Members of the Sunnyside Drum Corp. Photo credit: Tony Lana
Sept. 10, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
The Sunnyside Drum Corps is appealing for new members as the marching band celebrates its 47th anniversary.
The Drum Corps, founded by local resident Tony Lana in 1977, holds practice in the All Saints Episcopal Church at 43-12 46th St. every Saturday from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m. The program is free and open to children aged 9-19, although younger children can participate if they have an older sibling in the Drum Corps.
Lana said there are around 25 kids signed up to the program at present, down from a pre-pandemic high of about 85.
Sunnyside Drum Corp practice in All Saints Episcopal Church. Photo credit: Tony Lana
He said he is looking to restore the Drum Corps’ membership to its peak, adding that he hopes to recruit baton twirlers and flag carriers as well as drummers. Lana said he would love to reintroduce the non-drum units of the marching band as membership grows.
“We used to have a formal Color Guard, and then a flag unit of 12 girls. We used to have baton twirling. Now, it’s only drums,” Lana said. “Our main goal is to reconstitute the flag line. When a marching band is coming toward you, and you see a whole bunch of flags, it just sets off the people, and it’s a sight to see all the flags moving. We now have a bunch of parents who will carry some American flags in front of us to pump up the size of us when we go to a parade.”
Lana said the Drum Corps takes part in around 12 parades every year and said he still gets a kick out of seeing new members taking part in their first parade.
“We love it when a new child joins, and it’s amazing to see their face at their first parade. That’s worth everything and seeing the pride of the parents as well.”
The band’s mission statement aims to provide children with a social outlet where they can meet other kids from the neighborhood while also picking up a new skill in the process, Lana said.
The Drum Corps boasts a strong alumni program, with a number of former members rejoining as volunteers later in life or signing their kids up to the band. Lana also said he has seen four or five members of the same family taking part in the band at the same time.
“We’ve had four or five members of the same family join, every brother and sister. And when they’ve grown, their children have joined.”
Lana, who grew up in Woodside and now lives in Garden City, started the Drum Corps in 1977 after a number of local residents, including the late Joe Sabba of the Woodside Herald, called for the formation of a local marching band to celebration the nation’s bicentennial.
He is now tentatively looking forward to the Drum Corps’ 50th anniversary in three years and recalled the organization’s massive 25th anniversary celebrations back in 2002.
“We had a huge 25th anniversary, where I say we must have had 80 of us and then maybe 40 alumni,” Lana said. “We borrowed a bunch of drums. Everybody had a piece of equipment. We were going down the boulevard with about 110 pieces.”
For more information and to sign up, visit sunnysidedrumcorps.com.
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