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Summertime Stamina
A performer without stamina is like a sailboat on an ocean without wind. It may look great, but there is ... -
Prep for Auditions
Success in auditions requires preparation, practice and experience. These suggestions will organize your practice time and help you develop confidence ... -
Keep It Clean
Keeping your instrument and mouthpiece clean will improve both the performance and longevity of your instrument (and prevent you from ... -
Eight-on-a-Hand
Eight-on-a-hand comes in various shapes and sizes but is universally the first exercise a drum line plays when warming up. ... -
Keep It Warm
Depending where you live in the country, it may be the middle to end of winter guard season. In this ... -
Ask Questions
Students and teachers are partners with the same goal: You seek information; we have the information you seek (hopefully). Effectively ... -
Time to Get Hyped!
Drum lines are famous (or infamous) for ways in which they encourage bonding, notably through hypes. What's a hype? From ... -
From the Door to the Floor
Winter guard season is upon us and with it brings an entirely new performance perspective. The audience and judges are ... -
Lessons From Klose, Baermann
Hyacinthe Klose. Carl Baermann. Names, as a clarinet player, you need to know. From James Snyder, the Clarinet Guy -
Multiple Tonguing
In a previous column I discussed single tonguing, using the syllables “t” and “d” to start the note. This article ... -
“Flam”- Boyant
Flam rudiments are the most complex rudiments facing a marching percussionist. They are challenging to play and even harder to ... -
Showmanship: Write It In
The best performers are those who take the leap to rehearse expressive qualities with every run-through. But let’s be real. ... -
Starting the Day
Every day is a new start for a flutist, and I begin the day with exercises to prepare for a ... -
Harness Your Air
Notes on a brass instrument are produced by a combination of air compression and lip compression. The balance can be ... -
Achieving Sound Quality
What does great sound quality mean? Play clean! As a marching percussionist, you hear that all the time, but that’s ... -
On the Move
Proper marching is a critical element of clean, crisp routines. A strong core, sideline awareness and staying in step all ... -
Overcoming Boredom
I got an email recently from someone who is “bored” with their playing and wondered what suggestions I had to ... -
Tongue Talk
The tongue helps determine the forcefulness of the initial air expulsion (the attack), the velocity of the air to follow ... -
Practice for Performance
What do some of the best groups do that maybe yours doesn’t? They recreate the show experience in as much ... -
Engage the Upper Arms
Many performers focus only on their wrists and forearm muscles when spinning or stopping the rifle. But the muscles in ... -
The Skinny on Reeds
Advice for reed players from Jim Snyder. From Halftime Magazine, a print and online publication about the marching arts. -
Key Fluency
Advice for brass players from Chase Sanborn. From Halftime Magazine, a print and online publication about the marching arts. -
GE Demystified
Advice for drum lines from Dennis DeLucia. From Halftime Magazine, a print and online publication about the marching arts. -
Aim for 100
Advice for color guards from Catina Anderson, from Halftime Magazine, a print and online publication about the marching arts. -
Focus on Phrasing
Phrasing begins with the basic building blocks of music, scales and arpeggios, and musical expression adds content to basic notes ... -
Audition Advice
As aspiring music students anxiously prepare for university auditions, faculty members hope that talented and teachable young musicians will arrive ... -
Organizations to Know
Today, drummers and percussionists have a wealth of information and opportunity available to them. Here is a list of organizations ... -
In the Toaster
Advice for color guard performers from Catina Anderson. From Halftime Magazine, the sights, sounds and spirit of the marching arts. -
Why Tone?
Find out how to control your tone through all dynamic levels and performance settings from Jeff Coffin, three-time Grammy Award ... -
Close Your Eyes
Tips for brass musicians from Halftime Magazine, a print publication about the marching arts.