Community Corner
5 Things to Know About the Plymouth Fife and Drum Corps
The Plymouth Fife and Drum Corps is recruiting members for its 2014 season.
1. What is a fife and drum corps?
The Plymouth Fife and Drum Corps (PFDC) is made up of 40 to 50 students ranging in age from 12 – 18. Its members are self-supporting and dedicated to preserving the ancient arts of color guard, fifing, and drumming through live performances at parades, historical and patriotic celebrations, concerts, cultural affairs, and other civic events. Each year, the PFDC performs 40-50 times from April through October throughout the state of Michigan and elsewhere. A tour toward the end of summer is a highlight of the performance season. Over the years, tours have taken the corps to numerous forts, musters and historical sites, as well as Philadelphia, PA, New York, NY, Washington D.C., Montreal, Canada, and Boston, MA.
2. Music
PFDC music spans the 17th to 20th centuries with an emphasis on music played during the Revolutionary War. Presentations focus on strong personal and group discipline, musical excellence, and marching precision.3. Uniforms and flags
The 10 pound, red and white and blue uniform currently worn by the corps is a replica of George Washington’s personal Life Guard or foot soldiers (1776-1783). The color guard consists of one spontoon (a short pike), one halberd (an ax head mounted on a shaft), two Brown Bess muskets (used bythe armies of Europe and America for nearly 200 years; 1690 to 1830), two British hangars (swords); and six flags, including the Bennington flag (carried by Ethan Allen’s Green Mountain Boys of Vermont during their capture of Fort Ticonderoga from the British in 1775), the Betsy Ross flag (flown by the Pennsylvania navy in 1777, but probably not carried by a land unit), the Don’t Tread on Me flag (common symbol used by the colonies during the Revolutionary war), the Commander in Chief’s flag (used by Washington’s private guard indicating his presence), the Grand Union flag (otherwise known as the Continental Colors of 1776) and the State of Michigan flag.4. PFDC is recruiting
The Plymouth Fife & Drum Corps is accepting new Corps members for fife, snare drum, bass drum, and color guard positions for the 2014 performance season. No experience is needed. Expert instructors are provided. Practices are held on Monday nights. If you love music, history, travel and want to be a part of excellence, then the Plymouth Fife & Drum Corps is for you!5. How to join
There will be a PFDC Orientation Meeting on Monday, Oct. 21 at 7: p.m. in the Choir Room at Salem High School. Recruiting forms are on the website at www.pfdc.us or you can contact the PFDC at pfdc.recruitment@gmail.com.Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
