Come and Join Us!

Interested in Joining us

• If you're thinking of coming out, please contact Brian Byrne (info at optimists-alumni.org) for more information
• To verify rehearsal times and locations please check out our Combined Schedule page.

For More Information, please contact

• Brian Byrne, Recruiting Committee Chairman
  (416) 488-7243; info at optimists-alumni.org
• View our Information Brochure (Acrobat File)
• View our videos

About us

• The Optimists Alumni is an all-ages, self-supporting, non-competitive drum & bugle corps which had its first performance in September of 2003.
• Our performances fall into three categories:
  • a field drill (marching and playing),
  • parades (our main source of revenue) and
  • indoor concerts,
• While we prefer members who are over 18 we will, under special circumstances, allow younger members to join.

What is a Drum and Bugle Corps?

• A Drum and Bugle corps (often shortened to "Drum Corps") is a musical marching unit (similar to a marching band) consisting of brass instruments, percussion instruments, and a color guard.
• At present, our Brass Line uses 3-valved,  "G" bugles. The instruments used are: Soprano (trumpet), Mellophone (similar to a marching French Horn), Baritone (valve trombone) and Contrabass (tuba).
• Our percussion section consists of Snare, Tenor, Quads and Bass drums as well as Cymbals.

Our members

• Our members vary in age from their twenties all the way to the mid seventies
• Our membership includes representatives from over forty different corps and bands! To find out which corps and bands are represented you can visit the Our Members Marched With page. This page points to photos and write-ups for some of the corps with which our members marched. Other pages will be added in the future. In addition, the Our members marched with section of the Photo gallery contains photos of many of these corps.
• Our members enjoy playing music, entertaining others and the camaraderie of friends who share some of their interests.
• Many of our members are Individuals who once marched in competitive corps. Marching with us is a way to keep the passion alive without the physical and time commitments required in a competitive corps.

We are looking for

• marching members in all sections
  • Horn line: Soprano (trumpet), Mellophone (similar to a marching French Horn), Baritone, Contrabass (tuba)
  • Drum line: Snares, Tenors, Bass, Quads, Cymbals
  • Colour Guard: Flags, Rifles
• support staff (equipment, first aid or medical, copy writing, media relations, photography, etc)
• those who are prepared to make a commitment to practice at home and attend a majority of the scheduled rehearsals
• those who are able to meet our inexpensive yearly dues

What are the musical requirements

• Previous experience is NOT required.
• The majority of our members have never had formal musical training and, when the Alumni Corps started, many of us had not played in 30 or 40 years. The "noise" at the beginning has given way to beautiful music. We've certainly come a long way! Yes, it has taken a lot effort; however, with the help of our excellent instruction staff, it's been very rewarding. And, more importantly, it’s been fun!

Our membership consists of individuals who

• are willing to learn, to contribute and to grow musically, regardless of their starting point
• have rudimentary music reading skills or are willing to develop them
• are prepared to make a commitment to practice at home and attend the scheduled rehearsals

What training is provided

• Our horn and drum instructors are professional music educators. They include: Jamie Oatt, Jeff Mackay, Dave MacKinnon and Kevin Matthew. For more information about our instruction staff, please visit the Our Instruction Staff page.
• Horn rehearsals begin with a warm-up which is really a mini group lesson. During this time there will be breathing practices as well as exercises designed to develop and improve articulation, tone and range.
• These exercises cover the fundamentals of playing a horn. In addition, they give the corps member some actual experience and, often, feedback from the instructor. It is up to the individual to incorporate these lessons into their practice at home.
• Often private lessons can be arranged; however, arranging such lessons and the cost of these lessons is the responsibility of the corps member.

Rehearsals and Performances

• Currently, we have two Sunday rehearsals each month. They normally start at noon and end around 4:30 pm
• When we are learning our drill, we plan to have two weekend rehearsals a month
• Indoor rehearsals are often held at the Royal Canadian Legion (formerly Rameses Shrine Temple), 1395 Lakeshore Blvd. West in Toronto (Google Map to the Legion). Other venues are St Michael's College at 1515 Bathurst Street (Google Map to St Mikes) and St Thomas of Villanova College in King City (Google Map to St. Thomas of Villanova College). Please visit our Combined Schedule page to learn the dates and locations of our rehearsals
• We expect that members will attend the monthly ensemble rehearsals
• We expect members to practice at home, between rehearsals
• We expect members to know their music when they come to rehearsals. Usually our members use Scorch files when they start to learn their music. Scorch files are a web-based tool that allows one to listen to music and, if desired, slow down or speed up the playback. On our website we post Scorch files of both the scores and individual parts for all of our music.
• We expect that members will endeavour to attend all scheduled performances
• We hope our members will have fun and enjoying playing with us
• If you would like to attend a rehearsal, please visit our Combined Schedule page to learn the dates and locations of our rehearsals

What does a typical season look like?

• Our season usually begins in October, with our Annual General Meeting. The season normally ends with the annual Drum Corps Associates (DCA)  Alumni Show which occurs on the Labour Day weekend.
• From October to April we will have one weekend rehearsal each month. During these rehearsals we will focus on refining the music which we will continue playing and learning new music which we may, or may not, use in the coming year.
• November is Santa Claus Parade time. Since we are self supporting, the revenue from these parades constitutes a major part of our income. Organizers often have financial penalties for small groups. This means that it is very important that members make themselves available for these parades.

• Our outdoor drill performances are normally during July and August.

• In May and June we will probably have two weekend rehearsals each month. During this time we will learn the field drill that we will perform during the summer.
• Our first indoor performances are usually in late April or early May.

Concerned about commuting?

• We have members who commute from various places, including the Ottawa, Peterborough, Sudbury, Belleville, Barrie and Kitchener-Waterloo areas. Carpooling might be a solution.

What are the financial obligations?

• Yearly dues plus a small deposit for uniforms
• The cost of gas to and from rehearsals and local performances. Car-pooling is often used as a way to decrease costs.
• Perhaps once or twice a year we will take a longer trip which will necessitate a stay in a hotel. Members will often share rooms to decrease their expenses.

How can I become a member or find out more?

• Call or email us with any questions you may have. We always look forward to connecting with people who have an interest in Drum Corps. You can also sign up at at a rehearsal or at the Recruiting booth that we have at shows. Please feel free to contact us and express your interest.
• To get a close-up look at us, you are always welcome to attend one of our rehearsals. The dates and locations of our rehearsals are posted on our Combined Schedule. While at the rehearsal, if you're interested, you can fill out our sign-up/interest forms located there.
• Please feel free to give us a call, write or, e-mail any of the management or staff of the Corps.