Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps

The Blue Devils

Location	Concord, CA
Division	World Class
Founded	1957
Director	David Gibbs
Championship Titles	1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982 (undefeated), 1986, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2009 (undefeated), 2010 (undefeated)
Uniform	Blue jackets with black triangular inset, black pants, white stripes along each shoulder and sleeve as well as through the black sequin inset connecting to a white stripe down the front of the left pantleg, black shakos with white plumes

The Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps is a World Class (formerly Division I) drum and bugle corps based in Concord, California and founded in 1957 as a Drum and Bell corps, and is a member corps of Drum Corps International. The corps has won more Drum Corps International titles (14) than any other DCI member corps.

Over 450 young people currently participate in The Blue Devils programs, and over 8,000 young people, in 2,000 families, have been served by The Blue Devils organization since being founded in 1957.

Entirely community-funded, the direction of The Blue Devils is guided by volunteer parents and a professional teaching staff, who work closely with the young members. All instruments, instruction, and uniforms are provided to participants who pay an annual participation fee.

History

The Blue Devils (sometimes just "the Devils", "Devs" or "BD") is the most successful corps of the DCI era, with a total of fourteen world champion titles^[1] to their name over the four decades of Drum Corps International's existence. At their first DCI finals appearance in 1973, the Blue Devils placed twenty fourth, advancing the next year to ninth and then to third in 1975. In 1976 they won their first DCI title and since have never placed out of the top five corps at finals, the only corps to do so. The Blue Devils have also won more brass, drum, guard, and marching titles than any other drum corps. BD also lays claim to the record of most consecutive percussion titles in the DCI-era, having won the title in 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986, under the direction of Tom Float.

In 1957, Tony and Ann Odello brought the group to the Concord V.F.W. post from the disbanded Martinettes. The Blue Devils' name is derived from the color of the V.F.W. post (blue) and the local landmark, Mt. Diablo (devil). In 1964, Jerry Seawright took over from Tony Odello as manager and turned the group into a full drum and bugle corps (by 1970). Mike Moxley took over from Jerry Seawright as director of the drum corps in 1984. Dave Gibbs, a former marching member/drum major of the Blue Devils, is currently the director of the drum corps (since 1991).

Historically, the Devils have made significant use of jazz and Latin repertoires, including their famous use of Buddy Rich's Channel One Suite, as well as such notable charts from the music of Chick Corea and Chuck Mangione. As a result of their musical style choices, the Devils are the corps most typically associated with jazz.

In January 2006, the corps debuted BlueView, a video podcast that documents the months preceding the summer competitive season as well as the summer competitive tour. BlueView has been folded into Blue Devils new audio/video media archive page entitled MediaBox.

Awards

The Blue Devils organization has attained numerous International Championships in various performing arts activities, including:

• 14 International Drum and Bugle Corps Championships - World Class
• 3 International Drum and Bugle Corps Championships - Open Class
• 1 World Music Contest
• 4 Winter Guard International Championship
• 12 National Team Twirling Championships
• 6 National Corps Twirling Championship
• 2 World Team Twirling Championships

Local, National, and International Titles

DCI World Champions: 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982 (undefeated), 1986, 1994 (undefeated), 1996 (tie), 1997, 1999 (tie), 2003, 2007, 2009 (undefeated), 2010 (undefeated)

DCI 2nd Place: 1981, 1983, 1984, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2011

DCI 3rd Place: 1975, 1978, 1985, 1988, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2006

World Music Contest Championship: 2005

WGI Champions: 1995, 1996, 1997, 1997, 1999^[2]

World Team Twirling Champions: 1983, 1984

DCI Preview of Champions: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998

DCI South Champions: 1983, 1987, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009

DCI Midwest Champions: 1976, 1982, 1986, 1988, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007

DCI North Champions: 1976, 1994, 1995, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

DCI East Champions: 1978, 1979, 1986, 1988, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010

DCI Mid-America Champions: 1995, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2007

DCI Southwest Champions: 1998-1999, 2001, 2007, 2009, 2010

DCI Canada Champions: 1980, 1985, 1990

DCI West Champions: 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 2008, 2009, 2010

Drums Along The Rockies Champions: 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2010

DCE Champions: 1994

Drum Corps West Champions: 1996, 1997, 1998, 2007

Catholic Youth Organization Champions: 1976, 1978, 1982

World Open Champions: 1976, 1978

U.S. Open Champions: 1979, 1992

Pacific Procession Champions: 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006

DCI Open Class Champions: 2009 (undefeated), 2010, 2011

Precision West Champions: 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007^[3]

In 2009, The Concord Blue Devils went undefeated and won their 13th World Championship with a record score (for the corps) of 99.05. This was also the first time an organization won both World and Open Class Championships with the Blue Devils B also going undefeated and winning their 1st World Championship.

In 2010, The Concord Blue Devils and Blue Devils B repeated their 2009 feat by once again winning the World and Open Class championships and the A corps completing back-to-back undefeated seasons, a first in DCI history. The B corps only lost one show in 2010.

In 2011, Blue Devils "B" repeated for a third straight year as Open Class World Champions, narrowly beating the Oregon Crusaders. The Crusaders beat BDB only days before the finals, providing their only loss of the season. In a changed format this year, Blue Devils "B" went on to place 19th at the World Class semifinals, beating out five World Class Corps (Jersey Surf, Cascades, Teal Sound, Mandarins, and Pioneer).

Management and Mission

BD Performing Arts is the corporate entity that manages the Blue Devils Drum & Bugle Corps (also known as the Blue Devils A-Corps). Along with the A-Corps, BD Performing Arts supports the B-Corps, the C-Corps, the Blue Devils Winter Guard program, the Diablo Wind Symphony, and BD Entertainment. The Executive Director of BD Performing Arts is David Gibbs. The Board of Directors of BD Performing Arts are^[4]:

• Kit Rodgers - President
• Donna Batchelor - Vice President
• Tom VadeWater - Chief Financial Officer
• Dodie Martz - Secretary
• JoEllen Abate-McEntire, Alumnus
• Maile Collmer, Alumnus
• Toby Cummings
• Jeff DeMello - Alumnus, Past President, Past Secretary
• Rosa Lee Harden - Past President
• Doug Peterson, Alumnus
• Brian Ripley - Past Vice President
• Brandon Wilson, Alumnus

The Board of Advisers for BD Performing Arts are:

• John Donovan, Past President
• Todd Tanji, Alumnus, Past President
• Phil McArthur
• John Oppedisano, Alumnus

The Mission of the BD Performing Arts organization is as follows:

Music and the performing arts connect youth with their culture through a common language crossing generational, social, and racial barriers. The activities that a young person pursues influence the type of person he or she becomes. The experience that comes with participation in a performing arts organization builds discipline, character, pride, and self-confidence at a crucial age and forms the springboard to even greater achievements in adulthood.

BD Performing Arts programs permanently enrich the lives of young people through a commitment to youth development and performance excellence while providing enjoyment for our local community and audiences worldwide.

Show Summary (1971-2011)^[5]

Year	Position	Score	Show
1971			Theme from Lawrence of Arabia - Ninth Symphony (Ode to Joy) - America The Beautiful - Big Spender (from Sweet Charity) - Stoney End - Shadow of Your Smile (from The Sandpiper)
1972			Strike Up the Band (from Strike Up the Band) - Ave Maria - Venus - The Man I Love - I Got Rhythm (from Girl Crazy) - Day in the life of a Fool
1973	24	66.100	Chant and Jubilo * Jupiter (from The Planets) - Ave Maria - This Could Be the Start of Something Big - Miserlou - Caravan - Morning of the Carnival
1974	9	79.150	Chant and Jubilo - Porgy and Bess - Legend of the One-Eyed Sailor - Clouds - Feel of a Vision - Touch of Venus - Lady Sings the Blues
1975	3	88.600	Space Shuttle - Love's Been Gone So Long - What Is Hip - Squibb Cakes - Legend of the One-Eyed Sailor - Chase the Clouds Away - Feel of a Vision
1976	1	92.700	Channel One Suite - Legend of the One-Eyed Sailor - Chase the Clouds Away
1977	1	92.050	Channel One Suite - Spanish Fantasy - Gonna Fly Now (from Rocky)
1978	3	91.200	Chicago III Suite - Spanish Fantasy - Legend of the One-Eyed Sailor
1979	1	93.550	Chicago III Suite - La Suerte de Los Tontos (from Cuban Fire Suite) - Pauper in Paradise - My Heart Belongs to Me
1980	1	90.600	New York Fantasy - Ya Gotta Try - Pegasus - Free (from Chicago III Suite) - La Suerte de Los Tontos - Pauper in Paradise - Dindi
1981	2	93.700	New York Fantasy - Ya Gotta Try - La Danse du Bonheur - One More Time Chuck Corea - Johnny One Note (from Babes in Arms) - Dindi
1982	1	95.250	T.O. - Pegasus - Paradox - One More Time Chuck Corea - People Alone (from The Competition)
1983	2	93.800	T.O. - Everybody Loves the Blues - Paradox - One More Time Chuck Corea - A New Beginning
1984	2	97.900	Bacchanalia - Latin Implosion - Karn Evil 9 - La Fiesta - Like A Lover
1985	3	97.100	Liferaft Earth - Trilogy - Karn Evil 9 - Piano Concerto No. 1 - First Circle
1986	1	98.400	Channel One Suite - Chick Corea Suite (Conquistador - Spanish Fantasy)
1987	4	94.400	Fanfare For The New - Harlem Nocturne - Echidna's Arf - Free - Spanish Dreams
1988	3	96.300	Happy Days Are Here Again - Old Black Magic - Goodbye Yesterday - Since I Fell For You
1989	4	95.900	Ya Gotta Try - If We Were In Love (from Yes, Georgio) - Allegre - Johnny One Note (from Babes in Arms)
1990	4	95.300	Selections from Tommy - Selections from Tommy
1991	5	93.800	Conversations in Jazz - Commencement (from Adventures in Time) - Bird and Bela in B Flat (2nd Movement) - Bird and Bela in B Flat (3rd Movement)
1992	4	95.400	Big, Bad and Blue - Someone's There - El Congo Valiente (from Cuban Fire Suite) - Fuego Cubano (from Cuban Fire Suite) - La Suerte de Los Tontos (from Cuban Fire Suite) - When a Man Loves a Woman
1993	4	95.100	A Don Ellis Portrait - Open Wide - Great Divide - Chain Reaction - Strawberry Soup - Niner-Two
1994	1	98.400	My Spanish Heart - Spanish Fantasy Part I - Night Streets - Day Danse - My Spanish Heart - Spanish Fantasy Part 4
1995	3	96.700	Carpe Noctem - Buleria (from Jazz Pana) - Conquistador - Coronation of the Dead Queen (mvt 4 of The Legend of Alcobaca) - Ines (Second Movement of The Legend of Alcobaca) - No Heroes - Commencement (from Adventures in Time) - Caribe (from One More Once) - Day Danse - Dom Pedro's Revenge (5th Movement of The Legend of Alcobaca)
1996	1 (tie)	97.400	Club Blue: A Gangster Chronicle - Children's Hour of Dream - Desi - Tess' Theme (from Dick Tracy) - Trouble (from Mission Impossible)
1997	1	98.400	As Time Goes By . . . - Casablanca - Bangkok - A Night in Tunisia - As Time Goes By
1998	3	97.700	One Hand, One Heart—Music from Romeo and Juliet by Tchaikovsky and West Side Story by Bernstein - Romeo and Juliet - West Side Story
1999	1 (tie)	98.400	Rhythms...At the Edge of Time - Estancia Ballet (Rhythm 1 - Afrocuban/Malambo) - Powerhouse: Rhumba for Orchestra (Rhythm 2 - Rhumba) - Powerhouse: Rhumba for Orchestra (Rhythm 3 - Samba) - Adios Nonino (Rhythm 4 - Tango) - Unchained Melody (Rhythm 5 - Jazz) - The Dirty Boogie (Rhythm 6 - Swing)
2000	3	96.900	Methods of Madness - A Night Piece For Orchestra..Prelude & Blues (from Taxi Driver) - Prelude (from On Dangerous Ground) - Prelude (from Psycho) - Scene d' Amour (from Vertigo) - The Wild Ride (from North By Northwest)
2001	2	97.600	Awayday Blue - Awayday - Fantasy Variations (on George Gershwin's Second Prelude for Piano)
2002	2	97.300	Jazz: Music Made in America - Ragtime - I Got Rhythm (from Girl Crazy) - Fascinating Rhythm - House of the Rising Sun - Channel One Suite
2003	1	98.800	Phenomenon of Cool - Concierto de Aranjuez - Take Five - Blue Rondo A La Turk - Unsquare Dance
2004	2	98.525	The SummerTrain Blues MIX - The Ghost Train Tryptich - Summertime (from Porgy and Bess) - Take the 'A' Train - Calling the Indians Out
2005	4	95.250	Dance Derby of the Century - Redline Tango - Brother Can You Spare A Dime - Prelude Fugue and Riffs - On the Town - In Wartime
2006	3	96.550	The Godfather, Part BLUE - Selections from The Godfather
2007	1	98.000	Winged Victory - Bird and Bela in B Flat (2nd Movement) - Celebrare Celeberrime - Introduction to Rite of Spring - Pegasus - Firebird Suite - The Kiss
2008	2	98.100	Constantly Risking Absurdity - Main Theme from Sweeney Todd - Phrygian Gates - Bach Invention - Serenada Schizophrana - Pianos - I Will Wait For You - The Untouchables
2009	1	99.050	1930 - Get Happy - Happy Days Are Here Again - Playing Love - Piano Variations - Rialto Ripples - I Got Rhythm (from Girl Crazy) - Piano Concerto in F Amazon - Caravan - Rhapsody in Blue
2010	1	98.900	Through a Glass Darkly - City of Glass Suite - Conflict - Mirage - Trajectories - Incident In Jazz - Laura - La Suerte De Los Tontos
2011	2	97.800	The Beat My Heart Skipped - A House Is Not a Home - Summer of 77 - Walk On By - One Less Bell To Answer - Woman - I Say A Little Prayer - Wives And Lovers - God Give Me Strength

Sponsors

The Blue Devils Organization is sponsored by Sticktape.com,^[6] Guardtape.com,^[7] Pro-Mark,^[7] DSI, FJM,^[8] Planet Waves, Evans drum heads,^[9] Super Drill Masters,^[10] MEINL,^[11] HALFTIME MAGAZINE, TESORO, Roland,^[12] Zildjian,^[13] Pearl Corporation, Adams, and King.

The Blue Devils Organization has just recently partnered with the Pearl Corporation^[14] and Adams Concert Percussion after spending 10 years with Dynasty USA. The Pearl Corporation and Adams Concert Percussion is the world-wide leading manufacturer of drums and is highly represented throughout Drum Corps International community. Along with the Pearl Corporation the Blue Devils Organization has also partnered up with Conn-Selmer, Inc.^[15] Also after being apart of Dynasty USA for the past 10 years, beginning in the fall the Blue Devils will be playing on King Ultimate Marching Brass. King brass instruments hold an abundant amount of history, and is also a large supporter of the Drum Corps Community.

See also

• California Color Guard Circuit
• Winter Guard International

Notes

1. ^ "The Drum Corps Repertoire Database". corpsreps.com. http://www.corpsreps.com. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
2. ^ "Home - Winter Guard International . Sport Of The Arts". Wgi.org. http://www.wgi.org. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
3. ^ 1999 - Counted as an exhibition show due the city losing power half way through the Blue Devils performance. Santa Clara Vanguard had performed first. This show is unofficially referred to as the "lights out" show and some considered to be one of the loudest and longest standing ovations in DCI history due to the members not stopping when the lights went out. The city lost power a minute into the ballad. The members continued to play and march to the end of the show with very little light. Many of the members in the corps feel that the "lights out" show was a turning point for them, and had bonded the corps, eventually leading them to winning their 10th DCI World Championship.
4. ^ "The Concord Blue Devils". bluedevils.org. http://bluedevils.org/bod/. Retrieved 2011-02-12. 
5. ^ "The Drum Corps Repertoire Database". corpsreps.com. http://www.corpsreps.com/corpsreps.cfm?view=corpsdet&corps=17&corpstype=Junior. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
6. ^ http://www.sticktape.com/endorsers.php
7. ^ ^{a b} [1]^{[dead link]}
8. ^ "FJM - The Image Makers". Fjminc.com. http://www.fjminc.com/news_details.php?adm=60. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
9. ^ "Artist Drumsets". Evans Drumheads. http://www.evansdrumheads.com/EvansArtistDrumsetsDetails.Page?ActiveID=2037&ArtistId=40106. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
10. ^ http://mccormicksnet.blogspot.com/search?q=Super+Drillmasters
11. ^ "Passion For Details: Home". Meinl Percussion. 2010-05-21. http://www.meinlpercussion.com/. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
12. ^ "Press Releases - The Blue Devils To Endorse Roland Electronic Music Products". Roland U.S.. 2009-02-09. http://www.rolandus.com/corporate/press_releases/article.php?ArticleId=283&tab=2009. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
13. ^ "en-US". Zildjian.com. http://zildjian.com/en-us/artists/artistDetail.ad2?artistID=1466. Retrieved 2010-06-22. ^{[dead link]}
14. ^ "Pearl Welcomes The Concord Blue Devils - MySpace-blog | van Pearl Drum Corporation". Blogs.myspace.com. 2010-05-24. http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=171191896&blogId=513642965. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 
15. ^ "Welcome to the home of Conn-Selmer, Inc. Musical Instruments". Conn-selmer.com. http://www.conn-selmer.com/content/article.php?id=178. Retrieved 2010-06-22. 

External links

• Blue Devils homepage
• Blue Devils Repertoires at Corpsreps
• Vic Firth's Blue Devils Feature
• Blue Devils entry at DrumCorpsWiki.com
• Drum Corps International