NORWICH – Long days and warm weather in the late summer equal band camp for the proud members of the Norwich High School Purple Tornado Band.
Rehearsals for the half-time football game shows and band competitions are well underway in the field behind the school, with marching and music beginning at 1 in the afternoon and continuing through 9 p.m. with just a short hour break for dinner.
The camaraderie shared will be displayed at 7 p.m. Saturday as a fundraiser for the Tornado’s trip to Boston this school year gets underway. Band parents, families and community supporters are invited to the field for a show by the Brigadiers, a drum and bugle corps, and special guest, the Inbhear Mór Marchers, a 45-piece marching show band from Ireland. General admission is $10; gates open at 6 p.m.
“We are thrilled that the Irish band chose Norwich as one of their 13 destinations on their first ever tour of the U.S.,” said Norwich Band Parents Association volunteer Maggie De Tomi.
The Brigadiers are five time Drum Corps Associates World Champions, winning titles in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002, having achieved the current record high score of 98.6 in 2002. With roots dating to 1938, the Brigadiers have consistently been an innovative leader in advancing the all-age drum corps activity.
The current corps is comprised of members from all over the United States and Canada ranging in age from 15-64. Its philosophy is education first: sixty-one percent of the 2008 membership were high school or college students and 22 percent of the people involved were professional educators.
Also performing, the Inbhear Mór Marchers is a youth band with a drum corps-style show. The Irish band was originally established in 1992 in the southeast coastal town of Arklow, County Wicklow. From their first competitive appearance in 1994, the band has enjoyed great success on the Irish and international band scenes.
Throughout 2007, the band completed a full, undefeated season in the International Marching Band Association’s Division II Class, winning both the All Ireland Parade Championships & the All Ireland (Field Show) Championships. After winning the Irish Championships in both 2007 & 2008, the band was honored to be promoted to Open Class for the 2009 season.
The band’s 2009 field production is titled “Celtic Thunder” and features a selection of Irish ballads and dance music including, “Riverdance, Danny Boy, The Lord of the Dance & An Irish Party in 3rd Class.”