The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps
The Academy Drum & Bugle Corps is a World Class junior competitive drum and bugle corps based in Tempe, Arizona. The corps is a member of Drum Corps International..
History
In 2001, a group of people gathered in the Phoenix, Arizona area with the intent of starting a drum and bugle corps. They formed the Board of Directors of the Arizona Academy of the Performing Arts, a non-profit organization with the goal "...of enhancing the culture of music, dance, and the performing arts in Arizona." They then formed The Academy Brass & Percussion Ensemble, which made numerous local appearances during the summers of 2001–03, including at the D&B competition the organization sponsors, the Southwest Corps Connection.In the summer of 2004, the corps added a color guard, changed the name to The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps, and entered the field of competition. Marching a short season of only four weeks and six shows in Arizona and California, the corps was undefeated in Division II. The next year, the corps expanded its boundaries, performing in 10 shows, including Drums Along the Rockies, in Denver, and was again undefeated in Division II. 2006 was The Academy's most successful season. The corps appeared in shows in seven states, including the DCI Division II/III World Championships in Madison, Wisconsin, where the corps capped their third undefeated season with the Division II title.
In 2007, The Academy moved into Division I competition. That was their most successful season in the class placing 13th, until the 2016 corps finished 11th at the DCI World Championships.
The Academy assembled a 100+ member brass, percussion, and auxiliary ensemble of members and alumni that performed outside University of Phoenix Stadium prior to the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl XLIX and at the NFL Experience, "an interactive theme park of all things football," during the week of January 25–February 1, 2015.
In 2016, The Academy had their most successful season since moving to World Class, placing in the top 12 at all three DCI regionals. At the DCI World Championships in Indianapolis, The Academy placed 11th, becoming the first corps to make its Finals debut since the Seattle Cascades in 2002.
Sponsorship
The Academy Drum and Bugle Corps is sponsored by the Arizona Academy of the Performing Arts, a 501 musical organization that has a Board of Directors, corps director, and staff assigned to carry out the organization's mission of, "...building great people through great performances." The Executive Director is Mark Richardson. In addition to the drum and bugle corps, the Arizona Academy also sponsors The Academy Winter Youth Guard and The Academy Summer Youth Guard, two introductory color guard activities; and Phenom - which plans to make the transition from being a group, to an Open Class Drum and Bugle corps in 2020.Show summary (2001–2020)
Source =Gold background indicates DCI Championship; pale blue background indicates DCI Class Finalist; pale green background indicates DCI semifinalist.
| Year | Theme | Repertoire | Score | Placement |
| 2001 | Excerpts from Drum Corps Past | Malambo by Alberto Ginastera / Amber Waves by Morton Gould / When a Man Loves a Woman by Calvin Lewis and Andrew Wright | --- | --- |
| 2002 | Ya Gotta Try by Sammy Nestico / Grand Canyon Fanfare by James Newton Howard / Cadillac of the Skies by John Williams | --- | --- | |
| 2003 | A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra by Benjamin Britten / Vide Cor Meum by Hans Zimmer / The Challenge & Promise by Gavin Greenaway | --- | --- | |
| 2004 | Debut | Symphony for Brass and Percussion by Alfred Reed / Chanson Melancolique by Morley Calvert / Jubilation from Symphony for Brass and Timpani by Herbert Haufrecht | --- | --- |
| 2005 | Piano Concerto No. 2 by Dmitri Shostakovich | --- | --- | |
| 2006 | ¡danzón! | Huapango by Jose Pablo Moncayo / Patria by Ruben Blades / El Cumbanchero by Rafael Hernández | 95.625 | 1st Div. II |
| 2007 | The Chase | The Chase / The Villain / The Hero / The Woman / At the Jitterbug Club / The Love Theme / The Chase / Conclusion All original compositions by The Academy staff | 84.50 | 13th |
| 2008 | Vienna Nights | Freud’s Dream / Mozart’s Theme / Café Life / Gallop / Notturno / Finale-Alla Turka All from Vienna Nights by Philip Wilby | 78.85 | 18th |
| 2009 | The Ascent | Call of the Mountain by Joseph Curiale / An Alpine Symphony by Richard Strauss / Kingfishers Catch Fire by John Mackey | 83.75 | 14th |
| 2010 | Strangers In Paradise | Overture by Alexander Borodin / Aquarium by Camille Saint-Saëns / Selections from Prince Igor, Polovstian Dances & Chorus by Alexander Borodin | 84.05 | 14th |
| 2011 | The Little Fugue in G Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach / Lux Aurumque by Eric Whitacre / Fly by Ludovico Einaudi / Lollapalooza by John Adams | 82.65 | 15th | |
| 2012 | Left of Spring: Stravinsky Revisited | Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky / Epilogue & The Song of Purple Summer by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater / | 81.90 | 15th |
| 2013 | Piano Man | Wilkommen by John Kander and Fred Ebb / Alabama Song by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht / Falling In Love Again by Fredrick Hollander and Sammy Lerner / Piano Concerto No. 2 Mvt. 1 by Dmitri Shostakovich / Piano Man by Billy Joel | 78.20 | 19th |
| 2014 | Vanity Fair | Fanfare-Rondeau from 1st Suite de symphonies by Jean-Joseph Mouret / Crown Imperial by William Walton / What a Wonderful World by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss / Dance of the Hours by Amilcare Ponchielli / Jazz Suite # 2, Waltz #2 by Dmitri Shostakovich / Hungarian Rhapsody #2 by Franz Liszt / Symphony # 7, 2nd Mvt. by Ludwig van Beethoven / Paris Sketches by Martin Ellerby | 81.875 | 16th |
| 2015 | A Step in Time | Music from "Mary Poppins" I– Introduction–Chim Chim Cher-ee by The Sherman Brothers / A Shooting Star by George Stiles, Anthony Drewe, and The Sherman Brothers II–A Spoonful of Sugar by The Sherman Brothers / Practically Perfect by George Stiles, Anthony Drewe, and The Sherman Brothers / Galop from Masquerade Suite by Aram Khachaturian III– Step in Time by The Sherman Brothers / IV– Feed the Birds by The Sherman Brothers V– Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious by The Sherman Brothers | 81.825 | 15th |
| 2016 | Drum Corpse Bride | Corpse Bride by Danny Elfman / Romeo & Juliet by Sergei Prokofiev / Sorcerer's Apprentice by Paul Dukas / Suggestion Diabolique by Sergei Prokofiev / Unchained Melody by Alex North & Hy Zaret / Piano Sonata No. 2, Op. 35 by Frédéric Chopin | 86.100 | 11th |
| 2017 | By a Hare | Peer Gynt Suite no. 1, Morning Mood by Edvard Grieg / Hunting Wabbits by Gordon Goodwin / Overture to The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini / Danse Bohéme by Georges Bizet / Ride of the Valkyries by Richard Wagner / Habanera by Georges Bizet / Hungarian Rhapsody by Frantz Liszt / Anvil Chorus by Giuseppe Verdi | 84.188 | 14th |
| 2018 | Academic | The Imitation Game by Alexandre Desplat / Annie Lisle by H. S. Thompson / Academic Festival Overture by Johannes Brahms / The School for Scandal by Samuel Barber / The Four Sections by Steve Reich / Keating's Triumph by Maurice Jarre | 84.563 | 15th |
| 2019 | The Bridge Between | Dance 1. First Movement by Oliver Davis / Equilibrium by Paul Lovatt-Cooper / London Bridge Is Falling Down / Bridge Over Troubled Water by Paul Simon / Horizons by Paul Lovatt-Cooper / Original Music by Steven Vento | 84.300 | 15th |
| 2020 | Season cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic |