the proceeds that those shows earned. For the 1971 season, the corps stuck together, offering show promoters the five corps as a package. Despite pressure on show sponsors, judges, and other drum corps, the Combine was a success. In 1972, the Santa Clara Vanguard, along with the nine other corps from the Midwest Combine and the Alliance, plus the Anaheim Kingsmen, Argonne Rebels, and De La Salle Oaklands were the founding members of Drum Corps International. At the first DCI World Championships in Whitewater, Wisconsin, Santa Clara Vanguard finished in third place. Santa Clara would remain among DCI's top three corps for the organization's first eight years, winning the World Championships in 1973, 1974, 1978. Santa Clara Vanguard won its fourth DCI World Championship in 1981. Over the next seven years, Santa Clara Vanguard never placed below third before winning its fifth DCI title in 1989. They won their sixth DCI World Championship in 1999 and their seventh in 2018. Since Drum Corps International's founding in 1972, Santa Clara Vanguard has been the only corps to appear as a finalist in every World Championship. In December 2022, Vanguard Music & Performing Arts announced that the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum & Bugle Corps would be placed on hiatus for the 2023 season due to multiple financial issues from the previous season. Show summary (1972–2023) Source: Caption awards At the annual World Championship Finals, Drum Corps International (DCI) presents named awards to the corps with the high average scores from prelims, semifinals, and finals in five captions. Santa Clara Vanguard has won these caption awards. Don Angelica Best General Effect Award 2018 John Brazale Best Visual Performance Award 2018 George Zingali Best Color Guard Award 2017 Jim Ott Best Brass Performance Award 2018 Fred Sanford Best Percussion Performance Award 2004, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 Prior to 2000 and the adoption of the current scoring format, Santa Clara Vanguard won these captions: High General Effect Award 1972, 1973, 1974 (tie), 1975, 1978, 1987, 1989, 1999 High Visual Award 1977, 1981, 1984 (tie), 1985, 1987 (tie) High Color Guard Award 1974, 1978 (tie), 1981, 1985 High Brass Award 1984 (3 way tie), 1987 (tie) High Percussion Award 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1991 (3 way tie), 1998 Vanguard Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps The Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets Drum Corps, also known as the Vanguard Cadets, is an Open Class competitive