StarDestroyer.Net BBS

on marching band...

"For those who have experienced the joy, no explanation is necessary; for those who haven't, no explanation is possible."

It's awesome, really

I don't see what you people have against drum majors! If all that was needed was a steady beat, or to start songs, the drumline could do that. Must be the bias. Shame on you!

Anyways...

350 piece band?!??!! How did you ever do drill? There is a 200-piece band about 50 miles north of here, and in their show the drill was so tightly packed that it was basically impossible for any movements. There's a reason most marching bands and all drum corps have a cap on members...

Hawkwings wrote:I don't see what you people have against drum majors! If all that was needed was a steady beat, or to start songs, the drumline could do that. Must be the bias. Shame on you!

Meh. I just remember my percussion director: "NEVER follow the drum major. Listen to the drumline, and follow them, or you will be off. They give a tempo to the drumline, the drumline controls the band, and you listen to that!"

350 piece band?!??!! How did you ever do drill?

Very carefully.

Ba-dum-ba

There is a 200-piece band about 50 miles north of here, and in their show the drill was so tightly packed that it was basically impossible for any movements. There's a reason most marching bands and all drum corps have a cap on members...

Our movements tended to be very large. I think the smallest formations we commonly used went from 35 to 35, and we once used a full formation front in two lines from 20 to 20 for a show's end. It was about 280 wood and brasswind, 40 guard, 20 marching percussion, and 10 front ensemble (pit).

The Dark wrote:

Hawkwings wrote:I don't see what you people have against drum majors! If all that was needed was a steady beat, or to start songs, the drumline could do that. Must be the bias. Shame on you!

Meh. I just remember my percussion director: "NEVER follow the drum major. Listen to the drumline, and follow them, or you will be off. They give a tempo to the drumline, the drumline controls the band, and you listen to that!"

That's correct for pit, but it doesn't apply to the winds.

Say the drumline is on the 50, just behind the front sideline. The rest of the band besides the pit is all behind it/to the side of it, etc. The pit can listen back and follow the drumline, because the drumline's sound goes from them, to the pit, to the audience in a straight line.

For the rest of the band however, if they follow the drumline, their sound is going to arrive at the audience out of sync with the drumline's sound. They would be hearing the drumline's sound at the same time that the sound reached the audience. At slower tempos, phasing problems. At faster tempos, death to the band.

Yeah, sorry...I was a pit person, so I was reflecting my own experiences. I did say percussion director, but I should've pointed out he was talking to pit.

Fleet Admiral JD wrote:I'd like to thank Zaia et al., but especially Zaia. I just joined my school's Marching Band....I've played sax since second grade and never touched a percussion instrument...so I joined pit (For reference, you can join in seventh grade, I'm going to be a sophomore)

WOOHOOOOOO!!!!!! MY FIRST ONLINE RECRUITMENT!!!!!

Seriously, that's just awesome. You'll have so much fun! Pit is THE best section--you get to learn so many instruments and get to play with so many toys! It's great!

In all honesty, I'm just not "feeling it." Everyone else is the "YAY!! MARCHING BAND!1!!one" I'm just a "Marching band....shmeh." Type person. I don't see the greatness.

Maybe not yet, but you will. Oh yes, you will.

Hawkwings wrote:I don't see what you people have against drum majors! If all that was needed was a steady beat, or to start songs, the drumline could do that. Must be the bias. Shame on you!

My favourite season of all was when we didn't have a drum major, didn't have a battery, and put the pit on the front hash and had them in charge of starting the band, tempo changes, style changes--everything. No tap offs, either--cues, yes, but no tap offs. They sounded incredible, I have never been prouder of any students of mine as I was of them that year.

It was fucking awesome to instruct and direct a group without a drum major, and even better watching the faces on the audience members when we performed. Their eyes all bugged out of their heads and said things like, "Holy shit, how did they DO that?!" Ensemble sound was fantastic because everyone had to listen constantly to stay together, so the blend was great, there were no leadership issues because none of the students thought they were on staff, didn't have to lug the damn podium around... It was the best.

Well, to be honest, I joined long before I knew you were a bandee...but you can consider me a recruit!

They've got me on bass drum, gong, and cymbal (Aux. 3)

I was a drum major, so I could give advice, but I'm a little unclear on your problem. It seems to me you have no directors/instructors to help you put the band together, and no musicians.

What exactly are you trying to get advice for, in simple terms?

Fleet Admiral JD wrote:Well, to be honest, I joined long before I knew you were a bandee...but you can consider me a recruit!

They've got me on bass drum, gong, and cymbal (Aux. 3)

Oh, damn, I guess I read into that too much. Sounded like you were thanking us (and me in particular) for pointing you toward pit. My bad, kiddo. But it's still just as rockin' as I said it is.

OK, more questions coming right up. How did you get the impression that we had no instructors and no musicians?

How might a peer leader deal with people who are being disruptive, obnoxious, etc? And no, pushups or laps are not an option.

How to make sure people know that I'm not going for this position for the perceived power that it has?

How to deal with those people that just *won't* listen to what I say, no matter how reasonable/trivial/etc?

Hawkwings wrote:How might a peer leader deal with people who are being disruptive, obnoxious, etc? And no, pushups or laps are not an option.

Nothing, that's the instructor's job. Your duty as a student leader is to set the best example possible and let the teachers teach.

How to make sure people know that I'm not going for this position for the perceived power that it has?

Are you talking about the drum major position or the pit captain position? If you try out for drum major, it will probably be assumed that you want some sort of power position because there's not much else to it. As for pit captain, if you'll be a good leader, your band director already knows you'll be a good leader, so you probably are already in.

How to deal with those people that just *won't* listen to what I say, no matter how reasonable/trivial/etc?

You let your instructor lay down the law. They either listen when you're put in charge, or they go home. I don't have time to deal with people who don't want to be at my rehearsals, so I kick them out. They usually don't act up again.