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r e t p a h C Drum and bugle corps in by Daniel Buteau

The has always maintained a The shape the activity took in Quebec has health-care systems. It also sponsored forms of rather complete domination of all aspects of the been the result of church and community leisure groups deemed appropriate by its drum and bugle corps activity. Up to the late activism in the 1960s, state intervention in the leaders. 1990s, retained its position as the 1970s and individual initiative from the Patro institutions, community centres activity's non-American leader by providing a mid-1980s. directly controlled by parishes, sponsored healthy drum corps scene and producing fierce What started out as a community youth marching music groups. Most famous among competitors at the DCA and DCI levels. activity had become obsessed with competitive these was La Clique Alouette, founded in the The dawn of the 21st Century has set the considerations by the late 1970s. A visible and 1950s by Patro Laval in Quebec City. Patro stage for a struggle that could potentially lead accessible drum and bugle corps community Laval still sponsored La Clique Alouette when to the disappearance of the activity north of the had been replaced by an elitist activity open the corps emerged as a DCA Finalist in 1979. border. only to those who could adapt to a nearly Other parishes sponsored marching music drum corps has been mostly full-time schedule by the mid-1990s. units with a religious orientation named Gardes prominent in two of the country's 10 provinces, Remarkable efforts by passionate individuals paroissiales. Such groups existed all the way to Quebec and Ontario. Quebec corps have always have not prevented the Quebec drum corps the late-1980s, when a group from Kenogami exhibited a distinct flair. American spectators movement to contemplate near extinction by appeared in exhibition at a few drum corps have been intrigued by their use of French field the early 2000s. contests. commands. PA announcers have struggled with The Province of Quebec, distinct from its This is more than a mere footnote, as names like Eclipses, Insolite, Étoiles or Clique Canadian counterparts in that an Kenogami is a suburb of Jonquiere, hometown Alouette. overwhelming majority of its population is to Offensive Lions, arguably the best corps ever The roots of the activity in Quebec also French-speaking, remained dominated by the to come out of Quebec. differ from those of its North American cultural influence of the Roman Catholic These groups compensated for the counterparts. Drum corps' military tradition is Church well into the 1960s. non-existence of U.S.-style marching bands in definitely thin in La Belle province. The church controlled the education and the schools and communities of the Province. 355

offensive lions, Jonquiere, QUE (1976). Chatelaine all-Girl, Laval, QUE (1972). dimension, Levis, QUE (1995). Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Paul Stott from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Ron Walloch from the collection of Drum Corps World. The church-run education system, which limited appearances in the United States. 1969. prevailed until 1962, offered no basis for music Les Diplomates remained prominent on the The first FAMQ Provincial Championships education. The next 10 to 15 years witnessed DCA scene, cracking DCA Finals yearly from led many groups to an awakening of the major Provincial government efforts at bringing 1970 to 1973, when they finished fourth before possibilities offered by active drum corps Quebec's public education system on par with folding. competition. Competitive ambitions led many North American standards, a process through Junior corps from Canada could not to restructure their activities around new which musical education played second fiddle compete in the main U.S. drum corps schedules. to core subjects. championship-title events as long as these The competitive drive would also lead The 1960s witnessed a timid emergence of remained controlled by the American Legion majorette and trumpet corps to gradually the drum corps activity in the Province. By the and VFW. transform themselves into drum and bugle early 1970s, it had turned into a fast-spreading The emergence of DCI as the elite drum corps. These community organizations firestorm. Drum corps came to be viewed as a corps association in 1972 would, of course, provided a year-round activity to their cultural youth leisure activity, a channel for the expand the competitive opportunities provided members. Teenagers would join them as an expression of the French-Canadian culture. to Canadian corps. alternative to sport activities. The first groups to switch to North It was also in 1972 that the CDA-Quebec These organizations would provide them American drum and bugle corps standards had Chapter merged with the AMQ and ACTQ to with a social life that would span the whole been first influenced by their Ontario form the FAMQ, Fédération des Associations year. It would have been unthinkable for counterparts. The famous Preston Scout House Musicales du Québec. members to switch to a neighbouring from Preston, ONT, appeared in Shawinigan, As the Church's influence vanished, the organization. Corps dissatisfied with their QUE, in 1959. They were such a sensation that Quebec Provincial government encouraged the competitive results would work harder to get a few marching music groups vowed they would formation of associations that would promote back at their rivals, often the corps next door, become drum and bugle corps. leisure activities for the youth of the Province. the following year. By 1962, a Quebec chapter of the Canadian The FAMQ, with a widespread mandate of The first Provincial Championships were Drum Corps Association had been established. providing services for all types of musical youth highly elaborate affairs. The activity was split By 1967, the senior Les Diplomates of Quebec groups, became one of such agencies. between bugles and trumpets corps. Both City had become Canada's National Champion. From then on, the Quebec drum corps categories were divided in A, B, C, all-girl and Les Diplomates shocked staid Ontario activity benefitted from the services of a eventually senior classes. Until 1977, the event audiences by featuring a merry-go-round in tax-funded agency. The FAMQ established featured not only field competition, but also a their drill, introducing the now well-established circuits of competition for both bugles and competitive parade and stand-still contest, reputation of Quebec drum corps as creative trumpets corps. reflecting the various activities corps used to innovators. The agency would advertise appearance maintain visibility in their home regions. The first CDA-Quebec Championships took opportunities for its member groups, as well as A new class of leaders had emerged by 1976, place in Lachine in 1963, adding a new yearly provide advice to volunteers intending to start a year when 33 corps appeared at Provincials, a event to a marching music calendar that also youth musical activity groups. rather spectacular growth from the 22 featured contests held by the Association des In the mid-1970s, the FAMQ published a contenders of 1973. The FAMQ provided a majorettes du Québec (AMQ) and the monthly drum corps publication called Marche well-organized and widely spread competitive Association des corps de trompettes du Québec et Manoeuvres, which created a sense of scene. Most July and August weekends featured (ACTQ). community among all drum corps participants contests held simultaneously in different These parrallel events were held until 1973, until its slow and gradual disappearance in the regions of the province. when the Fédération des Associations Musicales late 1980s. Most corps restricted their competitive du Québec (FAMQ) held a combined Provincial Positive demographic trends also appearances to Quebec, except for an Championships. contributed to the coming drum corps appearance by Les Chatelaines at DCI in 1974 1960's CDA-Quebec Chapter events would explosion. A baby boom that lasted from the and isolated ventures by a few corps, such as St. feature fierce competition among crowd- immediate post-World War II years to the early Jérome's La Quatriéme Brigade, at the World favorites such as the senior Quebec City 1960s resulted in positive demographics for the Open Championships. Diplomates, Verdun Métropolitains and Hull youth activities of the 1970s. Such functioning could partly be explained Troubadours, as well as the junior Shawinigan The size of the activity continued to grow. A by financial considerations. These community Grenadiers, Drummondville Cavaliers, Sphinx number of Quebec groups had become symbols groups could only afford local traveling. of Sainte-Thérèse, Mousquetaires of St-Jérôme, of what could be achieved in the drum corps Another factor was linguistic. Quebec corps first-generation Sénateurs of Joliette and milieu. Les Diplomates and Les Métropolitains were French-speaking, which added another Vicountes de la Palestre Nationale. had both been DCA Finalists. adventurous dimension to competing outside Some of these early competitors ventured Les Chatelaines de Laval competed at the the province. outside of Quebec for Canadian Drum Corps Canadian National level in the late-1960s, The location of Provincials moved every year Association contests in Ontario, as well as for becoming all-girl champions from 1967 to from 1976 to 1980. The 1976 event was in 356

multi-visions, Troice Rivieres, QUE (1996). preludes, Breakeyville, QUE (1996). eClipses all-Girl, Verdun, QUE (approx. 1972). Photo by Pat Chagnon from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World. Jonquiere, 1977 in Laval, 1978 in Rimouski, quality that none could have ever imagined. still were 13 drum and trumpet corps and 1979 was in Lachute. It was back to The contest, held annually until the 1999 competing at the 1977 Provincials. Most were Jonquiere in 1980. season, would even become the longest-lasting eager to become drum and bugle corps. Every corner of the inhabited portion of event on the DCI tour. Nothing would stop them from a transition that Quebec could be exposed to the drum corps The 1977 Provincials in Laval remains the would make them fully-fledged drum and bugle activity. high point of that early age of Quebec drum corps. They were also joined in that race to Until 1976, the Province would send its best corps. Twenty-nine corps competed in eight acquire the new two-valves instruments, just to compete at the Canadian National classes, spearheaded by powerhouses such as approved by DCI, by a rather high number of Championships, an event that was nearly always Offensive Lions, Chatelaines and the senior bugle corps. held in the Toronto area. The 1975 Canadian Ambassadeurs d'Arvida. All three of these Such desires created gigantic problems. all-girl champions was Marionnettes from ultimate community drum corps were on the Many trumpet corps came from smaller, more Montmagny, a town of less than 10,000 people. verge of greatness. isolated communities. The huge financial The corps was sponsored by a community club Class B competition featured rising star resources required to effect such changes were established by local lumberjacks. Troubadours of Victoriaville, arguably the best not always readily available. Many would not Marionnettes were a true Quebec drum class A corps never to have appeared at DCI. It survive the desired transition. corps pioneer, the little corps that came out of is a shame that their infamous guard, Nine trumpet corps had appeared at the nowhere to become a giant killer. flamboyant female drum major, Lucie Roy, and 1977 Quebec Provincials. Just one, the ever- Very few Quebec corps competed at the trademark Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy have evolving Étoiles de Dorion-Vaudreuil, had Canadian National level after 1976, the year remained unknown to most drum corps fans. successfully made the switch from trumpets to when Quebec politics became dominated by the The 1977 Provincials saw a whole bugles from 1977 to 1978. Both class A ever-recurring issue of Quebec's secession from generation of Quebec teenagers celebrating trumpet finalists from the 1977 Provincials, Canada. That idea flourished especially well their achievements. The faraway Gaspésie Mariniers du Lac-Mégantic and Patriotes de around cultural circles, from which many drum region dominated the class B trumpet class. Port-Cartier, folded. corps enthusiasts were drawn. The rural Beauce fielded two class B bugle The 1979 season would see two 1978 class B By the late 1970s, two homegrown leaders corps, Renaissance and Abénakis. trumpet corps successfully making the switch, suddenly emerged on the international scene. The Patriotes of Port-Cartier from the North with the third folding. One of the two The 1977 season saw Offensive Lions of Shore of the St. Lawrence River won A successful corps, Oasis of Chandler, would fold Jonquière, a town of about 55,000, competing trumpets prelims. All of Montréal was proud of in 1980. Colibris of Lachute survived until in a small-scale tour to the World Open, U.S. Les Chatelaines, who scored a healthy 75 in the 1981. Open and American International Open all-girl class. In 1978, a benchmark in the history of the contests. They made open class finals at all The proudest region remained the Quebec drum corps activity was achieved for three events. Saguenay, with Offensive Lions breaking the 80 rather dramatic reasons. The entrance of Their drum line also topped DCI finalists mark and crosstown rivals Ambassadeurs Offensive Lions in the DCI top-25 and the Crossmen, Seneca Optimists and Garfield d'Arvida amazing the crowd with one of the crowning of Chatelaines as DCI all-girl Cadets in that caption. The corps had most crowd-pleasing senior show ever fielded. champion brought to the fore a new dilemma previously appeared at the 1975 and 1976 DCI Their world-class color guard danced the in Quebec drum corps circles. How do you Championships, where they had nearly made best can-can in drum corps history to the reconcile a flourishing community drum corps class A finals for both years. strains of Gaieté Parisienne. They would go on scene with a hungry organizations' desires to Les Chatelaines achieved notoriety on the to shock the DCA world by placing seventh, maximize their DCI potential? 1977 all-girl tour by providing strong ahead of the renowned Connecticut Hurricanes, The FAMQ protected its community groups' competition to corps such as the Fire-ettes and and achieving a perfect color guard caption membership rosters through an ownership Jeanettes. They also came close to the mighty score in the process. clause, which stated that no transfer of St. Ignatius, undefeated as DCI all-girl The CQJA, Circuit Québec Junior A, the members could occur after a set date. Members champion up to then. FAMQ's bugle competitive circuit, could truly desiring to move to another corps would then Contributing to the awakening of the boast to be North America's fastest-growing need their corps management's written relatively isolated Quebec drum corps drum corps activity. permission before being allowed to make the community to the North American scene was The 1977 Provincial Championships in Laval switch. the appearance of the Invitation Québec DCI- marked the coming of age of the Quebec drum Intense regional rivalries made such letters sponsored contest, established by a group of corps movement. Never again could such difficult to obtain for members eager to travel Montreal drum corps enthusiasts led by Claude powerful corps be content to just be the best in the DCI tour. Cartier in 1975. their own backyard. Quebec's drum corps had In 1978, both Offensive Lions and Whole corps would buy blocks of tickets and lost their innocence. Chatelaines were expelled for two years from fill Verdun's Municipal Stadium, an excellent Other factors would affect the growth of the the FAMQ ranks as a penalty for recruiting drum corps venue. They witnessed corps of a Quebec drum corps activity after 1977. There members who had not received written 357

Chevaliers, Riviere du Loup, QUE (1995). aventuriers, Charlesburg, QUE (approx. 1978). l’odyssee, Montreal, QUE (1983). Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. approval from their previous corps' of which both corps had directly influenced. never appeared at Provincials before 1979. management. Many corps had disappeared by 1980, while Quebec drum corps had seemed to reach Most Quebec drum corps members had new names were emerging as powerhouses. rock-bottom by 1982. Only Étoiles de Dorion- previously preferred direct competition with Troubadours, who had peaked in 1979, Vaudreuil and Troubadours competed in class A corps from the town next door rather than competed in class A all summer, only to find or B at that year's Provincials. The Province's defeating unknown quantities from the obscure themselves consistently beaten by Arcs-en-Ciel top two corps for that season, new DCI suburbs of , Rochester or Toronto. DCI of Montréal-Nord. This newest Québec power Associate member Les Éclipses and all-girl success had now apparently appeared within the roared its presence by coming as close as 3.1 World Champions Les Chatelaines, stayed away reach of numerous Quebec youths, changing points to Offensive Lions on June 29. from the contest that year, showing that their the shape of their activity forever. This was the closest any Quebec corps could true loyalty belonged elsewhere from then on. Laval, hometown to Chatelaines, is a suburb come to the mighty Jonquiere power in four Many class C corps were of a higher quality of Montreal. There were three all-girl corps in years. The amazing thing was that Arcs-en-Ciel than many A or B corps from previous years. the Montreal area in 1977. The 1978 season was a class B corps. Their only competition in The Quebec drum corps community was saw Éclipses de Verdun become co-ed, that class came from Éclipses de Longuieul, experiencing a generational transition. It Jouvencelles of Pointes-aux-Trembles folding who had placed last at the previous year's brought about a changed environment. The and Chatelaines becoming DCI All-Girl Provincials, when they had displayed Mickey activity no longer was dominated by strong champion. Mouse characters on the field. community organizations. There were four corps in the Saguenay The corps had just started a rise that would Drum corps members preferred belonging region in 1977, three of which were among the prove to all that their Mickey Mouse days were to a powerful competitor rather than defending very best in the Province. All of them had indeed over. their community's image. Both Offensive Lions folded by the end of the 1980 season. Other corps had just stalled. Deuxième and Chatelaines had proven that Quebec corps Offensive Lions placed eighteenth at the Décade and Alliance Bois des-Filions- could become strong international contenders. 1978 DCI Championships and 1979 saw them Terrebonne were consistently surpassed by Members were now ready to switch loyalties in closing down their feeder corps to boost their Étoiles de Dorion-Vaudreuil. Alliance would order to achieve the DCI dream. numbers, swallowing the remnants of the eventually merge with then-vanishing Corps would fold, sometimes with healthy folding 1978 DCA finalist Ambassadeurs du Arcs-en-Ciel to form the senior L'Odyssée from bank accounts, after achieving less than Saguenay and knocking hard on the top-12 Montreal, DCA finalists in 1982 and 1983. satisfying competitive results. door all season. They finished fifteenth. Offensive Lions and Chatelaines had a Éclipses de Longueil were the main 1980 saw them smaller, finishing twenty- difficult 1980 season. Chatelaines even elected Montreal's beneficiaries of such mercenary seventh at DCI. They folded the following fall. not to compete at the DCI Championships. tendencies. They became a strong class B Offensive Lions and Chatelaines reacted to They would be topped by Arcs-en-Ciel at contender in 1980, thanks to the folding of their expulsion from FAMQ ranks by forming a Provincials. Other corps had just disappeared. 1979 Provincial Class A Champion Éclipses de new drum corps association, the FCCQ, Demographic trends contributed to these Verdun. Fédération de corps de clairons du Québec. The major changes. Quebec corps had relied on a Members and instructors, following the lead alternate circuit would stage contests in June strong nucleus of members with deeply of Corps Director Denis Plouffe, moved the and July, with a championship event that took attached loyalty. Most corps had failed to attract Longueil corps. They then benefitted from the place in mid-July to accommodate the two sizeable membership numbers outside that core disappearance of many organizations and had leaders' DCI tours. nucleus. Many suffered from a high-school grown to DCI Associate member status in 1982. Both corps, barred from appearing at graduation syndrome. Hard-core die-hards Éclipses de Longueil would then start their Provincials, also traveled to the Canadian would also eventually age-out. quest to make DCI Finals. They placed twenty- National Championships, where Offensive Lions Corps from predominantly rural areas were second in 1982 and nineteenth in 1983. The wrestled the title away from perennial especially hit hard. No corps from the Beauce corps would not shy away from ruthless tactics champions Oakland Crusaders and Seneca or the Gaspésie regions competed at the 1980 in pursuing its objectives. Optimists. Provincials. The 1982 Étoiles from Dorion-Vaudreuil had The FAMQ established a new circuit of The situation had become acute by 1981 and placed second at the 1982 DCI Class A Finals. competition, the Circuit des Compétitions 1982. Only seven corps competed in class A or Éclipses started a new recruiting trend the Musicales Québécois. Offensive Lions and B in 1981. These two categories were merged following off-season by operating a bus that Chatelaines would come back to the FAMQ into an open class. Twenty corps competed in would drive potential members from Dorion- scene in 1980, after their two-year penalty had class C prelims which, until 1982, regrouped Vaudreuil to Longueil to attend camps. passed. The FCCQ was folded the minute they bugle corps with the few remaining trumpets The dramatically improved 1984 Éclipses, were reintegrated into the mainstream corps. There had never been more than seven fielding a virtual Quebec all-star corps, placed association. class C corps competing at Provincials until fifteenth at the DCI Championships, but were They found a drum corps scene that had 1979. disqualified for marching what was rumored to been affected by major transformations, many Nine out of the 10 1981 class C finalists had be a hair-raising number of overage members. 358

Clique alouette, Montreal, QUE (approx. 1980). aCademie musiCale, , QUE (1990). Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Alan Winslow from the collection of Drum Corps World. The 1985 and 1986 Éclipses achieved The two had vanished by 1986, even though temporary merger, and La Clique Alouette notoriety in DCI circles. They fielded one of Étoiles d'Or had fielded a corps of more than folded. the most innovative guards in DCI's history. 100 members in 1985. Only Royalistes enjoyed a rewarding year, to They also became a world-renowned innovator The 1987 Connexion Québec, boosted by the then fold in 1985, a year when the Éclipses bus that would take the total show concept to new disappearance of Les Éclipses, even discarded service made fruitful stops at Quebec City's heights. their uniforms, turning the Longueil corps' Laval University. They complimented their famous “An Gendarmes uniforms Indian for an Cascadeurs shocked the DCA world by American in ” production with the use of Jones theme show. They displayed an excellent fielding 11 mallet instruments and seven French Gendarmes uniforms. Their main area guard, much reminiscent of Les Éclipses. concert timpani in the pit. They also used of fame remained the amazing rise they made They also had a dramatically slow early- electrical amplification, for which they were from June to August. season, being smashed by DCI Class A assessed a 2.0 penalty. Camp turnouts had been low during the Champion Ventures in July. They eventually They tied the Steel City Ambassadors for 1985 winter and even worse in 1986, despite finished twenty-first at DCI. It would be their seventh place at the 1984 DCA Finals. The the continued use of a bus that would tour last year on the field. ephemeral character of such international many regions of the Province to gather The 1987 season marked the last hurrah for ventures was proven when Cascadeurs folded in members eager to travel to the corps' camps. an entire generation of ambitious Montreal 1985. They actively recruited all through the first drum corps. The disappearance of both Royalistes and tour. This led them from scoring a dismal Quebec City corps also fell victims to the Cascadeurs boosted Aventuriers, who won the 44.40 in June, 1985, not even marching a full destructive ambitions of the 1980s. The 1981 1985 Class A Provincial Championships, after visual show at their first contest, to making a Aventuriers de Charlesbourg fielded a high having finished fourth in class C the previous run for the top-12 by mid-August, finishing quality corps after gaining a sizeable number of year. fourteenth at DCI with an 84.10. members of junior age from temporarily The early 1980s will nevertheless be The 1986 season saw them starting the with defunct 1980 DCA Finalist La Clique Alouette. remembered as the highest point for drum 26 horns and a score of 37.70. The Éclipses Their score at Provincials was 18 points corps visibility in Quebec. The 1980 Étoiles de horn line had grown to 48 members by DCI, higher than the previous year's. Dorion-Vaudreuil appeared in a television ad for where the corps scored 83.10 to again finish Aventuriers folded the following year the Canada Dry soft-drink corporation. A fourteenth. The corps folded during the off- when La Clique Alouette came back, fielding Quebec City advertising company released season, but did not disappear. many members from the defunct Charlesbourg albums of the 1980 Provincial Championships, The Longueil corps repeated its 1980 recipe corps. a one-time only venture. to quick success by moving to Connexion La Clique finished a disappointing The FAMQ staged aggressive projects to Québec, another good representative of the thirteenth at DCA, folded the following fall, promote the activity's visibility. The 1981 tumultuous mid-1980s. only to re-emerge as a junior class B corps in season featured a Quebec tour that led corps to Les Chatelaines, who had bounced back the suburb of Ste-Foy. And guess what, compete in cities that had become foreign from a dismal 1980 season by winning the DCI Aventuriers fielded a corps in 1983. drum corps territory, including the hosting of All-Girl crown in both 1981 and 1982, became It was in 1983 that the best year ever for the the 1981 and 1982 Provincials in co-ed in 1983. They won the DCI class A title Quebec City drum corps community occurred. Drummondville. and then switched to the name of Connexion Provincials were hosted by one of its fastest- The definite highlight of early 1980s in the Québec in 1984. growing corps, Sénateurs de l'Ancienne Lorette. Quebec drum corps milieu was the staging of The corps featured a very creative uniform, They made class B finals along with the 1981 and 1982 DCI Championships in played contemporary pop-music and presented neighbouring Royalistes of Neufchatel. The two Montreal, organized by a committee established many novel visual moves. Their 1985 corps had been slowly growing since 1980. by Maurice Corey of Les Chatelaines de Laval. interpretation of Lionel Ritchie's You Are went The Quebec City region was also home to Co-sponsoring the event was the O'Keefe a long way to disprove the theory that 1980's class C contender Dynamiques de St-Jean beer corporation. Beer companies have always style dance music could not translate well to Chrysostome. The 1984 season would see a been deeply involved in sponsoring professional the drum corps idiom. completely changed picture. A new senior sports events in the Province. Such a sponsor The corps also aggressively pursued the DCI corps, Cascadeurs de Beauport, was established, gave the activity a seemingly increased dream, finishing twenty-fifth at both the 1985 generously financed by a wealthy businessman. legitimacy. and 1986 DCI Championships. Two corps from The corps built from scratch and The crowd attending the 1981 DCI Finals in their immediate neighbourhood, Étoiles d'Or aggressively recruited in a bid for a successful Montreal, rumoured to have been around the and the re-emerging Arcs-en-Ciel, folded DCA season. Members from the city's corps 36,000-40,000 number, remains among the top during their rise. Étoiles d'Or had been in flocked to the new power. three crowds ever assembled for a DCI event. contention for the 1985 class A Provicial title, Depleted junior corps faced many changed The flip side of hosting such successful DCI while Arcs-en-Ciel had been class B champion situations. Aventuriers became a class C corps, Championships was the reinforced appeal of in 1984. Sénateurs and Dynamiques joined forces for a International drum corps success instilled 359

Connexion quebeC, Laval, QUE (1987. melomanes, Trois Rivieres, QUE (1995). etoile, Dorion, QUE (approx. 1978). Photo by Bill Dixon from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World. among the youth of the Province. The early-1980s also saw the appearance of By the late 1980s, there were more winter The high degree of creativity of Quebec future DCI members Académie Musicale and guards than drum and bugle corps in the corps also gained international recognition. L'Insolite. L'Insolite was founded in 1984 from Province of Quebec. More also achieved Who could forget Les Chatelaines' use of the remnants of a majorette corps. Their success on the international level. folding chairs in 1981 and 1982? hometown of St. Jérome had been a drum corps The Quebec corps of the late-1980s were The most elaborate prop ever used by any hotbead in the early 1970s. much smaller than their predecessors. The corps was L'Odyssee's spaceship of 1983 and The corps' rapid growth, from being the 1988 L'Insolite cracked the top 25 at DCI with a 1984, which was large enough to cover the 1985 provincial class C champions to DCI class corps of barely 60 members. Académie whole corps. A champion status in 1988, was proof of vision- Musicale accomplished the same feat in 1990 Other corps left their mark on the early ary leadership. with 47 members. 1980s Quebec drum corps scene. Many were Académie Musicale was founded in 1983 in Such numbers marked a clear break from started by nostalgic former drum corps Sherbrooke, previously a drum corps desert. the days when the 1980 Chicoutimi members who wanted to provide a new They established superior musical standards Métropolitains folded because they deemed that generation of kids with all that the activity has right from the beginning. They fielded their a 40-player brass line was insufficient to meet to offer. biggest corps ever in 1985. Their subsequent their competitive objectives. The 1983 Provincials again featured corps drop in membership defied logic by being The 1985 Crescendos used a similar from various regions. These offsprings of an combined with a sudden rise in quality. reasoning to fold a corps of 75 members. older generation would provide huge line-ups Who would have believed that the modest One of the most shocking reasons that for the 1984 and 1985 Provincials. Most would first-year class C corps playing “Pictures at an Quebec drum corps had entered a definitely have short life spans. Exhibition” and wearing red t-shirts for a more modest age occurred when the 1989 DCI Recruiting was hard, as it had become uniform in 1983 would eventually finish Championships, planned to be held in Montreal, fashionable for teenagers to hold jobs at a much sixteenth at DCI? had to be moved in a hurry to Kansas City less younger age. This trend, a result of yuppie- The end of the 1987 season was proof that than 10 months before the events' starting date. driven consumeristic values, combined with the the ambitious early 1980s had taken their toll The Montreal Expos baseball team simply leading corps' desires to escalate the DCI ladder on the Québec drum corps community. Only claimed the Province-funded Olympic Stadium to make life difficult for community 15 fully-fledged field corps competed at the as their own, refusing to change their schedule organizations. 1988 Provincials. Such a small number to accommodate the drum corps activity. The Quebec birth-rate had also dramatically remained in sharp contrast with the The Quebec corps of the early 1990s would fallen since the end of the baby boom era. unprecedented number of Quebec corps that not only be smaller, but also very inconsistent. There simply were not that many teenagers visited DCE and E-Mass contests. Sénateurs from Ancienne-Lorette, around. Corps had to increase their traveling Mousquetaires from La Baie and Chapdelaines Another factor contributing to the schedule in order to offer satisfying seasons to of Dolbeau would field corps in intermittent difficulties faced by many Quebec corps was the their members. DCI in faraway Kansas City saw years, taking seasons off from competition. FAMQ decision to declare Montreal as the the first appearance of Aventuriers at DCI since Corps did not seem to be the result of a permanent host of the Provincial 1982, as well as Académie Musicale's maiden strong desire from teenagers to participate in Championships starting in 1984. This DCI appearance. the activity. They clearly were the result of considerably reduced the exposure the activity It proved to be the Charlesbourg's corps’ desperate attempts by staff and management to could enjoy around the Province. swansong. They folded in 1989, after keep their beloved activity alive. A few corps from the early 1980s have unsuccessfully trying to turn themselves into a Contributing to these corps difficulties were gained well-deserved memorability. Crescendos . efforts by the Province's top two corps to from St-Bruno achieved remarkable results The name Aventuriers, along with Éclipses consolidate their newly-gained DCI status. despite coming from the town next door to and Sonnor, then became prominent in winter L'Insolite of St-Jérome, a DCI-Associate Longueil. Their 1983 guard featured one of the guard circles. Quebec youth interested in member from 1988 to 1991, used recipes classiest uniforms ever seen. Their 1984 opener marching music activities had discovered that similar to Les Éclipses to stage late-season of Wind Machine remains one of the best winter guards provided a free summer that miracles. The very creative corps featured adaptation of that chart to the drum and bugle permitted working. That activity was also impressive visual moves, most noticeably with corps idiom. convenient for still-hooked corps management an intriguing use of large mirrors in 1991. They won the 1983 DCE Class A and staffs. The organization also overextended its Championships and nearly cracked the DCI top Winter-guards require smaller memberships financial abilities in an attempt to rise on the 25 at the 1984 DCI Open Class quarter-finals. and lower financial investment. Quebec's most DCI ladder. They took a year-off in 1992, came Crescendos' demise in 1985 contributed to the successful winter guard, Sonnor, gained back for two years and finally folded a corps emergence of Transit from Ste-Julie, the town world-class status overnight when they were that still had 70 members in the spring of 1995. next to St-Bruno, who fielded a most amazing boosted by members and instructors from the Académie Musicale became the first DCI first-year brass line. vanished Les Éclipses. class A/60 champion to place in the DCI top 25 360

diplomates, Montreal, QUE (1971). majestiCs, Sorel, QUE (1995). feux follets, Berthier, QUE (1996). Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. in 1990. They fielded what would become one spearheaded by charts such as España, à la The 1989 senior Ambassadeurs of Quebec of the most memorable drum corps show in 1973 Les Diplomates, seemed light years away City appeared at an early August contest in history. from Les Métropolitains. Lévis with less than 20 members, with no Their first attempted rise quickly became Les Dynamiques' more relaxed approach colour guard or drum major. They claimed to thwarted in 1991, when they failed to crack the helped them to survive four more years than be building a corps that would make DCA finals top 25 despite fielding a much larger corps than Les Métropolitains, but they never made DCA one month later. the previous year. They would patiently rebuild Finals. The corps folded after the 1998 season, They actively recruited anybody interested for another claim to DCI fame in the mid- with a good chunk of its membership moving in such a venture, an overly ambitious task they 1990s. to the rising Kingston, ONT, Grenadiers. would not accomplish. Les Ambassadeurs did Junior corps faced major challenges from The junior side of Quebec's drum corps not even show up at the DCA Championships 1990 to 1994, to the extent that the Quebec activity struggled throughout the early 1990s. that year. drum corps scene became completely The few surviving corps relied on a core Such functioning introduced a new elitist dominated by a senior corps, Les Métropolitains membership that compensated for hugely element to drum corps circles. Corps could de Montréal. disappointing recruiting results. only cater to the needs of youth with time on There had been efforts to field a successful Hotly contested competition was witnessed their hands during the summer season. These senior corps in the Province ever since the in some years, with a few season-long battles in members would need to devote their whole demise of Les Cascadeurs. Les Ambassadeurs of class A-60, the only provincial class with more summer vacation to intense rehearsal Quebec City folded after a few unsuccessful than one corps for most of the years between schedules. tries at gaining DCA finalist status. 1989 and 1994. Such commendable dedication effectively Efforts were then made to turn Tradition of Battling for honours would be Sénateurs of restricted the number of prospective drum Jonquiere from a parade corps to a field l'Ancienne Lorette, Mousquetaires of La Baie, corps members. It also dramatically increased competitor. The senior hopefuls then turned to Dimension of Lévis and Illuzion of St. Hubert, the quality of these drum corps products, as Les Métropolitains, founded in 1991. an offspring of Transit, which had itself been an corps mostly attracted disciplined, talented The corps made DCA finals in its first year offspring of Crescendos. musicians. thanks to province-wide recruiting. Members The Quebec drum corps community had These corps would field amazingly from all across the province would travel to also changed its very definition of the nature of innovative presentations. Most popular would weekly rehearsals. The corps competed until the drum corps season. Most corps saw the be theme shows based on popular French- 1994, providing nostalgic former junior corps August Provincials as the only contest requiring Canadian selections, such as Sénateurs’ 1989 members with a vehicle to express their passion a finished production. Late-July contests often “Starmania” and Dimension's 1993 “Agaguk.” for the activity. featured line-ups of corps fielding incomplete The kind of passion and dedication required The corps was widely noticed for a major productions. by members in such an atmosphere mirrored stylistic change in its last year of competition, This was quite a contrast to the late 1970s, the efforts of dedicated staff and management switching from a popular jazzy style to the when it was frequent for corps to cancel late- that operated corps out of a sheer passion for esoteric “Interstellar Suite.” June appearances for lack of preparation. Such the drum corps activity. The Mets used the chart to present one of lack of preparation did not help in boosting Local contests had reduced line-ups. From the most fascinating senior shows ever fielded, dangerously low attendance numbers. 1992 to 1994, only Sénateurs, Mousquetaires featuring a sophisticated auxiliary that stood Previously hooked drum corps fans just and Dimension continued to exist as North out of its DCA competitors with much complex walked away from the activity. American standard field corps. L'Insolite and and innovative equipment handling. Many staff members were former members Académie Musicale toured outside of the The corps rose to fourth place at the 1994 of corps such as Les Éclipses and L'Insolite, Province for most of these seasons. DCA Finals, threatening the Bushwackers in who had made late-season miracles their A contest that took place in Chambly in the process. These results were achieved trademark. Such functioning required 1991 had a line-up of only three corps. The thanks to a junior-like schedule, tightly complete dedication from marching members, 1993 Provincials even welcomed a corps from managed by a passionate staff. for whom drum corps participation meant Ontario, Ottawa's Contemporary Youth Senior corps members found themselves devoting 12 hours a day, seven days a week to Ensemble, disguised as Ensemble rehearsing intensely on early Sunday mornings, rehearsals during the summer. Contemporains des Jeunes from nearby Hull, often after having traveled all-night from DCA These full-time rehearsal schedules also QUE, to add to a very short line-up. shows. Low recruiting turnouts contributed to reduced the ability of many corps to take part The FAMQ attempted to boost the activity's the corps' demise the following season. in parades and local festivals, further restricting fortunes by making accommodations that A much different approach was used by the scope of their local visibility. would permit less experienced organizations to another senior competitor from the 1990s The recipe would indeed work for many appear in friendlier competitive environments. Quebec drum corps community, Les corps. Many may have learned from a case that Regulations were altered for classes B and C, Dynamiques de Buckingham. had clearly proven how it could lead to disaster with lower time requirement for an actual The corps, renowned for its early 1970s style if pushed too far. visual field show. Drum corps contests were 361

prinCesses, Valleyfield, QUE (1997). l’insolite, St. Jerome, QUE (1941). eClipses, Longuieul, QUE (1986). Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Sid Unser from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. expanded to feature what were, essentially, ultimate rise in DCI ranks the following years. Dimension of Lévis became a DCI Division II concert bands playing drum corps instruments. The 1995 season built on these impressive finalist, placing fifth after a successful season Judging regulations were also altered to add growth signs. The number of corps competing that saw them win the DCE Class A title. a colour guard caption that would figure in the in classes B and C kept diminishing as corps For the first time since the mid-1980s, the corps' overall score, a made-in-Quebec gradually moved to classes reserved for corps Quebec drum corps milieu seemed to have innovation that would later be adopted by DCI. presenting full visual shows. regained a healthy pattern of growth. A good It was hoped that classes B and C would Most noticeable among these was number of corps were again spread throughout become the training grounds for very young Multi-Visions of Trois-Rivières, who had elected the Province. The Province's leaders also corps started in regions that used to field to move from class C to class A/60 for the 1995 achieved commendable levels of sizeable drum corps. Enthusiasm for the season. The corps accomplished such a jump accomplishments in international competition activity continued to run high among former by working around 12-hour days, seven days a despite spending the biggest chunk of their drum corps participants. week rehearsal schedule. season in FAMQ-sponsored events. The extremely young age of these corps' Corps members were willing to devote Quebec drum corps had again reached members seemed to indicate a continued lack themselves to such efforts even though they forked roads. Organizations had to decide on of interest on the part of the teenagers of the competed all by themselves in class A/60 all whether they would be the leaders of a healthy Province. The few older members still summer and did not travel outside the Province local drum corps scene or if they would interested in drum corps participation after a even once that year. concentrate all resources on a climb up the DCI few years with these organizations would move The case of Multi-Visions goes a long way to ladder. The latter choice again proved to be far to the more experienced corps, most of which proving that a new trend had emerged in the too tempting. were willing to go to extreme measures in order Quebec drum corps community. It had become For the first time since 1990, two corps to attract them. fashionable to define the activity not by the type from Quebec cracked the top 21 in 1996. Les Classes B and C did increase the line-ups for of performance it featured, but by the level of Étoiles, fielding a corps one-third smaller than the 1994 Provincials, which featured only three dedication it required from its participants. its 1995 contingent, had actually put together fully-fledged field drum and bugle corps, Another expression of this new vision for the one of the most talented groups of inviduals to l'Insolite, Dimension and Les Étoiles. Académie activity were the old yellow or red school buses ever share a drum corps field. Musicale had even elected to stay out of FAMQ- used by Insolite, Étoiles and Académie Musicale They unexpectedly won the DCI Division II sponsored events for that season. to tour North America's highways in pursuit of Championships by surprising the 128-member Eleven class B or C corps nevertheless their DCI objective. Pioneer, a corps that had remained undefeated competed at the 1994 Provincials. Hope for The brand of drum corps practiced in the all season-long, and placed fifteenth in division revival ran high in formerly successful drum Quebec of the mid-1990s was not for the I. Their use of a rotating set of drums became corps regions. faint-hearted. The youth of the Province one of the activity's better-known icons of the L'Impact of Dolbeau represented the responded through an accelerating decline in mid-1990s. Saguenay, Voltigeurs came from Rimouski, drum corps participation from 1995 to 2001. Académie Musicale, who had elected to Majestics kept the activity alive in the Richelieu The three leaders of 1995 created hope for become a fully-fledged division I touring corps, area. Chevaliers from Rivière-du-Loup and the dawn of a new golden age for the activity in placed eighteenth at DCI Quarterfinals, a mere Multi-Visions from Trois-Rivières represented Quebec. Les Étoiles de Dorion-Vaudreuil two-tenths away from cracking the top 17. areas new to the activity. fielded a 105-member corps after merging with Dimension confirmed their status as an Also contributing to the more upbeat the remnants of l'Insolite, which had finally international contender by again placing fifth at atmosphere that prevailed around the Quebec gone bankrupt in the spring of 1995. the DCI Division II Finals. drum corps community were the positive Combining the two corps' memberships had Such accomplishments confirmed Les results achieved by its four leaders at the 1994 actually produced a corps of more than 130 Étoiles' and Académe Musicale's determination DCI Championships in Boston. members. Switching to the more complex to climb up the DCI ladder. Comparisons L'Insolite stayed in the run for the division l'Insolite show proved too hard a challenge for between the 1984 Éclipses and 1996 Les Étoiles II title all summer, eventually settling for many of Les Étoiles' younger members. abounded around the Province. third place. They also finished a mere 0.1 Despite a season frought with organizational What should follow was even clearer in the points away from the top 21 at division I and financial challenges, the corps placed third mind of passionate corps staff and management. quarterfinals. at the DCI Division II Finals and nearly cracked Les Éclipses had almost cracked the top 12 in Dimension, finishing seventh at prelims, the DCI top 21. 1985. The dream appeared achievable again. nearly landed in division II finals. Les Étoiles, Académie Musicale, fielding a corps of What was missing from these rosy in their first DCI appearance since 1982 and exactly 60 members, not only won the 1995 DCI predictions was the type of cold analysis that first full visual show since 1984, also achieved Division III title, they also topped all division II would have revealed that the 1996 DCI season credible division II results. finalists at DCI. They also finished nineteenth had been one of the weakest in recent history, a Académie Musicale fielded a large young in division I, becoming the first Quebec corps clear factor in pushing a division II corps of corps that would form the basis of their to gain DCI membership since 1991. barely 65 members to such high levels of 362

pers-Clairs, St. Hyacinthe, QUE (1998). ranCheros, Laval, QUE (1974) jeunes dynamiques, Rimouski, QUE (1997). Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Moe Knox from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. achievement. membership pool had grown dangerously thin, had been too busy consolidating their The 1996-1997 off-season saw not only Les a dispute emerged when a Third Regiment memberships around a limited number of Étoiles running a bus service, taking members member moved to Les Étoiles early during the experienced individuals. from all over the Province to their monthly 1998 season, as the old FAMQ membership Too little had been done to increase the camps. protection clause still existed. activity's appeal and make it open to newer Académie Musicale and Third Regiment of The limitations of province-wide recruiting members. St. Eustache joined the Dorion corps in the bus became obvious when even Third Regiment, a Les Étoiles had even attempted a switch to service circle when two corps full of talented corps that had used a bus service to gather division II in the spring of 2000, promising experienced members, Multi-Visions and members to its camps, could not place higher prospective members that their rehearsal Dimension, folded. The stage was set for a than tenth place at the DCI Division III Prelims. schedules would be limited to weekends, except full-blown recruiting war. The corps would fold the following for a late season mini-tour to the DCI The 1997 season would prove to be some off-season, crippled by a large debt. Championships. sort of swansong for the Quebec drum corps The painfully achieved growth of the This was not enough to attract teenagers movement. Académie Musicale and Les Étoiles mid-1990s vanished in a rather spectacular now focused on avoiding crippling student debt both repeated as DCI members. The fashion. Six division I and II corps appeared at by managing long nights and weekends Sherbrooke corps used one of the best guards the 1998 Provincial Championships, but only working shifts. in the history of the activity in Quebec to three division III units competed in that class Les Sénateurs of Joliette attempted to boost complement an intellectually challenging, with less stringent time rules for the visual interest in the activity by embarking on an contemporary liturgical musical book, placing component. innovative association with their local high sixteenth in the process. Only one of the nine corps, Stentors of school. Students were able to gain credits Their Dorion-Vaudreuil arch-rivals again Fleurimont, fielded more than 65 members. toward their high school diploma through their mesmerized crowds with the most innovative The 1999 off-season saw Impact of Dolbeau membership in the corps. percussion gimmick ever fielded, even switching its operation from drum corps to This did not prevent the corps from surpassing their 1996 creative efforts, and . shrinking every year, going from a unit of 48 barely missed semi-finals by placing eighteenth. Another major disruption to the activity's members in 1998 to fielding a corps of less than The resurging Third Regiment, with Denis operations in Quebec occured during the 1998- 30 from 1999 to 2001. Plouffe of Les Éclipses fame at the helm, placed 1999 off-season, when the wealthy senior Les Sénateurs' new association nevertheless fourth in division I finals, claiming the Spirit of Syracuse Brigadiers established a bus service proved fruitful, as they became a regular Disney Entertainment award in the process. taking any interested Quebec member to their division III finalist noticed for the amazing They were also joined in division III finals by camps. levels of talent displayed by their very young Sénateurs of Joliette. The appealing prospect of joining a world members. What looked like a new golden age for the class DCA corps attracted many junior-age By the 2000 season, only four field drum Quebec drum corps community actually was a members from an already reduced recruiting and bugle corps were in existence in the movement fraught with cracks that would lead pool. Province -- Sénateurs of Joliette, Stentors of to its near demise by the early 2000s. Académie The 1999 season was one of major Fleurimont, Sentinnelles of Varennes and Musicale was even forced to take a year-off in disappointments. Les Étoiles competed as a Mélomanes of Trois-Rivières Ouest. The 1998 after being unable to recruit enough division I touring corps with less than 60 number was reduced to three when Mélomanes members to field a credible division I members. folded the following off-season. contender. Their original musical production, titled All three remaining corps had reduced There simply were not enough folding corps “Ice Storm,” failed to generate the excitement membership numbers for the 2001 season. full of experienced members around the elicited by their creative 1996, 1997 and 1998 Stentors even had to switch from division II to Province to keep fueling corps that defined productions. They would not survive placing division III. themselves as elite and that could not waste a dishearting twenty-fourth at DCI The situation had become so acute by the resources or time in teaching inexperienced Quarterfinals. fall of 2002 that Sénateurs and Sentinnelles members. Académie Musicale came back as a division attempted to merge into a new corps named The 1998 Stentors of Fleurimont, a suburb III corps, placed seventeenth at DCI Prelims Alliance. of Sherbrooke, fielded a corps of nearly 100 and were forced to finally fold the following Also contributing to the activity's difficulties young and inexperienced members during that off-season as a result of financial difficulties was the shocking disappearance of the season. dating from their ambitious 1997 division I Invitation Québec contest. As DCI increased Les Étoiles regained semi-finalist status by season. the number of its sanctioned-contests held in placing seventeenth at the 1998 DCI Only seven corps appeared at the 1999 the Southern United States, Quebec and Championships. They nevertheless fielded one Provincial Championships. It became clear that Ontario became increasingly viewed as remote of their smallest corps in memory. the Quebec drum corps community had failed drum corps regions. As further proof that the Quebec to expand the scope of its membership. Corps Only the Madison Scouts and Southwind 363

deCibels, Laurentides, QUE (1995). dolphins, Montreal, QUE (1989). arC-en-Ciel, Montreal Nord, QUE (approx. 1978). Photo by Roland Doré from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo by Chrisopher Lewis from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World. expressed any interest in traveling to Montreal United States, such a change in emphasis could the same sense of loyalty to the activity as a for the 2001 edition of Invitation-Québec. The not help Quebec drum corps in any shape or whole that had been prevalent among previous contest was transformed into an exhibition. form. The marching band activity has never generations of participants. The DCI division I tour lost its international existed in the Province. The dawn of the 21st Century sees the whole stature by presenting contests in a single The loss of interest for the drum corps Quebec drum corps movement shifting into country, the United States. activity also threatened the financial health of survival mode. Still-hooked staff and The Quebec drum corps community lost its the FAMQ. management keep attempting to jump-start most prominent source of visibility when The Quebec Provincial Department of groups in former corps hotbeds such as Quebec Invitation Québec was completely taken out of Culture and Communications tabulated the City, the Lower St. Lawrence region and towns the DCI 2002 competitive schedule. grants it gave to the organization according to such as St-Hyacinthe and St-Eustache. A contest that had become the virtual yearly the number of youths who participated in its Étoiles' organization remains one of the reunion for numerous Quebec drum corps fans member groups. most creative, having attempted to develop a disappeared the year it would have celebrated By the 2001 season, all Quebec drum corps feeder corps, a senior corps, as well as a senior its 30th consecutive edition. combined had a membership of about 150. The winter guard from 1999 to 2002. The loss of appetite of the youth of Quebec grants received by the FAMQ from 1999 to 2001 A group led by a former Les Éclipses of the late 1990s for an activity such as drum were 23% lower than their 1993-1995 numbers. member vowed to start two drum and bugle corps was by no means an isolated By the winter of 2002, the organization corps and two winter guards from scratch in phenomenon. Drum corps participation had accumulated a series of deficits that Chambly during the fall of 2002. These efforts statistics were also on a steep decline all over severely restricted its ability to stage projects have all achieved mixed results. North America. that would promote the activity's visibility and It also became very difficult for the FAMQ to DCI attempted to thwart such a threat to renewal. sustain the type of competitive schedules that the activity's very survival by establishing closer The activity continued to be popular among have become a staple of the Quebec drum corps links between drum corps and the marching the drum corps participants of the late 1970s movement since the early 1970s. The number band activity. Many DCI division I corps and early 1980s. Les Amis du Drum Corps of existing corps makes it difficult to stage essentially became a new brand of elite Québécois, an alumni association regrouping viable contests. marching bands, building their competitive former drum corps members, had yearly The first years of the 21st Century saw the tours around a series of clinics for high school membership rosters nearing the 300 mark. association attempting to create a Province- marching band members. Founded by drum corps enthusiast André wide elite group modeled around Star of They would not only benefit from an Thériault in 1989, the ADCQ publishes the Indiana’s “BLAST!” concept, which had increased exposure to many talented monthly “Quoi de neuf” newsletter and successfully translated the drum and bugle prospective members, but would also gain attempts to provide support to the corps of the corps idiom to the theatrical stage. sponsorship from instruments manufacturers, Province. The FAMQ's financial challenges made it who would be more than willing to use corps as The organization's roster reached the 400 hard to believe that such an ambitious project a live advertising tool for their products. mark in 1993, but has been in a slow decline could ever become reality in Quebec. While there were enough similarities ever since. The ADCQ's main challenge The history of the Quebec drum corps between drum corps and marching bands to remains in attracting members of the corps of community is one of creative innovation, help DCI in keeping the activity afloat in the the 1990s, who have not apparently developed passionate members and staff and remarkable peaks followed by major disappointments. It is one dominated by tensions between attempts at maintaining a healthy local drum corps scene on one side and efforts to field elitist groups intent on climbing the DCI ladder on the next. As Drum Corps International leads the North American drum and bugle corps community to continuously closer ties with an activity that has never existed in the Province, the key to survival in Quebec appears to be one firmly entrenched in local and regional consideration. It would appear that a search for the roots of the unique brand of drum corps practiced in the Province of Quebec will be essential before a turnaround can be effectively staged. 364

Chatelaine all-Girl, Laval, QUE (1982). bouCliers, St. Laurent, QUE (approx. 1972). abenakis, St-Prosper, QUE (approx. 1972). Photo by Art Luebke from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World. Photo from the collection of Drum Corps World.