The Cadets (formerly the Holy Name Cadets, Garfield Cadets, and Cadets of Bergen County) are a Drum Corps International Division I drum and bugle corps based in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
The Cadets performing in Annapolis, Maryland on June 16, 2007.The Cadets are sponsored by Youth Education in the Arts (YEA!). Founded in 1934, The Cadets are the oldest continually operating drum and bugle corps and have one of the most extensive histories of any drum and bugle corps active today. They also hold several distinctions, being one of the few charter corps of DCI who have attended every championship held, being the only Division I corps to step off on the right foot, as well as being the second most successful corps in the DCI circuit with nine world champion titles over three decades.
The Cadets have been DCI Division I World Champions ten times, in 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2000, 2005, and 2011. The three consecutive victories from 1983-1985 were the first "three-peat" in DCI history, and the only that did not include a tie for the title with another corps. (The only other was by The Cavaliers from 2000-2002). The corps has also placed second five times (1992, 1994, 1995, 1997, and 2001) and third four times (1982, 1996, 2002, and 2003). In 2005, The Cadets won all caption awards as well as all sub-caption awards, which has never been achieved by another drum corps. The 1986 and 1976 Blue Devils won every major caption, but did not capture some of the smaller sub-captions, and as such The Cadets are the only corps to "win everything." The Cadets are now the DCI world record holders of a score of 99.150 (tied with The Cavaliers in 2002) for their 2005 show "The Zone: Dreamscapes in Four Parts with a Door." In addition to DCI performances, The Cadets were guests at the 1996 Summer Olympics, performing the closer from their show and a special "band on the run" routine with comedian Bill Irwin. In 1986 they performed for President Ronald Reagan at the Statue of Liberty Ceremony in New York City. In addition to their 10 DCI championship wins, the Cadets have won ten American Legion national championships.
Perhaps more than any other corps, The Cadets are a juxtaposition of history and progress. The corps can clearly trace its roots back to its founding, its uniforms have remained virtually unchanged since the late 1930s, and the corps frequently revisits the music that has won fans over in the past, such as Ron Nelson's "Rocky Point Holiday". At the same time, the corps is a pioneering force in the evolution of Drum Corps as an art form. This was especially so during the early 1980s when the corps championed liberal use of asymmetric marching formations, including the famous "Z-Pull" by lauded drill designer George Zingali. The corps director, George Hopkins, has continued to express his desire that the drum corps activity evolve, with proposals to integrate non-brass instruments, electronic music, and similar musical reforms, receiving decidedly little approval from the community at large.
While The Cadets have not been grounded in one traditional genre (in recent years shows have included the music of Jethro Tull, Ernesto Lecuona, and The Young Persons' Guide To The Orchestra), the corps frequently revisits the music of Leonard Bernstein. The Cadets have used Bernstein music in four of their nine championship shows, and in total have had nine shows in the DCI circuit featuring Bernstein's works. Among these are performances of music from West Side Story, Candide, Mass, Jeremiah, On the Waterfront, Wonderful Town, Fancy Free and Concerto for Orchestra. They have also performed music by John Adams, Aaron Copland, David Holsinger, Gavin Greenaway, Johan de Meij, Philip Sparke, Jan van der Roost, Björk, John Williams and Frank Ticheli.
