Practical Ideas for Developing a Warmer Sound in Young Bands
When you listen to your performance recordings, do you hear a band that plays accurately but with an ensemble tone you don't like? Do adjudicators' comments indicate that your band sound could use some improvement? Perhaps you need to work…
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Timing is Everything When Standing in the Marching Hotspot
There are several methods of fixing timing issues with your marching ensemble. One method is to stand on the front sideline, directly behind the pit. Now, you are in the ultimate "hot spot". From this position, you can watch the drum major…
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Sharpen the Ax
Whether you're a first year teacher or a veteran band instructor, you will probably agree that one of the greatest challenges you face is achieving a workable balance between all you would like to do and that which you are reasonably able…
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Preparing the Marching Show Visual Design
Before sitting down to design a visual package for a particular ensemble, I like to review video of its previous three years of performances. From these I can gain a wealth of information including performance and design techniques with…
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Making the Last Half Hour Count
Do you rush around like mad trying to finish your workday? When you finally leave school, is it an hour later then you planned? Even so, do you feel like you are lagging behind? If this scenario sounds familiar, it is time to rethink your…
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It’s All About the Heights!
Marching percussion ensembles spend hours upon hours in rehearsal each day to perfect their indoor or field show, with their main objective often being to PLAY CLEAN. Most adjudication criteria focuses on the "how" as opposed to the "what."…
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Get Inside The Box – And win!
I recently saw a comic depicting a boss pointing at a subordinate saying, "You get back to your cubicle and start thinking outside the box!" Other than being an obvious oxymoron, you can hardly live in our world without hearing, seeing or…
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