As part of an exciting weekend of marching music in Upstate New York, the SoundSport Showcase Rochester — a brand-new free event — will feature an array of exciting indoor performances for a public audience.
The event will take place Friday, August 2 at the Gates Chili Performing Arts Center (1 Spartan Way, Rochester, NY). It will precede Saturday, August 3’s DCI Rochester show — a brand-new DCI Tour event coming to the Rochester Community Sports Complex (460 Oak St., Rochester, NY) — and serve as one of many new additions to the DCI Tour in celebration of the inaugural summer of DCI’s All-Age Class, which formed from a partnership between Drum Corps International and Drum Corps Associates (DCA).
Buy tickets to the August 3 DCI Rochester event
Prior to the formation of DCI All-Age, Rochester served as the longtime host of DCA World Championship events.
“Rochester holds a special place in the heart of DCI’s All-Age corps, who all previously competed under the Drum Corps Associates heading,” DCI All-Age coordinator John Carr said. “We’re thrilled to be able to bring marching music back to a Rochester community that has always been passionately engaged with our activity.”
During Drum Corps Associates’ championship weekends the organization commonly hosted a festival-like event featuring mini-corps and individual and ensemble performances prior to the start of official championship competition.
SoundSport Showcase Rochester will provide a similar form of entertainment to the Rochester audience, with the welcomed addition of the SoundSport platform.
View SoundSport Rochester Showcase event details
“The annual Friday night mini-corps competition was one of Drum Corps Associates’ most popular events, and we’re excited to reimagine it within the context of the DCI Summer Tour,” Carr said.
Similarly to DCI’s SoundSport platform, the mini-corps performance platform provides a unique opportunity for smaller ensembles to showcase their talents for an intimate audience. Mini-corps feature no more than 25 members with traditional drum corps instruments, often performing on a small stage.
The 2024 mini-corps event, as part of SoundSport Showcase Rochester, will be a competitive event, and is tentatively set to feature the following mini-corps:
• CADRE Drum Line - Mississauga, ON
• White Sabers Mini Corps - Rochester, NY
• Valley Thunder - Seymour, CT
• Warriors - New York, NY
• North Coast Brass - Erie, PA
• Brig Juice Brass – Syracuse, NY
• Star United - Carmel, IN
• Sacramento Freelancers Alumni Corps - Sacramento, CA
Additional performers and performance ensembles are currently being recruited to take part in this event. Interested groups can fill out this online form to get involved.