"And in first place … with a score of 95.25 …"

Minne-Brass’ first rehearsal was in March, 2005, and our first gig was in April, after only three rehearsals, at the Minnesota Brass Showcase. It became apparent then that our approach of relying on individual talent (and music stands) was going to work for us. From day one we had a strong sound. And we were working on developing a true jazz sound, complete with authentic jazz expression and jazz improvisation: a big innovation for the drum corps activity.

To get everyone to try improvisation we brought in professional jazz trombone player and educator, Jim tenBensel, for a clinic. He got us all loosened up and jammin’ to some New Orleans blues … and we sounded pretty good for a bunch of Minnesotans from the other end of the Mississippi!

We continued to find time here and there during the summer to rehearse. Our first drum corps competition was in DeKalb, Illinois for the Drum Corps Midwest I&E competition. Even though it was very early in the morning (after not a whole lot of sleep) we rocked! We won the competition with a score of 88.0. The judge’s only comment was to possibly explore the lower end of dynamics (Mark Santori commented that that WAS the lower end of our dynamics). In any case, our undefeated streak had begun …

After DeKalb we focused on polishing our most difficult tune – one with an interesting title: Interrupting Cow. This tune was originally performed by the Minnesota group, The Hornheads. It felt right for us to promote original Minnesota music. And for the record here is the origin of the tune’s title:

Knock, knock
Who’s there?
Interrupting cow
Interrupting cow … MOOOOOO! … who?

With only three rehearsals to go before DCA Finals we added mellophones Kathy Burnham and Reilly Tillman. They both did a terrific job on very short notice and we are thankful that they decided to join us.

Our DCA performance will always bring back exciting memories. This was our first big competition and we really had no idea what to expect. Our goal was to just perform, be loose, have loads of fun and see if we could get the crowd to do the same. While we were rehearsing in the parking lot other corps starting cheering us after they heard us. Some folks from the (previously undefeated) Renegades Mini-corps stopped by to listen to us. They couldn’t believe their ears! It was then that we had a good indication that we might just be something special.

We were missing two baritone players, Sue Cosley and Chris Ebert, who were many hours away on the delayed MBI busses. Chris was a featured soloist in Blue News. We were concerned but decided to go for it anyway.

Our DCA performance was one of those inspired moments when things just felt right. Everyone performed with electricity and the audience responded. We also saw some very large grins on the judge’s faces. It was clear that our experiment in bringing authentic jazz to the drum corps world had succeeded beyond our wildest dreams! The standing ovations told us that.

We sat back and cheered on the other mini-corps that night. The Renegades in particular were fantastic. They also put on an inspired performance right up until their last three notes, which disappeared into the ether. After a long awkward moment they restarted the ending and finished up. Every musician’s worst nightmare had happened.

The retreat was loose. We played Battle Hymn with the other groups in a mass arc. Then the scores were announced. None of us knew what to expect and I doubt anyone really thought we would win. But when the Renegades were announced in second place reality had set in …

WE WERE DCA CHAMPIONS!!!

It isn’t often that things work out so well. Everyone in Minne-Brass should savor their achievement. We won because we had fun, worked hard and smart. We also tried something new and were rewarded for it. Winning isn’t everything … but it sure is a lot of fun when it happens!

2005 Minne-Brass Repertoire:
Infant Eyes, composed by Wayne Shorter, arranged by Todd Tanji
Blues News, composed by Willie Thomas, arranged by Todd Tanji
Interrupting Cow, composed by Michael B. Nelson, arranged by Roger Grupp
Sparkling Diamonds, from Moulin Rouge, arranged by Roger Grupp

2005 Minne-Brass Roster:
Drum Set: Lee Portz
Tubas: Jerry Sherohman, Dennis Tischhauser
Baritones: Sue Cosley, Chris Ebert, Cindy Hoines, Mark Santori
Mellophones: Jackie Bechtold, Kathy Burnham, Tina Cavitt, John Horst, Reilly Tillman
Trumpets: Andy Classen, John Ebert, Dave Figge, Roger Grupp, Todd Tanji, Ray Vasquez

Special thanks to Brent Turner and Gavin Burnham for their support on this wild experiment in drum corps.

Can’t wait until next year!

Minne-Brass Directors,
Roger Grupp and Todd Tanji