College marching band competition

[Piper]

I think that another reason is simply time. A top tier DCI corps can knock your socks off, but from the time the kids report to spring training until the end of tour the instructors basically own them. Most band directors don't have that luxury.

[byline]

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.

Yup, I agree completely.

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...

When I started high school marching band back in '73, that was my band's first year marching corps style. As a result, we went to the "honing one show per year" strategy. But before that, our band marched "Big 10/Moffitt" style and did a different show for each football halftime.

With college shows, even though we marched a modified corps style, we also did a different show for each halftime, but did little marching in order to facilitate that. The reason? Audiences got bored with the same show at every halftime. (My parents had the same complaint about the shows my high school band performed when I marched, as opposed to what they did when my older sister marched.) As a result, I'm sure that we would not have been very competitive in a contest, and I suspect that many university marching bands are in the same boat. They've basically got music majors who are there to fulfill a credit, so they just show up and don't really care about the finished product. And then there are non-music majors who are just there to have fun. Either way, it's not an intensely competitive bunch, so that, combined with the lack of time and money, just don't point in the direction of very many college bands competing at all, much less at a high level.

Edited September 6, 2008 by byline

[jonnyboy]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collegiate_Ma...g_Band_Festival

That's as close as you'll probably ever see. J. Birney Crum on September 28th. It's always a great show.

Thats a great show I agree.

Want to watch a marching band competition that sells out the Georgia Dome? Honda Battle of the Bands I have been thinking about checking it out for a while. It is January 24, '09.

[Dave]

The HBCU bands use games and multi-band shows as competitions, but they don't have the same sort of judging concepts drum corps uses; it's more of a showmanship thing as far as I can tell.

[PhantomRPhan]

I love the movie Drumline.

lawlz.....

[prodigal bari]

There is another reason why this will not (and should not)fly:

Most D1 collegiagte marching bands are funded by the athletic department for the sole purpose of creating atmosphere and a home-field advantage for the football games. They are expected to perform that function without interference by other marching activities (i.e.; competition) and therefore are geared solely for that aim. There is at least one collegiate band director from a MAJOR university that was told by the athletic director, in no uncertain terms, to not worry about woodwinds or fancy movement; but to up the amount of sound (i.e.; brass)- OR ELSE. (And this is a well-known program!)

Frankly, I am one who thinks the HS band competitive activity is getting out of control, though...

[Ranger Rick]

Finances are a concern. My band travels long distances as a full group of 300+ 1-3 times per year. On top of it, members pay NO dues. Needless to say, you're looking at a multi-million dollar a year organization. There are very, very, very few other bands who have these opportunities. Most bands have little support from the higher ups at their universities and function as a plaything of a disdainful athletic department, praying for a bowl game. Most bands could only dream of our fundraising resources. Another band in our conference had to charge their members hundreds of dollars to do a trip to another school in that conference.

It's such a different beast than competitive high school band or drum corps. Besides, there is only one measure for how good a college band is: how much the student body / alumni appreciates them.

[Crowncontramom]

I marched with the marching band at NC State (Back in the day!) WOW! What a blast. No music majors at NCSU back then , so everybody in the marching band was there because they WANTED to be there. The full band went to EVERY game-- including going to Maryland, Michigan State, and to the Peach Bowl. They paid for our hotel rooms (4 to a room, of course) and gave us a per deim for food. While not totally funded by the Wolfpack Club, I think they contributed a lot because they wanted the band at the games. What great times! Wouldn't have traded it for anything!

These days you don't much see full bands at away football games. Looks to me like the home schools don't want to give up that many tickets....

[runner_up]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collegiate_Ma...g_Band_Festival

That's as close as you'll probably ever see. J. Birney Crum on September 28th. It's always a great show.

If anyone is going to this:

Make sure you see West Chester. There are a ton of corps kids in that band and its marching and musical styles mimick drum corps. Crossmen arranger (Andrew Yozviak) is the director and arranger.

Then you can say hello to me. I'm the mellophone player with the shako visor covering his eyes...

[SUNSNARE07]

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!

Hey, cant wait to see the Blue Band next week at SU, are you guys gonna be there, I know your football team will destroy us