Welcome to the 2006 HURRICANE DRUM AND BUGLE CORPS press release thread!

The 2006 season is our inaugural season, so please stay tuned for some basic information regarding the corps, our mission, and the people who make everything possible.

Hurricane Drum and Bugle Corps is proud to announce its 2006 show theme: "Not as a Sonata". The show will feature the music of Norman Dello Joio's Piano Sonata Number 3:
-Movement I, Tema
-Movement I, Var. I
-Movement II
-Movement III
-Movement I, Var V
-Movement IV

Hurricane will be marching:
9 snares
5 tenors
5 basses
9 pit
25 colorguard
2 drum majors

We are still making final decisions as to the appropriate numbers of each brass instrument that will produce a particularly strong low brass sound, while still retaining a balance. Suggestions welcome, as the corps director is primarily a tenors/mallets inclined type, and knows very little about such things (though this will not impede her ability to run the corps... it's the brass staff members' jobs to figure that stuff out, right?).

The caption picks, of course, are of the utmost secrecy. The only people who hold this knowledge are the caption selection committee:
Kristina- Caption selection committee president
Chief- Caption selection committee vice president
Mrs. Chief- Caption selection committee member
Roman- Caption selection committee member

Keep checking this thread for further information!

HURRICANE RELEASES UNIFORMS
Designs "breathtaking," says former visual judge

Hurricane Drum and Bugle Corps is pleased to present their uniforms!


These marching uniforms bear the traditional hurricane weather symbol and the corps colors, white and purple. The uniform in its original design also included a white hat with the purple symbol and a tall white feather, but the wind blew them all off the members' heads. The corps will therefore not wear anything on the head, and members are free to wear their hair in any style as long as it is not a detriment to or a distraction from the visual focus.

http://x00.xanga.com/db8a13e13933252094435/z34962887.gif

The guard uniforms match the purple solor scheme of the corps. Hurricane offers equal opportunity to both males and females in all sections including colorguard, but there were no male colorguard auditionees, so there was no need to design a male colorguard uniform. (As we are based out of Chicago, IL, The Cavaliers and the Madison Scouts hogged all the amazing guard guys.)
The guard will use the purple scarves pictured, as well as the following flags:

http://x20.xanga.com/4d2b87ea4223352094417/z34962870.jpg
http://x9e.xanga.com/ae3b8ae1c013352094464/z34962908.jpg
http://x54.xanga.com/ed1a14f343d3252094478/z34962920.jpg

Additionally, the guard will use sabres and dance. No rifles will be used.

A former DCI visual judge who wishes to remain anonymous commented "No doubt about it, the one who picked out these colorguard patterns and uniform was a visual genius. The designed marching uniforms are astounding as well. It's an absolutely breathtaking combination with the show."

Hurricane Drum and Bugle Corps looks forward to dazzling their audiences this season!

Awesome uniforms. Good luck to your corps this year!

Good luck to you and your corps. this season!

HURRICANE EXPLAINED
DeLucia interviews corps director

Dennis: Good evening, my name is Dennis DeLucia, and welcome to tonight's interview- a DCI Season Pass exclusive. Thank you for logging on. Tonight, I am honored to be speaking with a special guest- executive director of the first-year Hurricane Drum and Bugle Corps. How are you today, Kristina?
Kristina: Hey Dennis, I'm great, thanks. And thanks again for that box 5 GE score you gave my indoor line this past season!
D: (Laughing) It was well deserved! Now then. Your information says only that your name is Kristina. Don't you have a last name that goes along with that?
K: Sure! But I was thinking of all the famous people who just go by one name, and I figured I'd just follow them. I plan to be like Madonna or Prince, except richer, cooler, more famous, and more musically inclined. I figure that directing a corps is the perfect way to achieve all that. Well, except for "richer". And "more famous". And...

D: Right! So! Anyways. Speaking of which, why specifically did you decide to start up Hurricane?
K: Well, I've taken a great interest in marching percussion. In marching band, I've marched a year of bass drum and 4 years of tenors. I was drumline captain for this past season. I also march indoor, as you know- tenors ‘06 and mallets ‘05.
D: But no drum corps experience?
K: Well, no. That's why this is perfect. My ultimate dream would to be in the Bluecoats pit before I age out... but I'd love to be in a number of Div. 1 corps. But such corps like to see a good deal of experience before admitting you, especially drum corps experience... I figure, what could give me that drum corps experience better than directing one?
D: ...So, when was the last time you practiced?
K: (Laughing) You crack me up, Dennis!
D: No, seriously.
K: ......

D: So Kristina, can you explain why Hurricane is based out of Chicago, IL? It doesn't seem like there are too many hurricanes there.
K: No, we don't get any at all! Lake Michigan just isn't large enough. However, it is called the Windy City, and I figure since the Sox just won the World Series, it must be a city of champions. And, I might add, delicious pizza. What better combination could there be?

D: You've got me there! Why did you pick the name "Hurricane" in the first place?
K: It actually originated from Chief, from the captions selection committee… as well as one of his friends. “Hurricane” was a nickname they gave me. It’s kind of a long story, but I kind of liked the name, and it stuck for some people!

D: Do you have a corps motto?
K: Yes, we’ll be “Taking the world by storm”!

D: I saw the uniforms you will be using this season. What's with the little purple "S" symbol on the front?
K: That's no "S", Dennis. That is the hurricane weather symbol, like you see on The Weather Channel.

D: Now tell me, your show has an unusual name. Why did you pick it?
K: The name of the show is symbolic. The first movement of the piano sonata from which the show was taken is a theme and variations. I'm kind of a verbal play nut, so I took the word "sonata" (the theme of the show) and made an anagram... in other words, I changed the letters around, and got "Not as a". So, just as the first movement of the piano piece is a theme and variations, the first part of the show title is a variation on the show's theme ("sonata"). When you put that all together, the title "Not as a Sonata" illustrates the unusual way that this piece- typically performed as a piano sonata- will be presented to an audience.

D: Wow, you have way too much time on your hands. What has been the most difficult part of this entire endeavor thus far?
K: Undoubtedly, it's been the writing. Dello Joio's Piano Sonata #3 is broken down into such small pieces. I needed to write my own transitions that would pull together a wide variety of tempos and feels to make a smooth, cohesive show. But the fun part of this is instrument assignment. Whatever instruments would be appropriate for a part just sort of speak to me... the contras tend to ask for the low ranges for example, or at one part, the top range absolutely SCREAMED "crotales" with a whispering of "triangle" and "vibes".
D: (Chuckling) Hearing voices, huh?...
K: Oh! Speaking of voices, another difficulty we've encountered is deciding the brass numbers. Right now we still have more brass than we need in each section, because we're still making cuts. We're still finding a balance that would be appropriate for a strong, but not overpowering low brass sound. Our batterie, pit, guard, and drum majors are all definitely decided.

D: Speaking of batterie, as a batterie member yourself, did you put a batterie feature in your show?
K: Oh you bet... ironically, it's during a part in the piano sonata that is very slow- Movement I, Var V. The brass and pit are playing, but they’re in the background. I wrote the batterie parts for the feature sort of a la SCV Double Beat... it's a pretty sweet groove, though less repetitive than SCV's exercise.

D: That sounds just fabulous. Well, our time is up now, but for our audiences at home, this interview will continue to be available on DCI Season Pass... thank you for subscribing. Thanks again Kristina, and good luck!
K: Thank you Dennis, you too!

TENORS CHARM FALLS OFF CORPS DIRECTOR’S NECKLACE
Event deemed a “bad omen”

Hurricane director Kristina was just getting up from a free period spent sitting in the band hallway, when she felt something drop off the necklace she wears. When she counted the charms on her necklace, only two of the three were accounted for. The snare drum and marimba charms were present, but the set of tenors had fallen off.

“I was very lucky to have felt it drop,” she commented. “I was able to pick it up right away, rather than having to look for it.”

But what she didn’t comment on was the fact that the tiny metal link that connects the charm to the chain was never recovered.

“This is a very bad omen,” warns an anonymous astrological source. “This symbolizes the fast-approaching fall of Hurricane and its tenor line. As the link was never recovered, the drumline may soon experience something from which they will not recover... in a show or otherwise.”

Most dismiss the source as a publicity-seeking liar, and say it was probably nothing more than the charm simply catching on something, weakening the link. Also considered is the corps director’s fun at releasing random fantasy press articles.

Or perhaps trying to cover one's tracks in case caption picks aren't the best?

HURRICANE NAMES TWELVE-YEAR-OLD GIRL CENTER TENOR
Staff “blown away” by youngest Hurricane member

She’s sweet, she’s smart, she’s young, she’s pretty…

…and if you miss that next attack, she has the power to make you do 50 push-ups.

Twelve-year old Cadence Miller from Peoria, IL was not initially taken seriously by the Hurricane Drum and Bugle Corps staff.

“I got the application, and the age was filled in as ‘12’, and there were many years of high school drumline listed as previous experience,” recalls director Kristina. “So I’m thinking, oh alright, we have a girl trying out for tenors who’s about to age out, and she has dyslexia. That’s cool. Little did I know- Cadence WAS 12, and she was about to have us all completely blown away!”

Tenor auditionees were equally stunned as the 5’ 3”, 115 pound girl made a mockery of the rudimental skills they had worked so hard to develop.

“I knew, like, I needed to work on my chops and all,” lamented Justin Rappaport, who was cut from the tenor line. “But like, here comes this 2-foot tall kid younger than my sister, and I’m just like, ‘Is this chick for real, man?’ And then she throws down and makes total Douchie McBags out of the rest of us.”

“I knew I was a little bit younger than the other guys,” laughed Cadence. “But I’ve been playing tenors just about as long as I’ve been alive, and I thought I’d finally try out for corps.”

Cadence’s parents noted that she had tenor talent very early in life as compared to her competition.

“We knew something was going down by the time that kid was 6 months old,” said Mr. Miller, Cadence’s father and a 2-year veteran of the Phantom Regiment bass drum line. “We gave her a bunch of pots and pans and spatulas and whatnot to play with, and I came into the kitchen where she was messin’ around, and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. She was scraping from pan to pan!

“That kid had butterflies down solid by 9 months, and was playin’ the heck outta triple beat scrapes by the time she was a year old. At that point, I knew we had to take some action, because even I know that’s not typical for a kid… not even my kid.”

Cadence’s mother sought out a private tenor lesson teacher for her, but confirms that it was difficult to locate someone willing to teach a 1-year-old.

“People were complaining because Cadence couldn’t confidently walk yet,” complained Mrs. Miller. “And I said, ‘What do you need her to walk for? She plays on pots and pans better than the kids at the local high schools play on quads! Teach her on a pad!”

Cadence did eventually find a teacher, and by the time she was in kindergarten, Cadence was drumming on her future high school’s batterie, barely able to carry trios. In second grade, she became drumline captain, and she has been it ever since. She finally became physically capable of carrying a full quad set in fourth grade, and the school added a 6” shot drum a year later with no complaints.

“Being younger than all the high school kids at age seven can be a hard thing,” Cadence reported. “I remember feeling like I didn’t really fit in. But after awhile, we all got used to eachother, and since then I’ve always felt right at home with older people. And they seem to feel the same way, treating me as an equal. I feel like it helped me mature rapidly. And I think corps is going to be an awesome experience!”

Cadence is also planning to prepare a tenor solo in the event that an individuals’ contest opportunity arises during the tour. Her interview was not complete, but reporters could not ask Cadence any further questions, as it was already past her bedtime.

I'd put money that Hurricane will blow away the other corps, Good Luck this season