I meant to have a last name for the coach/director personage, but didn't know to do that on the registration. Oh well, there she blows.

Done

Woohoo! Thankies to you, Bernie_Pit. Wow, I wonder why I waited so long to actually start posting here.

Here we go, everybody! The staff list for the inaugural season of the Jackson Flares is as follows:

• Tour Coordinator: Dennis Brisolara
• Brass Arrangers: John Martin and Dallas Burke
• Drill and Visual Director: Ronald Martin
• Brass Caption Heads: Mac Therrien and Bobby Lewis
• Brass Consultant 1: Neil Patel
• Brass Consultant 2: Ann Harrison
• Marching Director: Tony Taylor
• Marching and Visual Consultant: Ron Branning
• Percussion Arranger 1: John Wooten
• Percussion Arranger 2: Bob Hennen
• Percussion Caption Heads: Carl Major and John "Donkey" Brewer
• Percussion Consultant 1: Joseph Peace
• Percussion Consultant 2: Chris Calton
• Color Guard/Rifle Line and Dance Instructors: Jarod Leddy and Rebecca Parmer
• Drum Major Instructor: Candace Cartwright

The Flares are a new corps formed from the students of Jackson County Florida over the past year. Try-outs were held earlier in the year so as to help re-condition the members and teach them the basics of a Drum Corps (versus their high school marching band experience). Guard and Dance try-outs are to be held this weekend at Marianna High and all applicants should arrive promptly at 7:30 AM ("And remember, if you're on time. . .you're late.") The show is currently a work in progress, though musical selection is complete and both drill and arranging have begun.

The Jackson Flares are currently working with the Jackson County communities, as well as the WaterPur Company of Greenwood, FL and Forest River, Inc. out of Goshen, IN (both of these companies are greatly appreciated for both financial support and encouragement). Instrument selection is also currently in progress for both brass and percussion, with members from each respective unit working with our staff to come up with the best tools for the sound we are trying to achieve.

You can email the corps at JacksonFlares@yahoo.com, and we now have a home page up at www.geocities.com/JacksonFlares.

Announcing the show for this year's season! The Jackson Flares will be doing a show featuring songs from the soundtrack to Children Of Dune. There will be 4 songs based on Bryan Tyler's original soundtrack. They are, in order of performance:

• Main Title (House Atreides)
• Inama Nushif (Montage)
• My Skin Is Not My Own
• The Jihad

The first two songs are currently being polished both musically and drill-wise. My Skin Is Not My Own (a piece featuring the Pit and Battery) is almost finished and will be a transitional piece which leads directly into the closing statement, The Jihad.

We would like to thank Dallas Burke and John Martin for working diligently on the pieces (especially the long hours spent reproducing a stringed effect using only brass), and Carl Major and Bob Hennen for their stunning arrangement of My Skin Is Not My Own.

Email the Jackson Flares at JacksonFlares@yahoo.com
Visit Our Home Page at http://www.geocities.com/JacksonFlares

Our tour schedule for the season is now posted.

Web Site Version: www.geocities.com/jacksonflares/toursched.htm

Okay, there are now some pictures up on the official site and the schedule is updated so as to have 27 shows. Here's the address to the corps stats:

http://www.drumlines.org/threads/showonecorps.php/Corps/99

This update coming to you from the road. We left our home town of Marianna, FL yesterday afternoon after a brief preview concert at Bulldog Stadium. The crowd of roughly 3,500 from around the county gave us a great send off, and we would like to thank them all dearly.

We are currently heading up to Maryland for our first show and expect to arrive the day before. We are taking the first leg of the trip slowly, not traveling too much, so as to save our drivers (and you know they'll be begging for rest come next week).

As far as the show is concerned, we are as ready as we could be for our premiere in Div III and cannot wait to step onto the field.

Email: jacksonflares@yahoo.com
Website: www.geocities.com/jacksonflares

The Fivesters wish the Flares a great season and to stay partners in the GM Organization.

GOOD LUCK FLARES!!!!

After a few mediocre scores at our previous shows, we have changed some captions and reworked our approaches on a few of the pieces. Also, we are currently working on updating the website (which is slightly difficult while on tour because our web-smart staff also happens to be marching). Check the website sometime today or tomorrow for a completely updated version.

Email: jacksonflares@yahoo.com
Website: www.geocities.com/jacksonflares

****Attention All DCI Spectators, Fans, and Corps Members****

The Music City Fivesters, Jackson Flares, & Fivesters Cadets want to announce something that has not been done in DLOFDC yet.

With help of the GM Organization these corps are uniting together in a family day event. On July 10th (the day of the DLO South Championships) the corps will be joining together to bring special activities to the public. From clinics to free one on one lessons, we will have it! The day will be wrapped up with a special appearance by our friends from Golden Corral who will donate the food for the corps and the public as well. After this our friends and families can enjoy the Championship at the stadium and watch our corps play with pride. Here is a list of some of the planned activities as well as some information about each:

Clinics and Entertainment

• J.J. LaFonte, Ashley LaFonte, & Bobby "Casper" Lewis - Brass music and appreciation (Come hear some music and learn about brass instruments. Free stuff will be given out!).
  
• Brad Peterson, Tony Ashes, & Ron Branning - Marching Instruction and Execution (Demonstrations and technique. Free demos of 3D Java drill writing/editing software will be available courtesy of Pyware).
  
• John Moreau, Dale Williams, & Ronald Martin - Visual Consideration (Visuals that work. Help on what kinds of visuals are effective, where to use them, and where not to).
  
• Brandon Asley, Devon Mickson, & Cadence Cartwright - Leadership and Effectiveness in Drum Majors. (How to direct and execute your corps at the same time. Demonstrations by Fivesters' and Flares' Drum Majors).
  
• Donnis Barko, Mark Steep, & Carl Major - Percussion "Marching and Playing Techniques" (Demonstrations will be available to the public by our three corps. Free drumsticks and mallets!)
  
• Tom Combs, Ashley Owens, & Rebecca Parmer - Color Guard and Weapon Turnouts. (The art and dance of guard. Raffle for a brand new rifle and saber!)
  
• Along with these instructors there will be a 6 members (2 from each corps) demonstrating solos, technique, and equipment.
  

Some of our corps parent organizations, friends, and sponsoring companies will have product demos, booths, and other activities in addition to those provided by the corps. They are:

• ProMark
• Vic Firth
• Innovative Percussion
• Vater
• Pearl
• Zildjian
• Silverfox
• Yamaha
• King
• Ross
• Sabian
• Remo
• Ludwig
• Evans
• American Drum
• Rowl Off Productions
• Tapspace
• Coda Music
• Sibelius
• DrumProMag
• Drumbum
• Steve Weiss Music
• DCI Booth
• James Cuevas (Artist)
• Pasic Booth
• WGI Booth
• Pyware
  

These Booths will be available to the public for free.

Food

Golden Corral will provide:

• Chicken
• Mashed Potatoes
• Fish
• Pork
• Corn
• Green Beans
• Peas
• Salad of all kinds (fruit and vegetable)
• Apple Pie and Cobbler
• Peach Cobbler
• Ice Cream
  

We thank our good friends from Golden Corral for donating all of this for our upcoming "Family and Clinic Events"

Do join us in the Parking lot as well to hear our three corps warm up and compete.
The Corps will warm up together for the first 30 minutes (including one song prepared especialy for the Clinic) and separately after that.

Information on the event can be received by contacting the Flares one of these two ways:

Email: [Email]jacksonflaressnugglebunnyª^townsyahoo.com" target="_blank[/Email]
Website: www.geocities.com/jacksonflares

******Press Release******

We caught up with Jackson Flares Director John Martin after the show in Tallahassee, FL last night, and here's what he had to say:

"Well, right now we're all on kind of a high. We (or course) placed first in the show, but we were the only Div III corps competing, so that's a given. What everyone is so psyched about is our current standings. After a wonderful performance tonight, we are in 2nd place in Division III! These kids worked their tails off for this, and we're now seeing all their hard work come to fruition. All I can say is, thank you to all who have contributed to this program in its inaugural season, and good luck to the rest of the GM organization."

The Jackson Flares have a show tonight in the Big Easy where Martin says he hopes to take the win.

The GM Organization would like to congratulate the Jackson Flares on their Division III standing.

We wish them good luck for the rest of the season.

The undefeated Nogales Border Jumpers triumphed over the Jackson Flares at the Border Jumpers' home show in Nogales, AZ; and they look forward to future triumphs in Muncie, IN; Oklahoma City, OK; Great Bend, KS; Preliminaries; and Finals if Jackson makes it that far. Remember, 2nd place is the 1st loser!

Yippa yippa undalay undalay!!!

That is harsh Josh. What you can at least do is say good luck to your competition. Remember just because they are under you does not mean that they can't bite your corps' a$$. As I said Good luck to all the corps wether they are under me or on top of mine.

Well, it is the first year, and I wasted 5 captions changes before I actually understood the system. I'm pretty sure I'm not doing that badly.

Friends and relatives of corps members will be throwing a party for the corps as a sort of pat on the back for their performance thus far. The first year corps now has twenty regular events under its belt and has a 17-3 record (two of the "losses" being 2nd place finished). All participating help is asked to arrive at the Huntingdon College campus (Montgomery, AL) at 12:00 to begin preparations. The party will take place after the show that night where we hope to celebrate our 18th win.

GM Organization would like to present the 1st annual Corps of GM in a clinic.


The Corps will be doing this clinic on August 5th during the whole day. When the corps is not performing or warming up to perform they will be spending the day helping the youngsters understand the art of drum corps and the technique of it.

The corps that are available for this clinic will be:
Mighty Crimson Knights
Emerald Regiment
Music City Fivesters
Jackson Flares
Fivesters Cadets
The Guardsmen Association will be making a short visit to the clinic.
Each tech will have their booth alone or with another corps’ tech for this clinic.

Here is a list of what they will teach or do:

The Corps will have their own instructors in teaching clinic booths. They will unite together at the end to bring a special show with their bands.

Emerald Regiment:

Monique Flore-How to set up a guard in the field.
Bryan Horan and Elizabeth Ortiz- Visual and drill coordination (Drum Majors instructional in the middle of the clinic.)
Mike Evans and Justin H. - Percussion instruction and writing process in corps.
Nick Z. and Ethan L. - How to get the sound that the crowd wants from the horns.


Jackson Flares:
Mac Therrien- Brass organization and execution.
Bobby Lewis-Percussion warm-ups that work.
Tony Taylor-Drill basics.
Ron Branning, John Martin, Ron Martin- Instrument Care.

Mighty Crimson Knights
Daniel Abramson-Snares quick ups.
Jesus Delgato-How to prepare your staff for corps season or marching season in high school.
Spencer Norris-Sweeps and easier tricks for better playing in tenors.
Andrew Smith-Bass Drum Care and mallets suggestions.
Matt Timman-Corps overall instruction class.

Music City Fivesters and Fivesters Cadets.
Marty Calls and Reggie Alms- Tour organization in scheduling and contribution.
Jason Ascarlett and Dale Williams- Drill and Visual design.
J.J LaFonte and Eric LaFonte- Brass Arranging and Execution music wise.
Mark Steep and Tom Aires-Percussion “Heads Up”
Brad Peterson-The right way to march.
Devon Mickson, Brandon Alsey and Tammy Pierce- Drum Majors instruction and leadership.
Ryan Thurman and Landon Lowens- Arranging Percussion Music.
Jason Owens, Ashley Owens, Tom Combs, Peter Dunkle and Kathleen Combs-Color Guard Execution, Weapon Care, Drill, Visuals and Consideration.
Donnis Barko- Percussion Solos to get you prepared for audition.
Dana Smithson-Pit Exercises to build your chops.
Mark Rosell-Instrument Care

A Quick Word From The Road

The Flares competed in Oklahoma City last night along with the other corps in Division III. After a long night of some great music, the Flares came out on top with a score of 91.10. This morning we caught up with the corps at a rest area along the road to Great Bend where they perform tomorrow night.

"We are all very pleased with the kids' performance last night. Who would have thought that a very young first year corps could come out of OK with a score that rivals the top spots in Div II? We're planning on getting the Great Bend a little earlier than scheduled, and getting in some extra practice time, but other than that, it's been a string of small celebrations amongst the corps members on teh buses. Let's just hope that we'll be able to continue our good performance."

According to Martin, there may be an actual recording of the Flares' arrangement of "Main Title (House Atreides)" posted on the Flares' website soon.

You can email the corps at JacksonFlares@yahoo.com, and we now have a home page up at www.geocities.com/JacksonFlares.

Once again, we caught up with director John Martin, following the Flares' surprising performance at the Div I Quarterfinals earlier. Here's what he had to say:

"I am totally shocked. If you had told us at the beginning of the season that the Flares, a first year Division III corps would be among the top twelve corps competing in the Finals, I would have laughed at you. This corps has put in an amazing amount of effort with practice, rehearsals, and performances, and they have come out better than could be expected. No matter what happens now, I am proud, and so is the rest of the staff. I'd like to wish all corps competing in the Finals good luck, and hopefully we will show the world that Division III isn't something to be taken lightly."

A job well done to the Jackson Flares thus far! You have impressed alot a lot of us! Welcome to Division 1

I guess that Vanocolate® must have been pretty darn yummy.

"Holy Enola Gay, Batman, we dropped a bomb on their #$@!" Exclaimed 1st Mellophone April Morse after Finals tonight.

The Jackson Flares Div III corps competed among giants tonight in the Division I Finals, and came out amongst the top three. The first year corps started out sloppy, but slowly and surely made its way up in skill level, and came out of nowhere to grab a third place spot in Denver. Director Martin spoke with us earlier:

"Okay, last night was amazing. We were stunned. Now we are so happy, that we truly have no idea what to do! We took a handful of kids that were proficient in marching, and pretty good with their instruments, and managed to whip them into a world-class corps. The staff has worked hard for over a year in preparation for the season, and the kids have gone many a night without sleep (for sake of practice) over the past three months. There are not words to describe the feeling of elation that we all have right now. All I can say is thank you to The WaterPur Company in Greenwood, FL and Forest River, Inc. in Goshen, IN for their sponsorship, thanks to our instrumental sponsors (King, Vic Firth, Zildjian, and the sponsors through the GM Organization). Thank you to the GM Organization for providing so much entertainment and help for the corps, and thank you to the fans for supporting us through a great year."

We would also like to take this time to announce that Martin plans on introducing a new corps next year for Season 3, The Cadets of Jackson County, to be based in Cashiers, NC (a beautiful mountainous region).

Once again, thank you to the fans, and a special thanks goes out to DLO and DLOFDC for providing a wonderful activity for friends and family alike.

***NEWS FLASH***

The new corps Martin planned on introducing has been redesigned. The new corps (The Cadets Of Jackson County) was originally planned as a feeder corps, but Martin has since taken a que from some past corps and is going to stick to a uni-sex corps.

Unlike past corps, this new program will be all female. The caption heads may or may not be subject to this policy on gender, but as of right now the corps is looking for the best of the girls in both playing, marching, dancing, and instructing.

The corps will still be based out of Jackson County, NC and the schedules for the camps will be posted very soon. Stay tuned for information on try-outs and camps for both the Jackson Flares, and the new all-female corps (we will be taking suggestions for names for the corps through PMs to Nex, feel free to send any and all suggestions. Some of the best names come from people who only want to joke around).

So long for now, and check back for more info on camps.

The all female corps for the next season now has an official name. We proudly present the Shelby Davis Memorial Drum & Bugle Corps. We named the corps such in memory of a 5th grader at Riverside Elementary in Marianna, FL who was killed last week when she was run over by her school bus. Our hearts go out to the Davis family, and we ask that you keep them in your prayers as they cope with their loss.

Camps for the Jackson Flares will be held at the new Marianna High School Facilities in Marianna, Florida. The first camp will be Dec. 3-5.

The S.D. Memorial auditions will be held at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, AL Dec. 10-12. We shall be using the Cloverdale facilities for the weekend.

Scheduling information for each section (for both corps) will be given via email and snail mail, as will all other appropriate paperwork. Please have everything ready, along with your $50 for the weekend. Make sure to bring an instrument (if possible), and don't forget your sticks or mouthpiece. All items necessary for Guard auditions will be provided, with some minor exceptions detailed in your paperwork. Remember to your prepared piece worked up, and come ready to have fun.

Thanks all,
John Martin

(Seriously though, Shelby Davis was a 5th grader at the local elementary school who was killed when her bus door closed on part of her backpack and dragged her 1602 feet before running over her. She held out for a day or two, but her entire lower body was crushed and her organs just gave out. Please do keep her family, including her 13 brothers and sisters, in your prayers).

The GM Organization will also be sponsoring the Shelby Davis Memorial Drum Corps. Pearl and Adams have already stepped up to donate and sponsor some of their equipment. Yamaha will be handling the brass section and thanks to Fred J. Miller the uniforms are being discussed as of now. We will like to congratulate the new corps for coming out and we wish good luck to them.


The Jackson Flares will also have sponsorships along with innovative percussion doing their mallets and sticks.