MSJ 2009 Kick-Off

Another season of drum corps is upon us and it all started out with a great day at the LeRoy Middle School, but not actually.  There have been a couple of get-togethers prior to this past Sunday which may be considered as pre-kick-offs to 2009.  One was the well known group from the Buffalo area referred to as MSJ West.  The following is a compilation of their meeting minutes produced by their secretary Larry Darch: On Friday evening, October 24, 2008, the second meeting of MSJ West was held at Ilio DiPaolo’s Restaurant in Blasdell, NY. 

1.  The following members were in attendance: · Beth & Jack · Bev & Hutch · Kathy & Kevin · Donna & Harold · Claudia & Phil · Dee & Larry · Mystery Guest from MSJ South

2.  Not in attendance: · Bob LaDuca & Bob Hagelberger – Doug Mellenthine called a mandatory rehearsal of Ghost Riders, so these two had to cancel out on us.  It is evident by the early start, that Doug is determined to improve GR’s position at DCA I&E next September.  · Ruth & Dana – Rumor has it that Dana got lost and couldn’t find the place, so he turned around and went home to spend another evening in The Cave listening to Classic Drum Corps recordings.  · Cathy & Norm – Just a plain “no-show”.  We suspect that the date may have conflicted with Norm’s Weight Watchers meeting.  · Reva & Larry – Reva had a work-related meeting in Rochester and had to cancel out.  We expected Larry to still attend, but the word was that since it was so close to Halloween, Reva did not want Larry wandering the streets alone at night. 

3.  Our guest speaker, representing MSJ South, was Wayne Hibbard.  Wayne gave a very motivational speech about the low property taxes he pays in Florida.  4.  The Treasurer’s Report was distributed and then immediately collected before anyone had a chance to review the document.  Obviously, there were no questions.  The copies were then unceremoniously burned in Ilio DiPaolo’s fireplace.  5.  Membership Expansion – after much heated debate, it was decided to leave the Eastern boundary set at Batavia, NY.  However, the Western boundary may be opened up to include Western Ontario, Canada.  At this time, we are not certain if this would violate any international trade agreements.  A committee was formed, with Beth as chairperson, to further investigate this situation.  6.  Information regarding our next meeting will be forthcoming (from Beth). 

Also, a very large contingency of corps members and friends met on Sunday afternoon, November 2nd, to discuss plans for the upcoming 2009 MSJ Alaska Cruise and Tour.  Nancy Barton from Barton Cruises was on hand to answer several questions and concerns about the trip which is planned for August 13th through the 27th.  She was very informative and has since followed up with a few emails to clear up some things she didn’t originally have answers for.  Nancy and her husband, Steve, will be doing the excursion with us.  That certainly gives us a heads-up on how to get the best bang for our money.  We were all treated to a great meal put together by everyone that was there.  I’m certain no one went home hungry.  And certainly as a prelude to the cruise there were lots of laughs and stories about past MSJ cruises.  There still may be time for others to get on board.  If you are interested you may want to contact Nancy at: bartoncruise@rochester.rr.com, phone: 585-764-0106, 888-790-BOAT.  Be sure to tell her that you are inquiring about the Mighty St.  Joe’s Cruise to Alaska.  You may also get information from Margaret Anderson about the event at msjflag@rochester.rr.com

Alright back to Sunday’s practice.  WOW, what a great start: 44 horns, 19 percussion and all of the current members of the working guard.  Here are a few comments from posts by members on DCP.  From Donny Allen, “A great start to another year! The brass line ate up every thing I had for them, completely learning the concert number, and also bringing back some of the fan favorites from MSJ.  Percussion seemed to have a great turnout as well as the 40+ in the horn room.” From Brad DeWaal, “Hi all, it was great seeing everyone at practice yesterday.  I think the horn line count was 43 +.  great sound for the first outing with many of us not playing since DCA weekend.  The oldies, were an easy run through, the Charity medley was much better once played live.  The midi file doesn't do it justice at all.  Was fun to play and had very nice transitions.  This will be a great year.  Learning brand new stuff won't be much of an issue as the oldies are already in the blood! Every other week practices are a nice change.  Nice job everyone.  See ya soon”. 

Sorry no pics of the percussion section.  Must be our resident photographer is a horn (contra) player.  Don’t worry the drum line will get their due, they’ve got an in with these reviews.  And there also will be some shots of the Guard at work, can’t leave them out either. 

And here’s my take on practice as posted on DCP, “....  an excellent day for percussion.  There were 20 in the ranks.  (We) worked on some new warm-ups plus three (3) solos.  That's right, 3 of them.  Hope to get the best ones ready for the season.  They're all a lot of fun to play and a challenge for most of us.  Also (we) got through the Color Pre with some minor changes to clean things up.  Lot's has happened to get MSJ ready for 2009 already and as long as we sustain the practices like yesterday this will be another great year for the corps.  44 horns - WOW with several known missing, at least a dozen.  But that doesn't mean there isn't room for more.  Every section is recruiting.  More brass, more percussion especially bass and tenor and definitely more guard.  Come on out in two weeks (Nov.  23) and see what all the excitement is about”. 

Lot’s of comments and questions about the future plans for the corps were brought up in the aud at the end of practice, some for the staff and board and others for the Recruiting Team.  In an attempt to cover everyone’s concerns I ask that those who wish please follow-up your comments with an email to the appropriate people as follows; staff concerns – Curt Anderson at Anderson@rochester.rr.com, board concerns – Larry Keppel at hamburgkeppel@yahoo.com, and recruiting to bobwielgosz@gmail.com. 

Well that’s about it for now.  Don’t want to waist all my creative juices on the first practice BUT WOW….  What an exciting way to get the season going.  This looks like the beginning of a great year.  Let’s all keep the momentum going.  And don’t forget, we don’t meet for 2 weeks so spend some time on your own getting through the book.  The more we all get done at home the more productive we can be with the staff on Sundays. 

It was great seeing everyone back on Sunday.  Hope to see you all in a couple of weeks along with those of us that weren’t able to make it this past week. 

Welcome everyone to MSJ 2009!

Regards,

Bob Wielgosz bobwielgosz@gmail.com