Drum Corps for Motivated Students

Drum Corps for Motivated Students
November 3, 2025
Drum Corps for Motivated Students 
by Kale White
Educational Representative, Palen Music Center
Do you have some motivated students that would benefit from a life-changing summer experience as a member of a DCI drum & bugle corps?  Are those students intimidated by the exceptional skill level of World Class corps or discouraged by expensive dues and camp fees?  There is an alternative that will provide a memorable and educational experience for those special students – being a member of the Sky Ryders Drum & Bugle Corps SoundSport ensemble.
 
     DCI SoundSport ensembles are an inclusive, lower-cost alternative to the traditional drum corps that welcomes students of all ages, skill levels, and instrumentation.  SoundSport allows any combination of woodwinds, strings, brass, percussion, and colorguard, and the audition process is typically more flexible than that of traditional corps.  Ensembles have an abbreviated summer rehearsal schedule and perform at shows with Open Class and World Class corps.  Unlike intensive full-summer tours, the shorter SoundSport season is significantly more affordable and would allow your students to return in time to be leaders for your school program's summer camp.
 
     If you have some exceptional students that demonstrate a desire to improve as a musician and performer, the Sky Ryders Drum & Bugle Corps, from Hutchingson, KS., is designing another memorable production for this summer.  Following a successful debut last summer, the 2026 corps is welcoming interested performers and has one-day audition camps planned in Kansas, Missouri, and Texas from December to April.  The summer rehearsal schedule begins in late June, followed by a 4-show tour ending at the DCI Southwestern Championships in San Antonio, TX.
We've all been fortunate to have those life-changing musical experiences and memories that will last forever.  Wanting to provide those experiences for others likely shaped our desire to become music educators.  As directors, you can identify students that would benefit from the educational experience and would thrive in the enhanced marching arts environment.  All the information about the Sky Ryders, the instructional staff and support staff, the audition materials and camps, and the 2026 production can be found at the link below.  Please share this opportunity with your students and feel free to email me with any questions.

Kale White
Educational Representative

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