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Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 3:56 pm
by anthony
k well right now i am a sophmore at golden valley high school and i have been working extreamily hard for D.M i have worked so hard so do you have n e adice for warm ups or websites to look things up plz any advice will help

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 6:31 pm
by MalletQueen
anthony wrote:k well right now i am a sophmore at golden valley high school and i have been working extreamily hard for D.M i have worked so hard so do you have n e adice for warm ups or websites to look things up plz any advice will help
Go to onlinedrummajor.com. That is Rick Wilson's site. He is a fabulous judge with NCBA and also involved with WDMA. There is quite a bit of information and tips that you can access.

Have you talked to Nicole about helping you? She knows her stuff from when she was drum major for GV. She competed against my daughter although they were different divisions...mace and military.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sat Mar 06, 2010 1:20 pm
by anthony
yeah i actually talked to her she was at the moment in school but she is already helping i belive like 3 other students im not sure but i know she was and still is a exalent drum major but thanks for the site im sure it will help out a ton thanks again wish me luck lol

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sat Mar 06, 2010 7:06 pm
by ZJH
I think it should be a right for English teachers to track their students on the internet and strike them in class should they submit an entire passage online without appropriate punctuation, if any at all.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sat Mar 06, 2010 7:35 pm
by DMPwer
When spinning with your Mace of Military, always seek the advice of your peers or people more experienced than you, such as some of us on this Forum or your instructors.

Peers who have been Drum Majors at GVHS are the best option (aside from your instructors) because they know what its like :)

Always practice your spinning in front of a mirror (or at least as much as you can). This allows you to see what you're doing right or wrong, and allows you to fine tune. I've noticed with many Drum Majors up here that they always look at their tosses (I do that a lot as well). The point is to not really change your facial expression during an L-Pattern or Parade Competition. The mirror helps.


We should always remember being a Drum Major is about 20% spinning and 80% Leadership.

The site by Rick Wilson (OnlinedrumMajor) is excellent for studying up your terminology of Drum Major things, and seeking Leadership help. Always be with your Band, teach them how to march, how to play, and how to be good students and performers. You as a DM must lead your band through everything! You are the first in command (after your Band Director of course). Studying up on Drum Major Leadership is KEY to winning a spot as Head DM at your school, AND being a successful and worthy Drum Major.

Hope this helps :)

- Umayr

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sat Mar 06, 2010 10:26 pm
by anthony
ZJH wrote:I think it should be a right for English teachers to track their students on the internet and strike them in class should they submit an entire passage online without appropriate punctuation, if any at all.

not to be rude or anything but im outside of school i can type how i want i know it doesint look all great but its not like it has to be perfection its good to shoot for it but theirs no such thing with all do respact i was asking for drum major advice not grammer help but i will take that into concideration thanks

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sat Mar 06, 2010 10:31 pm
by anthony
DMPwer wrote:When spinning with your Mace of Military, always seek the advice of your peers or people more experienced than you, such as some of us on this Forum or your instructors.

Peers who have been Drum Majors at GVHS are the best option (aside from your instructors) because they know what its like :)

Always practice your spinning in front of a mirror (or at least as much as you can). This allows you to see what you're doing right or wrong, and allows you to fine tune. I've noticed with many Drum Majors up here that they always look at their tosses (I do that a lot as well). The point is to not really change your facial expression during an L-Pattern or Parade Competition. The mirror helps.


We should always remember being a Drum Major is about 20% spinning and 80% Leadership.

The site by Rick Wilson (OnlinedrumMajor) is excellent for studying up your terminology of Drum Major things, and seeking Leadership help. Always be with your Band, teach them how to march, how to play, and how to be good students and performers. You as a DM must lead your band through everything! You are the first in command (after your Band Director of course). Studying up on Drum Major Leadership is KEY to winning a spot as Head DM at your school, AND being a successful and worthy Drum Major.

Hope this helps :)

- Umayr
OMg tht helps so much thank you very very very much i highly appretiate your advice :)

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 6:56 am
by MalletQueen
If not a mirror, get in front of a window where you can see yourself. The easiest ones to use are the ones you find on school campuses, that are darkend because they have a mirrored reflection to them. It does make a huge difference when you can see what it is that you are doing.

Go watch some of the L-Patterns going on right now, or better yet...compete at some. I know it's too late to sign up for NCBA winter comps, but there is So Cal and WDMA...that is, if you don't mind the drive. Best experience you can get is adjudication. Listen to the tapes and learn from them. Take the advice and constructive criticism and absorb what is said.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 8:16 am
by anthony
MalletQueen wrote:If not a mirror, get in front of a window where you can see yourself. The easiest ones to use are the ones you find on school campuses, that are darkend because they have a mirrored reflection to them. It does make a huge difference when you can see what it is that you are doing.

Go watch some of the L-Patterns going on right now, or better yet...compete at some. I know it's too late to sign up for NCBA winter comps, but there is So Cal and WDMA...that is, if you don't mind the drive. Best experience you can get is adjudication. Listen to the tapes and learn from them. Take the advice and constructive criticism and absorb what is said.
thanks so much how would i sing up for that?

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 9:07 am
by MalletQueen
thanks so much how would i sing up for that?[/quote]

To sign up for So Cal L-Patterns you can go to drummajorcomps.com. There will be a list of the ones available. They start later and go through the spring. To sign up for WDMA, go to wdmaonline.org. Click on the competitions tab and you'll be able to find your way to where the information is located.

Tough competition in So Cal though. Most of these kids begin their training in elementary and middle school. I was at Alvarado Comp. yesterday, and there were some MS DM's who were outscoring HS DM's. Remember that you can learn some great stuff by watching those who are better than you.

Also go to some Spring Band Reviews so you can watch the DM's there. Big difference between doing L-Pattern and band reviews.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 12:14 pm
by anthony
ohh wow thats like extreamily intimadateing! well i had a little expearience my 8th grade year i did it 4 a little bit but wow i will look that up thanks so much i cant wait, i like to see what ppl bing like i mostly watch youtube vids and replay them over and over thats about it but once agaian thank you so much
MalletQueen wrote:thanks so much how would i sing up for that?
To sign up for So Cal L-Patterns you can go to drummajorcomps.com. There will be a list of the ones available. They start later and go through the spring. To sign up for WDMA, go to wdmaonline.org. Click on the competitions tab and you'll be able to find your way to where the information is located.

Tough competition in So Cal though. Most of these kids begin their training in elementary and middle school. I was at Alvarado Comp. yesterday, and there were some MS DM's who were outscoring HS DM's. Remember that you can learn some great stuff by watching those who are better than you.

Also go to some Spring Band Reviews so you can watch the DM's there. Big difference between doing L-Pattern and band reviews.[/quote]

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 1:33 pm
by ZJH
anthony wrote:
ZJH wrote:I think it should be a right for English teachers to track their students on the internet and strike them in class should they submit an entire passage online without appropriate punctuation, if any at all.

not to be rude or anything but im outside of school i can type how i want i know it doesint look all great but its not like it has to be perfection its good to shoot for it but theirs no such thing with all do respact i was asking for drum major advice not grammer help but i will take that into concideration thanks
"Not to be rude or anything," but this only further reinforces my point.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:28 pm
by anthony
ok first of all like i said this whole thing does not have to be written formal or anything im not going to cause a whole debate with you like i said befor i was asking for drum major adice not grammer help their is a huge diffrence in writting formal for things like essays or exc. or simply shortining things up for a simple ad. just thought i would point that out 2nd of all teachers have no right to be taking points off of when i am outside of school and its my privet life 3rd of all i am not trying to be argumentive so can you plz cut it out if you keep this going i will stop writing back, thank you.
ZJH wrote:
anthony wrote:
ZJH wrote:I think it should be a right for English teachers to track their students on the internet and strike them in class should they submit an entire passage online without appropriate punctuation, if any at all.

not to be rude or anything but im outside of school i can type how i want i know it doesint look all great but its not like it has to be perfection its good to shoot for it but theirs no such thing with all do respact i was asking for drum major advice not grammer help but i will take that into concideration thanks
"Not to be rude or anything," but this only further reinforces my point.

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:53 am
by dmcoach
Back to the topic...

Anthony, I agree that drum majoring is 20% spinning and 80% leadership. Part of being a good drum major is listening. Great listeners make great leaders. Part of that also, is to be able to graciously accept constructive criticism, regardless of how harsh they might seem.

A good example is ZJH's first comment. I know it might've sounded a little blunt, but there was constructive criticism there. The best response on your part would have been a simple "Thank you". The harsh comments back and forth just doesn't lead anywhere good, and it distracts from the purpose of your first request for drum major advice.

There was my advice to you, I hope you take it well. 8-)

PS
Malletqueen, it was so great seeing you again on Saturday. Thank you for coming down, and I hope you and your daughter had a great time! :bow:

Re: Drum major advise plz!

Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2010 8:33 am
by MalletQueen
dmcoach wrote:PS
Malletqueen, it was so great seeing you again on Saturday. Thank you for coming down, and I hope you and your daughter had a great time! :bow:
Bryan...she had a fabulous time!!! I'll be bringing her down for El Monte. She wants to make the Eastlake, but she is supposed to have a chemistry mid-term on that Saturday, and she is supposed to do her first apprentice judging on that day too!

I can tell you though, that she will defininately be back for more!!! It was great seeing you again too. I can't believe it's been two years...oh how time flies.