Reply To: How to start a Marching Band

[nafmeadmin]

Starting a marching band would be very different from just giving your students a taste of what marching band is about. I’m at a charter school (K-12) a little over 100 students in grades 5-12. This spring, I also had the thought of giving students a taste of marching band. So for about a week, the 7th and 8th grade band (about 35 students) 1) watched an inspirational video clip at the start of each class (something like an excerpt from this DCI finals video); 2) went outside to our parking lot (no instruments) and learned marching basics (forwards and backwards, dressing lines, sliding, etc.); and 3) learned a five set “show” that we marched (no music) and taped from the roof of the school.

We have no marching equipment of any kind, but most of the students really enjoyed just learning how a marching band moves. I can’t see my school being in a position to field a marching band any time in the near future, but I plan on exposing them to marching like this next year, too.