College marching band competition

[En929]

I was wondering why isn't there a college marching band competition that compete against each other in the way that BOA and DCI does?

Edited September 6, 2008 by En929

[crowncontra]

One word.....football.

It would be unreal for a BCS school and those with highly competitive football teams to be able to get a show on the field that they could compete with. Where I go to school we do about 3-5 shows a year, that are easy enough for everyone to learn (drill-wise).

[DAvery]

I was wondering why isn't there a college marching band competition that compete against each other in the way that BOA and DCI does?

Something like this was started about 30 years ago. It didn't seem to get very far. Only a few bands participated. The only one I remember was Weber State.

[ictrumpet]

Thinking back to undergraduate music school, I barely had any time to do anything other than work during the academic year. I would start classes at 8am and not be done with doing all my for until like 1am. I know at my school that's why we didn't even have a marching band period. To then make a marching band competitive would take even more time and money, which your average music major (and many other majors) does not have.

[crazymello]

One word.....football.

It would be unreal for a BCS school and those with highly competitive football teams to be able to get a show on the field that they could compete with. Where I go to school we do about 3-5 shows a year, that are easy enough for everyone to learn (drill-wise).

Really? You put on multiple shows in high school? I've never heard of that before... We always keep one show for the whole year... I imagine if a college band did that, and then really cleaned it, there could at least be one competition thing that they all go to...

[jwillis35]

All good points.

The college marching band, and I know, because I direct one, is a different beast.

For starters, college bands cannot have band camps in the same sense that high schools can. Many high schools start camp the last week of July and push through August until band nights, competitions, and games begin. Where I teach, Mount Union College, we have camp one week prior to school. Why? Because college kids need to work during the summer and raise money for school. Because the cost of housing them on campus and feeding them 4 meals per day, in addition to providing some activities and such, is a huge expense.

Unlike the high schools, we do not have band parents or band boosters. The money we spend comes out of the department budget.

We do hold band camp for roughly 8 days, and I run 3 sessions per day, but during that time I must teach a pre-game, half-time, and plenty of stands tunes. Once school starts we have 50 minutes per day, 5 days per week. The students are taking many difficult and time-consuming classes, and, often, when they show up for band, at 4:10 PM, they are exhausted and their eyes are glazed over from the stress of the day.

Travel is another issue. Most college bands, even the big schools, cannot go to many away games. It costs an extraordinary amount of money, because you don't have public funded school buses and such, we must get charters. Our band needs 3 of them, so on average we need $3,000 or more just to leave campus, and another $500 or more to feed the kids if we are gone for any length of time. So it depends on your budget.

Even a band like Ohio State, with excellent funding, only hits something like 2 away games per year. One of their members or staff could clarify that. I recall hearing that when they traveled to Texas 3 seasons ago that it cost $225,000. For one, they have to fly, unless you plan to allow the members out of classes for 2 or 3 days and make the trip by bus. And housing and food also factor in.

But, as many have mentioned, the main thing is that most college bands work up 3 to 5 shows per year. We do 3 here at Mount Union, which is about all I can teach with 50 minutes per day and a one-week camp. But we must also consider the members. Many of them are not from competitive high schools. When kids come up through their public school systems, they fully understand how things are done and they fall in love with their high schools and those traditions and styles. When we get them at college, we get 100+ kids from different communities, different styles of band, different outlooks, and so forth. Now we have to mold them into one team with one purpose, and we must unify their focus so that we can accomplish what is best for the game environment, the band, the fans, and what is possible in the time-frame we have.

Those are just some of the reasons.

JW

[Schickmeister]

Lets not forget that most bands would score a 12.75 too

All in fun! haha

I am actually leaving in an hour to go suit up for the big game this afternoon...LOVE college band. Go Penn State!

[sday88]

Really? You put on multiple shows in high school? I've never heard of that before... We always keep one show for the whole year... I imagine if a college band did that, and then really cleaned it, there could at least be one competition thing that they all go to...

I think that "crowncontra" is talking about the college he goes to.

[Schickmeister]

My college band does a new show every week as well....this week we got EWF!

[BozzlyB]

Folks, let me introduce you to a fabulous website called MARCHING BAND PLANET. Now go away.