top of page

FOR PARENTS

When your child decides to be part of a drum corps, he/she is making a choice that requires a deep personal commitment that will require strength and focus. Facing new levels of responsibility, discipline and self-knowledge, they will gain values that will help them succeed in life. Every student has personal reasons for wanting to be part of a drum corps. Your son or daughter is no different. It may simply be to become a better performer or meet new people. Students often view membership in a drum corps as a key rung in their climb to be professional performers or arts educators. For many students, it is a way to challenge themselves to become the best they can be. 

 

While your student’s reasons for wanting to get involved in a drum corps vary, the life-lessons and personal growth they gain from this activity will change the course of their lives.  We guarantee your student will become a better musician and performer.  Your student will learn there is no shortcut to greatness, and that the path to excellence is full of really hard work.  Drum corps teaches students to push through exhaustion and discouragement in an effort to be their absolute best.  These character-building experiences will prepare them for adulthood, whether that includes a mission trip, college, marriage, a career, or selfless service to others throughout their lives.

 

No matter their dream, being part of a drum corps like The Battalion can help them achieve it.  Your student will make lifelong friends, perform in front of thousands of people, become a better performer, and be part of something bigger than his or herself.   Your student will learn how to do hard things over and over again as they strive for perfection.  This is why we started The Battalion – because the marching arts did all of these things for us!

 

THE SEASON

Our season will begin in early June with about three-weeks of spring training (also known as “all days”).  Rehearsals are typically 12 hours a day, Monday through Saturday.  This is the most rigorous and challenging portion of the season for students, but the hard work they put in will pay dividends later in the season. Near the end of June, we will leave on tour, performing at competitions almost every night and rehearsing during the day.  Our season will conclude at the Corps Encore performance in Ogden, UT in early July.  Our first-year tour will last 8-10 days. All new corps must wait until May 2016 to be officially added to the DCI Tour schedule, but our tour will look similar to the tentative route outlined below.

ACCOMMODATIONS

  • Audition events/clinics:  Most of these will be hosted at various universities and high schools around Salt Lake City, but we will also be hosting audition events in Las Vegas and Denver for students that live near those areas. Students will be expected to have their own housing for these weekend events. Students from out of state or that live too far away to commute each day usually stay with a friend or family member in the area, or find a cheap hotel room to share with a friend or two.

  • Spring training: Corps members will stay in the dorms at Snow College, where we will host our spring training. Male and female corps members will always have separate sleeping areas.

  • Tour:  While touring, the corps will sleep mostly on gym floors in various high schools and middle schools near the performance venues.  Male and female corps members will always have separate sleeping areas.

 

HEALTH AND MEDICAL

Water will be available every day, and members will be given many water breaks throughout rehearsals.  Our tour director, staff and administrators will ensure that members are fed well and receive adequate rest.  Each corps member will be required to submit a medical history form and health insurance information to our staff.  If your student has any special dietary needs, please notify the tour director or any member of our administration so we can do our best to accommodate that need.

 

KEEPING TABS ON YOUR STUDENT

The best way to keep up on what your student is up to is through our Facebook page.  You may also contact your student at any time through their mobile device, which they will have access to outside of rehearsal blocks.  Students are responsible for their mobile devices as well as any other personal belongings.  Parents of corps members will also receive emergency contact information with several ways to get in contact with their student.

 

VOLUNTEERING

“It takes a whole village to raise a child.”  The same is true of raising and supporting a drum corps, so we are always looking for help.  If you’re interested in accompanying your student on tour or just want to share the drum corps experience with us, please join the ranks and volunteer!  Whether it’s just a day, a weekend, or all of tour, please come be a part of the team that makes this whole experience possible.  Just email us your availability and interest to info@battalioncorps.org.  Here are examples of ways to get involved:

  • Culinary Team

  • Uniform Team

  • Transportation Team

  • Social Media Team

  • Medical Team

 

VISITORS

All Battalion rehearsals are open to the public, and you are welcome to visit with your student during breaks or after performances.  When the corps is housed during tour and occasionally during spring training, only official drum corps staff, volunteers, and members are allowed inside our housing facilities and on the buses.

 

QUESTIONS

If you still have questions, check out DCI’s information for parents HERE, or send us an email at info@battalioncorps.org.

bottom of page