Distant Thunder (marching band)
Encyclopedia
Distant Thunder were a marching brass and percussion band (and latterly a drum corps) who competed in BYBA (British Youth Band Association) and Drum Corps Europe
. They were based in Sharnbrook Upper School.
The Corps have since merged with Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps in 2010 to form Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
.
The corps then reformed as Distant Thunder Show Corps in 1999 by John Dimmick, Paul Bishop and Richard Harding.
Re-entering BYBA in Junior Class in the 2000 season, they grew in size and skill each season, winning DCE A-Class in 2004 and BYBA Division 2 in 2005. Moving to the highest class, Division 1, in 2006 the corps re-branded as a drum and bugle corps once again.
to form Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
.
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps have since gone on to become 2010 Division 3 UK Champions.
2005 - Silver
2006 - Black with either a white 0 or 1 (representing computer coding)
2007 - White with a black O and a green Z in the middle
2008 - Silver
The headgear was a white plastic cowboy hat with a black fabric around the middle, a black plume and silver highlights.
Drum Corps Europe
Drum Corps Europe is the international organization that regulates the European drum corps activity. Akin to its American counterpart and predecessor Drum Corps International, every year, Drum Corps Europe organizes its European Drum Corps Championships, with corps from the United Kingdom, the...
. They were based in Sharnbrook Upper School.
The Corps have since merged with Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps in 2010 to form Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps are a Marching Drum and Bugle Corps from Bedfordshire, England.Nexus was formed in 2010 after a merger agreement between the former members of Distant Thunder Show Corps and Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps, ....
.
History
The band was originally formed in 1981 as Bedford and Kempston E flat drum and trumpet corps. In 1986, they were renamed the Buccaneers Drum and Bugle Corps before disbanding in 1999.The corps then reformed as Distant Thunder Show Corps in 1999 by John Dimmick, Paul Bishop and Richard Harding.
Re-entering BYBA in Junior Class in the 2000 season, they grew in size and skill each season, winning DCE A-Class in 2004 and BYBA Division 2 in 2005. Moving to the highest class, Division 1, in 2006 the corps re-branded as a drum and bugle corps once again.
Merge with Equinox
In January 2010, the corps merged with Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps of BiggleswadeBiggleswade
Biggleswade is a market town and civil parish located on the River Ivel in Bedfordshire, England. It is well served by transport routes, being close to the A1 road between London and the North, as well as having a railway station on the main rail link North from London .-Geography:Located about 40...
to form Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps are a Marching Drum and Bugle Corps from Bedfordshire, England.Nexus was formed in 2010 after a merger agreement between the former members of Distant Thunder Show Corps and Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps, ....
.
Nexus Drum & Bugle Corps have since gone on to become 2010 Division 3 UK Champions.
Past shows
- 2000 - Johnny One NoteJohnny One Note"Johnny One Note" is a 1937 show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical Babes in Arms, where it was introduced by Wynn Murrary. Judy Garland sang it in the film version, released in 1939.-Notable recordings:...
/Georgia - 2001 - Robbie WilliamsRobbie WilliamsRobert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
- 2002 - JazzJazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and Swing - 2003 - Harry PotterHarry PotterHarry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
- 2004 - The Phantom of the OperaThe Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical)The Phantom of the Opera is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux.The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator,...
- 2005 - West Side StoryWest Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
- 2006 - CGIComputer-generated imageryComputer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
: Reality Is Not Our Business - 2007 - WickedWicked (musical)Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
- 2008 - Awakening the ElementsClassical elementMany philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
The Uniform
From toe to head, the marching member uniform from 2005 consisted of black shoes and socks followed by black trousers. The jacket was purple and white on each arm divided by a 90 degree black strip with a diamond in the middle and black gloves and gauntlets on the arms and hands. The diamond varied each year:2005 - Silver
2006 - Black with either a white 0 or 1 (representing computer coding)
2007 - White with a black O and a green Z in the middle
2008 - Silver
The headgear was a white plastic cowboy hat with a black fabric around the middle, a black plume and silver highlights.
Trivia
- On October 28, 2007, Distant Thunder played a static performance of their 2007 show at Wicked DayWicked (musical)Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
See also
- British Youth Band AssociationBritish Youth Band AssociationThe British Youth Band Association, or BYBA, was formed in 1974 by Glen Carter. It aims to promote the marching band activity, to encourage the social aspects of bands and to enhance personal development through all aspects of bands. BYBA has also set up rules for contests, and divided all marching...
- Drum Corps EuropeDrum Corps EuropeDrum Corps Europe is the international organization that regulates the European drum corps activity. Akin to its American counterpart and predecessor Drum Corps International, every year, Drum Corps Europe organizes its European Drum Corps Championships, with corps from the United Kingdom, the...
- Marching bandMarching bandMarching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
- Nexus Drum & Bugle CorpsNexus Drum & Bugle CorpsNexus Drum & Bugle Corps are a Marching Drum and Bugle Corps from Bedfordshire, England.Nexus was formed in 2010 after a merger agreement between the former members of Distant Thunder Show Corps and Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps, ....
- Equinox Drum and Bugle Corps
External links
- Distant Thunder Official Website - Since the merger with Equinox D&BC to form Nexus, this website is no longer active.
- NeXuS Drum and Bugle Corps - Resultant from the merger with Equinox D&BC