Drum Major Gloves

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tooweird
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Drum Major Gloves

Post by tooweird » Tue Aug 11, 2009 11:02 pm

hey everyone I have a quick question for all you drum majors and drum major instructors out there.

My good friend is the drum major this year and the director insists that he wears gloves for this fall. However, my friend feels that the gloves will get in the way of his spinning and his routine. Are there gloves that drum majors who have intricate routines should wear or should gloves be avoided entirely?
Mark L.
Archbishop Riordan Crusader Marching Band (04-07)
Colorguard Instructor

Joyce M David
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by Joyce M David » Wed Aug 12, 2009 2:50 am

Though he or she may feel as if gloves are uncomfortable at first. That is a natural thing. To people using gloves for the first time they may think it slows down any flourishing to the intricacies of the routine. But he or she just needs to practice with gloves all the time in order to get used to it. With time, it will feel as if the gloves aren't of any nuisance.

I suggest they use or purchase drum major gloves with grip on the palms and a velcro strap on the wrist to provide minimum loosening on the hands.

If anything, the positives of utilizing gloves provides a little more grip especially if the drum major has a tendency to have sweaty palms which could increase chances of slipping. In addition, using gloves helps minimizes the chances of calluses which sometimes isn't to admirable to have after spinning for a while. So I wouldn't throw out gloves in it's entirety.

Hope that helps :lol:
Joyce Marie David
Notre Dame High School (Sherman Oaks)
Irish Knight Band
Drum Major '08-'09
International Drum Major Institute (IDMI) Drum Major Instructor
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by crickett » Wed Aug 12, 2009 8:54 am

I have had drum majors find success with golfing gloves. Sometimes the sporting goods store has several kinds, baseball, weight lifting and golf that we have tried. It's nice to be able to try them on and see what they feel like. Also they were really thin and flexible and designed to grip and perform.

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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by tooweird » Wed Aug 12, 2009 11:58 am

Joyce M David wrote:Though he or she may feel as if gloves are uncomfortable at first. That is a natural thing. To people using gloves for the first time they may think it slows down any flourishing to the intricacies of the routine. But he or she just needs to practice with gloves all the time in order to get used to it. With time, it will feel as if the gloves aren't of any nuisance.

I suggest they use or purchase drum major gloves with grip on the palms and a velcro strap on the wrist to provide minimum loosening on the hands.

If anything, the positives of utilizing gloves provides a little more grip especially if the drum major has a tendency to have sweaty palms which could increase chances of slipping. In addition, using gloves helps minimizes the chances of calluses which sometimes isn't to admirable to have after spinning for a while. So I wouldn't throw out gloves in it's entirety.

Hope that helps :lol:
thanks joyce! your advice was really helpful! i was actually watching a video of you drum majoring on youtube to see drum majors and if they used gloves and saw that you do. and thanks for the advice too Ms. Latham.

do those drum major gloves on band shoppe suffice? or should I tell him to look for other gloves. we do have white band gloves that have those beads on the inside. would those work?
Mark L.
Archbishop Riordan Crusader Marching Band (04-07)
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by Hostrauser » Wed Aug 12, 2009 12:54 pm

crickett wrote:I have had drum majors find success with golfing gloves. Sometimes the sporting goods store has several kinds, baseball, weight lifting and golf that we have tried. It's nice to be able to try them on and see what they feel like. Also they were really thin and flexible and designed to grip and perform.
What a brilliant idea. Speaking as a golfer (not a drum major) I can confirm that they are very thin (like wearing a 2nd skin) and flexible. Not only that, but most newer gloves take full advantage of technology, and are designed to keep the hands cool and wick away moisture, both inside (sweat) and out (rain). My grip on the club is just fine in rain, and I would have to imagine that would apply to batons, too.

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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by bigcity » Wed Aug 12, 2009 6:21 pm

I would recommend gloves. I do with all of my students. Coming from the standpoint of being judged, the un-gloved hand can lend itself to being dirty and un-clean. This is something that a military drum major or american mace drum major would want to avoid as it could possibly bring down the appearance part of the Leadership score. Also, with a white uniform, the hand sticks out like a sore thumb. It is easy to see if a DM has a lazy free hand or doesn't keep the fingers together. The look of the bright new glove only helps to "enhance" the overall presence of the DM and also adds a certain level of difficulty as some of the gloves can be restrictive.

The athletic gloves are a good idea. Just make sure that all FootJoy/Nike/or Reebok logos so that they won't clash with the uniform. Also, keep in mind the length of the glove so that there is no part of skin showing between the glove and uniform.

What I did in competition was wear a long sleeve long john under the uniform coat, to avoid the skin problem. I used the velcro grip gloves that I then would soak in water to help stretch out the glove and improve the "stickiness".

Hope that helps.


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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by tooweird » Thu Aug 13, 2009 12:11 am

bigcity wrote:I would recommend gloves. I do with all of my students. Coming from the standpoint of being judged, the un-gloved hand can lend itself to being dirty and un-clean. This is something that a military drum major or american mace drum major would want to avoid as it could possibly bring down the appearance part of the Leadership score. Also, with a white uniform, the hand sticks out like a sore thumb. It is easy to see if a DM has a lazy free hand or doesn't keep the fingers together. The look of the bright new glove only helps to "enhance" the overall presence of the DM and also adds a certain level of difficulty as some of the gloves can be restrictive.

The athletic gloves are a good idea. Just make sure that all FootJoy/Nike/or Reebok logos so that they won't clash with the uniform. Also, keep in mind the length of the glove so that there is no part of skin showing between the glove and uniform.

What I did in competition was wear a long sleeve long john under the uniform coat, to avoid the skin problem. I used the velcro grip gloves that I then would soak in water to help stretch out the glove and improve the "stickiness".

Hope that helps.


BigCity
thanks! that helps a lot!
Mark L.
Archbishop Riordan Crusader Marching Band (04-07)
Colorguard Instructor

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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by crickett » Thu Aug 13, 2009 10:05 am

My drum majors have also used an undershirt, but we have used rash guards that are the same color as the uniform. They are a slick material and the jacket slides easily on them and there is no resistance. It also covers the tummy when the arms are raised.

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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by MaestroOfBandX » Thu Aug 13, 2009 11:07 am

tooweird wrote:.........do those drum major gloves on band shoppe suffice? or should I tell him to look for other gloves. we do have white band gloves that have those beads on the inside. would those work?
Having used the cotton grip dot gloves in the past, I would definately suggest a leather glove. You referred to the Band Shoppe glove which could be an option, but I would definately look more towards a baseball batting glove. The golf gloves are good but are thinner, which is good and bad, they will wear out faster, especially in the case of a mace with a chain. The only drawback to batting gloves, and even most golf gloves, is dealing with the logo.

Finding all white may be a bit difficult too. In batting gloves, the Franklin "Pro Classic" model is all white with an applique you can easily remove.
Image

Golf gloves do have an advantage that they have a velcro closure that as they streatch out, you can tighten them up across the palm. Wilson makes one that is almost all white and has an applique that can be removed.
Image

Does your band wear gauntlets? If so, Peacock has a leather drum major glove that has the gauntlet attached to it. http://www.marchingworld.com/pg018.htm

Whatever the DM decides to use, the most important factor is to make sure they fit snugly so they are like a second skin.
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by Joyce M David » Fri Aug 14, 2009 2:52 am

I wear these type of gloves. Or if you have anything similar to that. Then that would be fine so you don't have to buy:

http://www.marchingworld.com/pg014.htm

I would suggest the B style with grip.

I agree with one of the posts before me in the appearance when wearing gloves. In my opinion, I think they show off very well especially from far away and look really nice with free hands and the blade if pulled off right. If you choose to go down the road and use gloves, what I would suggest is having two pairs of gloves. One pair would be for practice and can use everytime. And then the other pair is for competition. Because you have a separate pair of competition gloves, they will keep clean and nice for the actual event.
Joyce Marie David
Notre Dame High School (Sherman Oaks)
Irish Knight Band
Drum Major '08-'09
International Drum Major Institute (IDMI) Drum Major Instructor
World Drum Major Association (WDMA) Clinician/Instructor

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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by tooweird » Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:52 pm

Joyce M David wrote:I wear these type of gloves. Or if you have anything similar to that. Then that would be fine so you don't have to buy:

http://www.marchingworld.com/pg014.htm

I would suggest the B style with grip.

I agree with one of the posts before me in the appearance when wearing gloves. In my opinion, I think they show off very well especially from far away and look really nice with free hands and the blade if pulled off right. If you choose to go down the road and use gloves, what I would suggest is having two pairs of gloves. One pair would be for practice and can use everytime. And then the other pair is for competition. Because you have a separate pair of competition gloves, they will keep clean and nice for the actual event.
thanks joyce for continuing to reply and adding more tips and advice! I've been talking to him about getting gloves..I like the ones from marching world and the golf gloves as well. It definitely is smart to get two pairs of gloves (one for comp and one for practice) just like with sets of rifles.

I do have another drum major related question and I'm sure you and others could help me out as well. Our drum major plans to do some tosses in his routine, are drum majors allowed to look up when they toss or do they have to keep their focus and look straight. Our drum major's hat is just like our band's and has a black brim in the front. We're trying to look into a beret style hat for him to wear. What should he be doing? Should he keep his attention forward? Any advice would be helpful :D
Mark L.
Archbishop Riordan Crusader Marching Band (04-07)
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by ZJH » Sat Aug 15, 2009 10:18 pm

For purposes of a parade routine, tosses shouldn't be looked at because you're trying to emulate military protocol. So if he absolutely has to look at it, there's a sort of cheat that DMs use. Start with your head angle slightly up, with your eyes above the horizon. Then if you toss, you can just shift your eyes instead of moving your head. Then again, with the brim of the headgear, that would be hard.

He could always just practice his routine until he doesn't have to look at the mace anymore. lol
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by bigcity » Sun Aug 16, 2009 8:51 pm

In regards to the toss question, I would only advise that if he can not do the toss with out looking, then don't do it. For me personally, I find it quite annoying every time I see a DM that tries to show off and put in a huge toss, but has to look at it. It breaks down that military presence that is trying to be emulated. The poster before is correct in stating that. Knowing some judges, looking at a toss is a HUGE "burr in the saddle" if you will. They can't stand it. From a routine construction point of view, a toss is a nice element, however, rarely is a review held in a dome. Meaning, that there will be wind, and what the wind does to the mace or military is a toss up. Why put your routine to chance? It is the whole risk/reward question. For my students, if they can not toss "doubles" with out looking for 5 straight times, then I take the toss out of the routine. There is nothing more impressive than a DM that can execute a routine without a single head movement before the salute.

As for the shako/beret, I would lean against the beret. Again, from a judging point of view, tricks above the head are much more difficult with a shako than a beret. In addition, the shako presents a more authoritative presence than a beret.

Again, just my two cents....


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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by ZJH » Mon Aug 17, 2009 9:24 am

Regarding the shako issue as bigcity pointed out, it does add to the Execution score. The exposure to error and degree of difficulty rises if using a shako. I used to do palm spins with a bearskin on, so I'm sure your friend can do some overhead stuff as well with the headgear Riordan wears.
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Re: Drum Major Gloves

Post by crickett » Mon Aug 17, 2009 12:06 pm

From a showmanship standpoint the beret doesn't offer as much as the shako. Especially if the rest of the band is in shako's. Remember the DM's first responsibility is to the band. They are a part of the showmanship score up here. And yes, a good DM routine adds to the score but so does the look. Just my to cents again. :)

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