Reading Buccaneers Drum and Bugle Corps

The Reading Buccaneers Drum and Bugle Corps is an all-age or senior drum and bugle corps based in Reading, Pennsylvania. The Buccaneers, also known by the nickname The Bucs, are charter members of Drum Corps Associates.

The Reading Buccaneers

Location	Reading, Pennsylvania
Division	Open Class
Founded	1957
Director	Lou Tierno
Championship titles	VFW: 1960, 1961, 1962; DCA: 1965, 1968, 1979, 1980, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019
Uniform	Royal blue jackets, black and blue striped sash, black pants, shoes, blue gauntlets, and aussie hats with Black plume

Mission Statement

The mission of the Reading Buccaneers Drum & Bugle Corps is to provide men and women of all ages a unique and enriching educational experience in the performing arts in which they develop as individuals and as performers.

History

Pre-DCA (VFW/American Legion)

The Reading Buccaneers were formed in 1957 as a parade corps for WWII veterans. A field corps was formed in 1958 competing in the VFW circuit. The Reading Buccaneers captured the VFW championship in 1960, 1961, and 1962. The Reading Buccaneers were the last drum and bugle corps to win the VFW championship as the award was retired in 1962.

Modern Years (DCA)

In 1965, the Reading Buccaneers became a charter member of Drum Corps Associates. The Buccaneers won the first DCA Open Class World Champions in 1965. They have since repeated sixteen times, in 1968, 1979, 1980, 2005, 2006, 2007 (the corps' 50th anniversary), 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017 (the corps' 60th anniversary), 2018, and most recently in 2019. The corps has also placed second nine times (1973, 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1999, 2001, 2011, and 2016) and third seven times (1972, 1975, 1977, 1981, 2000, 2002, and 2004). They have missed being a DCA finalist only three times.

Traditions

The Reading Buccaneers on retreat in the 2005 DCA World Finals in Scranton, Pennsylvania

• The official corps nickname is The Balance in Blue because of the variety of musical styles they have presented over the years, although the corps has programmed mostly classical choices since the late 1990s.[1]
• The official corps symbol is a ship's wheel in blue with a falchion laid horizontal with the name of the corps.[2]
• The official corps song is sung to the theme of An Affair to Remember. Beyond the Sea is also an unofficial corps song.[3]
• The Buccaneers' newest tradition is to bestow a gift on its members on retreat at DCA Finals. Since 2001, this gift has been a dog tag. Each new dog tag usually has the corps' logo etched on one side and the title of that year's production on the other. Members of the corps proudly display their dog tags, and new members always look forward to receiving their first.

DCA Championships

1965

The corps won the very first DCA championship with a score of 84.50.

1968

The corps won their second DCA championship, becoming the first DCA corps to win a second DCA title.

1979

Led by future World Drum Corps Hall of Fame drum major George N. Parks,[4] the Bucs captured the last DCA title of the 1970s with a score of 90.5

1980

The Bucs pulled off a repeat with a score of 91.3.

2005

With new uniforms, new instruments in all sections, and a full hornline playing on instruments in the key of B-flat, the Buccaneers finished their first undefeated season, cruising to victory with the second-highest score in DCA history, 98.45. The show, entitled Variations in B, featured Georges Bizet's Farandole, Béla Bartók's String Quartet No. 4 - Movement 5, Benjamin Britten's The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, and Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings.

2006

After coming off an undefeated season, the corps emerged victorious with another undefeated season with Exotic Impressions including the Ravel's Boléro, Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Capriccio Espagnol, Claude Debussy's Clair de Lune and Scheherazade, with a score of 97.238.

2007

Celebrating the corps' 50th anniversary,[5] the Buccaneers again finished another undefeated to capture their third consecutive DCA title. The show, entitled Blue Era, also gave the Bucs the third-highest score in DCA history, a 98.313. The show consisted of Aaron Jay Kernis' New Era Dance, Aaron Copland's The Promise of Living, Alberto Ginastera's Malambo, and George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue.

2008

At the 2008 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers tied the Brigadiers' record by winning their fourth consecutive championship with a fourth consecutive undefeated season, and earned the Buccaneers the highest prelims score in history, a 98.138, and a final score of 97.913. The show, entitled The Pursuit of Joy, consisted of Pachelbel's Canon, David Holsinger's Abram's Pursuit, Giacomo Puccini's Nessun dorma, and Ludwig van Beethoven's Ode to Joy.

2009

At the 2009 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers became the first DCA corps to win five consecutive championships with a fifth consecutive undefeated season. The show earned the Buccaneers the then-highest score in DCA history, a 99.025. The show, entitled Demons & Angels, consisted of Giuseppe Verdi's Dies Irae, Manuel de Falla's Ritual Fire Dance, Leonard Bernstein's A Simple Song, and David Holsinger's Symphonia Resurrectus.

2010

At the 2010 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers added another notch to their streak with their sixth consecutive undefeated season finishing with a score of 98.263. The show, entitled ROME, consisted of Ottorino Respighi's Pines of the Appian Way from Pines of Rome, Ottorino Respighi's Circuses from Feste Romane, Aram Khachaturian's Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia from the ballet Spartacus, and Ottorino Respighi's Epiphany from Feste Romane.

2012

At the 2012 DCA Championships in Annapolis, Maryland the Buccaneers captured their 11th DCA championship and their 7th in 8 years with an undefeated season. In July, the Bucs became the first DCA corps to ever break 90 before August. During championships weekend, the Buccaneers earned the highest ever prelims score with a 98.5, and the highest score in DCA history at finals with a 99.03. Their show, The Black Symphony takes its audience on a journey through colors to black, exploring a variety of moods and textures associated with color as we celebrate the color black for what it is: powerful, elegant, formal, classic, bold and regal. The Black Symphony consists of Warm Colors, an original composition from arranger Mark Lortz. Cool Colors from The Four Sections for Orchestra, Mvt. IV by contemporary American composer Steve Reich. Shadows, based off New World by Björk Guömundsdóttir from the movie Dancer in the Dark. The program closes with Black, a composition of 1812 from Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

2013

The 2013 program was titled "Higher, Faster, Stronger". In Annapolis, Maryland, at DCA World Finals the corps received first place with a score of 98.43. Yet again, the Buccaneers had an undefeated season.

2014

On August 31, 2014, at the DCA World Championships in Rochester, New York, the Buccaneers received first place with a score of 97.550 with their program "Break on Through." This come-from-behind victory occurred after placing 3rd in the previous day's preliminary competition.

2015

The Bucs won their 14th DCA World Championship with their show "Twist It" and a score of 97.580. They had an undefeated season.

2017

2017 was the Buccaneers' 60th Anniversary. Their show was called "Behind the Suit." They had another undefeated season with reaching the 3rd highest DCA score in history with a 98.930.

2018

The corps' 2018 program, "Here to There" won with a score of 98.0. The corps wore a radically different uniform for this show, beginning a trend of costuming specifically for each year's design.

2019

The corps won their third consecutive DCA championship, and seventeenth overall, with a score of 98.225. The show was titled "Dans Ma Chambre" which loosely translates to "in my room", and was an abstract journey into fantasy and daydreams.

Show Summary (1965-2019)

Gold background indicates DCA Championship; Pale blue background indicates DCA Finalist.

Year	Theme	Repertoire	Score	Result
1965		Burke's Law / From This Moment On (from Kiss Me Kate) by Cole Porter / Portrait of my Love by Cyril Ornadel and Norman Newell / Maria (from West Side Story) by Leonard Bernstein / This Had Better Be The Night / El Cid by Miklos Rosza / After You've Gone by Turner Layton and Henry Creamer / Beyond the Sea by Charles Trent and Jack Lawrence	84.5	1st
1984		Wind Machine * Central Park * The Captain's Journey * The Rainmaker	91.950	2nd
1985		Wind Machine * Jeannine * The Ancient * The Rainmaker * After You	91.900	2nd
1986			87.550	4th
1987			92.300	5th
1988	A Russian Celebration		79.940	10th
1989			78.700	10th
1990	Batman	Batman - Batman Theme (from Batman) * Rooftop (from Batman) * Descent into Mystery (from Batman) * Return of the Rainmaker * Pie Jesu (from Requiem) * Batman Theme Reprise (from Batman)	92.200	7th
1991		Marche Slav * Firewatch * Dr. Macumba * Anything but Lonely (from Apects of Love) * Russian Easter Overture	82.300	8th
1992		Cherokee * Englishman in New York * Moondance * Sambandrea Swing * You Can't Fall Up (You Just Fall Down)	86.600	9th
1993		You're Still A Young Man * What is Hip * The Skunk, The Goose, And The Fly * You Can't Fall Up (You Just Fall Down)	84.800	11th
1994	The Music of Hook	Remembering Childhood (from Hook); Prologue (from Hook); Banning Back Home (from Hook); You Are the Pan (from Hook); The Ultimate War (from Hook) all by John Williams	79.600	11th
1995	Balance in Blue	En Sueno * Canto del Viento * Navy Hymn * Russian Sailor's Dance (from The Red Poppy)	77.500	11th
1996		Russian Hymn * Hook * Jurassic Park * Asteroid Belt * E. T. Theme (from E.T.)	82.400	10th
1997		Hunt for Red October * Meadowland * Polovetsian Dances * Firebird Suite	83.400	9th
1998	A Russian Celebration	Festive Overture * Gopak * Russian Christmas Music	93.500	4th
1999	Winter Dreams	Russian Christmas Music * 4th Movement (from Symphony No. 1) * The Pine Forest (from The Nutcracker)	95.800	2nd
2000	Holst: The Planets	Jupiter (from The Planets) / Venus (from The Planets) / Mercury (from The Planets) / Mars (from The Planets) / Jupiter (from The Planets) all by Gustav Holst	97.850	2nd
2001	Portraits of Bernstein	On The Waterfront / Slava / Make Our Garden grow (from Candide) / Overture (from Candide) all by Leonard Berstein	97.850	2nd
2002	Anthems of Freedom	Star Spangled Overture; Appalachian Spring; Flag of Stars	95.550	3rd
2003	The Sea: Beauty, Power, Serenity, and War	Songer of Sailor and Sea; Navy Hymn; Drunken Sailor; Blow the Man Down; The Sea Treaders	92.150	5th
2004	Innovations! The Passions of Shostakovich	Festive Overture; Fire of Eternal Glory; Symphony No. 10; Symphony No. 5	95.450	3rd
2005	Variations in B	Farandole (from L'Arlesienne); Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber / String Quartet No. 4 by Bela Bartok / A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra	98.450	1st
2006	Exotic Impressions	Bolero; Capriccio Espangnol; Clair de Lune (from Suite Bergamasque); Schehereezade	97.238	1st
2007	Blue Era	New Era Dance; The Promise of Living (from The Tender Land); Danza Final (Malambo from Estancia); Rhapsody in Blue	98.313	1st
2008	The Pursuit of Joy	Canon in D; Abram's Pursuit; Nessun Dorma (from Turandot); Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 (from Ode to Joy)	97.913	1st
2009	Demons and Angels	Dies Irae (from Days of Wrath); Ritual Fire Dance; A Simple Song (from Berstein's Mass); Symphonia Resurrectus (from Easter Symphony)	99.025	1st
2010	Rome MMX	Pines of the Appian Way (from Pines of Rome); Games at the Circus Maximus (Mvt. 1 from Roman Festivals); Adagio from Spartacus; The Epiphany (Mvt. 4 from Roman Festivals)	98.263	1st
2011	A Dancer's Dream	The Chairman Dances; Danzon No.2; Swan lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky / Mambo (from West Side Story) by Leonard Bernstein	97.450	2nd
2012	The Black Symphony	Warm Colors by Mark Lortz / The Four Sections for Orchestra, Mvt. 4 by Stever Reich / New World (from Dancer in the Dark) by Björk Guömundsdóttir / 1812 Overture by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky	99.030	1st
2013	Higher, Faster, Stronger	Symphony No.11, Mvt. 4 / Original Composition by Mark Lortz, Johnny Trujillo, and Greg Tsalikis / Chesvaliers de Sangreal (from DaVinci Code) / Danse Bacchanale (from Samson and Delilah)	98.430	1st
2014	Break On Through	Break on Through by Jim Morrison / Fourth Ballet Suite by Dmitri Shostakovich / Orawa for Orchestra by Wojciech Kilar / Heat of the Day by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays / Original Composition by Mark Lortz, Johnny Trujillo, and Greg Tsalikis	97.550	1st
2015	Twist-It	Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo / Palladio by Karl Jenkins / Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig van Beethoven / Going the Distance (from Rocky) by Bill Conti / William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini	97.580	1st
2016	ConZENtric - Mind, Body, Soul	Equus by Eric Whitacre / Impressions of Japan by James Barnes / Gabriel's Oboe by Ennio Morricone / Cycle Song by Imogen Heap	97.250	2nd
2017	Behind the Suit	Man of Steel by Hans Zimmer / Metropolis Symphony Mvmnt 1 (Lex) by Michael Daugherty / Andante Tranquillo; Symphony No. 1 by Samuel Barber / Into the New by Mark Peter Revell / Einleitung, oder Sonnenaufgang from Also sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss	98.930	1st
2018	Here to There	Hummingbird by Steven Bryant / Hunting Wabbits by Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band / La Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saens / So Far Away by Carole King / Symphony No. 4 by David Maslanka / Original Music by Buccaneers designers Mark Lortz, Johnny Trujillo and Mike Lalli	98.000	1st
2019	Dans Ma Chambre	Ruslan and Ludmilla Overture by Mikhail Glinka / What a Feeling by Irene Cara / Bohemian Rhapsody by Freddie Mercury / Benedictus (from The Armed Man) by Karl Jenkins / Original Music by Buccaneers designers Johnny Trujillo, Grant Butters, and Mark Lortz	98.225	1st
2020		DCA Season Cancelled due to COVID-19 Pandemic
2021	2079

Notable alumni

• George Parks, founder of the George Parks Drum Major Academy,[6] former clinician with Bands of America, and former director of the University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band.
• Al Chez, lead trumpet in Paul Shaffer's band on Late Show with David Letterman.

Sponsorship

The Buccaneers are currently sponsored in part by the American Legion Post # 537 of Morgantown, the Buccaneer Alumni Association and devoted fans.[7]

Trivia

• The Buccaneers hold the DCA record and tie the DCI record for the longest winning streak at 64 consecutive wins. The winning streak began with the first show of the 2005 season, and finally ended September 3 2011 when the Buccaneers placed 2nd to Minnesota Brass Inc.
• The Buccaneers' 6 consecutive championships and undefeated seasons, from 2005 through 2010, is both a DCI and a DCA record.
• The Buccaneers hold the DCA record for highest score in competition before August, scoring a 90.4 on July 28, 2012 in Robbinsville, NJ.

References

1. "Corps Nickname". 2007-12-04. Archived from the original on 2007-10-15. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
2. "Corps Symbol". 2007-12-04. Archived from the original on 2007-10-15. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
3. "Corps Song". 2007-12-04. Archived from the original on July 10, 2008. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
4. "World Drum Corp Hall of Fame Biographies". 2010-10-21. Retrieved 2010-10-21.
5. "50th Anniversary Article". 2007-06-17. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
6. http://www.drummajor.org/
7. "Corps Sponsorship". 2007-12-04. Archived from the original on 2007-10-15. Retrieved 2007-09-02.

External links

• Official Site
• Buccaneer Alumni Association
• Future DrumCorpsWiki Article
• Reading Buccaneers historical scores
• Reading Buccaneers historical repertoires
• Drum Corps Associates