Drum and Bugle Corps

(jacksonholestartrib.com)

The Casper Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps will return to the field in 2007.

“We are very, very happy to be where we are right now,” the Troopers’ executive director, Mike Ottoes, said Wednesday.

“The future of the corps is really, really bright,” Ottoes said.

The corps, nicknamed “Wyoming’s Musical Ambassadors,” won conditional reinstatement this past weekend to compete with other large-member corps next year.

“The turn of events since last year … has been spectacular,” said Dan Acheson, director of the Chicago-area Drum Corps International. DCI serves as the governing body of drum corps events competitions and as promoter of events, he said.

“They’ve done a great job of getting their infrastructure in order and paying down their debts,” Acheson said. “That is now 100 percent up to compliance.”

The “turn of events” is a 180-degree reversal from a year ago when Ottoes announced the Troopers would not march in 2006.

It had been a hard fall, especially since the idea of the touring drum and bugle corps started in Casper a half-century ago.

“The corps really has a strong aura,” said Troopers board chairman Milward Simpson. “The stakes were really high.”

Casper resident Jim Jones founded the Troopers in 1957 and led it for 20 years. Under his direction, the Troopers earned national stature by playing at World Fairs and in presidential inaugural parades. He died in 1994 at the age of 73.

(madisonscouts.org)

Madison, WI – October 5, 2006 – The Madison Scouts announced today that Mark Dunton has been hired as the Corps Director. Dunton was selected after a comprehensive nationwide search.

According to Madison Scouts Executive Director Jeff Spanos, “I am incredibly excited to have Mark Dunton on the management team. His enthusiasm for the job and love for the corps along with his experience in music and people management made him a perfect fit for the organization.

I am energized about the future with Mark as a fellow ambassador of the organization and trusted colleague.”

Dunton has a Music Education degree from Crown College and has been involved with the activity for more than a decade. He was formerly the Director of Instrumental Music at Waconia HS (MN), as well as a staff member with Academy Drum & Bugle Corps. For information on the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps, Contact Mark Dunton at: director@madisonscouts.org.