 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: poopsie
Date: 2005-07-02 08:15
I am currently going into my third year of marching band and my second year of being in a professional marching band (as in professional, I mean we actually have more then three moves in the entire show.) In other words, I have very little knowledge of all things marching involved, and am now the section leader (yay clarinets!!). I am very uneasy about what I should do when the first day of band camp rolls around and I do not know the name of some step that the section is supposed to be practicing. Is there some advice that anyone can give me that might help? Or any type of advice that can help me to keep camp running smoothly? I have not had many leadership roles before, so any help would be very appreciated.
*I did a search on this board before starting a new topic and was unable to find any post to help with my question.*
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Author: clarinetist04
Date: 2005-07-02 15:10
Well, isn't that what band camp is for? So you don't mess up a routine during a performance. I'm sure everything will get ironed out when you get to the camp.
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Author: Clarinetgirl06
Date: 2005-07-02 17:28
This will be my 3rd year as a clarinet section leader. Honestly, you just won't know very much at the beginning and you'll have to somehow figure it out on your own. Try to follow the example of your past section leaders and that should get you started. I promise after a few days or even a week, you'll get the hang of it. There's not very many set rules of being a section leader except to just lead them.
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Author: Francesca
Date: 2005-07-02 18:45
Email me and I can give you a (somewhat) lengthy explanation of marching band moves, plus some other tips. I've got 4 years of section leader experience between high school and college marching band. In general, make everything look uniform and keep reminding them to get their toes up.
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Author: ClarinetConnoisseur
Date: 2005-07-02 19:38
I'm also a Section Leader, and I have some different questions. I've only been a SL for 6 months (not including being 1st chair in junior high- that wasn't called being a section leader), and the problem is, when I got the SL position, I was a freshman, and the other clarinetists were all juniors and seniors. I'm going to be a sophomore, and I'm a little concerned about passing people off on scales, etc. (In case you didn't know, passing off is when a SL listens to their section and judges them on their scales or field show music.) How strict do I need to be when it comes to judging scales? I don't want to be overly strict, but I also don't want to pass them off if they don't deserve it. Any advice?
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Author: Clarinetgirl06
Date: 2005-07-02 20:29
ClarinetConnoisseur- give everyone in the section guidelines of what you are looking for in the show music and the scales.
Scales=120 in eighth notes for instance. (60 in 16ths is the same thing)
Show music=say they can make a certian number of mistakes (around 5 I'd guess) and say they need to go at least a certain tempo.
Something like that. I don't know if those are too strict or too forgiving.....
Also, I know the feeling of being a younger section leader and having to lead the older ones. They may get mad, but you have to stay firm and just lead with gentleness. Good luck!
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Author: ClariBone
Date: 2005-07-03 02:15
I have been clarinet section leader for three years (yes, as a freshman) and am now in my senior year as trombone section leader.This may sound harsh, but make sure you establish yourself as THE section leader. It's not/shouldn't a committee (you'd never get anything done if it was). This way noone will question you and resistance/malcontinse (spelling??) will remain at a minimum. However make sure its not a total dictatorship. Make sure everyone knows they have the right to voice their opinions/concerns but the final decision lies soley with you. Oh, also do fun stuff before/during/after reharsals or performances. Create section chants/traditions and have a great time and your clarinets will also have fun. If you could describe these steps/maneuvers you have questions about, I'm sure I or others on the BBoard could help you out. Hope this Helps!!
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Author: Cindy
Date: 2005-07-04 03:58
I agree with Claribone. I've had lots of leadership roles, some I knew what I was doing from the beginning, and some I really didn't. As stated earlier, you need to establish yourself as THE section leader. Above that, you really shouldn't let people know that you aren't sure what you're doing. Obviously as an upper classman, as I assume you are, you'll have some automatic authority from that, but there will still be people who don't want to listen to you. If you establish from the beginning that you are confident and know what you are doing, mistakes that will be made undoubtedly will be seen more as human mistakes that can be easily forgiven and forgotten that another notch on reasons not to be in leadership.
Another key thing is be confident in yourself. You've played long enough, and have obviously earned this position. You wouldn't be put there if people weren't confident you were able to. So, just learn everything you can, talk to previous section leaders or leaders in other sections, and have fun knowing you have helped shape the students in the band.
So many instruments to play........so little time to play them!
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Author: Cindy
Date: 2005-07-04 20:43
I'd say don't treat it as an issue at all. If no one brings up the difference, don't point it out. The entire section is clarinetists, you're all there for the same reason. To make things a little less "clicky", depending on your section, you may want to arrange sectionals where you all go out to a pizza place or something. Just, generally it'd be better to just not address it as an issue. If one of the people in your section brings it up, just say you're all clarinets, lol! Hope that helps some.
So many instruments to play........so little time to play them!
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