Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps

Pacific Crest was founded in 1993 to serve the youth in the eastern part of Los Angeles County. Marching only 33 members in its inaugural season,[2] the corps grew in size and ability while maintaining a local California profile. The corps did not perform outside its home state until traveling to Texas for two shows in 2000. The corps journeyed to the Northwest in 2002, and it finally entered the national competition scene by attending its first DCI Championships at Orlando, Florida in 2003, where many drum corps fans unfamiliar with Pacific Crest were surprised as the corps reached the semifinal round. Although it now tours nationally each season, the corps has maintained a policy of spending approximately the first half of the season near home. In 2008, Pacific Crest was classed as World Class.[3] While this has possibly prevented Pacific Crest from ascending beyond the second tier of the World Class corps, it has helped to sustain the corps financially by limiting its travel expenses. Pacific Crest has advanced to DCI Semifinals in 2003, 2007–08, and 2011–19.[4]

In addition to performing in DCI, Pacific Crest has also performed at several independent events, including with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl[5] and in the 2019 Rose Parade.

Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps is sponsored by the Pacific Crest Youth Arts Organization (PCYAO), a 501(c)(3) musical organization that has a Board of Directors, corps director, and staff assigned to carry out the organization's mission. Phil Mortensen is President of the Board, and Stuart Pompel is the corps' Executive Director. PCYAO has previously supported a Colorguard unit that competed in Winter Guard International and the Winter Guard Association of Southern California (WGASC) circuits. The organization also sponsors a summer camp for current and prospective high school drum majors. PCYAO receives a part of its funding from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.[6]

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Gold background indicates DCI Championship; pale blue background indicates DCI Class Finalist; pale green background indicates DCI semifinalist.

Corps At The Crest is a series of two home shows for Pacific Crest. In recent years, Corps at the Crest Oceanside has taken place at El Camino High School (Oceanside), while Corps at the Crest Los Angeles takes place at Rose Bowl (stadium). Corps at the Crest Los Angeles's first appearance at the Rose Bowl (stadium) was in 2015. In previous years, the Los Angeles show was held at different colleges across southern California. Usually held toward the beginning of the DCI season in late June, the shows feature performances from every California-based DCI open and world class corps.

• Corps Song: The corps song is Franz Biebl's Ave Maria. The hornline plays the corps song for the rest of the corps, including the staff, colorguard, and percussion, after rehearsal concludes on the days of major regional performances. The corps has also been known to play Frank Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight", a favorite of retired corps staffer Dale Leaman.
• Corps Necklace: The corps necklace is a small, penny-sized copper pendant featuring the Pacific Crest logo. Rookies are given their corps medallions at the end of history night, where the current corps learns about previous years and history. Returning members take gold chain links from their shakos at the end of every season and place them on their corps necklaces as charms – one gold link for each year they've marched with the corps. Alumni who marched before the necklaces were awarded, starting in 2009, can receive corps necklaces at Pacific Crest's annual sneak preview show. In 2013, the necklaces began to feature the updated logo with the shield-shaped crest in place of the circular logo of previous years.
• The Wave: Pacific Crest's corps logo is a wave split at its apex into a "P" and "C", for "Pacific Crest". This wave is a popular icon among members and alumni. Pacific Crest logo waves are often painted on rehearsal fields on the days of regionals. Pacific Crest ageouts leave a logo wave made of performance shoes and other memorabilia on the field during the DCI age-out ceremony. The wave has even been featured in drill during their shows, most recently at the end of the second movement in their 2018 show.

• Pacific Crest website