October 28th, 2013 at 8:08 AM ^
If someone is doing this by hand, it would blow my mind.
I was a huge band geek in HS, and was really proud of our marching band. My best friend and I petitioned the director to let us write a drill for our senior year. He told us he would consider it, but warned us of how complex there were.
We were both top 5 in our class (inner city high school, so thats not as impressive as it might be elsewhere) but this was one of the hardest things I did in HS. We thought we had it perfect, and the director gave us 2 practices to team it to see how it would go - and as he predicted it was a disaster.
Attempting to teach kids who have been drilled for years exact timing and spacing to march at different speeds than the person next to them does not go over well. Our crossing patterns completely fogot to take into account the length of a trombone. What on paper had been brilliant (in our eyes) was a disaster on the field (Hey- Al Borges!).. After 5 weeks of re-design we finally had an acceptable version. I put more work into that drill than I did my AP physics class.
Whether written by hand or by computer what these bands are doing these days blows my mind.
October 27th, 2013 at 7:43 PM ^
It was probably wise for the OSU band to not pay homage to the last few years of MJ's life in that tribute show.
October 27th, 2013 at 1:25 PM ^
What the hell are you talking about? It was a great show, we've had great shows too. Does not mean anyone is kicking anyone's butt. This was our week 1 show:
This was followed by the Beyonce show that went viral.
p.s. People like you annoy me.
October 27th, 2013 at 1:29 PM ^
1. Ranking?-no.
2. Players in the NFL? - no.
3. Head to head record over the past 15 years?- no.
4. Graduation rate? - sadly no.
Looks like we can add "band" to this list.
October 27th, 2013 at 1:50 PM ^
October 27th, 2013 at 2:53 PM ^
To be fair, Cal has the lowest graduation rate of the year, and I think historically that school produces top-notch graduates and rates for its football players. OSU has had a nice run recently, but historically UM has been just as competitive, and this minor hiccup in the rivalry is not going to remain the case going forward.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:07 PM ^
October 27th, 2013 at 4:03 PM ^
the words "In my opinion". Because the "best" band would really have to be in someone's own opinion, right?
October 27th, 2013 at 1:52 PM ^
dinosaurs, pirates, and Michael Jackson.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:07 PM ^
Is our band ever going to play music again? Or will it just continue to be dumb sideshows starring the PA anouncer?
October 27th, 2013 at 2:07 PM ^
October 27th, 2013 at 2:15 PM ^
Good show, but yet another ripoff of a bunch of MMB's old halftime shows.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:20 PM ^
Bitching about the MMB is why we, as Michigan fans, can't have nice things.
This site would be a much better place if band topics went the way of politics.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:27 PM ^
I'm not ashamed to say that probably three of the best five halftime shows I've ever seen were done by the OSUMB. They're a very good, traditional, well-directed band. Always have been, probably always will. And hate Ohio State as much as you want, Script Ohio is pretty awesome.
As for comparing with ours, well, it's pretty much apples and oranges now. The MMB has pretty much gone full DCI corps for everything but pregame in the last five to ten years.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:42 PM ^
Eh. They've been basically full DCI since at least Sedatole.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:44 PM ^
As a former BoA marcher and DCI fan, l enjoy the band going all DCI. I CANNOT stand traditional marching.
Give me the Cadets z line marched at 150+ BPM over the script ohio anyday.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:52 PM ^
That's great, but the MMB isn't a DCI corps.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:12 PM ^
That's great, but it's not gonna change the direction collegiate marching bands are going just because you or whoever else don't approve of DCI style integrating itself in traditional marching bands.
Almost all marching bands will always retain traditional elements, but they will constantly be finding avenues to sound better, because marching bands are generally the most highly publicized band ensembles in the country, and no school of music wants to sound incompetent in their most publicized ensembles. They would much rather convert to DCI style because of the better sound quality output. At the expense of volume, at the expense of who cares. They don't. Haithcock doesn't (and won't), and neither does Pasquale. Marching band positions are, generally, just stepping stones to DOB positions.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:13 PM ^
Yawn. Resigning ourselves to goofy flag uniforms and flying fake guns and loopy formations that don't look like anything to anyone even when they're actually set correctly. Everything pointed at the press box for the imaginary judges, too. Just becoming more and more like everyone else. The MMB isn't a DCI corps; it should stop acting like one.
As for the job comments, funny, though, how is MSU able to keep a guy like John Madden for, what, 20 years now? How did OSU keep Jon Woods as long as they did? I realize there are historic reasons for why the MMB job turned into what it's become (up until the mid-90s, the pay wasn't just substandard, it was embarrassing), but to resign the job to a launching pad for aspiring DOBs just because it went through a string of people for which that was true is selling the job short.
October 27th, 2013 at 9:11 PM ^
October 27th, 2013 at 9:39 PM ^
I guess my short-version response to the DCI thing at Michigan is if it doesn't look like anything, and for most of the stadium it literally doesn't sound like anything, what is it?
Like you indicated below, DCI is the standard for band people. But in a stadium of 110,000 people who just want to see and hear a show that gives them something recognizable and entertaining, an avant garde DCI performance with weird ribbon flags and percussion props, it's just going to come up flat. In Michigan Stadium, you're not playing to the press box--you're playing to everyone in the seats.
Like it or not, most people are not band people. They want to see Superman getting out of a phone booth or MJ doing the moonwalk. Or at least straight lines and diags doing interesting things. Look at the kind of reaction these OSU shows are getting around the web (and they were doing this stuff with Woods, see their show for the 2006 Game), and you'll see what works. Just like our weirdo show last week. It's odd, but people could figure out it was odd. And at the very least it was funny. Showtunes and latin jazz shows and Cirque du Soleil stuff don't match up.
October 28th, 2013 at 9:24 AM ^
Well, then you are not a fan of Boerma and you will be a fan of Pasquale, it seems. (Both are heavily DCI-involved people, of course.)
That said, the CDs from the past few years have been boss. Maybe it's not the best for a football Saturday, but man, for listening, it's exciting.
With that said, 3/8 or more of the Toilet Bowl couldn't figure out what was on the field...have to be careful with those "animational" shows because you don't want half the stadium to be confused by why everyone is cheering like mad.
And just to be totally clear--Jon Woods wasn't doing Michael Jackson doing the moonwalk. He just left. Both bands are now under new leadership, and both look to be promising for the future.
October 28th, 2013 at 9:42 AM ^
I know Woods retired... Notice I was talking about 2006.
October 28th, 2013 at 3:22 PM ^
So wait a second, you're actually cool with the band deciding to go in a direction that "isn't the best for a football Saturday" but sounds good on a CD?
About 90% of the point of the Michigan Marching band is football Saturday. Yeah, there is the Chrisler Concert and Band 'O Rama, and the occasional parade and pep rally. But any decision on the band that isn't focusing on football saturdays is just plain idiotic.
Halftime shows at football games should be entertaining to the fans in attendance, not meant to score high on some imaginary judges scorecard at a marching competition that the band isn't imvolved in.. Obviously the band wants to sound and look great, but you also have to know your audience.
October 27th, 2013 at 5:28 PM ^
Can one of you explain what's going on here? I've noticed the band is often very hard to hear during its halftime shows the past few years, and people I've taken to the games have generally complained about that. What are the tradeoffs supposed to be? What's driving the changes?
October 27th, 2013 at 9:20 PM ^
November 11th, 2013 at 10:12 PM ^
Thanks.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:16 PM ^
your point? This is not the 1890's anymore
October 27th, 2013 at 4:27 PM ^
Your point total is beginning to make sense.
October 27th, 2013 at 5:49 PM ^
I keep it real. Especially when it comes to politics on this board.
October 27th, 2013 at 2:40 PM ^
/offweekanalyzed
October 27th, 2013 at 2:41 PM ^
Congrats on putting on a good halftime show. I'm not sure why people get so worked up about Marching Bands, though. I mean, other than Atlanta A&T University's one.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:24 PM ^
Come on, you're comparing probably their best performance this year with probably our most "blah" one. The MMB has had many inspired performances.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:29 PM ^
there's a halftime 'show?' ...band? whaaa?? all this time I go to the restrooms, buy concessions since smuggling in food or water is a University offense, then walk laps around the big house, and all these years there were half time shows...I'll be danged.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:43 PM ^
Yeah, but look at UTL II's half time show. That thing was insane.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:43 PM ^
I expected to see at least 50 "points" in the negative column here. Really though, until Ohio stops kicking our butts in football, I am not going to spend much time worrying about the band.
In other words, I would much rather see the effort continue to go into building the program back to where the Ohio game is a toss-up or (gasp) Michigan is favored.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:45 PM ^
OSU's band does kick our band's ass. I hate to admit that, but after going to an osu game and seeing their band live, it was pretty obvious. There's a reason the band director last year left Michigan to be the director at Western Michigan.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:14 PM ^
because it was a promotion from being a marching band director to running the entire damn band program at his alma mater?
99/100 directors would take that opportunity in a heartbeat. Hell, Brady Hoke did the football equivalent in 2002 when he left Michigan to coach at Ball State.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:23 PM ^
And keep in mind Boerma actually took a demotion to be the MMB director, as he was DOB at EMU before he came here. And he's a Michigan alum, too, he did his MA at the Music School.
October 27th, 2013 at 3:53 PM ^
It pains me to admit this, but their marching band genuinely is among the best in the country.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:42 PM ^
Why not just enjoy the show? OSU doesn't get points for putting on a great band show; we don't lose points for their band being good.
I think it is pretty sweet to have two great bands in our Stadium every other November; most bowl games aren't that good.
One thing for Michigan to learn from the OSU Marching Band is that Ohio loves their band just for being a good band; not as the pit orchestra for a Beyonce/Eminem show. The other thing, that is harder for us to deal with, is that in Ohio, TBDBITL is regarded as a kind of a state natural treasure. So the OSU Marching Band plays for the Browns, the Bengals, they play with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, they play at Cedar Point, etc., etc., etc. They are the whole state's unofficial band.
Michiganians are too divided for that. Half of us have no fealty for either the Michigan or Michican State band. I can always get excited for the moment, when the MSU Marching Band does their cadence coming out of their north tunnel before the Michigan game. But for me, they wouldn't represent our state.
October 27th, 2013 at 5:50 PM ^
Because I'm a Michigan fan and I don't like to admit that Ohio is genuinely good at anything at all.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:11 PM ^
OSU's marching band is like Terrell Owens: flashes of brilliance pockmarked with arrogance and occasional WTF moments that make you hate it even more.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:21 PM ^
Although, maybe they should spend more time in class learning about scale, unless Superman is a giant or he just saved the world's smallest building from falling over.
October 27th, 2013 at 4:27 PM ^
but they pretty much do kick our behinds
October 27th, 2013 at 4:47 PM ^
well, that was awesome. Like their Michael Jackson moonwalk a couple weeks ago, this band is both fan-friendly and spot on. I'm impressed. And I would like to see more of this type of fun creativity - non-media driven just pure marching band - from our band.
October 27th, 2013 at 5:54 PM ^
threads like this are the reason i hate talking to non band people about marching band.
October 27th, 2013 at 6:48 PM ^
Or why I hate talking B1G college marching bands with people who never marched past their last high school band competition.
October 27th, 2013 at 7:45 PM ^
i marched college. Thanks for assuming.
I ammend my post. I hate talking marching band with non-bandos and bando's stuck in 1950.
October 27th, 2013 at 7:00 PM ^
good stuff, but no star wars in the blockbuster movie show? weak