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Marching Without Competing

Stephanie Silosky | August 2011



   After marching competitively in high school and spending two years with the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps, I was hired as assistant band director at the Oswego High School, which has a strong concert band and a marching band that, while well disciplined, did not compete. I originally thought I might have the band compete if I ever became a head director in my school district, but by that time, I had developed a greater appreciation for the non-competitive style.
   At the interview for the top job I was asked directly if I planned to enter competitions. I had been an assistant director for a few years and had already decided not to change it, which the administration was happy about. The band had always worked that way and it was part of the program’s philosophy. A couple of more enthusiastic students sometimes ask if the band can start competing, but I remind them that the added rehearsal time and weekend trips would probably mean they would have to quit other fall sports and clubs.
   Drum corps had shaped my mentality so strongly that it was difficult to adjust from a competitive aggressive mindset. A lot of the non-competitive groups I had seen were not as skilled or disciplined as most competitive groups because of limited rehearsal time, but when I first saw the Oswego band, they looked as good as a competitive band.
   One difference between competitive and noncompetitive groups is the time spent on marching; competitive bands spend much more time rehearsing. Some of our band members are athletes in a varsity sport, including fall sports. Some pom squad members, cheerleaders, and junior-varsity football players have played in the marching band. These athletes occasionally miss parts of band camp or rehearsals, but in return coaches allow them to miss some practice for band events.
   No band student is required to participate in the marching band, so everyone who marches is there because they want to march. With about 150 out of 250 students in the marching band each year, we develop one show for the season and the drill is complex enough that it requires the whole season to perfect. A program with multiple shows would have to use a simpler drill with such limited rehearsal time. We chose about 40 pages of fairly difficult drill so there would be room to improve, although many competitive high schools chart 60 to 80 pages.  Some nationally competitive bands will play even more. Because there are fewer drill sets, most moves last for 16-24 counts instead of the usual 8-16. The band rehearses twice a week for two and a half hours each during the season.
   One advantage of this program is the flexibility to tailor shows to what the community will enjoy. As a result our shows include more rock and pop music than others because those work well on our halftime performances. Some of our recent shows featured music by The Beatles, Ray Charles, and Stevie Wonder. Competitive bands tend to play more serious music because of the nature of the competition.
   Summer band camp begins in June right after school lets out. The goal is to prepare current and incoming students for the town festival parade. We focus on the basics of forward marching, moving, and playing. A second week of band camp is in August, with eight hours of rehearsal each day for a full week. Here we learn the show for the season and end the camp with an informal show for the parents.
Students are required to meet at least twice in June and July in sectionals at some student’s home. Section leaders rehearse both the music and basic marching maneuvers. These sectionals allow incoming freshmen to meet the upperclassmen in small groups and learn the music before band camp. Everyone is expected to have the music prepared and memorized before the second band camp session in August. Oswego had always had student run sectionals during the summertime, as I had when I was in high school. Students enjoy the sectionals because there are invariably pool parties and other fun events after the rehearsals. Neighbors nearby are sometimes surprised to see students walking down the street with flags. Sometimes the drumline rehearses at an abandoned lumberyard downtown to avoid disturbing residential neighborhoods.
   Regular rehearsals usually begin with small sectionals for students to warm up on basic marching steps or by practicing difficult spots in the music for a few minutes. When the full band assembles we start on such drills as horns up, horns down, attention, and parade rest while standing still. Next we mark time, move forward and backwards with 8 to 5 or 6 to 5 steps. The box drill develops direction changes by moving forward, to the side, and backwards to form a square pattern. Sometimes we do this while playing long tones. These basic drills can last 30 minutes or more at rehearsal early in the season; the time decreases to approximately 20 minutes later in the year.
   After working on basics, the rehearsal plan varies as the season progresses. Early in the fall students continue to learn drill for the show in addition to forming concert arcs to focus on the music. Next we merge the music and the drill together with a four-step process. The band marches the sets that match the phrase we are playing, and here I check that the formations are correct and clean. After this phase students sing through their part, then play the music while standing, and finally we march and play. Sometimes I add the exercise of marching while blowing air and moving fingers, but without playing to rest their chops. Initially the band learns four or five pages of drill at a time, and later these short sets are combined into longer ones.
   Many competitive schools use class time to rehearse the marching music as a way to stay competitive, but at our school class time is always spent on concert literature. I have learned that it is easier to develop a good sound indoors and transfer it outdoors than to develop good sound outdoors, where some students tend to blast while marching.
   We usually finish learning the show one or two weeks into the school year, but if the first home football game is early, we perform what we have. With three or four songs in a show, early in the season we will march to the first songs and play the last while standing still. I keep our show shorter than those of many competitive bands to match our limited rehearsal time, which translates to 7-8 minutes for the show instead of 9-10.
   Through the marching season during September and October, students have six or seven weekends with no Saturday or Sunday commitments. Most bands are busy every single weekend, but many of our events are during the week, including our marching festival and some of our parades. A lighter schedule helps avoid burnout. In competitive marching band directors are busy almost every Saturday and do not usually have much free time to spend with their families. Some people enjoy this season immensely, but the other directors at Oswego and I like to have some free time to keep our sanity and prevent burnout. I learned my lesson my first year at Oswego when I felt burned out because I was also a marching tech for a competitive band at another school and judged some competitions.
   The band plays at every home football game and stands for the entire game in the bleachers. Near the end of the second quarter the band gathers on the sidelines and gets ready for the halftime show. During the third quarter we rest and have snacks, then we return to the stands for the fourth quarter. Students are required to be present for the entire game, and the athletic director finds that the team plays better when the band is there.
   Every other year the band participates in a university band day, including those at the University of Illinois, Northern Illinois University, and this fall at Northwestern. Students enjoy getting out of the school and seeing a college band perform. They have a chance to meet other high school band students and perform for a large crowd at a football game. This is a great experience for them.
   Every year the band participates in several parades, including the Memorial Day, the Prairie Fest Parade (a town festival), and one or two others nearby. We went to the Columbus Day Parade in Chicago one year, and every other year we go to an amusement park, such as Cedar Point, for a weekend and march through the park in the morning. The rest of the day is free to ride the roller coasters.
   For the past 14 years the school has hosted a non-competitive marching band festival on a Thursday night. About ten bands from the area perform their halftime shows while wearing T-shirts rather than uniforms. Attendance was so high last year that the stadium was filled beyond capacity. All bands are required to stay to watch other performers, so there is a full crowd for every group. This contrasts with the nearly empty seats often seen at early morning shows at competitions. Our adjudicators make comments but give no scores. Usually a college marching band gives the final performance of the night, which gives the event the feel of a college band festival.
   We also give an indoor concert by the marching band followed by a professional group that plays a similar type of music that is used in the marching show. Last year the band used funk music for the marching show so we had a funk band play afterward.
   If directors at other schools that march non-competitively want to add more events to the schedule, I suggest adding these slowly. If the schedule normally consists of home football games and the town parade, I would add only one fun event, such as an amusement park trip, the next year. A college band day would also work well. It is important that the transition be gradual rather than sudden. After a few years of fun new activities students will grow more willing to put additional time in for the extra commitments.