the first WGI.” In its first year, the number of Fan Network subscribers exceeded expectations. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. “We have had several fans write the WGI office saying that they love having so many shows at their fingertips,” Woodley reports.

Originally, the Fan Network was the brainchild of Drum Corps International; now that WGI is also on board, the concept has only gained momentum. “Together,” Woodley says, “we are looking for ways to revolutionize the way fans experience marching arts video.” To that end, look for further exciting developments later in 2010, including extra content and new updates to the Fan Network player. In the meantime, you can check out the WGI Fan Network for yourself by going to wgi.org/fannetwork.

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Pride of Cincinnati

By Catherine Applefeld Olson

Every once in a while, ensembles may need to take a time-out from competition— but when they return, they’re stronger than ever. ometimes stepping off the beaten path can be a blessing in disguise. With the economy in the dumps, 2009 saw an increased number of winter guard ensembles taking a hiatus for financial reasons. But with flexibility, creativity, and good old-fashioned tenacity, these troupes turned a potentially sticky situation into a sweet victory.

High gas prices coupled with complex logistics waylaid upstate South Carolina-based The Cast this year. “We had kids traveling from Atlanta, the eastern part of Tennessee, the eastern part of North Carolina, and right before the season was going to start gas was around $4.50 a gallon,” director Bud McCarter says. “Given the cost of travel, we decided to take a break and see what the economy was going to do.”

The 30-member Pride of Cincinnati color guard recently took time off after discovering that it had to slash its bud20 WGI FOCUS

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The Cast

get to ensure smooth operations. The hiatus resulted in an analysis and overhaul of everything from transportation to food to practice sites to staffing. “We had to basically go back to the drawing board of how we do things,” director Charlie Gumbert says, “and really think about, ‘Are we doing something because we really need to do it or have we just been doing it because we’ve had the money?’ ” For some troupes, particularly those located farthest from WGI headquarters in Dayton, Ohio, financial constraints are a given, recession or not. The London, England-based Mayflower color guard often elects to miss the WGI World Championships, but that’s by design. “Since we are so far from Dayton, we had always planned periodic visits to WGI,” designer Robert Da Costa notes. “Funding a trip every year to come is prohibitive and was never in our overall plan.”

Since Mayflower’s last visit to WGI in 2005, Da Costa adds, “we have been focusing the guard program on building a

stronger local base and we felt it was appropriate to take our time before we returned to WGI competition. Our 2010 WGI trip has been in the making for the past three years. Regardless of our competitive placement, bringing Mayflower to WGI has always been the most amazing experience for our members.”

Lemonade Out of Lemons

Although the economy may have been the catalyst for taking a break, wise troupes have used the extra time to regroup for an even stronger comeback.

For New Jersey-based Emanon, a 2009 hiatus turned out to be just what the doctor ordered. During the time off, co-directors Vikki and Tony Del Corsano completely restaffed and the color guard basically disbanded, with the majority of its 20 members segueing into neighboring marching ensembles. When it was time to get back to practice for 2010, two of the “original” memWGI FOCUS 21

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Fantasia

bers returned, to join 13 new members.

“We’ve got a whole new troupe now,” says Vikki Del Corsano. “They all know the history of the guard, though some have never marched in winter guard before. It’s very exciting and uplifting that all these new kids wanted to do it.”

Thanks to a new designer, Emanon’s shows have taken a more sophisticated turn, Del Corsano says. And the fresh start gave Vikki and her husband a chance to rethink the way they want to run the organization. “We were very connected to the kids the first few years, but as the business end started to take over more of what we did, we lost contact a little,” she says. “We’ve changed that now and are getting more connected with the kids because we really missed that part. And things are running really smoothly.”

Time off can also do much to solidify the bond between group members. When The Cast decided to sit out the 2009 season, some kids elected to join other winter guard ensembles. But, Bud McCarter reports, they discovered the grass is not always greener elsewhere, and many returned to the fold when it was time to begin practicing again for the next season. “The kids got to see how competitive it is on the national level, and they got to see the different styles of training,” he says. “And some realize that we have our family values here. We take care of the kids and are concerned about them like parents.”

Charlie Gumbert has observed a similar bonding dynamic at Pride of Cincinnati: “Having the time off makes you appreciate what you have a little bit more, and the time that is spent away makes you realize how much more you actually love it. It feels like we’re getting the family back together.”

In the long run, an enforced break can step up a guard’s commitment. “We know that returning to WGI results in a more committed season—a more intense rehearsal schedule, higher costs, and more fundraising—plus time off school and college for many of our members,” Mayflower’s Da Costa says.

A Strong Comeback

Difficult as it may be to step off course and return strong, the triumphant return of so many WGI stalwarts in the 2010 season—from Mayflower and Emanon to 2008 IW gold medalist Fantasia— is proof that it can be Mayflower done. Fantasia staff member Tim Mikan looks at the process philosophically. “Every fi ve to seven years,” he says, “there seems to be a rotation of core performers that retire. This gets compounded by the rigors of being a part of a college marching band that performs all fall season. Between the two, it is natural and sometimes necessary to step back and reassess the seasonal process and even regroup from previous years to assure the members, staff and fans that everyone will have a quality experience the following year.”

“Realistically,” McCarter says, “everyone I’ve talked with 22 WGI FOCUS

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realized that the way last year was financially, it was a big burden to keep an organization going for anyone that has an independent group, which depends on fundraisers and kids paying their dues.”

“As soon as people heard we weren’t competing, they’d call and ask what happened,” Del Corsano says. “And we’d tell them we were definitely coming back next year; we weren’t folding. In the beginning, people were wondering if we really were going to come back out, but everyone was supportive for the most part.”

To help keep up internal morale and external publicity, Del Corsano traveled to several regional competitions, both to see former Emanon members who were performing and to put up posters letting people know the color guard would be back.

“Any time you take a year off, it makes you nervous to come back,” Gumbert says. “But it just makes you work harder. You have to streamline your operation and make it more precise, but it makes the students and the instructors a little more hungry.”

When Mayflower returns to Dayton in April of 2010, it will be the ensemble’s sixth visit. “We are well aware of what it takes, what the experience will be for the members, and what we need to do in advance to ensure a smooth and successful visit,” Robert Da Costa says. “The hiatus hasn’t changed us— it’s just kept us focused on our short- and long-term goals, which include frequent visits to Dayton.”

Del Corsano sums up her mixed emotions about taking a time-out: “The decision was really scary. I thought, ‘Did we just go inactive, or did we really just fold the guard?’ And it was depressing at first. But it turned out to be one of the best things we’ve ever done.” www.wgi.org

1/8/10 10:27:53 AM

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Meet THE JUDGES A people behincloser look at the d the white ta pe

BY MICHAEL REED

It’s contest day. The prelims start at 9 a.m. Before the sun rises, a special group of people is already awake. The night be-

Sue Nicholson has been a WGI judge for over two decades.

www.wgi.org

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fore, they spent hours on an airplane, arriving at their hotel late to catch a few precious hours of sleep. Before the day ends, they will have spent over 12 hours paying attention to the tiniest detail of every program. After the awards ceremony, they may work for another few hours, meeting with instructors to discuss their groups’ performances.

These men and women are the WGI judges.

They view the shows from the best vantage points and are constantly speaking into digital voice recorders. They are the ones who decide the results—and give passionate instructors and fans reasons to celebrate or grumble.

Who are these people sitting inside the taped-off area with clipboards and pencils?

Why do they spend most weekends from February through April working long hours? Are they fans of the activity, just like the rest of the people in the stands?

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been a WGI percussion judge for four years. After marching with the Cadets in the mid-’90s, he has served as a staff member with several DCI corps. For Tom, traveling around the nation and interacting with the instructors and performers that “are making it happen” is one of the most rewarding aspects of judging. He feels that accountability is a crucial element of his work: “Bringing my A-game to the commentary, scoring, and critique is the least I can do.”

Tom’s “day job” is serving our country, as a percussionist in the United States Air Force Band in Washington, D.C. Guard judge Orlando Suttles agrees that accountability is critical in his role as a 10-year adjudicator, noting “the most important thing about adjudicating is being account-

Before meeting a few of these dedicated professionals, it may be helpful to explain what they do.

Judges evaluate a performance in a specific caption, giving each ensemble feedback via digital recordings. They rank the groups, assign scores in subcaptions, and are expected to be proficient in numbers management.

When you consider the complexity of all these tasks, plus the fact that there are only a few minutes between performances to complete their commentary, it is easy to see how mentally demanding judging truly is. A recent survey of active WGI judges revealed that one part of the job they find particularly tough is ranking a large number of groups. For example, at World Championships it is common to evaluate over 30 in any given prelim round. According to percussion judge Chris Hestin, “as judges, we strive to ensure that every score assigned profiles a group’s strengths, weaknesses, and relative competitiveness. This can be a challenge.”

Most judges have backgrounds in marching William Chumley (L) balances judging and teaching; Chris Hestin (C) is a percussion training director for judges; Tom Rarick (R) takes time off from the U.S. Air Force Band to judge events. band, drum corps, or winter guard. The transition from instructor to judge can be a natural progression of able for your actions in ranking and rating, and remaining their maturation within the activity. Each judge undergoes professional at all times.” In “real life,” Orlando works in extensive training regarding WGI judging philosophy, scor- the banking industry, and is also color guard coordinator ing, ranking, and other aspects of the craft prior to judging for the Michigan State University Marching Band. He enan event. Most judges have judged in local circuits before joys cooking, biking, working out, and collegiate sports. adjudicating WGI events. The organization conducts annuOne of the judges with the longest tenure in the activity al training sessions for judges. According to movement is Sue Nicholson, who has been a WGI judge for over 20

“as judges, we strive to ensure that every score assigned profiles a group’s strengths, weaknesses, and relative competitiveness.” judge Jackie Campbell, “the training process is just that: a process. I’ve never been to a clinic where I haven’t learned something new.”

WGI’s current roster of judges work in almost every field imaginable, from finance to technology to education. WGI FOCUS spoke with a few of them about their backgrounds, interests, and thoughts on being a judge.

Phil Madden William Chumley has been a WGI judge since 1995. While actively judging, he has continued as a teacher, founding 2002 IO champion and multi-time IW finalist Oracle. He is currently Director of Education for Winter Guard United Kingdom and the director of 2009 SO silver medalist Legacy High School.

When he’s not judging, consulting, or teaching, he loves reading and travel. For William, the most rewarding part of judging is “being with the performers ‘in the moment’ when it all comes together and they have that great run.”

Tom Rarick has 26 wgi focus

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years. She strives to be a fair, consistent judge and feels one of the most rewarding parts of judging is seeing color guards develop and grow. Sue was a majorette in high school and a color guard captain in college; in subsequent years, she’s been a band director and guard instructor in Mississippi and Florida. She is an exercise buff, doing yoga and pilates in her spare time, and she plans to participate in the Atlanta Half Marathon.

The people we see judging WGI events are every bit as enthusiastic about the activity as the spectators. They experience the same thrills when a rifle line perfectly catches a high toss, or when a snare line nails its feature. Theirs can be a thankless task, but when their comments contribute in some small way to helping a performance come together for that one magical moment, the weekends away from home and the raspy voices from hours of talking into a recorder seem like much less of a hardship. www.wgi.org

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Clinic

Profiles in Leadership

The leaders of Freedom High School’s guard are chosen through a multistep process.

Ensemble Leaders Play a Crucial Role in a Program’s Success

By Alex Mendoza

S

trong leadership is a core principle in the marching arts activities, and instructors can’t be the only ones who embody it—they’re only human, after all, and they’re juggling multiple responsibilities as they design and refine the musical and visual elements of each program. Therefore, the leaders within the ensemble represent a crucial link between performers and instructors, putting the rules set by the latter into place for the former to observe. So how does one go about choosing the right person to become a leader of the ensemble?

“Over the years with the Matrix organization, I don’t feel I’ve had to ‘choose’ many of my leaders,” says Rob Ferguson, director of the Matrix percussion ensemble. “The true leadership comes very much from what happens off the floor and not behind the instrument. The people who constantly rise to the need and inherently gain the respect of the ensemble naturally become the leaders. Surprisingly enough, many of our ensemble leaders over the years have not been the ‘center snare’ or the ‘front ensemble section leader.’ Those positions happen via performance level. Ultimately, the leaders became the people who rose to the challenge of what needed to be done.”

Although the process of selecting the right candidate for group leadership is methodical, the specific criteria for leaders tend to vary from ensemble to ensemble. What one person perceives as the guidelines for a capable leader may be entirely different from another person’s perceptions, especially at the high school level.

Erin Brown, director of Freedom High School’s color guard, describes how her organization proceeds in this area: “Freedom’s leaders are chosen through an application, essay, and interview process. The interview portion includes all members of the color guard and winter guard staff, as well as our band director. Student interviews last between 10 and 15 minutes, with questions ranging from future plans for the program to explanations of past decisions and actions. To be selected, students must have at least one full year of experience in the program, a minimum GPA of 2.0, and no discipline issues.”

After this careful selection process, a leader must follow the duties established by the instructors. Consistency and persistent application of the various rules and principles are essential, but at the same time leaders are also responsible for creating a positive environment, which emphasizes the idea of teamwork in pursuit of a shared goal.

“We have very high expectations of the student leaders in our program,” Brown says. “Some of their day-to-day responsibilities include embracing their leadership role in the community, along with communication, maintaining rehearsal etiquette, ensuring that equipment is maintained and stored properly, and organizing get-togethers.”

“In addition to the ‘work’ I expect from them, I have very much enjoyed seeing each set of new leaders continually take on more and more than the previous one,” Ferguson says. “I think that is a special thing and, quite honestly, the definition of leadership: always pushing for more.”

“Many of our ensemble leaders over the years have not been ‘center snare’ or ‘front ensemble section leader.’ They were the

people who rose to the challenge

of what needed to be done.”

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www.wgi.org

1/6/10 3:36:41 PM

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Scholarship

Becoming a New

Character Winter Role-Playing Leads to Self-Discovery

By Matthew Regua

Riverside Community College Riverside, California

I

vividly remember my first Winter Guard International I am lucky to have been a part of the age group that witWorld Championships experience. It happened during nessed WGI bleed into drum corps. My first year of drum my senior year at Rubidoux High School, in 2004. The corps, in 2003, featured minimal body movement and conchampionships were held in San Diego, Calif., and sisted of strict marching technique. By the time I aged out they influenced me to march in WGI until I aged out at 22. of drum corps in 2007, our drum solo was completely choThat weekend opened my eyes—not merely because of the reographed with motions that had rarely been seen before. clean drumming or the spectacular show design, but be- I attribute this to the influence of WGI. Today’s high school cause of the amount of energy and dedication seniors graduate with performance skills each performer displayed. I realized that WGI that are higher than ever due to the decould help me release suppressed or unmands of the winter activity. known emotions I had, in shows that could My favorite part about WGI was becomchange people’s lives. ing a new character every year. EmbracCompeting in WGI was my escape from ing each of my roles has enabled me to Since its inception, the WGI everyday life. I am a full-time student at Cal appreciate other cultures and value sysScholarship Program has Poly Pomona, majoring in chemical engitems. My final year meant the most to me, provided over $400,000 to neering. Drumming with Riverside Commubecause the Maori Warrior is who I am toyoung people who participate nity College helped me get my mind off Berday as a person. On stage, the Maori Warnoulli’s Equation, thermodynamics, and in color guard and percussion riors were aggressive, expressive, and organic chemistry. Through each drumming activities. The money for relentless in our quest to uphold our valperformance I have transformed myself into these scholarships comes ues, culture, and family. I try to live like various personalities: a West Coast dancer, a from the 50/50 raffle at the this in my new endeavors, as my marchsymbol in a deck of cards, a child, a French- World Championships, $1 of ing career has now ended. man, and a Maori Warrior. Each time I took the purchase price of each I thank WGI for giving me the opportuthe stage, I evolved into that new role and left World Championship pronity to combine my love for drumming gram, and individual donabehind the stresses of college life. with my love of performance. Great inDrum corps valued the ensemble over the tions. If you are interested in struction from Sean Vega, Scott Johnson, individual, and stressed perfection in unison. donating to the WGI ScholarJon Kisner, and countless other mentors Each member of the Blue Devils’ snare line ship Fund, you can do so pushed my potential. To all students still wore the same shako, uniform, and facial ex- online or send your donation marching, remember to become the role pression. When winter season came around, to WGI Scholarship Donation, by transforming into the character on I was able to develop my own character. And 2405 Crosspointe Drive, stage, and value the work ethic neceswhen I performed with RCC, every smirk or Dayton, OH 45342. For more sary to be successful. gesture I made corresponded in its own information about the WGI Matthew Regua is one of 16 young people who unique way with the message we were con- Scholarship Program, visit wgi.org/about/scholarship. received WGI Scholarships in 2009. veying in the show.

THE WGI SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

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www.wgi.org

1/6/10 3:38:15 PM

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What’s Your

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34 WGI FOCUS

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At first glance, these two photographs of the Black Watch Color Guard at the 2009 Finals look identical—but they’re not. There are seven differences between the shot on the bottom and the shot on the top. Can you tell what they are?

To find out your WGIQ score, go to wgi.org/wgiq.

www.wgi.org

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12/23/09 11:08:26 AM

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