This article from the Summer 2004 issue of "Masters of the Marching Arts" is used with permission.
Dorritie Hall Selection Good Move
By Tom Lizotte

Drum Corps World Hall of Fame made a great move recently with the selection of brass teacher extraordinaire Frank Dorritie to its Hall of Fame. This is a move with a local twist, in that Dorritie wrote for the 27th Lancers and was a consultant for the Boston Crusaders in the late 1970s.

He was part of a wonderful group of brass writer/teachers who made Eastern drum corps a great place to be in the 1970s. His selection is a fitting honor for a teacher who bridged the gap from 1960s drum corps to the present day and whose groups were always known for their musicality and soul.

I first saw Frank in action in 1971 when he taught a wonderful Garfield Cadet line. The energy and musicality that the Cadets brought to bear with productions such as "Pieces of Dreams," "Echano" and "I Don't Know How to Love Him" was inspirational and influential. So was his teaching style.

The '77 Cadets were not a perfect corps. There were visual issues and it took them a while to grasp Gerry Shellmer's percussion writing (some of his most underrated stuff), but by finals this was a wonderful corps with one of Garfield's best ever brass ensembles.

In 1978 Frank went to the West Coast to work with the Blue Devils, but served as a consultant to the Boston Crusaders that year. It was then that I acquired the Dorritie lexicon: "Stay connected" (a polite way of calling back wayward children into the mix); "loudissamo" (no explanation necessary); "the louder you play, the softer you tongue" (what a marvelous way of dissecting a physiologically complex issue and creating a perfectly clear solution! I have used that line on every drum corps and band I've taught the past 26 years and two things always happen - it works, and the group has an epiphany.)

The next time I ran into Frank for a meaningful stretch was in 1983, when he took over the Bridgemen. This was one of the great unheralded teaching jobs in DCI history. I know; I had the chance to see him create a workable ensemble out of virtually nothing.

The Bridgemen had experienced a great run throughout the '70s and early '80s, but things were starting to go a little south. But, like the latter day Jimmy Lunceford band, they still had a little fight in them.

It was an Ellington show, which included a very pretty chart on "I Got It Bad, and That 'Ain't Good." These warm, beautiful tunes were always part of Frank's working repertoire.

One day on tour stands out. I turned a corner and there was Frank, under some trees with the horn line rehearsing "Caravan." Because the soprano section had a range of about five notes, the tune was scored in the bowels of the instrument. You would have thought Frank was rehearsing the Ellington band. He was surgical in his approach, but able to squeeze every bit of musicality and emotion this group could muster. They were loving it.

Score one for soul and expert teaching.

In 1986 the 27th Lancers hired Frank to write. They had brought in Frank, Jim Prime, George Zingali, Marc Sylvester, et al in an attempt to recapture past glory. (Five Hall of Fame members - six if you count George Bonfiglio - were on that staff.) It was my first year as caption head.

The design process - exhaustive, but not exhausting - was intriguing. We designed a show that was traditional Lancers (the march from the Holst "Suite in F" and "Fantasia on the Dargason"). Then, George showed up and huddled with - among others - Jimmer. The show was then...Sondheim. (I have always wondered what would have happened had we gone Lancer traditional that year.)

The Sondheim - a real left turn -- was so much fun. When I run into kids who marched that corps they talk not about the fact the corps barely missed making finals (three tenths!), but rather what a great experience it was to live that show.

It was a program with an artist's perspective -

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from Marc's hand-painted silks to the viewpoint ("art isn't easy") of the music. It also had irony. Don Angelica was doing some unofficial consulting and strongly urged us to include "Bein' Alive." Most of us didn't know it, but Don was dying at the time.

The music was right up Frank's alley. My favorite was his take on the Peter Matz/Barbra Streisand "Puttin' It Together" (which had some great Charlie Poole/Mark Kohler percussion writing.) It had a beautiful bridge that Charlie used to call "the Love Boat section."

The show opened with "Sunday," which was a rare drum corps opportunity for rubato (as opposed to "robotto") playing. Few of the judges caught on, but we had a great time being spontaneous and trying to be musical. These days drum corps would rehearse Grainger's "Irish Tune" with a Dr. Beat.

We also loved Frank's chart on "Not While I'm Around." Sondheim writes some difficult melodic

intervals, so Frank created some approach-by-step melodic permutations. I'll never forget Charlie prancing up stadium stairs chanting "climbing up the ladder!" in place of Sondheim's nobody will harm you, not while I'm around."

It would have been great to work with Frank again, but right after finals the Lancers folded. I'll never forget his taking two days to write a personal note to every Lancer horn player. That caring and sensitivity affected me forever.

Frank went on to do some great things with Bluecoats (his "Autumn Leaves" was a classic) before focusing on recording. When he entered this phase of his life the activity lost one of its true characters and good people.

I haven't seen him since '86 (we have emailed and talked on the phone), but he is with me every day. Frank, in the event that some day I become the teacher I wish to become, you will be more responsible than you'll ever know.

Congratulations, and best wishes!

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