Glad to see even after 30 years people still talk about us!

I feel old. Seems so long ago. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. ⭐️ Bari ‘88-‘90

As someone not alive during this, I appreciate the history lesson.

Star '90 is the best opening statement in DCI history, IMO. Saw it live in Bloomington that year... March on, set up, count it off... and BLOW THE DOORS OFF. No sound reinforcement. No microphones. No tricks. Just the best brass section in the whole world throwing down without apology.

93 is one of my favorite shows of all time, however I've said it for several years now, "Star of Indiana broke drum corps."

what’s crazy watching this now for me is that my PARENTS were in this corp. I wore my dads old Star jacket at worlds last year and i plan to wear it again. It is something I’ll take good care of.

I marched with Blue Knights in 91 and George Z. was our drill designer along with Star. I got to watch that show many times close up and I'm still beyond blown away to this day. BUT, as a huge Cadets fan who thought their show in 93 would win in pretty much any other year, the work of art at every level that was Star in 93 still has not been topped to my mind. Thank you to everyone involved for gifting us that breathtaking show.

Before Star's first camp the administration had a plan. They looked at every successful corps and took the best practices, and where there were no best practices they developed them. They had experienced staff on day 1 and even managed to create such a buzz they had experienced DCI marchers audition in the inaugural year. You only make finals in your first year by having the plan and knowledge to make finals your first year. The last piece is the members buying in, and they did.

I always enjoyed there shows. Coming from Drum Corps in the 70' were everything was so militaristic, they were very fun to watch.

Placements: 10, 8, 7, 7, 6. 3. 1. 3. 2....9 shows, only dropping in place once from year to year. Used the same set of King 2-valved brass for all 9 years....the last champ to be completely on 2-valvers. Last corps to win with the snared on mylar. 1993 was always going to be their last year in DCI....the contract to perform with Canadian Brass was signed BEFORE the season started. Had they won they still would not have returned for 94.

Thank you for this. Extremely well-done. The 1993 show is superlative.

I marched Cadets 88, 89, 90 - so I was right in the middle of some things you are showing. I had a best friend and room mate in Star 1990-93. I remember him practicing Belchezzar's feast on his mellophone. I could watch these kind of shows thousands of times (but I struggle with most modern shows). I won't say much cuz it will hurt feelings. I love traditional uniforms as opposed to body suits. They've gone a little too heavy on dance (some of it is cool though). I love old star and cadets FAST DRILL.

Some other things not often discussed about Star.... They had this reputation of being a corps living off of Bill Cooks money. Yes, Bill Cook made that initial investment in the corps with a million dollars (a staggering amount of money for a drum corps in 1985), but he didn't just keep funneling money into the corps. He set them up for success from the off... good buses and trucks, an actual home base (they bought a school) that allowed them unlimited rehearsal facilities... and people.. he put the RIGHT people into the right places to ensure success. That said, he didn't just keep pumping unlimited dollars into the corps. After that initial investment they were self sufficient. Those uniforms? Pinks up until 89 and if you look closely, 89-92 are also all the same uniforms just with different overlays and head gear. A lot of the silks were homemeade. The flashy plates in 90 and 91.. homemade. They started with a lot of money but they managed it moving forward.

Thank you for this! So well put together!

I absolutely love this. !!! I think the double-crosses have to be the hardest drill, to this day, I have ever seen. 1993 is historic. I have watched Cadets and Star's 1993 shows over and over. I think Cadets won because their show was easier to follow. I feel Star should have won. It was (in my opinion) levels above Cadets. Levels above all corps.

Thank you for posting this and sharing your thoughts. Honored to be a part of this organization. Many great memories.

Seeing the Bartok show live...was the first time ypu could hear gasps and whispers of ....Wow ,Oohs,the crowd was quiet fir trying to comprehend what they were seeing. My buddy and I were like this is a new era,we were riggt.

I remember seeing, and hearing Star's 93 show since we shared a tour with them, two actually (DCM and DCI). Few things to remember, was how the weather at Jackson affected everyone. Younger folks might not realize it was all outdoors, and uncontrolled weather. The field was wet, it rained in the shade. All around difficult, even sleeping conditions were difficult for some groups. But something more important to think about. Many of those marching members of Star left, went on into many areas of the performing arts throughout the area, and the US. Some went on to Carolina Crown, Boston, etc... others are at the Indianapolis area marching bands. Heck, if you're a show choir parent, and have kids compete in Indiana (or anywhere), you WILL see a Star of Indiana Shirt or two out in the crowd, or with older staff members. That innovation and professionalism that Star brought proved your organization needs to be run to set standards, bring in money, and hire the right people... and get the resources the marching members (the Mission), needs.

I simply think the judges in 1993 didn't know HOW to judge Star. That show was SO completely unlike ANYTHING that came before it.

I had been talking about adding movement in addition to marching as early as 1987, and Cadets finally allowed me to install a couple of things in their shows leading up to 1993. You can't imagine how resistant Star staff was to this expanded corps movement when I came in to create it: They feared that it would cut into their teaching time - and it did a bit. I was given a 20-minute block to set that opening expressionistic sculpture and the tilted bodies of the first picture. It all came out of the music - that amazing music - that motivated every move, every new piece of equipment, every idea. Enough can't be said about the guard and their teachers, as they dove in like professionals even though my non-traditional equipment was challenging. Billy Jerburg (sp) was my hero. Yes, we departed so much from the norm that we paid a price. But the corps - those wonderful kids - worked harder day by day and believed in what we were doing. They certainly supported me because they understood that we were doing something brand new. As usual, the imitators rushed in after that show, but even today I see so much more that could be done with corps dynamics. I may have laid some groundwork, but there are still enormous advances to be made that I can see. I love DCI. I love what it has become and how it continues to evolve. Thanks so much for the comments in the video. Storm forward!

Wonderful video, my friend. Thank you for this.

Star saved our season in 86. Bus breakdowns had plagued my corp for years. 86 was no different. Star gave us a bus to use for the last few weeks of the season.

The 1990 Star closer is one of the strongest pieces I have ever seen performed on a field. Musically, marching, ALL OF IT. The drumline was throwing down and hauling, the brassline was throwing down and hauling, same for the guard. It was POWERFUL stuff. Also, two of my high school buddies marched in 1991, the Gomez twins. I had the pleasure of marching snare with Victor in college immediately after finals. It was an honor to play with both of these guys.

I saw 1990 live….the first hit of the brass took my head off but in a rich creamy don’t care kinda way Amazing corps and still missed

Thank you Bill. You are missed.

Zengali has to be one of the greatest drill designers ever, Greg Bimm from Marian Catholic would be another. Thanks for doing this incredible content, truly appreciated!

Star's last placement was clearly political. Bill Cook later said he took the corps to the theater stage where their hard work would be appreciated like they deserved it to be, and no one can blame him. The kids got to do two hours instead of 11 minutes, and they got to do it with the freaking Canadian Brass. Doesn't get much better than that. Plus, as they evolved the whole endeavor into what it became (Blast!), no more aging out, AND performers got paid for their work! I love DCI with my whole heart, but you can't turn marching in DCI directly into a performing career.

Great video.

I remember watching the 93 finals with 2 fellow Marine musicians that were also former DCI corps members. I was a huge fan of Star and their show, but both my friends absolutely hated it. Innovation often evokes strong opinion either way, i guess. To this day, 93 Star remains one of my favorite shows of all time. I think time has proven me correct in this opinion.

What a wonderful collective for such an amazing corps.

Star lost in 93 because the world wasn’t ready for that show. It was overall a better show though. Complex and tough with some huge moments. Cadets were beautiful, melodic and the show was accessible.

Boy do I miss these guys. They had such iconic shows. My brother marched in finals in 1991. Still one of my all time favorite shows! I had the privilege of seeing their 1993 show in Denver. I must say it confused the hell outta me. Granted, I was only 14 at the time.. Though nowadays I have really grown to love this show! Though I also love the Cadets from that year! Thanks for posting this!

Star will be back some day. Mark my words.

I believe if Star was still around today, BD wouldn't have as many titles wins as they do. Star's shows were always something to wait for in anticipation. They always delivered. To this day, I can't say which show is my favorite 91 or 92.

Wow, a really young Steve Rodinaro

Nice video. You left one of your sources off your list. You used sections of my video with the brass judges.

My high school was next to Bills property thank you Bill ..........sincerely O.V.H.S.

1991 there was a three-way tie for percussion, which Santa Clara, won by default with the general effect percussion score. but that star percussion section was deserving no doubt!

Great retrospective! Man I miss those summers

5:11 1985's brass arrangements were done by Larry Kerchner. Jim Prime joined the staff in 1986 and stayed into the Brass Theater and Blast! era.

Love to learn about older drum cores, even if it’s for a percussion band exam 😅🤩

Star lives on in Crown

Jim Prime did not write the first year corps hornbook. It was Larry Kerchner, not sure of the spelling.

FYI, the decision to tour with Canadian Brass was made before the season started. I still feel like a dear family member died.

ty!

GREAT JOB!! ⭐️🔥

Star should had stayed a corps, today there are so few corps, in the 60''s there was 1000's of them. My brother and I played with the Kenosha WI Kingsmen for many years. A Senior corps, but actually they were maybe ? one of the first all age corps.

Star had one good guard and it was '93.

Some innovations introduced by Stars are now something used by most corps all the time. This is what makes it boring in my opinion.

This is my Roman Empire.

Cadets 1993 all the way

I have a viable interest in resurrecting SOI…. I am like Mr Cook… we shall soon see

Star built a skyscraper in 93 season yes tgey prolly shoukd won it innovative movements a 10th of point loss is a flaw in judging nobody is that good unless its a clock !

i Marched 93 and 94 in Boston and got to see these shows live. i loved stars shows in 91 and 93....the drumline and the horn line were awesome..... but the guard ....yikes they were like a really good high school gaurd...they danced well ...but phantom and BD dance better. nothing they did equipment wise could compare to the other guards in the top ten. and Cadets guard and BD's guard wiped the floor with them

'91-'93 Quarterfinals Threepeat lol

Regrettably, I couldn't agree with you less. Trying to re-write history does not serve your purpose at all. in a nutshell, thinking you are SOOOOO innovative and SOOOOOO new and you are bringing SOOOOOO many ideas to the canvas turned out to be only in the eye and mind of the beholder. The majority didn't share this feeling and that is why they ultimately failed. Sure they deserve credit for trying but that alone is not necessarily good when the majority of fans in the craft did not feel the same way.They were a novelty to be sure, but so were the Velvet Knights and parts of most of the other corps. If you look back, I was active in the days when the Royal Aires and the Kilties and the Blue Stars and a host of others --before the California corps stepped into the spotlight. Imagine what times were like in those days as well. In my opinion and to sum up the flaws of Star of Indiana . . . they were just too much Indiana and not enough Star. The highway had been designed and all the corps had agreed to travel down it . . . except SOI. They knew that they would have trouble competing when the rules and the norms had already been established. So instead, they hoped to wander and waiver outside the path that everyone had already agreed to follow. They couldn't bring the majority with them to their way of thinking. This is ultimately what did them in. They had great music and musicians! An over-the-top approach to movement and marching ---much of which was eventually adopted. And then with this they totally failed at GE, props and costume design and any assemblance of thematic cohesion and this is what did them in. I and others called it the "kitchen sink approach" to drum corps and thank God it did not survive and become popular. Sure parts of it were adopted, but that would have happened with the natural maturity process anyway. Drum corps learned much from the SOI experiment but fortunately, it was not finally popular enough to sustain itself.

Star were very very good. Immensely talented. Changed DCI? Really? Early 70s SCV. 76 devils. Early 80s Garfield. Star were really Garfield of the Midwest. Not ground breaking. Now…an argument can be made that the diaspora of their kids changed the activity and continue to? That’s a valid statement. The fact is there just were very few groups who did what wasn’t before or differently than before.

I'll give you 91 and 93 especially. But I don't think there's anything new or innovative in the 1990 show, and really nothing in the 92 show at all. All four are extremely well designed and performed (though I loathe the 92 show; too EPCOT/Amurrica, Fuck Yeah for me.) And saying things like "The drumline also brought a level of playing that was on another level" isn't really saying anything. Again, the 90 Star drumline was good, but they didn't do anything super-innovative.