Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps

The Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps is an Open Class competitive drum and bugle corps. Based in Pasco, Washington, the Columbians perform in Drum Corps International (DCI) competitions.[1]

Columbians
Drum and Bugle Corps
Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps logo
LocationPasco, Washington
DivisionOpen Class
Founded1955, 2012
Executive DirectorTom Zarate
Corps DirectorDillon Miller
UniformBlack jacket w/white left
sleeve & upper 1/4 of front,
Light blue baldrick/sash
Black pants
Black shoes and socks
Black shako w/silver trim & badge
& black plume
Websitecolumbiansdrumcorps.org

History

In the Fall of 2012, Dan Perry, who had been one of the founders of the Oregon Crusaders, and Shawn Anderson, an alumnus of the Seattle Cascades, reached out to Derek Munson, another Cascades alumni, about designing a website for a new drum corps they were forming in the Vancouver, Washington area, tentatively titled "The Ascent." Munson, who lives in Tri-Cities, Washington, spoke with Anderson a number of times about the viability of a drum corps in the Tri-Cities region, as the turn out to previous "Walk On Weekend" audition camps in the Vancouver area had been less than expected. Having worked with the local Drums Along The Columbia drum corps show and knowing the region's music and arts scene, Munson encouraged Anderson and Perry to contact Russ Newbury, who had been an arranger for the Blue Knights.

After much discussion about the name of the corps, it was decided to name it after the original Tri-City Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps, which existed in the area from 1955 to 1975. Honoring the original corps and the region's rich drum corps history was key in getting the new corps off the ground. The name is based on the Columbia River which runs through the region and ties each of the three cities in the Tri-Cities — Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland — together into one metro area.

The new version of the Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps was officially founded on November 20, 2012. Assistance and a donation of some instruments came from Seattle's Northwest Youth Music Association, the sponsors of the Cascades Drum and Bugle Corps. Auditions and rehearsals began that November, and, over the following months, more than a hundred young people attended — some only to see what the activity was about, and others to become members.

Keeping costs low for members and keeping expenses for the corps down were major concerns for the corps' leadership; a short, regional performance season was their solution, giving their members the opportunity to have the drum corps experience without having to give up their entire summer. While also making several other appearances, the corps was entered in only four shows in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho in 2013. The corps that marched the inaugural season included more than fifty members from the Tri-Cities, but also included members from as far away as Utah and Texas. [2]

Currently, the Columbians are led by Executive Director Tom Zarate, and Corps Director Dillon Miller. The Columbians are now in their seventh season competing in DCI, and have grown to 120+ members.

Affiliations

The Columbians Drum and Bugle Corps is under the affiliation of a non-profit group named Friends of the Columbians. Tom Zarate is the Executive Director; Dillon Miller is the Corps Director and leads the show design team.[3]

Show Summary (2013–2020)

Source=[4]

Gold background indicates DCI Championship; pale blue background indicates DCI Class Finalist; pale green background indicates DCI semifinalist.

YearThemeRepertoireScoreDCI Placement
2013A River Runs
Through It		Firebird Suite by Igor Stravinsky / October by Eric Whitacre / Dulaman (Traditional) / Original Music by Matthew NewburyDid not attend
2014StardustJupiter Dance (based on a theme by Gustav Holst) / Vincent by Jeff Chambers / Coronation (from Stardust) by Ilan EshkeriDid not attend
20151942Nocturne in E♭ by Frederic Chopin / Pavane by Gabriel Faure / Symphony #7 by Ludwig Van Beethoven /
Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing) by Louis Prima / America the Beautiful by Katharine Lee Bates and Samuel A. Ward /
Symphony #5 by Ludwig Van Beethoven / Original Music by Jeff Chambers		Did not attend
2016Clash!Original music by Jeff Chambers / Hey Jude by John Lennon and Paul McCartney /
The Star Spangled Banner by Francis Scott Key and John Stafford Smith / Be Thou My Vision (Traditional) /
Fire and Rain by James Taylor / Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (from Hair) by James Rado and Gerome Ragni		Did not attend
2017Do Not Go GentleFuneral March by Edvard Grieg / Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber /
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Elliot del Borgo / A Mighty Fortress by Martin Luther		Did not attend
2018DanzonDanzon #2 by Arturo Márquez /
Bailando by Enrique Iglesias, Descemer Bueno, Alexander Delgado, Randy Malcom Martinez, and Sean Paul /
Havana by Camila Cabello, Jeffery Williams, Adam Feeney, Brittany Hazzard, Ali Tamposi,
Brian Lee, Andrew Watt, Pharrell Williams, Louis Bell, and Kaan Gunesberk /
On the Floor by Alaina Marie Beaton, Nadir Khayat, Kinnda Hamid, AJ Junior, Teddy Sky,
Bilal Hajji, Armando Perez, Gonzalo Hermosa, and Ulises Hermosa		Did not attend
2019OriginsSong of Aeolus Choral VI (Sol Fa/Cantus) by Karl Jenkins / Original music by Jeff ChambersDid not attend
2020Season cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic

Traditions

At the end of a post-performance debriefing, or often at the end of rehearsals, the battle cry "Roll On!" can be heard being shouted by the entirety of the corps; this is in reference to the 1941 Woody Guthrie tune "Roll On, Columbia, Roll On," which was written by Guthrie as an ode to the power of the Columbia River as it cuts through the Pacific Northwest. In their 2015 program, show creator Jeff Chambers intentionally wrote in a brief two bar moment of silence, in which the crowd yells "Roll On!" as a way to energize the members for the final movement of the show.

References
  1. "Corps". Drum Corps International. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  2. "Two new Open Class corps approved to participate in 2013 DCI Tour". Drum Corps International. 6 May 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  3. "2017 Staff". Columbians Drum & Bugle Corps. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  4. "Columbians". DCX: The Drum Corps Xperience. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
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