While any seasoned drill writer knows how important cleaning a drill design is, a band director may have too many tasks to focus on to give it proper attention. If you're worried about gearing your band up for competition this winter, here are two professionally recommended ways you can start cleaning your drill design:
A little more time in rehearsal means bigger rewards in performance
While you and your musicians may be eager to get through rehearsal, and applying strategies to your routine that lengthen the process may not sound like a great idea, taking that extra time to make sure everyone's hitting their marks and getting their part will pay off come performance time. One strategy, recommended by Standing 'O' Marching founder Rob Stein, consists of breaking down complicated choreography into separate groups of performers and focusing on one group at a time. In this strategy, only one line of the marching band rehearses their steps. The band director's attention is solely focused on them, which not only helps you but also the other performers. Everyone can watch and understand what the marchers do in relation to everyone else. The key to rehearsal time is efficiency, of course, but taking this extra time to clean can have tremendous benefits on your marching band's performance.
Focus on spacing and visual cues
It's hard to clean a drill show if you don't know how to guide your musicians through it. Scott Kurtzweil, the Director of Marching Arts Division for The Woodwind & Brasswind, explains how making sure all performers are aware of their spacing will help maintain order in the drill. One way to direct this is by asking your marchers to look at their shoulders in relation to how close or far away they are from the shoulders of the person in front of them. Having a visual cue will help them see how well they're maintaining spacing.
For more marching band tips and techniques, contact Marching Show Concepts today!