In the Philippines, a drum and lyre corps is a marching ensemble consisting of strictly percussion instruments and a color guard section. The drum and lyre corps originated in the Philippines, as an economical alternative to regular brass bands or a drum and bugle corps. The instrumentation of a drum and lyre corps consists of a typical marching band with the bell lyre section. The lyre sections consist of bell lyres, glockenspiels, as well as vibraphones and marimbas. During competitions, drum and lyre corps usually include a pit section which consists of the typical pit instruments used by drum and bugle corps.
Composition
A standard drum and lyre corps has 4 to 48 members. There is one leader, who serves as the conductor and leads the band in parade and exhibitions. He uses a conductor stick and must be shown respect by the band. The main part of the band has two sections: the drum and lyre sections. The lyre section makes up the majority of the band. They play the melodic parts. A member of the band that consist this section is called a lyrist. In bigger bands, the band may add a bass lyre, a bell lyre with a lower range of keys and sometimes a grand lyre, a bell lyre with a wide range of keys. The drum section serves as the accompaniment of the band. It is composed with a group of snare drums, tom drums and bass drums and sometimes clash cymbals. Sometimes, they add tambourines, woodblocks, triangles and maracas in this section and assign them to a specific member carrying a snare drum or a lyre. Most drum and lyre corps in the Philippines sport a color guard section similar to US drum and bugle corps.
Competitions
Numerous drum and lyre competitions are held in the Philippines commonly in each municipality or a city. In a parade, they are always accompanied by majorettes or color guards. They compete in the form of exhibitions. The biggest governing body in the National Drum & Lyre corps scene is the Philippine Drum & Lyre Associates Incorporated, established in 2011 and headed by Vincent Ace S. Mangosing of as founding chairman. They stage yearly national competitions. The most recent one was May 13, 2017 in the Strike Gymnasium in Bacoor Cavite in cooperation with the City Government of Bacoor. Competitions are also held in many towns and cities in the Philippines commonly in celebration of a festival. Naga hosts the Regional Drum & Lyre and Majorette Exhibition of the Bicol region regularly. This event is hosted by BFARCIL. The latest event was on September 12, 2015.
