Band
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- JeffCvt
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Band
A topic made entirley for people who are in or have been in a band. (School or any other kind)
A place where you can talk about what your band has done, where they have gone, how good (or bad) they are, or anything else band related.
A place where you can talk about what your band has done, where they have gone, how good (or bad) they are, or anything else band related.
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
Re: Band
"This one time, at band camp - "
But really, I do have a bunch of marching band stories. A couple of them are actually forum-appropriate! P'raps I'll share one or two of those, if anyone's interested. But anyway. My name is Coatl Ruu, and I play the trumpet.
... And if this were my school's marching band, this would be the part where you all say "Welcome to AA." =P Hooray, band-geekery.
But really, I do have a bunch of marching band stories. A couple of them are actually forum-appropriate! P'raps I'll share one or two of those, if anyone's interested. But anyway. My name is Coatl Ruu, and I play the trumpet.
... And if this were my school's marching band, this would be the part where you all say "Welcome to AA." =P Hooray, band-geekery.
Re: Band
Hmm...one does wonder...does having been in a choir count? Have my doubts, but figure I might as well ask.
- Sleet
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Re: Band
I was in marching band all four years! I was a percussionist and I played everything. The marimba was my specialty.
Then I was in jazz band in college, playing piano/keyboards and occasionally bass.
Then I was in jazz band in college, playing piano/keyboards and occasionally bass.
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- JeffCvt
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Re: Band
Ummm... Sure. I'm not, but it is still a group of people that make music.Shirosune wrote:Hmm...one does wonder...does having been in a choir count? Have my doubts, but figure I might as well ask.
Cool, I'm in the drumline too, but I've only played cymbals.Sleet wrote:I was in marching band all four years! I was a percussionist and I played everything. The marimba was my specialty.
I'm the best cymbal player in the band, even though there are only five. And despite not practicing as much as I should, I'm usally the only one who remembers the music.Wanderer wrote:I'm the best in my section which is absolutely hilarious because I barely practice.
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
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Re: Band
Our drumline didn't have cymbals. A few members of the pit played cymbals in parades, but our show didn't involve them.JeffCvt wrote:Cool, I'm in the drumline too, but I've only played cymbals.
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Re: Band
I used to play clarinet in Middle school band. I thought about high school band but it was too much work and I didn't care enough to make that kind of commitment.
I think in Non-sequiturs
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- Dissension
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Re: Band
I played baritone (and marching baritone) for both years of middle school (6th & 7th grades), both years of junior high (8th & 9th), and all three years of high school (10th - 12th). We pretty consistently had seven baritones (We were pretty low-brass heavy in general, but there were dozens and dozens of high brass, woodwinds, percussionists, etc., too.). I tended to be one of the last couple chairs through middle school and junior high, but I got tired of it my senior year and apparently shocked everyone by ranking second chair and fending off all challenges.
avatar: milodesty
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
Re: Band
I was in a choir once or twice. I was pretty awful back then, though. No range or control whatsoever. :B
I also did corral in my first semester at college. It was basically the college's choir's little brother that didn't require auditions and didn't do any traveling. I was tempted to audition for the actual choir the semester following, but never did because I have commitment issues. And because they only really travel to churches, and that didn't interest me. They sounded pretty legit at the on-campus stuff I went to though.
I also did corral in my first semester at college. It was basically the college's choir's little brother that didn't require auditions and didn't do any traveling. I was tempted to audition for the actual choir the semester following, but never did because I have commitment issues. And because they only really travel to churches, and that didn't interest me. They sounded pretty legit at the on-campus stuff I went to though.
"When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around,
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do you ever really crash or even make a sound?"
- RandomGeekNamedBrent
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Re: Band
I played tuba in concert/symphonic band and sousaphone in marching band all through high school. we didn't really have chairs because all tuba parts were the same, but when the music said to only have one tuba playing, it was usually me for the last two years I was there.
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Re: Band
You didn't have beautiful four-part tuba harmony?
We have a grand total of four bassists in our whole jazz band, if you include myself. Obviously I couldn't play bass this semester (since I'm needed on keyboards), and the other three had to split between large ensemble and small ensemble, but I suggested a bass quartet. The professor didn't like that idea.
We have a grand total of four bassists in our whole jazz band, if you include myself. Obviously I couldn't play bass this semester (since I'm needed on keyboards), and the other three had to split between large ensemble and small ensemble, but I suggested a bass quartet. The professor didn't like that idea.
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Re: Band
Our marching band currently has about 40 people in it. It's a bit sad, really. By the end of last year we had exactly zero tuba players. We ended up being the second smallest band out of the 12 or so in our county ... Ah, well. It was still a lot fun! And I became an honorary member of the drum line this year, in addition to my role as supreme Cobra Commander of the trumpet section. x3
- JeffCvt
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Re: Band
Our Band dosen't have a pit. Or rather, not since my freshman year. I think I was the only pit my band directer ever had (Cowbell, Shaker, Tambourine)Sleet wrote:Our drumline didn't have cymbals. A few members of the pit played cymbals in parades, but our show didn't involve them.JeffCvt wrote:Cool, I'm in the drumline too, but I've only played cymbals.
Yea, our band is pretty big. Including Color gaurd and Dancers, we are something like 160-180 members. We are one of the biggest bands in our county, and the only band that can touch our field show isn't even in our county.Coatl_Ruu wrote:Our marching band currently has about 40 people in it. It's a bit sad, really. By the end of last year we had exactly zero tuba players. We ended up being the second smallest band out of the 12 or so in our county ... Ah, well. It was still a lot fun! And I became an honorary member of the drum line this year, in addition to my role as supreme Cobra Commander of the trumpet section. x3
Of course, we do see some small bands that are really good, our band director would rather have a small, dedicated band then a large, undisciplined one if he had the choice.
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
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Re: Band
Wow, that's impressive. Our drumline is typically 3 snares, 2 quads, and 5 basses. Then our pit is about the same size.
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Re: Band
Oh! Story-time. See, it was an away game, and I was in charge of loading all the equipment on the bus, because the normal 'equipment crew' wasn't there. About ten other people in the band were away at some other event, including half the drumline. So, we brought along a few extra bass drums, a snare, one of the quads - so that, while we were playing in the stands, some of the other band members could learn a simple cadence or two and fill in.Sleet wrote:How were you an honorary member, Ruu?
Anyway, we got there, and I went to help unload the bus. When all the instruments were set out, I went to grab mine. It wasn't there. In short, I was in charge of loading everything ... and I forgot to load my own trumpet. *facepalm*
"Well. This might be bad." >_<
"Hey, who wants to play a bass drum?"
"ME." =D
The director seemed equal parts amused and irritated. In the end, she just told me to go line up with the drummers at half time. And so I did. ^_^
Re: Band
Not really. I learned a couple cadences, but at half time I had to fake it.
- Sleet
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Re: Band
Bass players have to know how to count really well. I played bass one year.
Also it's so heavy. D:
Also it's so heavy. D:
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- RandomGeekNamedBrent
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Re: Band
Sousaphones are pretty heavy too. but yeah, those larger bass drums are probably heavier, while the smaller ones may be lighter.
and of course, distribution of the weight makes a difference.
and of course, distribution of the weight makes a difference.
- Sleet
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Re: Band
I played the largest.
If anyone want to say this is evidence I'm a boy, I'm decently strong and there has been at least one other girl who's played that drum in our band.
If anyone want to say this is evidence I'm a boy, I'm decently strong and there has been at least one other girl who's played that drum in our band.
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- Dissension
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Re: Band
Our tubas were arranged by 'chairs' because we usually had 10-13.RandomGeekNamedBrent wrote:I played tuba in concert/symphonic band and sousaphone in marching band all through high school. we didn't really have chairs because all tuba parts were the same, but when the music said to only have one tuba playing, it was usually me for the last two years I was there.
avatar: milodesty
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
- JeffCvt
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Re: Band
That's how most of our cymbal music at the begining of the year is created. Being the (kind of self proclaimed) "Cymbal Captian," the other cymbals all look to me to know the cymbal music.Coatl_Ruu wrote:Not really. I learned a couple cadences, but at half time I had to fake it.
I know it for most of our street cadences, but when it comes to show cadences or some songs, I just have to make it up in the begining of the year. After that, we play whatever I made up for the rest of the marching season. (I think that we have some songs that the cymbal music has changed every year for the last 5 or so years.)
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
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Re: Band
I'm pretty sure I saw one of our smaller girls playing the largest. this isn't evidence at all.Sleet wrote:I played the largest.
If anyone want to say this is evidence I'm a boy, I'm decently strong and there has been at least one other girl who's played that drum in our band.
outside of marching band, each band (Freshmen, Concert, and Symphonic) had two at the most. And we kind of were arranged by chair, me being the first in each level I was in, but it had no effect on the level of difficulty of the music we played and we never had an actual "first chair tuba," we were all just "tubas"Dissension wrote:Our tubas were arranged by 'chairs' because we usually had 10-13.RandomGeekNamedBrent wrote:I played tuba in concert/symphonic band and sousaphone in marching band all through high school. we didn't really have chairs because all tuba parts were the same, but when the music said to only have one tuba playing, it was usually me for the last two years I was there.
- JeffCvt
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Re: Band
Our band just has a low brass section captian for the marching season, and while the director puts them in chairs for concert band, the seating dosen't usally change from where every one usally sat.
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
Re: Band
i play trombone and i'm pretty dang good, but i'm last chair* even though i should be at least third
*story is that when we were doing the playing test, my trombone wasn't working right, then after i played, i switched my mouthpiece and i played perfectly fine
*story is that when we were doing the playing test, my trombone wasn't working right, then after i played, i switched my mouthpiece and i played perfectly fine
- Dissension
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Re: Band
They wouldn't have taken that into consideration here, but I would have been able to 'challenge' my way up however many seats I was capable of outplaying. = P Does your program allow that, by any chance?
avatar: milodesty
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
people are the only things that matter; take care of yourselves and each other
Re: Band
nah, you get a seat in one playing test, you're there until the nextDissension wrote:They wouldn't have taken that into consideration here, but I would have been able to 'challenge' my way up however many seats I was capable of outplaying. = P Does your program allow that, by any chance?
- Sleet
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Re: Band
I once got a 140% on a playing test in sixth grade 'cause I could play polyphony on the glockenspiel. And someone else got a -4% because he took a "retry" and then gave up, getting a 0 minus the retry penalty.
...Our grading scale was weird. In high school percussionists didn't do chairs.
...Our grading scale was weird. In high school percussionists didn't do chairs.
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- JeffCvt
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Re: Band
Yea, mine dosn't either.
But we do have section leaders durring the marching season that are picked by the director.
Then we have our unoffical "Captians" that we pick ourselves who know the parts for each drum they are on.
As long as I have been there, there has been one snare who is a section leader, so by default they are the "snare captain."
The bass drum is usally whoever has the biggest one.
This year, the quads had the other section leader, so he was the "quad captain."
And being the only cymbal player who did not switch after a year or two kind of threw me into the "cymbal captian" position. It's kinda-sorta a funny story, but I'll save it for another day.
But we do have section leaders durring the marching season that are picked by the director.
Then we have our unoffical "Captians" that we pick ourselves who know the parts for each drum they are on.
As long as I have been there, there has been one snare who is a section leader, so by default they are the "snare captain."
The bass drum is usally whoever has the biggest one.
This year, the quads had the other section leader, so he was the "quad captain."
And being the only cymbal player who did not switch after a year or two kind of threw me into the "cymbal captian" position. It's kinda-sorta a funny story, but I'll save it for another day.
Jeff "Clavy" Civit
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Re: Band
Our bass leader was traditionally the person with the smallest bass.
I was the assistant section leader in the pit simply because I had just joined the pit my senior year (I was on drumline the last two). If we did chairs I would've been first, though. The third-best marimba player and myself were so good they modified our parts so they're every bit as technically challenging as the lead marimba's part. It was basically unison/two-part harmony/three-part harmony the entire show.
I was the assistant section leader in the pit simply because I had just joined the pit my senior year (I was on drumline the last two). If we did chairs I would've been first, though. The third-best marimba player and myself were so good they modified our parts so they're every bit as technically challenging as the lead marimba's part. It was basically unison/two-part harmony/three-part harmony the entire show.
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- Nitrosparxx
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Re: Band
I am a super band geek. Seriously, I'm in college now studying to become a band teacher! That's how much I love it.