Klarinet Archive - Posting 000249.txt from 2002/10

From: "Natilius Theresius Visagius" <brazilian_penguins@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Marching band --- not what I expected
Date: Sun, 6 Oct 2002 21:03:22 -0400

I rarely speak up on this list, but I feel compelled to do so now. And
sorry, I might get a little unorganized with my thoughts...

>Much disagreement here. A music education should focus on music. >Little
>else. Marching, I think, is a waste of time and possibly >detrimental to a
>music program. music isn't visual. Why worry about visual when performing
>music? Worry about the music itself. Keep the music aboutthe music.
>

Does this mean that you're against theater plays (musicals) and such as
well? Should plays be only about talking and standing still? No dancing and
no singing? It's the same concept, after all.

>Regardless of how many kids in a band program are going to major in >music
>in college, the idea is that they're in the program for a >reason. They're
>there to learn music. Taking time away from that >takes away how much
>music the student can learn.

My band director doesn't concentrate only on the visuals. We still learn
what needs to be tongued how, when it needs to be soft, when it needs to be
loud, how the musical phrases go, etc. In fact, I don't know of any bands
that ignore the musical aspects in marching season. Of course it may not be
as musical as it would be standing still of sitting, but it can come very
close. And when you consider the fact that people have to remember to roll
their heals, get on their toes, fix the form, keep horn angles between the
forties and 10 degrees above parallel, keep chins up, shoulders back, lean
forward, eyes on drum major, change direction on 1 every
4/8/12/16/24/32/etc. counts, it's pretty impressive. No, we don't get to
work on scales and other basic fundamentals as much in marching season, but
like it's been said before, very few in the band program plan to major in
music or even play any after High School. But if there are people who want
to pursue a career in music, they should NOT see marching band as a
hinderance to their musical education. Private lessons are always available,
as well as local youth orchestras and the like. Yeah, if people sign up for
a *music* class, they should recieve a *music* education, but if they sign
up for MARCHING band, they need to consider what will be asked of them.

>People tend to spend too much time worrying about what sort of visual
> >presentation a marching band or even a symphonic orchestra is going >to
>make.

Yeah, and that's because there's an audience expecting it to be visually
pleasing. If executed correctly, it enhances the music. There are different
areas of importance in different forms of music. In orchestral and regular
band programs it's solely musical. In marching band it's musical as well as
GE (general effect). And just because you add in that extra variable into
the equation, doesn't mean that the music HAS to suffer. It just means the
kids have to strive harder to make it pleasing to the ears as well as to the
eyes. And could you imagine a football game without the band playing music
every five minutes? And what would happen during half-time? And people in
marching band, for the most part, actually LIKE marching band. Sure it's
hard work, but when all is said and done, they like having a 100 (or so)
member family who all does the same thing.

And by the way, has anyone ever seen (or heard of) "BLAST!"? It's basically
a DCI show on stage (it was on broadway for awhile).

Natalie *who hides underneath her soapbox to escape the masses*

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