Welcome to Drum Corps Videos
The video performances offered on this website were recorded by my parents, Charlie and Jackie Haas, in the late 1960's and early 1970's using professional video equipment. All of the videos are in Black & White. Color was either not available at the time or was cost prohibitive. Great care was taken to preserve the original video tapes (which were reel-to-reel at the time) however, time and age are a major factor in the end product. Special equipment was purchased to stabilize the picture quality and to minimize drop out. Given the fact that the original tapes were over twenty years old at the time of conversion from reel-to-reel to VHS, and then from VHS to DVD, it is impossible to guarantee 100% perfection.
Format
We typically burn DVD's in DVD+ format. Most DVD Players today will play either DVD+ or DVD- formats. However, if you have an older DVD Player, please make sure it is DVD+ compatible. If you find your DVD Player only plays the DVD- format, please email us after you place your order and request that your DVD be burned in the DVD- format.
Pricing
All performances listed are single performances. Single performances are $15.00 each and we are able to put up to four performances on one DVD. We also offer a 3-disc set of the 1971 World Open Finals and a 3-disc set of the 1971 Danny Thomas Invitational. These 3-disc sets are $140.00 each and contain the performances we have available for these particular shows. Shipping & Handling is $4.95 per order.
A Bit Of History
In the early 1960's, Jackie & Charlie Haas were searching for an activity that would interest their two oldest children. One summer evening, as they drove past a local high school, something in the parking lot caught their eye. They saw what appeared to be a band rehearsing, so they decided to stop and check it out. It was not a band, but something called a Drum & Bugle Corps. This group was not affiliated with a particular high school as bands were. Rather, it was a group of kids from all over the area that came together to form a Drum Corps know as "The Pennsylvanians."
The Haas children were intrigued, as were Jackie & Charlie. They stayed to watch the group rehearse and spoke with the adults in charge. That evening, the two oldest children left as members of The Pennsylvanians and so began the Haas Family's' involvement in Drum Corps - an involvement that would end up spanning decades. Over the years, each of the five Haas children would become involved in the activity.
During the early years, Charlie had access to something that was virtually unheard of at the time - video equipment. Charlie and Jackie had both been involved in video work through Charlie's job and, as luck would have it, Charlie's employer allowed him access to the video equipment any time, for his own personal use. Charlie and Jackie began taking the video equipment with them to various Drum Corps shows around the area. Afterwards, all the kids from the Corps would pile into the Haas Family living room to watch their performances.
The video equipment of the 1960's was not compact as it is today. The video recorder was a large piece of equipment that required reel-to-reel tapes. The camera was huge and cables had to be run from the camera to the recorder. The camera was set up high in the stands with Jackie at the viewfinder. Charlie was situated under the stands where he manned the recorder. As time went on, Charlie eventually operated two recorders - one for recording the Corps performing on the field, and the other for instant replay of the Corps that had just finished their performance.
Over the years, Jackie and Charlie worked with many Corps' - both Junior and Senior - as well as several high school bands. They had an valuable teaching tool. Video taping rehearsals and shows allowed the members to actually see what they were doing on the field and also allowed them to see their mistakes.
In order to save on costs, video tapes were often "recycled". Unfortunately, this meant much of what was recorded was eventually erased so the tapes could be reused. However, at the end of 1974, many video tapes remained. They were packed away and made a trip across country when the Haas Family moved to Colorado in 1975. They made the trip back East a few months later when the family moved back to Pennsylvania. They were stored for over twenty years until the early 1990's, when Charlie began working on converting the videos from reel-to-reel to VHS format. The videos were made available to people all over the country for a period of time, however, as is typical of VHS tapes, they began to wear out after too much use.
In an effort to preserve this valuable Drum Corps history, Charlie recently spent a great deal of time and effort once again converting the tapes - this time to DVD format. On the following pages titled Juniors and Seniors, you will find the performances we have available for purchase.
