Klarinet Archive - Posting 000877.txt from 1997/04

From: Lord Rob <rteitelbaum@-----.EDU>
Subj: RE: marching bands (one more thing...)
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 12:21:31 -0400

>The only true way to enjoy a marching band is to be a drum major.

You MUST be joking! Ever tried conducting? I can't imagine anything
LESS enjoyable! I mean, sure, it gives you a great feeling to be at the head
of a powerful ensemble, but, as anyone who has ever tried it will attest,
conducting is the hardest thing in music, and there's umpteen people
depending on you to do it right. In my band, drum major meant the student
leader as well, so that was even worse. Try being in charge of a bunch of
pubescent, temperamental high school musicians for an entire year! Most
people would go insane after an hour. (Which is another reason school
band directors deserve a lot of credit.) No, the fun of marching band is
definitely in the incredible rush that goes through you after you've just
finished a performance that you know was phenomenal and you look up
and see the standing ovation. (The same thrill as concert performance,
except in marching band the spectators aren't dressed as nicely.)

Defensively Yours,
Rob Teitelbaum
Claremont McKenna College