Head tensioning rant [again]

[Jim Nevermann]

I watched part of the annual televised July 4th music and fireworks show from Washington DC, which happily included two stand-still marches by the USMC Drum & Bugle corps. The songs, naturally, were Sousa: one I can't remember ["Washington Post", maybe?] and "Stars & Stripes Forever". With no offense to the sterling USMC Band, Sousa just doesn't get any better than this!

Their hornline was big and clean to a fault. But instead of their usual contemporary, tightly cranked snares, quints, multi-pitch bass, cymbals & mallets, the drumline for this show was two cymbals, two mallets and --surprisingly-- two unison pitch bass and eight snares: all deep-shell, rope-tension. Interestingly, though, the drum music sounded like more contemporary scoring instead of Sousa's simple parts, as I'd have expected when they first came on.

MAN!... what a wonderfully full and commanding sound their drumline put out! For me, it once again underscored how utterly devoid; how utterly lacking in lower range/register sound the current super-tight, super-high drumlines are. As I've long honked and brayed about, I'm sure that only bats can hear and appreciate such high sounds. I just do NOT understand that soulless *click, click, click* head-tuning that 99% of the drumline community remains so blind-sidedly obsessed with.

I'm not for a minute advocating that all 21st Century corps & band drumlines should suddenly go with rope-tension (I doubt that many would have the chops to pull it off, either). But that ubiquitous and god-foresaken "Formica sound" everyone seems to incessantly drool over, for me, remains as nothing less than completely UNderwhelming in its impact. Click, click, click... dip, dip, dip... bimp, bimp, bimp.

GAH! FEH! RETCH!

Drumline thunder has been replaced by lightning... but ineffectually so.

Edited July 6, 2008 by Jim Nevermann

[MikeN]

Some USMC guys have said on here before that they have two shows they do - a modern "corps" show and then their traditional rope drum program that they use in the summer for the DC parades they do. <forgive me, I'm paraphrasing, and anyone feel free to jump in and correct me!>

They did sound great, though!

Mike

[jonnyboy]

What is worse that a line of snares cranked? ONE snare cranked. Such an empty sound.

The parade I saw live had a great variety, and the lower pitched drums were louder (always good) and had a better sound than the guys that cranked. The one Drum and Bugle Corps had the snares a little lower and wet sounding, not bad up close. A few of the step units were lower, but they couldn't play together. There was a brass band with some 14 or 15 inch Slingerlands that had a nice beefy snare voice with mylar heads. The one rope tension group would have sounded good if they were playing together. Suprisingly the best drum sound came from the Mummers band, who had one concert snare and a 22 bass tuned low and muffled, the sound just really fit the band. One high school had a single snare and five basses, the snare was so reefed it sounded rediculous.

Concerning the OP: Lots of cool stuff on youtube with rope tension guys playing contemporary drum scores. Quite a breath of fresh air if you ask me, I wish I had seen it.

Is this the kind of thing they were doing?

[Jim Nevermann]

Is this the kind of thing they were doing?

Except for not quite as deep shells nor as high sticking, otherwise yes, very much like the Old Guard... who are my heroes!

A clearer video of that solo as well as the music & marching before and after it...

Edited July 6, 2008 by Jim Nevermann

[TenorsForWorldDomination]

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Edited July 7, 2008 by TenorsForWorldDomination

[pvt_cairns]

I like the sound of high tension drums, guess that's cause I grew up hearing it. I can't listen to a line even using mylar heads and propperly enjoy it. Just a matter of opinion I guess. I think alot of lines are starting to tune down their drums though. At least a little. Especially lines using Pearl. They just seem to have a deeper sound.

[pearlsnaredrummer77]

I like the higher pitched snare/tenor sound, but i love thunderous bass drums. I think sooner or later there has to be a head/drum combo that has the fullness of the old mylar sound with the high pitch/articulation of the kevlar. But really, the bass drum sound is the one that I don't care for in its current cranked until bust incarnation. I much prefer the older full, deep sounding bds. I noticed that about the Marines when I saw them in Reading last year. They had a Wonderful bass drum sound.

[mobrien]

I've never cared for the sound of modern snares, but have come to appreciate them lately. Cavaliers alumni are using two sets of snares this year; a group of 16 restored Rogers Dynasonics for the first couple tunes in the show (music from the 60s) with a set of new Yamahas being used for the majority of the show (music from the 80s and 90s).

For my money, the writing for the modern tunes doesn't read nearly as well if played on the older drums, and the writing from the older period sounds positively soulless if played with the new gear. The timbre of the mylar drums gives more body to the old tunes; but then again, the writing in that period was SO snare-centric that you needed that amount of full-ness to help give the line some body behind their contribution.

By the same token, the newer arrangements feature a lot more interplay between the different segments of the line, where the tighter articulation and short sound of the snares helps them get out of the way (figuratively speaking) of the complimentary notes coming from the tenors and basses. Playing the new charts on the old drums gives the music a distinctly muddy cast (imho), which sounds no better than when the older charts are played with the new gear.

Times change...

Edited July 8, 2008 by mobrien

[TastyWaves]

I've never cared for the sound of modern snares, but have come to appreciate them lately. Cavaliers alumni are using two sets of snares this year; a group of 16 restored Rogers Dynasonics for the first couple tunes in the show (music from the 60s) with a set of new Yamahas being used for the majority of the show (music from the 80s and 90s).

For my money, the writing for the modern tunes doesn't read nearly as well if played on the older drums, and the writing from the older period sounds positively soulless if played with the new gear. The timbre of the mylar drums gives more body to the old tunes; but then again, the writing in that period was SO snare-centric that you needed that amount of full-ness to help give the line some body behind their contribution.

By the same token, the newer arrangements feature a lot more interplay between the different segments of the line, where the tighter articulation and short sound of the snares helps them get out of the way (figuratively speaking) of the complimentary notes coming from the tenors and basses. Playing the new charts on the old drums gives the music a distinctly muddy cast (imho), which sounds no better than when the older charts are played with the new gear.

Times change...

That was extremely well put sir!

I am relatively young (31) so i guess i am at that "tweener" age between the old and new.

The first year i ever saw drum corps (92) there were still a small handful of Mylar snare lines. 91 and 92 STAR were both sounding FANTASTIC with it.

I actually have used Mylar several times in recent years and enjoyed it. I pick my heads, tuning scheme etc based on the music selections.. not a "just because". Just like Chosing a Quad head, there is so much variety out there nowadays.

I have never understood why there needs to be a level of disrespect because of the changing in equipment over the years. I guess its just like anything else in drum corps and people come to these forums to vent about it.

I was lucky. Most of my young drum corps experience was with the USMC D&B Corps in Washington DC when i was 18 (95-02). During that time i learned a real appreciation for art form as a whole. Having been accountable for playing rope tension with "Dead" sticks and playing the modern 14" pearl free floaters with Cranked Kevlar, I learned to get my hands moving quick! For our Friday night parades during the summer, we would do the first 45 minutes of the presentation on the old rope drums with Straps, then have a few minutes to change equipment and get out there with the "modern" equipment and play modern beats during the same show.

I think you hit it right on the head with how the changes in repertoires, brass/ wind arranging etc. have made the sound of percussion equiopment change.

You also are right on about the nature and role of the snaredrum having changed. It used to be the whole show was snare drum and the accents from the snare literature was the bass or "tenor" part.

In fact, I just saw Caballeros alumni corps a few weeks ago (which was killer by the way!) but as i watched, it was so clear that the snareline was 99% of the percussion contribution and everything else was "Beside the point".

I do agree that its irritating to hear kevlar super kranked just for the sake of kranking. I think alot of the lines like Phantom Regiment for example do a wonderful job of tuning for the show they are presenting. the smart guys out there know that you gotta change with the times!

Thank you for the insights!

Tony

[parkbench]

Here's example of nice fat sound of old school street cadence with refurbished Dynasonics on mylar -- Cavaliers Anniversary Corps 2008 -- 4th July parades. This was probably 100th rep in 2nd route of the day so hands and back abit ragged; and we mixed old school drums with Yamahas. We marched all (16) Dyna's a few days later in weekend at Michigan City.