Saturday Night Lights

Multiplication by Division?

2009-12-10T14:06:00.001-05:00

Let's do a countdown, shall we, starting with ...

Six - USSBA groupings, based on total band size.
Five - The State of Texas UIL (school size)
Four - Band of America (school size), TOB (winds), Cavalcade of Bands, ISSMA
Three, WGI (World, Open, A), a possible expansion from ...
Two - classes based on ability (DCI, USSBA*)

One - "champion"?

How much is ... too much? How do you compare "like" bands, especially in contests where too many cuts make for too few competitors, leading to watered down championships? When does a band (and school - and face it, sometimes directors need "wins" to satiate principals and boosters and to justify ongoing investment in the marching program) start to break away from seeking quality, constructive and educational evaluations, and move in the direction of self-esteem contests?

I believe in the value and values of a marching program, to the kids, school and the community. The marching band is the one music education entity that touches the community, not just the parents.

Maybe in starting, or immature, programs some self-esteem is necessary. But this isn't life, and it isn't music education. Music education means the kids get scholastic adjudication. That being said, what does that mean?

One of the things I often wonder is what is the right balance of music (and the validity of percussion sub-captions), visual (with or without the color guard sub-caption), and effect (music and visual). Consider this:

... TOB weighting is 40% music, 20% visual (performance), 40% effect
... USSBA weighting 40% music, 30% visual, 30% effect
... BOA weighting is 20% music, 20% visual and 60% effect (although 2/3rds of that is music effect, upon which arguments that they are 60% music can ensue)

TOB and USSBA use other classifications based on ability, which I think is appropriate. But when you get to large bands, are you just watering it down? Some large bands can be thought of as "developing" marching programs, no doubt, but by breaking them into ability classes are you rewarding their achievement or encouraging their mediocrity?

Does "over"-weighting effect put too much emphasis on design (or, "the adults"), or is this a reward of how much the kids learn (or how well the teachers teach?).

I'm not an educator. I'm a band geek ... and band parent. I believe the scholastic programs should be education based, not design based, rewarding the teaching and the student.

Little wins do matter and they are necessary. (I use the term "little wins" from the business lexicon). But we need to encourage development and growth of the program and the kids.

So if it was up to me ... Two classifications ... two "5 Box" scales ...

Classification I - for the "leading bands":

* Music Performance - 30% ... 20% music, 10% percussion
* Music Effect - 20%
* Visual Performance - 30% ... 20% ensemble (which is an outgrowth of individual), 10% guard
* Visual Effect - 20%

It is "marching (and) band", after all. With this scale music and visual performance are balanced (50/50 on this scale), and performance is given greater credit than design (60/40 in this case).

Classification II - for the "developing" bands:

* Music Performance - 40%, with no sub-caption
* Music Effect - 20%
* Visual Performance - 20%, with no sub-caption
* Visual Effect - 20%

Here performance and music are given greater weight, and music outweighs visual, because from what I have seen developing programs are weaker in fundamentals and music, and this encourages development and growth in those areas.

Program growth - more kids, more bands - is the multiplication effect of this division!

This, of course, will be debated among circuits, among states, among regions ... but I am optimistic it will be settled soon. In fact, I'm told that the experts will get right on it!

After NCAA Division I Football Playoff's implemented. And Texas high school football goes back to A-AA-AAA-AAAA-AAAAA playoffs. And Indiana returns to one high school basketball state champion.

What if ...

2009-12-01T19:36:00.002-05:00

... 10% of drum corps brass lines were required to be made up of primary woodwind players?

... the drum corps "world class" designation was split based on average age (<19, 19-21), and open class remained on ability. Or ... are we talking about the same thing?

... a minimum tour was required to ensure a maximum experience?

... guards - winter guards, drum corps guards - had to carry equipment for a minimum period of time, say 50%, 60% or 70%?

... everyone used these same audition materials and process in November, so every kid had an equal chance at every corps without having to travel all over creation ... or to Texas?

... fans had a vote, say, in a caption called "entertainment effect"?

... the marching pageantry arts organizations became one part of one organization, sanctioning fall, winter and summer series? if so, who would be in charge?

... Drum Corps International changed its name to just "DCI"?

... all band circuits used one judging criteria? if so, what would it be? and would it be educationally focused?

... all band circuits used the same "grouping" classifications? if so, would it be based on size? if so, size of what? and would there be categories for ability? if so, what is an advanced band? an intermediate one? a novice one?

... pigs do fly?

The Quintessential Eight

2009-11-26T09:54:00.002-05:00

Now that fall is over, we can start planning our summer. That's right, the 2010 tour schedule is out! Something to be thankful for!

Since it is Thanksgiving, in addition to food, family, a job, a home, I am thankful for this country, for its music, and marching music in particular - America's unique contribution to music, right up there with jazz. (Well, and a host of composers, too.)

Now that we can start making some summer plans, how do you introduce the wonderful world of marching music to a "newbie"? I like to take them to a drum corps show. And with the schedule now out, you can plan your trips this summer, too!

But what if you can't drag them to a show? What if you had 2 hours to show them what marching music is, and has become since they probably last tuned in. (You know, it's like trying to describe the marvels of HDTV to somehow who last watched on a 13" black and white.)

Accepting the premise (and I don't do that) that drum corps is the way to go, since there are literally thousands of high school marching band shows to choose from a year, and video is relatively accessible, what do you choose?

Here are my Quintessential Eight ... the two hours of drum corps I would use, for better or worse. And I tried to choose a corps only once, knowing that there are probably better shows they have done since the show I selected. That's the beauty of opinion.

So, in date order ...

8. 1983 Cadets - because from then on, the genre changed.

7. 1988 Madison Scouts - from start to finish, the power of the music and the drill, sans props and storylines. It is the building block for not forgetting that "the basics" matter and can carry the day if done right. And, from what I read, it seems that the Scouts are going back to basics now nearly 20 years later.

6. 1992 Velvet Knights - because performance should be fun! (Okay, okay, substitute the 1980 Bridgemen, if you must.)

5. 1993 Star of Indiana - because the genre changed again.

4. 1999 Santa Clara Vanguard - The copycat 90's ended with this championship performance. The musical variety: Philip Glass's minimalist "The Canyon"? Samuel Barber's "2nd" and "1st"? Frank Ticheli's jazzy "Blue Shades"? Oh yeaahhh. This show was just sheer performance - guard, brass AND percussion. The kalidoscopic drill AND body movement. "Vanguard!" Truthfully, SCV isn't my "favorite" corps, but I probably have collectively more favorite performances from them than about any other.

3. 2002 Cavaliers - 99.15. How much closer to perfection can you get?

2. 2007 (or 2009) Carolina Crown - Fans loved these shows. From a storyline perspective, the 2007 storyline was more captivating from the outset. (Typical response from viewers: "That was just 6th place?!") So, select what you will.

1. 2008 Phantom Regiment - Because a champion can come from behind to capture the points as well as the crowd, and because from the moment they stepped out of the tunnel, the performance was on and complete.

What?! I left off the Blue Devils*? Yup. And others. So, your turn.

* (Top 10? Okay - add 2000 Boston Crusaders and Blue Devils ... 1983 ... or 1992 ... or 1994 ... or the risky 1998. Or, what if we have to cut the list to the Top 4 from the 2000s because "I'm only giving you an hour" - oh, never mind.)

Audition Weekend: Missions of the Possible

2009-11-20T20:00:00.000-05:00

Today begins auditions for the 2010 season for a number of drum corps (and some winter guards as well). MP is with one drum corps this weekend.

Seems to me that over the past 20 years, the educational focus of the corps audition process has increased, and in many ways become more more standardized. My only hope is that the drum corps don't forget their missions. They are not NFL teams - putting together winning units, or at least trying to. There is the non-profit and educational mission that must be remembered. From what I've seen, I think many corps do that. It isn't about the medals, or the design or instructional team. It is ... it should be ... about the kids.

About a week ago my bride and I had a kitchen debate (I just realized she was closer to the knives, and I'm sure after reading this some of you will wish she used them!) about woodwinds in drum and bugle corps. She argued that if someone wants to march, let them march brass. I argued - for the sake of argument, mind you - that we are excluding a number of talented kids who can benefit from the "drum corps experience", and that the demands and talents in top corps may not give the great clarinet player a chance. Just think about this for a moment. What if a corps set aside 10% of its brass line for primary woodwind players?

Is drum and bugle corps the right name, anyway? We seem to thing it's not marching band (and does calling it major league relegate bands to minor league?) ... and what is marching band, anyway? None of this is what people think it is. (Before you laugh, "color guard", think about the origin of that term!)

Percussion and Brass Corps? The reality is that half of the "drummers" are in the pit and don't play "drums", and conventional trumpets, mellophones, baritones, and tubas are not bugles.

I started out talking about auditions, but seem to have (again) swayed into definitions.

Well, whatever we are, "marching band", "drum corps" or "color guard" ... there is the saying down in Texas about a certain school and it certainly applies: "For those who are here, no explanation is necessary. For those who aren't, no explanation is possible."

Good luck to everyone seeking to join. Especially to MP (... and to woodwinds!)

Resistance ... and Resilience

2009-11-15T18:35:00.000-05:00

During this past weekend I peeked in on the BOA Grand Nationals with a particular interest in how some bands were performing, notably last year's champion Avon (IN), "From the 50 Yard Line" star Centerville (OH), and of course the Texas and Carolinas bands.

And American Fork HS, from Utah.

American Fork, you see, was returning from a competition earlier in the year when a bus went of the road. A number of students were injured, and sadly their woodwind instructor lost her life.

Some bands would have quit. Some kids resist going on. American Fork - in one week's time, I found out - raised a quarter million dollars to get to Indianapolis.

What is it that drives some bands to collectively resist the efforts their directors, their peers, and their community? To resist relentless improvement, and be satisfied with mediocrity? The (developing) teen mind, I am finding (hello, MP and TP!) is a wonderful yet strange thing. Dr. Tim's seminar gave me some insight, especially regarding the allure of the 10% who are negative leaders (the resistance!) against the 10% who are positive leaders.

Still ...

Perhaps like the marketers trying to figure out and capitalize on the teen mindset and lifestyle, it is elusive. Some bands have figured it out, however. The directors, kids, parents and community ... implicitly or explicitly. And those bands have resilience, no matter what they face.

... .... ...

Ironically, American Fork's show this year is titled, "The Greatest Generation", the term used to describe the Americans who grew up in the depression and went on to fight in WWII, then brought a new age of prosperity to our nation. Who had ... resilience.

In some ways, and in some places like American Fork, there are some pretty good members of this new generation, too.

... ... ...

I drafted most of the above knowing American Fork had advanced to 2009 Bands of America SemiFinals. In the end, they did not advance to the finals. Still, they showed resilience.

What's it worth to you?

2009-11-09T06:47:00.001-05:00

Is it five bucks? Six?

After a season of local shows, this past weekend I sat in a ticket booth for a while watching band parents and grandparents are expressing sticker shock as we get to large finals competitions in major venues, where ticket prices jump to $20 ... or more. (In some case, much much much more - to the point where $10 is the deeply discounted low corner seat!)

Not to mention those stadium operators often do relish the opportunity to stick you with high priced hot dogs and parking fees - fees that are not the fault of the organizers of events, for sure, unless you blame them for choosing the stadium in the first place. (Not that they haven't offset some of with sponsors and exhibitors.)

And pretty much, expressing shock is what we do. I've heard variations on this melody: "What?! That's a outrageous price to pay to see my kid for 15 minutes! I mean, its four times what I've paid all season, not counting the parking rip off!"

Well, for one, just in case you missed it during the last ten or twenty or so years, prices have gone up. Except, perhaps, band competitions. While the costs to put them on go up, ticket prices have held steady. This means less profit for show operators, leading to a lower return on the investment of time, and maybe reducing the costs of the program they are supporting.

And there is a lot of cost to supporting a kid in a band program, no doubt - I have two (and some families I know have three!). Can we squeeze another $20, $40, plus plus plus?

Well, what's it worth to you? To see your kid perform? To give support to the other band kids out there performing?

I understand that it is not the best economic world out there. It's hard to raise money, it's hard to deal with increasing expenses and flat or declining incomes. (Probable case in point: The once dominant Lancaster Catholic HS band.)

Major National Championship events allow the kids the experience of performing before in a "high value" venue. I've seen high school football stadiums in the northeast they are ... not Texas (or Ohio or Florida).

Major National Championship events also all the kids and the directors to get feedback from "high value" judges. Like any sport, there are people who dabble, and there are names we respect. How often does quality educaitonal feedback come to a band?

And, beside, for $20 - stay. Stay and grow the crowd. Give the kids from ALL bands the biggest audience of their season. Give all the kids the most spectatular feedback they will probably get all year. And be surprised. Yes, in most cases there are band that are better than yours.

By the way. $20 to see the USSBA Group 6 Champion Roxbury HS again? Yeah, probably worth it, if you watch them from the moment they step on the field to the moment they step off. Funny that even though they didn't win visual, to me they had the trifecta - great design, great teaching, great execution.

Reflections of Brillance

2009-11-03T17:31:00.005-05:00

The band did well under Saturday - oops - Sunday Night Lights! They went in seeded 18th and tied for 15th, breaking 85 and earning a bronze level recognition from the NJA-TOB circuit. Quite honestly, I believe they could have done better, but were done in a bit by a later start than they probably needed for a show with technical and musical complexity above what they were used to, and somewhat by the entire seeding and qualifying point spread.

The technical side was interesting for me, given that the show was written by two drum corps veterans, Marty McCartt and Bill Register, that were there with me at the beginning of Carolina Crown (if you want to see and hear a Florida band's version, click here.) and was clinic-ed (not sure that is a word) by a long time drum corps veteran.

Still, maybe it is parental bias, but I am certain the show was well performed - and the duet by MP was near flawless and brillantly played!

Looking at the scores, Chesapeake HS, another (smaller) area band I did not get to see at finals but saw several times throughout the season, didn't get nearly the recognition they deserved, finishing 20th with what really was most likely a top 10 show. This band is small but consistently delivering a good product (and program).

Strangely, I didn't see anything that grabbed me this time, although the better bands demonstrated superior technical marching achievement that goes with repetition and muscle training. Music was good and excellent, but not always spectacular. Among the top 10, the multi-meter piece "The Canyon" by Philip Glass (as brought to the field in 1999 by Santa Clara Vanguard) was attempted three times. My bias is showing - this show is in my "Quintessential 8" of all time, and so it is hard for bands to reach the acheivement level demonstrated by SCV. (Surfing I found his composition "The Witches of Venice" ... will a band try that?)

The season isn't over yet. They have one more event, but it is under the sunlight on Saturday at the USSBA national championships. We'll see how it all ends then.

Intensity

2009-10-24T20:00:00.008-04:00

Wednesday: The All County Exhibition.
Thursday: The Rained Out TOB
Friday: Homecoming and 8th Grade Invitational
Saturday: TOB Chapt ... oh, wait ... rain out
Sunday: TOB Chapters take 2!

Four shows. Five days. ("What is this, a drum corps?!")

It is an intense week for the kids in the band. Some had tests and had to study on the trip to and from the contest Thursday. Parents had to find ways out of work for chaperoning. And all of this is happening at the end of the season.

What came to mind this week is that this is where training starts back in August (or sooner). Not just musical, but training for the various physical, mental, emotional, and even nutrition and health (as it is, after all, cold and flu season) demands of this point in the season.

Training requires not just ongoing reinforcement, but a planned curriculum of what you will be training for. It requires coordination with the boosters. it requires flexibility by the parents and the students. But all of this has to be planned for in advance ... and communicated repeatedly.

I recent got my hand on a book by Wayne Markworth titled The Dynamic Band. (You can get it too at the book website or as part of the academic package of "From the 50 Yard Line".) Markworth was the long time band director at Centerville OH High School, leading the program for 35 years but never getting out of step with what it takes to maintain a contemporary marching band program. (While geared toward current and future band directors, band boosters should consider getting a copy as well, especially to review his chapter on booster-director relationships.)

Marching band is hard work. It requires intensity. Wayne Markworth has provided some salient guidance on how to get there. After all, if marching band were easy, it would be called ...

||: Dr. Tim :||

2009-10-20T07:29:00.002-04:00

Band geeks instantly know the name.

Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser has long done student leadership development programs targeting music students.

I've heard of him for years, but a few weeks ago I got to watch him in action. Whew! He was three hours of nonstop energy mixed with honesty about band student leadership. "Truth or sugar?", he asked the 100 or so kids, who shouted back, "Truth!" We parents (and teachers) should remember that!

I took three pages of notes, some near illegible because of the rapid fire presentation. (No breaks, by the way.)

Professionally I have the opportunity to work with some very smart people who literally hold the lives of others in their hands on a daily basis (and they get at least 12 years of post-high school education needed before their career begins!). But probably the most substantial reason I end up involved with their practice is the (lack of) leadership in the group. The specialty requires tact and teamwork, yet the 12 years of training covers none of that. It's like expecting your first chair talent to be the one to take up the baton, when all they know is their own horn and music!

When I was growing up I got to personally know a few "Dr. Tim" types through my involvement in the Kiwanis International sponsored youth programs, Key Club and Circle K (though which I met my wife!) For about 7 years I heard many of the same messages.

However, leadership takes practice, and repeated messages. That was my takeaway from listening to Dr. Tim. (I try to have at least one takeaway from every seminar or conference!) It is now why more than ever I think the Tarpon Springs HS Band & Orchestra programs may be on to something in their approach.

It has to start early (the first band camp!) and be repeated often. Basics are boring, I am told, but are the foundation of future success.

Repetition in messages. Repetition in practice. (It's call "reps" for a reason, from band to football!). Remember the 10,000 hours message?

I don't know how often they go back to their notes and notebooks, but I hope the students (including my own!) will refer to their workbook often.

Reps.

Who'll Stop the Rain?

2009-10-18T12:55:00.004-04:00

Heard the singers playin', how we cheered for more.
The crowd had rushed together, tryin' to keep warm.
Still the rain kept pourin', fallin' on my ears.
And I wonder, still I wonder who'll stop the rain.
- Creedence Clearwater Revival

And so it rained. On Friday. On Saturday. Now (but less so).

All across the region, band shows were canceled, postponed, or moved indoors. Our band had it postponed, but whether we go or not is (forgive the expression) up in the air. They have performances on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday already.

However, last night we hosted a double feature of two movies reviewed here previously, "From the 50 Yard Line" and "August Rush." We couldn't host everyone, but those who came had fun! So it wasn't a complete washout.

However, two memories came to mind - the 1993 DCI World Championships performance of the Madison Scouts, and the 2008 USSBA National Championships performance of George Walton Academy. I remember that simply these two groups came on to the field in a sprinkle and ended up performing in a downpour. But somehow it just got those kids fired up, and they really took the performance up a notch and connected with their audiences.

Who'll stop the rain? For those two groups, the answer was - Who cares?!

Okay, once again, from the top ...

2009-10-11T08:22:00.006-04:00

The blog went dark ... but not for lack of desire. Maybe just lack of time.

The spring had a DCI cinema event and a 20th anniversary. Read the April post (admittedly just put up) that should have been made on that day.

This summer started with an election to lead the middle school band boosters (uh oh). It was, however, tremendously full of DCI shows - Chambersburg (where I had the wonderful opportunity of announcing the first DCI show of the season), Annapolis, Dallas (x2!), Atlanta, Rock Hill, West Chester, and the Semi-Finals webcast.

Dallas - wow - what a change in venue since I first went there in 1982 and got bit by the bug. Atlanta - a cool venue (in all meanings of the word)! Rock Hill - a new home for an old show that was fabulous, and a reunion of what we ended up calling "The Dead Presidents".

What can be said about Carolina Crown that hasn't been said? I was confused at the start of the season (when my announcing stepped all over the green grass) but awed by the end, where I came within a few hours of flying to Indianapolis.

The summer also included visit to colleges, including one where we had a chance interaction with a Carolina Crown alumnae. It had a band camp, with two students in it (MP, now a senior and TP, a freshman). It has a great chance to talk to a former neighbor who spent the summer in the Bluecoats.

Fall begin with any web-time dedicated to the middle school website design. I got to spend 3 hours as a fly on the wall with Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser. And now it's halfway through October and marching band season.

The band has a great show potential, the best potential ever. They have had drum corps quality guidance for the first time I can remember. And yet ... and yet ... there is just so much more to talk about on that end.

And did anyone see the CD cover shot of the DCI winner Blue Devils? Okay, they were good, but nothing says Marching Music's Major League (R) like your world champion sitting ... strike that ... slouching ... in a chair that would get most students tossed from band class, no matter how good they are.

Leaving the fall and going into the winter may see may also see auditions ... and the spring may bring us back to where we stopped as we march on toward a dream in this community.

So, once again, "On the Field" ... from the top ... 5, 6, 7, 8 ....

"It was 20 years ago today ..."

2009-04-22T14:30:00.002-04:00

In June of 1986 I met this particular young nursing student in Indianapolis, Indiana. I tried to be impressive, but despite my efforts she ... stuck around.

What would you think if I sang out of tune,
Would you stand up and walk out on me.
Lend me your ears and I'll sing you a song,
And I'll try not to sing out of key.

Over the next several weeks we corresponded and phoned, but that was in the days when long distance was paid by the minute and e-mail didn't exist (at our level, anyway). We met again at a conference in St. Louis ("Meet me in St. Louie, Louie ...") and argued our way through the first day, but ...

Would you believe in a love at first sight,
Yes I'm certain that it happens all the time.
What do you see when you turn out the light,
I can't tell you, but I know it's mine.

After that meeting I brought her home, re-introduced her to my Mom and sister, and then said, "I'm have not seen nor heard the results of the DCI World Championships. I'm going to go watch the video. You can sit with them, or sit with me."

Funny thing. She did both. She didn't know what DCI was, but she liked it ... a little bit. I liked that she liked it. And so, a few months later, in late April, I returned to the scene of the crime (where we met), and I asked ...

Do you need anybody,
I need somebody to love.
Could it be anybody
I want somebody to love

She said yes, and we set a date. And so ...

It was twenty years ago today,
Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play
They've been going in and out of style
But they're guaranteed to raise a smile.

Our music has had high and low points. She has been a real Trooper in hanging with me, a Star of Indiana, and a jewel of Carolina Crown (who went on tour in 1992 while pregnant with MP). She's put up with me when I've been a Blue Devil, and helped me when I've been a Blue Star. She's done a great job raising our little Cadets, working hard to make them act like Cavaliers.

But after 20 years, the beat goes on. Happy Anniversary, "Bear".

All lyrics from "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (John Lennon/Paul McCartney)

Halleujah! The Cadets announce 2010 show!

2009-03-22T21:25:00.001-04:00

While I am looking forward to this summer's production of "Lenny", Hoppy posted this link for 2010's show, given all the chatter about electronics. It starts at the 1:38 mark.

Some of you may remember that they actually did something like this once ...

Marching on through the month

2009-03-15T21:25:00.001-04:00

Well, March has a lot on the calendar! We are in the middle of Music in our Schools Month, at least per MENC - The National Association for Music Education.

Face it, without music in our schools, most of us would not have been exposed to many opportunities to learn, appreciate, and - yes - make music, and to realize the impact in our lives. In fact, this blog and its focus on marching music relies on keeping scholastic music programs alive.

So, if you are a parent even remotely involved in a booster program, thank you for keeping music in our schools. If you are a director or other teacher directly involved in music education in our schools, thank you for dedicating your career to this effort! If you are a school music student, take advantage of every opportunity you are given!

And if you stumbled across this post and wonder how it applies to you ... well, go find a booster program near you and find a way to get involved! Don't have the time? Even if it's a small check in this tough enconomy can help with something. March on over and ask!

March: the month of The Uninvited Large Percussion Band

2009-03-09T20:45:00.005-04:00

At least that is what the family calendar says. Really! (We use the "Mom's Family Calendar" created by Sandra Boynton.)

This is the middle of the change from winter to spring. In one week we have gone from 8" of snow to 70s and then back to the 40s. It's the middle of guard season. And it's the middle of percussion season. Invited or not!

I've noted before that I was an uninvited member of a percussion band known as Carolina Thunder. (OK, maybe I was invited. But not to play!) I helped name this ensemble, and provided a little guidance in their early years when they were a WGI ensemble. After a hiatus, the group returned, and while keeping the old name, they want a fresh look to go with the fresh ideas.

So, March on over to this link .... you're invited! ... read the rules, and enter the contest!

At a Crossroads - What is Mission Critical?

2009-02-20T14:08:00.000-05:00

Indiana in general and Indianapolis in particular is nicknamed the "Crossroads of America." It is home to a number of non-profit music organizations - the Percussive Arts Society and Drum Corps International among them - but I want to talk about Music for All.

Formerly Bands of America (which itself was once known as Marching Bands of America), Music for All was the name adopted following the merger of BOA and the Music for All Foundation. Known for events in big domes and other venues and the crowning of a Grand National Champion each year, the merger was to allow the organization to continue to expand its reach into band camps, orchestras, jazz bands, honor ensembles, concert festivals, and advocacy.

Then the economy struck.

Right now the organization is in the middle of a critical fundraising campaign to reach $220,000 (they have a pledge for the last $30,000) by the end of this month. As of this post date they have more than have the way to go.

BOA has made sacrifices in staff, but not yet programs. In the weekly CEO chats, it seems like enrollment is going to be up, although insiders in other band programs tell me travel seems like it will be down more than 25%.

BOA has had the reputation of serving "high end" bands able to raise significant funds and put on very highly designed programs. I don't know if that was the reputation they set out to cultivate, but it is out there.

So, now the organization is facing the need to make some hard decisions. I think they have made some. But I am concerned they have not made the one that counts: What is absolutely mission critical?

There were good questions raised in the February 11 chat - what are the metrics that need to be used to determine if a program should be continued?

For me, today is a good day to reflect on what is mission critical. I hope others do so as well.

10,000 Hours (or, possibly subtitled, "This one band, at time camp ...!")

2009-02-15T20:20:00.002-05:00

Dovetailing with the movie "August Rush" from my last post, right before I watched it had downloaded and listened to two books back to back - "This is Your Brain on Music" by Daniel J. Levitin and "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell. The first gave not only a good overview of music theory, but some insight into how our brain processes the magic we call music. The second looked into what makes the successful people, or outliers such as Bill Gates or even young hockey players in Canada, the people they are.

One of the more interesting things that each book pointed to was a research study that indicated that the highly successful musicians (and, it turns out, computer programmers, hockey players, etc.) have in common is not necessarily some innate "talent" but the fact that they have put in a sheer amount of hours of practice. In fact, the magic number is 10,000 hours. "Superstars" are often those who get to 10,000 hours before others.

Think about it: If you start at age 10 and practice 1 hour/day for 3 days/week, you get to the magic number when you are 74 years old. But if you practice 7 days a week, you'll get there at age 47 or so. But say you go for an average of 2 hours a day, 7 days a week? 23 years old.

I can see how this makes the drum corps and independent winter guards much more "successful" in their season than their high school counterparts (with age and physical and emotional maturity having a lot to do with it as well).

But I wonder how this translates to the successful music and marching band programs: for instance, those that meet for an hour a day every day vs. 90 minutes every other day (or every third day).

In theory, the ensembles and the students have roughly the same amount of rehearsal time. In fact, in Texas, the rules of the University Interscholastic League limit out of class rehearsal time to 8 hours/week. What makes one band that much better?

There may be high standards of outside of class individual practice. It may be (subsidized?) private lessons. Either way, this adds up to sheer time.

There is something else, too, that also takes time. I remember stories of Vietnam POWs who spent their days visualizing each and every step of a golf game, everyday, and so when they were released and had the chance to play again, they could do so as if they were gone for a few days, not years.

Raymond Berry, the Baltimore Colts receiver and NFL Hall of Famer, wasn't considered a superstar at his position when he came out of college. But, according one book on the historic "Best Game Ever", Berry was a detailed student of the game, carefully mapping out plays, and even rehearsing games by himself down to the second, with each and every break, building his endurance and skills.

Years ago the question was, "Is it live, or is it Memorex?" Along that line, "Is it talent, or practice?"

It seems that time is the answer ...

August Rush

2009-02-07T06:59:00.003-05:00

I've been traveling on business a lot lately, drafting but not posting. But last night was a family movie night, and the selection was "August Rush."

This is a great title for a film about the push to DCI finals, or the start of band camp and the efforts to teach the freshman technique while simultaneously learning the new show. That's not what this film is about.

It is about a kid, an unadopted (unadoptable?) orphan, who believes he is connected to his birth parents through the music he hears in his head. (The movie website IMDB has more.) This film really brought out the essence of music all around us. Although not central to the plot, you come away realizing that the kids feel it, and we adults have to work hard to hear it.

I don't often find reasons to see films more than once, but I could "watch" this one again if only for the music. Film can be like music, too, and this one builds to an ending that I found thoroughly satisfying, although my wife didn't. We found ourselves discussing it much like we discuss the end of a drum corps show - did it need power or a finesse?

By the way, throughout the film, listen for the music August hears, because you will find that It's a Marvelous Night for a "Moondance". (The film was an Oscar nominee for "Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song".)

To My Little Einstein: "We're going on a trip ..."

2009-01-17T13:21:00.001-05:00

Anyone with little kids knows the rest.

Seven years ago we completed our little band of four brothers with the arrival of our Surprise Symphony (SS). While MP had "Barney" to keep him company, SS had musical/artistic descendant, the Disney Channel's "Little Einsteins" TV show.

This show has taught him wonderful music, complete with a visual story (including fantastic art). I think I was much older before I could appreciate "In The Hall of the Mountain King" from the "Peer Gynt Suite" by Edvart Grieg the way he does.

SS wants to play the flute. I think he likes it because it is something he saw on the show. Regardless, I hope he continues to appreciate music and art that he was exposed to. I know even at age 4, he was able to follow along as MP's band show performed the "New World Symphony."

Happy birthday, surprise guy. I hope I am able to give you the gift of music, and you carry it on your trip through life.

P.S. The Little Einstein's go on their trip in a little rocket ship. SS loves airplanes (he's playing with a whole set now). You never know ...

Something to share with school boards at budget time

2009-01-15T19:31:00.000-05:00

Why We Teach Music

Music is a science.
It is exact, specific; and it demands exact acoustics.
A conductor's full score is a chart, a graph which indicates frequencies, intensities,
volume changes, melody and harmony all at once and with the most exact control of time.

Music is mathematical.
It is rhythmically based on the subdivisions of time into fractions
which must be done instantaneously, not worked out on paper.

Music is a foreign language.
Most of the terms are in Italian, German or French;
and the notation is certainly not English but a highly developed
kind of shorthand that uses symbols to represent ideas.
The semantics of music is the most complete and universal language.

Music is history.
Music usually reflects the environment and times of its creation,
often even the country and/ or racial feeling.

Music is physical education.
It requires fantastic coordination of fingers, hands, arms, lip, cheek and facial muscles,
in addition to extraordinary control of diaphragmatic, back, stomach, and chest muscles,
which respond instantly to the sound the ear hears and the mind interprets.

Music is all these things, but most of all, music is art.
It allows a human being to take all of these dry, technically boring
(but difficult) techniques and use them to create emotion.
That is one thing science cannot duplicate;
humanism, feeling, emotion, call it what you will.

That is why we teach music.
Not because we expect our students to major in music
Not because we expect them to play or sing all their life
Not so they can relax
Not so they can have fun.
But so they will be human
So they will recognize beauty
So they will be sensitive
So they will be closer to an infinite beyond this world
So they will have something to cling to
So they will have more love, more compassion, more gentleness, more good
- - in short, more life.
Of what value will it be to make a prosperous living unless you know how to live?
That is why we teach music.

Author Unknown

Incidentally, I picked this up simultaneously off a band website as well as an elementary school wall. The elementary school had a bit different wording than the above, but it also had this ...

Music is reading.
It reinforces correct pronunciation, language experience, squencing of ideas, sight vocabulary, and memory.

P.S. Happy birthday, artistic sis!

Dear Middle School Parents,

2009-01-05T21:09:00.003-05:00

Well, school's back going again.

I bet you are thinking about the 9th grade now. You've heard things about the marching band program. Maybe you've seen it, too, with an older sibling. And you've seen the competition increasing in the sports programs. You're wondering now about the potential for scholarships. But, you don't know. So you want to put it to your kids to decide.

My advice? Don't. You decide.

Now, because I know you will hear from the coaches, let me speak for the person you (unfortunately) may not hear from, the band director. I want to speak to your concerns about band - marching band in particular - and why you should encourage your kids to do it. (Especially if someone told him it's "puff".)

It's physically demanding. Moving feet. Moving fingers. Ten intense minutes that require more than one hour of practice. A week. Per minute. There can be no busted plays, either. There is no injured reserve. And everyone plays.

It's musically demanding. It's not oom-pah up and down in straight lines. (C'mon. You know that. It hasn't been that way since before you were in band!) It's a symphonic display. A rock opera. A full story in a brief time. It's 8-to-5 lines and curves at 7/4, 6/4, 5/4, 4/4, 3/4, 2/4. (I know, because I saw the music!) Speaking of fractions, did you know music students score >100 points higher on the SAT?

It's performance demanding. The largest crowds your kid will play for short of making a career out of music. (And maybe even if he or she does?) It's gratifying instant feedback when the show connects with the crowd. Besides, before you say he's not going pro in music, consider that he probably has better odds of that than going pro in any of the other big 3 - NFL, NBA, MLB.

Need another reason? You can volunteer and ride the team bus!

You make the call, Mom and Dad. Call it band.

Yours. Truly.

Soundtracker

P.S. Did I mention the spectacular color, motion and sound?! Well, if that doesn't move you, you can still ride the bus.

It's the Most Musical Time of the Year

2008-12-20T12:29:00.000-05:00

If you listen to the radio, it's "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." At least for music!

Two weeks ago I listened to the jazz band play in Santa at the local shopping center. Color and lights - what marching band geek doesn't love color and lights?! - are every where.

This last week concerts ran us in a whirl: All County Orchestra, High School Band, Elementary School Band, Middle School Band. I guess I'm in need of a "Silent Night." (And this past week also was the famous Midwest Clinic.)

Actually, in listening to the cacophony of sounds this year - mostly yelling, loud music, and car horns at the mall - it seemed to me that everyone was on an abundance of jingling bells and dashing through the snow. I remarked to my wife, "I thought the economy was bad." But there's a lot out there who are going to giv-a-giv-a-give-a-garmin (ruining for me now one of my favorites), even if they have to run over someone in the process.

So, anyway, I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. And when the time comes, remember that a garmin won't help you find music ... or peace. There is a reason it is Christmas. He came on one night devine ...

O Holy Night.

National ChampionS

2008-12-10T21:53:00.002-05:00

Plural.

Nazareth Area HS Blue Eagle Marching Band won the USSBA National Championship. (As they say, "Wahoo!")

Avon HS Marching Black and Gold was crowned Bands of America Grand National Champion. (LD Bell, last year's champion, was second, leading to the following IM comment: "Ding dong. Avon calling.")

There are countless state champions, too - divided by various classes - and other associations such that award "super-regional" championships such as the Tournament of Bands Atlantic Coast Champions and the Western Band Association and others I know I've missed. (Note: The TOB link will take you to a high school band site that is generally more up to date that the TOB home page).

In a way, crowning a National Champion in band is like crowning a national champion in college football. Lots of divisions, lots of bowl games or playoffs, lots of polls - er - scoring methodologies and philosophies. And not everyone competes at a certain level, even if they could. Witness the debate about non-BOA appearing Flower Mound (TX) Marcus HS band! A national high school football champion is nearly easier to award (witness the USA Today weekly rankings).

Professionally I work in medical practice management with a focus on anesthesiology. Finding the "right" and "best" is about as hard. Is the care team best or not? (Band speak: Do we count the guard in the members or not?) What is the optimal way to determine a band class - experience, band size, school size? (Anesthesia speak: Is medical direction best at 1:3? 1:4? 1:10? Or does it matter?)

Besides, how do we weight General Effect and Music? (Anesthesia speak: What is good vs. excellent vs. superior anesthesia care? Well, yeah, they wake up and are pain free, but the bedside manner was a mess and the case is always delayed, so ...).

I wrote before, I think, on one of the best bands I saw - a relatively small band from a relatively small Texas border town winning Class 5A, where then big boys and girls play. It hasn't happened since then.

Lately I have wrestled with the concept of excellence, especially personal sustained excellence. It is not easy, nor is it easy to do in everything. We succeed. We fail. We fail at previous successes. We succeed at previous failures. Sometimes we fail a lot and figure out that maybe we shouldn't play that game, or use that particular scoresheet. Sometimes we succeed and own the game. Sometimes we succeed and forget to check to see if the rules changed.

So are we all champions? Well, clearly we cannot be. But we can at least give our best in the field of play, whatever it is, and we can give our best at each "game".

I guess all of this is to say what a National Champion really is (six words?): Singular performance in a singular time.

Six Words

2008-12-05T14:13:00.005-05:00

Earlier this week USA Today columnist Craig Wilson wrote on the book "Not Quite What I Was Planning", where celebrities and others were asked to summarize their life in six words. Some examples:

... "I wrote it all down somewhere." - Ben Greenman
... "I colored outside the lines." - Jacob Thomas
... "Many risky mistakes, very few regrets." - Richard Schendl

What would we write if asked to summarize our band experience in six words? Hmmm. I guess I would say this:

I should have found a way.

What would you say?

Thankful

2008-11-27T20:09:00.000-05:00

For music.

For music teachers.

For band.

For band directors.

For band boosters.

For DCI. (And the 2009 schedule!)

For people who make DCI and the corps happen without so much as asking for a dime in return.

For Band Moms. And Dads.

For former band geeks.

For current band geeks.

For Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Well, back when it was made for kids and big balloons and bands, and not made for television.

For football - American style.

For the United States of America itself.

Without any of the above, there would not be the uniquely American tradition of marching band. I'm sure those who sat down to the first Thanksgiving dinner (without first checking for when the kickoff is) never had that in mind!