Hanna grad makes Marine Drum & Bugle Corps
Giovanni J. Mejia, a 2010 Hanna High School graduate and four-year drumline member of the Hanna Golden Eagle Marching Band, has been named to “The Commandant’s Own,” the official drum and bugle corps of the U.S. Marine Corps.
Giovanni J. Mejia
The Commandant’s Own is officially designated as the Marine Drum and Bugle Corps because of its historic connection with the Commandant of the Marine Corps, according to the Marine Corps website.
Mejia arrived last week in Washington, D.C., where he is posted at the historic Marine Barracks Washington, the oldest active post in the Marine Corps. The Barracks sits on the corner of 8th and I streets in southeast Washington, where it supports both ceremonial and security missions for the nation’s capital.
Mejia, 18, joined the Marine Corps through its music enlistment program soon after graduation, his father Joe Mejia Jr. said. He left Brownsville in October for basic training at the U.S. Marine Base in San Diego Calif., graduating on Jan. 7 as a private first class with an expert rifle badge.
The Marine Drum and Bugle Corps is comprised of 79 enlisted Marines and three officers. There are 24 percussionist spots, of which one or two open up each year. This year, one slot was open, “so Giovanni was the only percussionist in the whole United States to be chosen to get that one spot, ... to play for The Commandant’s Own in Washington, D.C.,” Joe Mejia said.
Giovanni Mejia started playing drums at age 5 and joined band for the first time at Vela Middle School, where he attended from 2003-2006 and played the snare drum. While at Vela he made all-region drummer in Texas Music Educators Association competition and received numerous other awards. His percussion instructor was Jimmy Cantu.
At Hanna, he also won numerous awards, Joe Mejia said. Giovanni became the Golden Eagle Marching Band’s snare captain as a junior. The band competed in the UIL State Marching Band Contest in 2008-2009. Sam Rodriguez was his percussion instructor.
Marine Corps literature is replete with references to Marine bands and their role in the Marines’ “esprit de corps.” A publication listing audition requirements to qualify for the various ensembles says this:
“The Marine Corps Bands and ‘The Commandant’s Own’ United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps comprise the renowned musical units of the United States Marine Corps Music Program. Each ensemble provides musical support for military ceremonies and official functions. Ceremonies are an essential part of military culture and tradition. Marine Corps Bands play a central role in sustaining these cultural traditions. ...”
As part of the music enlistment program, Giovanni will qualify for the Montgomery GI Bill for college and other assistance after three years in the Marines and the Montgomery Post 9/11 GI Bill after four years, plus college tuition assistance while still on active duty, Joe Mejia said.
Joe Mejia thanked Marine Staff Sgts. Michael Hernandez and J.A. Resendiz of Harlingen for their help in processing his son’s Marine Corps music enlistment.
The younger Mejia is the son of Trish Marks and Joe Mejia Jr., both of Brownsville. His brother, Gianni J. Mejia, is a student at Hanna.
glong@brownsvilleherald.com
Hanna
Band
graduate
Fausto
Cuevas in
the news!
Stevie
Wonder's
Percussionist,
Fausto
Cuevas, To
Give An
Exclusive
Institute
Masterclass
Spectacular
drummer and
percussionist
Fausto
Cuevas is
taking time
out from his
current
European
tour with
the
legendary
Stevie
Wonder to
visit the
Institute of
Contemporary
Music
Performance
for an
exclusive
masterclass
on Monday
29th
September.
A keen
player since
the age of
eleven,
Fausto first
discovered
his love for
percussion
while making
his way
through
Boston's
Berklee
College of
Music, and
he has since
emerged as
one of the
most
in-demand
drummers and
percussionists
in the
business.
Fausto's
discography
spans from
recording,
performing
and touring
with artists
and projects
ranging from
Latin to
Legend,
including:
Julio
Iglesias,
Celia Cruz,
Teena Marie,
Cheo
Feliciano,
Al Jarreau,
Tito Nieves,
Nestor
Torres, Roy
Hargrove,
and Britney
Spears,
Queen
Latifah, he
has
performed at
the World
Music and
Lady of Soul
Music Awards
with Sheila
E and Amerie;
the City of
Hope Benefit
with Rickey
Minor Band
and Taylor
Hicks; and
the Tobago
Jazz
Festival
with Natalie
Cole,
Vanessa
Williams,
Patti
LaBelle,
Najee, and
Johnny Gil.
This
masterclass
takes place
on Monday
September
29th between
7pm and 9pm.
For more
information,
visit their
web site at
www.icmp.uk.com. |
|
|
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Rivera High School Graduate
Yvanna Reyes performs with the VanderCook College of
Music Band at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra
Clinic in Chicago
Rivera Graduate and UTB/TSC
Music Student
Performing At Inaugural
Parade With Drum Corps
BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS –
DECEMBER 17, 2008 - A University of Texas at
Brownsville and Texas Southmost College student will march
with The Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps for President-elect
Barack Obama’s Inaugural Parade next month in Washington,
D.C. and during the summer Drum Corps International
performance season.
Erick Ramos, 19, a sophomore music education major and
trumpet player from Brownsville, auditioned for the
150-member group in late November during the organization’s
first performance and marching audition camp for the 2009
season.
“I can’t wait,” Ramos said.
“I’m excited and ready for it.”
This will be his first time
with the Cadets; in 2007, he marched in the San
Antonio-based Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps.
“I like the anxiety,” Ramos
said about marching. “Your adrenaline pumps. When you are in
DCI, you are in front of thousands of people. You know you
are prepared – you practiced for 12 hours a day.”
The Cadets, based in Allentown,
Pa., are 19-time Drum Corps International national
champions. The group celebrates its 75th
|
Erick Ramos, right,
practices with a professor for his
January performance. |
anniversary in 2009.
“It’s one of the top groups,” said Dr. Art Brownlow, a
professor in UTB/TSC’s Department of Fine Arts.
The Cadets will play
patriotic selections during the parade, held the afternoon
of Inauguration Day on Tuesday, Jan. 20.
And, The Cadets will perform
a musical tribute to composer Leonard Bernstein as their
2009 nationwide summer competition show.
As a member of The Cadets,
Ramos will fly from Harlingen to Philadelphia once a month
for weekend band camps until late May, when he joins other
members full-time for four weeks of what he called “spring
training” when the performance show is put together and
practiced.
He is responsible for the
$475 spring training fee and the $2,300 summer tuition to
cover food, gas, lodging and other expenses. Also, Ramos has
to pay out of pocket for his trips to Pennsylvania.
He said when he was in the
Crossmen that he visited local businesses with a sponsorship
letter in hand explaining that his participation was for
educational purposes. He said he will most likely use the
same money-raising method this time for The Cadets.
Ramos began playing the
trumpet when he was a sixth grade student at Brownsville
Lucio Middle School. He went on to play in the marching band
at Brownsville Rivera High School.
“I chose the trumpet because
of the popularity of it,” Ramos said. “You see it and it’s
like a universal instrument.”
Though UTB/TSC does not have
a marching band program, Ramos chose to attend classes close
to home because of the music program’s rising reputation. He
is a member of UTB/TSC’s Jazz Band, Wind Ensemble and
Trumpet Ensemble.
“I’ve always wanted to be
part of something being built rather than something that is
already there,” Ramos said.
His goal after graduation is
to pursue a master’s degree and see what opportunities are
available for a fulfilling music career.
“Be confident about where you
want to go and don’t be discouraged,” Ramos said.
For more information, call Erick Ramos at
(956) 465-3955 or contact Dr. Art Brownlow at (956) 882-8946
art.brownlow@utb.edu.
