| Location | Reading, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Division | Open Class |
| Founded | 1957 |
| Director | James C. Gruber |
| Championship Titles | VFW: 1960, 1961, 1962; DCA: 1965, 1968, 1979, 1980, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 |
| Uniform | Royal blue jackets with faux black satin cummerbund, black sequined sash, black pants, shoes, gauntlets, and aussie hats with Black plume |
The Reading Buccaneers Drum and Bugle Corps is an all-age or senior drum and bugle corps based in Reading, Pennsylvania. The Buccaneers, also known by the nickname The Bucs, are charter members of Drum Corps Associates.
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The Reading Buccaneers were formed in 1957 as a parade corps for WWII veterans. A field corps was formed in 1958 competing in the VFW circuit. The Reading Buccaneers captured the VFW championship in 1960, 1961, and 1962. The Reading Buccaneers were the last drum and bugle corps to win the VFW championship as the award was retired in 1962.
In 1965, The Reading Buccaneers became a charter member of Drum Corps Associates. The Buccaneers won the first DCA Open Class World Champions in 1965. They have since repeated nine times, in 1968, 1979, 1980, 2005, 2006, 2007 their 50th anniversary, 2008, 2009, and most recently in 2010. The corps has also placed second eight times (1973, 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1999, 2001, and 2011) and third seven times (1972, 1975, 1977, 1981, 2000, 2002, and 2004). They have missed being a DCA finalist only twice.
The corps won the very first DCA championship with a score of 84.50.
The corps won their second DCA championship, becoming the first DCA corps to win a second DCA title.
Led by future World Drum Corp Hall of Fame drum major George N. Parks,[4] the Bucs captured the last DCA title of the 1970s with a score of 90.5
The Bucs pulled off a repeat with a score of 91.3.
With new uniforms, new instruments in all sections, and a full hornline playing on instruments in the key of B-flat, the Buccaneers finished their first undefeated season, cruising to victory with the second-highest score in DCA history, 98.45. The show, entitled Variations in B, featured Georges Bizet's Farandole, Béla Bartók's String Quartet No. 4 - Movement 5, Benjamin Britten's The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, and Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings.
After coming off an undefeated season, the corps emerged victorious with another undefeated season with Exotic Impressions including the Ravel's Boléro, Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Capriccio Espagnol, Claude Debussy's Clair de Lune and Scheherazade, with a score of 97.238.
Celebrating the corps' 50th anniversary,[5] the Buccaneers again finished another undefeated to capture their third consecutive DCA title. The show, entitled Blue Era, also gave the Bucs the third-highest score in DCA history, a 98.313. The show consisted of Aaron Jay Kernis' New Era Dance, Aaron Copland's The Promise of Living, Alberto Ginastera's Malambo, and George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue.
At the 2008 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers tied the Brigadiers' record by winning their fourth consecutive championship with a fourth consecutive undefeated season, and earned the Buccaneers the highest prelims score in history, a 98.138, and a final score of 97.913. The show, entitled The Pursuit of Joy, consisted of Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D, David Holsinger's Abram's Pursuit, Giacomo Puccini's Nessun Dorma, and Ludwig von Beethoven's Ode to Joy.
At the 2009 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers became the first DCA corps to win five consecutive championships with a fifth consecutive undefeated season. The show earned the Buccaneers the highest score in DCA history, a 99.025. The show, entitled Demons & Angels, consisted of Giuseppe Verdi's Dies Irae, Manuel de Falla's Ritual Fire Dance, Leonard Bernstein's A Simple Song, and David Holsinger's Symphonia Resurrectus.
At the 2010 DCA Championships, the Buccaneers added another notch to their streak with their sixth consecutive undefeated season finishing with a score of 98.263. The show, entitled ROME, consisted of Ottorino Respighi's Pines of the Appian Way from Pines of Rome, Ottorino Respighi's Circuses from Feste Romane, Aram Khachaturian's Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia from the ballet Spartacus, and Ottorino Respighi's Epiphany from Feste Romane.
The Buccaneers are currently sponsored in part by the Behler-Hein American Legion Post # 637 of Hamburg, Pennsylvania, the Ray A. Master American Legion Post #217 in Topton, Pennsylvania, many businesses in the Reading and Berks County area, the Buccaneer Alumni Association and devoted fans.[6]
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