Klarinet Archive - Posting 000169.txt from 1998/03

From: "Kevin Fay" <kevinfay@-----.com>
Subj: Re: Marching Band (was alto mpcs)
Date: Tue, 3 Mar 1998 17:33:33 -0500

I liked marching band as a lad in Pennsylvania--it was a very good
marching band. At least in Western Pa in the mid-70's, having a good
marching band required a fair amouint of discipline; this translated
into a good concert program. Perhaps it was merely coincidence, but the
same bands that won the marching competitions tended to be the ones that
kicked butt in the concert band contests in the spring.

Great musical experience? For a clarinet player? Hell no. I did have
a lot of fun going on the road with the same people that I later had
good musical experiences with--and the activity kept me in the band room
where I belonged. But I will admit that the whole marching thing did
not do much for my technique.

I do have some friends (big admission here) who play trumpet. Maybe
it's just coincidence, but it seems that every good lead player here in
Seattle got their high chops playing in a drum and bugle corp.

Now, a lot of you probably think that getting the back of your head
blown off by a scream trumpet player in a big band is not as valuable a
musicial experience as getting the back of your head blown off by a
first trumpet player doing the last page of Shostokovich 5. I do.

kjf

----Original Message Follows----
Date: Sun, 01 Mar 1998 21:26:55 -0500
From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
Subject: Re: Marching Band (was alto mpcs)

At 09:19 AM 2/28/98 -0600, Roger Garrett wrote:
>A lot of people will jump on the soapbox and describe marching band as
a
>serious music event. I describe marching contests, quite accurately
(and
>as one who has performed in them, attended them, judged them, etc.) as
a
>money making venture (for the organizers) and as a public display for
the
>band director who is capable of getting students to move together
>athletically......perhaps even while playing a memorized arrangement of
a
>piece of music.

I am not going to claim that marching band is high musical art. Rather,
it
teaches the same sorts of things that team sports teach: teamwork and
individual contribution to a larger whole being prime learning outcomes.
Competitive marching is not something of which I approve, but it does
provide motivation beyond a few halftime shows during which the band is,
unfortunately, generally ignored.

Bill Hausmann
bhausman@-----.com
451 Old Orchard Drive
http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
Essexville, MI 48732
http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
ICQ UIN
4862265

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.

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