School band - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

A school band is a group of student

Student

A student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...

musicians who rehearse and perform instrumental

Instrumental

An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....

music

Music

Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...

together. A concert band

Concert band

A concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, wind ensemble, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of several members of the woodwind instrument family, brass instrument family, and percussion instrument family.A...

is usually under the direction of one or more conductors

Conducting

Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...

(band directors). A school band consists of wind instrument

Wind instrument

A wind instrument is a musical instrument that contains some type of resonator , in which a column of air is set into vibration by the player blowing into a mouthpiece set at the end of the resonator. The pitch of the vibration is determined by the length of the tube and by manual modifications of...

s and percussion

Percussion instrument

A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...

instruments, although upper level bands may also have string basses or bass guitar

Bass guitar

The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

.

School bands tend to be more common in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

than others due to a vast increase in funding to music education in recent years. School bands in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

are generally similar to those in the US although pure brass bands are more commonplace in schools than in the US. Some countries usually prefer certain special types of bands, usually drums, over conventional ones. The school band movement in Japan is unusually strong, organized around an enormous competition system administered by the All-Japan Band Association

All-Japan Band Association

The All Japan Band Association is an organization that exists solely for the purpose of facilitating an enormous annual music competition among Japanese wind bands...

. Many international observers of Japanese school bands consider them to be the most impressive in the world, particularly among very young students, and Japan is also home to one of the world's leading professional concert bands, the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra

Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra

The is a professional concert band that has long been regarded as one of the world's finest, perhaps rivaled only in recent years by the Dallas Wind Symphony ....

Middle school bands

Although some children learn an instrument prior to entering a middle school

Middle school

Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...

(or junior high), students in music education

Music education

Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...

programs within the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

generally start daily band classes in the 6th or 7th Grade. The students usually make up a band based upon their grade which may then be broken up into sectionals to provide better instrument-specific instruction. It is sometimes required for beginner students to play a recorder for a year before learning another insrument, so that basics, such as scales, embouchure

Embouchure

The embouchure is the use of facial muscles and the shaping of the lips to the mouthpiece of woodwind instruments or the mouthpiece of the brass instruments.The word is of French origin and is related to the root bouche , 'mouth'....

, etc. can be taught easily.
A "beginning" band, consisting of the youngest students in the school, usually gives two or three concerts a year, and may participate in a local/state contest. These bands are given easy but challenging music to learn, often with many duplicate parts and simple rhythms. Students sometimes may be required to memorize the 12 major scales

Major scale

In music theory, the major scale or Ionian scale is one of the diatonic scales. It is made up of seven distinct notes, plus an eighth which duplicates the first an octave higher. In solfege these notes correspond to the syllables "Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti/Si, ", the "Do" in the parenthesis at...

.
Depending upon the size of the school, there may be one to three "higher level" bands after the beginning band. These bands are usually divided similarly to high school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

bands. Some schools require students to audition and be placed in a band according to their ability on their instrument. Others will assign students based on their performance as seen in class. Yet others will simply sort the students according to their age or grade level. Most of these decisions are decided by the conductor. These higher level bands will occasionally play in high school games and pep rallies to augment the local high school band, although in small schools they always come to these events.

Essential Elements 2000

Developed by Tim Lautzenheiser, John Higgins, Charles Menghini, Paul Lavender, Tom Rhodes, and Don Bierschenk.
The series comes with a detailed chart listing the sequence of concepts included. Rhythms begin with long tones, quarter notes, quarter rests, 4/4, 3/4, and 2/4 meter, eighth notes and rests and dotted half, quarter and eighth notes, and sixteenth notes. The series includes brief melodic examples and biographies of Baroque

Baroque

The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...

, Classical

Classical music

Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

, and Romantic

Romantic music

Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....

composers. Additional styles include Latin American, Japanese folk music, African American spirituals, American folk songs, and European folk songs. The title of many exercises fits the concept being covered.

The order of the major topics covered are posture, embouchure, music staff, ledger lines, measures, bar lines, beat, notes and rests, double bar, repeat sign, clef, sharp, flat, natural, breath marks, fermatas, percussion flams, ties, accents, first and second endings, D.C. al fine, slurs, glissandos, multiple rests, chromatic scales. The topics are evaluated through playing quiz assessments. Special feature sections throughout the text include activities that point out developmental skills for students. Teaching tips are included for every exercise.

The text includes fingering charts, supplemental rhythm studies at varying levels of difficulty, and scale/arpeggio exercises for the full ensemble. The Essential Creativity activities are simple composition activities that reinforce phrase building and musical question/answer. The Percussion Tips section provides a large source of information for teaching snare and keyboard percussion. A piano accompaniment book is available, as well as an accompaniment-track CD.

Accent on Achievement

Developed by John O’Reilly and Mark Williams.
The text includes the following supplemental exercises: Accent on Theory, Accent on Listening, Accent on (specific instrument), Accent on Creativity. Accent on Theory exercises have the students write in note names and fingerings, or arrange dynamic levels from softest to loudest. Accent on Listening exercises have students echo specific pitches or play melodies by ear and fill in the missing pitches. Accent on Creativity exercises have the students create rhythmic variations or improvise rhythms on a series of given pitches. Specific instrument exercises are designed to develop certain technical skills.

An additional section of exercises includes Accent on Performance, Accent on Scales, Accent on Rhythms, Accent on Chorales, and Accent on Rests. Accent on Performance includes holiday selections and marches. Accent on Scales covers the F, B-flat, E-flat, and A-flat major scales and the chromatic scale. Accent on Rhythms contains twenty exercises in varying rhythmic combination, including quarter notes, eighth notes, and dotted quarter/eighth note combinations. Accent on Rests contains ten examples reviewing half, quarter, eighth, and multiple-measure rests. Accent on Chorales contains four chorales in the keys of F, B-flat, E-flat, and A-flat major.

Terms are presented in the following order: staff, clef, time signature, bar line, measure, double bar, ledger lines, musical alphabet, solo, 4/4 meter, whole note, whole rest, flat, quarter note, duet, breath mark, half note, half rest, 2/4 meter, quarter rest, round, repeat sign, tie, key signature, tempo markings, moderato, allegro, eighth notes, andante, variation, interval, repeat, 1st and 2nd endings, slur, dotted half notes, divisi, 3/4 meter, natural, forte, piano, key signature, ritardando, fermata, pick up notes, accent, orchestration, single eighth note, eighth rest, staccato, dotted quarter note, D.C. al fine, syncopation, dotted quarter/ eighth note combination.

The exercises include simplified themes by a variety of composers and folk songs from a variety of countries. The Teacher Resource Kit includes twenty-one history worksheets, eight theory worksheets, five world music locators, comprehensive assessment exercises for all instruments, four parent letters, listening CD of classical music found in the method book plus band arrangements and chorales, twenty rhythm flash cards, listening exercises, student performance evaluation form, and worksheet record keeping form.

Yamaha Band Student

Developed by Sandy Feldstein and John O’Reilly
The material typically covered in book one in other series is divided into book one and two in the Yamaha series. Book Two is a continuation of Book One without progressing to the level of difficulty found in the second book of other series.

Book One presents terms in the following order: staff, clef, bar line, measure, double bar, whole note, whole rest, time signature, half note, half rest, breath mark, quarter note, quarter rest, repeat signs, tempo markings, 2/4 meter, and ties, eighth note, slur, key signature, 1st and 2nd ending, dotted half notes, sharps, pick up notes, 3/4 meter, accent, dynamics, staccato, multiple measure rests, eighth rests, divisi, dotted quarter notes, D. C. al fine, crescendo, diminuendo, legato, D. S. al fine, fermata, dotted quarter-eighth note combinations, previous measure repeat, and common time signature.

Exercises include occasional instrument-specific exercises. Many of the melodies do not list the composer or country/culture of origin.

Book Two contains two parts for each exercise. The first is a unison arrangement for full band, and the second is in a more comfortable range for each specific instrument. Book Two also contains all of the major and minor scales. Terms are presented in the following order: syncopation, cut time, tenuto, ritardano, a tempo, sixteenth notes, accelerando, 3/8 meter, 6/8 meter, enharmonics, triplets, chromatic scale.

Theory exercises in Book Two include Key Signature Review and Chromatic Scale Study.

Supplemental resources include a Teacher’s Resource Guide; a collection of mixed ensembles that correlate page by page with the method book; three poster-sized rhythm charts; a collection of fourteen compositions and arrangements correlated with book one; a student reference source containing fingering charts, practice charts, and glossary; and a duet book.

Standard of Excellence

Developed by Bruce Pearson
Terms are presented in the following order: 4/4 meter, whole notes, whole rests, tone, half notes, half rests, quarter notes, clef, tonguing, repeats, quarter rests, fermata, ties, common time, breath marks, repeat signs, eighth notes, dynamics, 3/4 meter, dotted half notes, eighth rests, dotted quarter notes, sixteenth notes, 1st and 2nd endings, D. C. al fine.

Periodically in the text, there are exercises including composition, listening, history, and theory activities. The latter pages of the text contain instrument-specific Excellerators, scale studies, rhythm studies, and glossary. Fingering charts with large pictures of each instrument and its history are included in each book, and a list of the Percussive Arts Society International Drum Rudiments is included in the percussion book.

A large assortment of supplemental materials is included within the book. These include instrument-specific solos; an achievement chart designed to give students points for successfully completing each exercise; accompaniment recordings; diagrams for instrument care, assembly, and proper playing and sitting positions.

The teacher’s edition includes ten quizzes, world maps, a keyboard diagram, conducting patterns, and a Band Director’s Anthology covering philosophical issues, recruitment and retaining tips, parent relations suggestions, instrument selection considerations, tips on motivation, forms and sample letters.

Separate resources include a piano/guitar book and a history/theory workbook.

Belwin 21st Century

Developed by Jack Bullock and Anthony Maiello
Level One is organized into eighteen lessons structured into three units. In addition to the exercises there are four song pages, three concert programs, sixteen extra credit exercises, a fingering chart, an interactive video featuring Wytnon Marsalis, and a practice chart.

The early exercises in the text are divided into three groups. All are rote exercises; group one and three include unison and non-unison, while group two contains only non-unison. The purpose is to make the first three notes the students play the easiest for that particular instrument as well as including a version for group unison play. After these are learned it is suggested the students compose their own melodies based on the pitches learned thus far.

Terms are presented in the following order: staff, bar lines, clef, time signature, accidentals, whole notes, whole rests, breath mark, half notes, half rests, quarter notes, repeat signs, eighth notes, round, tie, dotted half notes, 1st and 2nd endings, pick up notes, eighth rests, dotted quarter-eighth note combinations, slur, dynamics, ritardando, fermata, multiple measure rests.

The text has a number of supplement items contained in the method book: instrument workouts for each instrument, presentation suggestions with behavioral objectives, piano accompaniments, and information on exercise origins.

Conclusions

Standard of Excellence, Accent on Achievement, and Essential Elements include a broad approach. These series cover a large variety of musical concepts and skills within a shorter number of exercises.

Belwin and Yamaha include a concise and focused approach. These series center on providing specific fundamental skills and techniques within a larger number of exercises.

Standard of Excellence, Accent on Achievement, and Essential Elements include multi-cultural music as well as specific supplemental information on the music that represents a particular culture or nation.

Belwin, Standard of Excellence, Accent on Achievement, and Essential Elements include a large variety of specific exercises. Yamaha contains an occasional specific exercise but these are not presented in units such as the “Accent on…” sections of Accent on Achievement.

All five of the method books discussed above provide information in specific units that discuss the historical applications of the music being presented in the series. Other method books (e.g. Alfred, Silver Burdett, Hal Leonard) do not contain such historical supplements.

All five of the method books discussed above except for Belwin provide specific units and sections on the development of music theory.

All five of the method books discussed above include a CD for student practice, and all except Yamaha include a piano accompaniment book.

High school bands

High school bands typically challenge students musically more than those in middle school. Music is much more difficult with more complex passages, intricate rhythms and more involved phrasing. Selections also vary in style. A well-rounded band is expected to be able to play a wide variety of music, ranging from serious 'program music' to lighter 'pops-style' music. For many high school students, school bands are the main form of music education

Music education

available to them in school. Marches

March (music)

A march, as a musical genre, is a piece of music with a strong regular rhythm which in origin was expressly written for marching to and most frequently performed by a military band. In mood, marches range from the moving death march in Wagner's Götterdämmerung to the brisk military marches of John...

were the first major contributions to the wind band repertoire. There are many amazing pieces other than marches written for wind band at present, but there are some historical standards that should be included into the repertoire of advanced ensembles. Some of the most notable of these pieces are Holst

Gustav Holst

Gustav Theodore Holst was an English composer. He is most famous for his orchestral suite The Planets....

's First Suite in E-flat and Second Suite in F
Second Suite in F for Military Band
The Second Suite in F for Military Band is Gustav Holst's second and last suite for concert band. Although performed less frequently than the First Suite in E-flat, it is still a staple of the band literature...

, and Grainger's

Percy Grainger

George Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...

Children's March and Lincolnshire Posy
Lincolnshire Posy
Lincolnshire Posy is a piece by Percy Grainger for concert band composed in 1937 for the American Bandmasters Association. Considered Grainger's masterpiece, the work is composed of six movements, each adapted from folk songs that Grainger had collected on a 1905–1906 trip to Lincolnshire,...

among others.

Below is a list of the instrumentation

Instrumentation (music)

In music, instrumentation refers to the particular combination of musical instruments employed in a composition, and to the properties of those instruments individually...

in a typical band at the high school level. Middle school/junior high bands are usually around the upper values for each instrument. Instrumentation in beginner bands is usually much larger than this. College and professional bands generally have smaller numbers of players. These numbers may vary widely, based on the instrument and the people playing them (as many people playing instruments such as tuba may drop out, causing others to change instruments to fill the need).

Woodwind

1 or no Piccolo in C
Piccolo
The piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The piccolo has the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written...
8 Flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...

s
1-2 Oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...

s
1 or no English Horn
Cor anglais
The cor anglais , or English horn , is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family....
1-2 Bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...

s
1 or no Eb Clarinet
E-flat clarinet
The E-flat clarinet is a member of the clarinet family. It is usually classed as a soprano clarinet, although some authors describe it as a "sopranino" or even "piccolo" clarinet. Smaller in size and higher in pitch than the more common B clarinet, it is a transposing instrument in E, sounding a...
8-9 Bb Clarinets
Soprano clarinet
The soprano clarinets are a sub-family of the clarinet family.The B clarinet is by far the most common type of soprano clarinet - the unmodified word "clarinet" usually refers to this instrument...
1 or no Eb Alto Clarinet
Alto clarinet
The alto clarinet is a wind instrument of the clarinet family. It is a transposing instrument pitched in the key of E, though instruments in F have been made. It is sometimes known as a tenor clarinet; this name especially is applied to the instrument in F...
2 Bb Bass Clarinets
Bass clarinet
The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B , but it plays notes an octave below the soprano B clarinet...
1 or no EEb Contra-alto Clarinet
Contra-alto clarinet
The contra-alto clarinet is a large, low-sounding musical instrument of the clarinet family. The modern contra-alto clarinet is pitched in the key of EE and is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the EE contrabass clarinet...
1 or no BBb Contrabass Clarinet
Contrabass clarinet
The contrabass clarinet is the largest member of the clarinet family that has ever been in regular production or significant use. Modern contrabass clarinets are pitched in BB, sounding two octaves lower than the common B soprano clarinet and one octave lower than the B bass clarinet...
1 or no Bb Soprano Saxophone
Soprano saxophone
The soprano saxophone is a variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument, invented in 1840. The soprano is the third smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists of the soprillo, sopranino, soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, bass, contrabass and tubax.A transposing instrument pitched in...
4 Eb Alto Saxophones
Alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
2 Bb Tenor Saxophones
Tenor saxophone
The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
1 Eb Baritone Saxophone
Baritone saxophone
The baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece...

Brass

8 Bb Trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...

s
4 Horns in F
7-9 Trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...

s
1-2 Euphonium
Euphonium
The euphonium is a conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument. It derives its name from the Greek word euphonos, meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced"...

s (or Baritone
Baritone horn
The baritone horn is a member of the brass instrument family. The baritone horn has a predominantly cylindrical bore as do the trumpet and trombone. A baritone horn uses a large mouthpiece much like those of a trombone or euphonium, although it is a bit smaller. Some baritone mouthpieces will sink...

)
4 Tuba
Tuba
The tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...

s

Strings

1 String Bass or Electric Bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

Percussion

Percussionists playing:
Snare drum
Snare drum
The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
Tom-toms
Tom-tom drum
A tom-tom drum is a cylindrical drum with no snare.Although "tom-tom" is the British term for a child's toy drum, the name came originally from the Anglo-Indian and Sinhala; the tom-tom itself comes from Asian or Native American cultures...
Bass drum
Bass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
Cymbal
Cymbal
Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...

s including crash
Crash cymbal
A crash cymbal is a type of cymbal that produces a loud, sharp "crash" and is used mainly for occasional accents, as opposed to in ostinato. The term "crash" may have been first used by Zildjian in 1928....

, ride
Ride cymbal
The ride cymbal is a standard cymbal in most drum kits. It maintains a steady rhythmic pattern, sometimes called a ride pattern, rather than the accent of a crash...

, and suspended
Suspended cymbal
right|thumb|Classical suspended cymbalA suspended cymbal is any single cymbal played with a stick or beater rather than struck against another cymbal. A common abbreviation used is sus. cym., or sus. cymb. .-History:...
Tambourine
Tambourine
The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
2 playing Mallet Percussion, including orchestra bells, xylophone
Xylophone
The xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets...

, marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...

, chimes and vibraphone
Vibraphone
The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
1 Timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
1 Drum kit
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
1 set of Chimes
A variety of other auxiliary percussion instruments used on specific pieces, including Cabasa
Cabasa
The cabasa, similar to the shekere, is a percussion instrument that is constructed with loops of steel ball chain wrapped around a wide cylinder. The cylinder is fixed to a long, narrow wooden or plastic handle....

, Triangle
Triangle (instrument)
The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...

, and Maracas.

In most middle school bands, strings are not used. If they are, the band is considered an orchestra.

College bands

Many colleges/universities have band as a class. Some are integrated within a 'Music' course while others are not. They tend to be larger than a high school band and play at a higher level.

Other school bands

There are many other school band opportunities for students. Most of these fall under the jurisdiction of the director that teaches the daily band classes, whether or not the smaller groups meet daily or during school hours.

Marching band

Many schools, especially high schools in the United States, have a marching band

Marching band

Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...

. A school marching band may contain from 11 to over 500 students. Marching bands often practice frequently during the late summer and early fall and most often attend their school's football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

games, playing music in the stands, and marching a show during halftime. A show is usually between 6 and 10 minutes long, but many competitions place restrictions on length. Bands often compete in marching band competitions throughout the marching season (typically the same time as football season). Competitions vary in intensity. Some areas have many smaller, local competitions hosted by individual schools. Others host a regional competition. Others, such as Bands of America

Bands of America

Bands of America , a division of Music for All, Inc., is an organization that promotes and organizes marching band competitions for high school students. Competitions include both Regional and Super Regional Championships as well as the Grand National Championships...

competitions are nationally known and take place in professional arenas.

In addition to their show, marching bands often march parades. Often this is limited to their city or town's municipal parades, but some bands travel to participate in well known parades, such as the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, often shortened to Macy's Day Parade, is an annual parade presented by Macy's. The tradition started in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States along with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit, and four years younger than...

or the Tournament of Roses Parade

Tournament of Roses Parade

The Tournament of Roses Parade, better known as the Rose Parade, is "America's New Year Celebration", a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and a college football game on New Year's Day , produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association.The annual...

on New Years Day.

Jazz band

Many schools have jazz programs in addition to their concert program. Different schools have different time slots for their jazz band. Some meet as an actual class during the school day. Others choose to practice after school two or three times a week. Meeting as a class during school can often cause schedule conflicts with students' academic classes. Typical instrumentation for jazz ensembles will include trumpets, trombones, alto, tenor and baritone saxophones, a drum set (often called a 'trap set',) guitar, bass guitar, piano, clarinet and often, a vibraphone. Many areas have jazz festivals, but the popularity of these widely vary from different regions of the country. Jazz bands are most often used as an ambassador ensemble for the band program as a whole. In addition, jazz education is seen as growing in popularity as a speciality area within school music departments.

Chamber Ensembles

Schools rarely have chamber music ensembles that meet as real classes, usually depending on the region, state and budget. Most of these groups are ad hoc ensembles put together by the director or the students themselves for a contest or recital. Examples would be clarinet quartets, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, duets, and trios. Groups consisting of the entire woodwind or brass section of a band are also sometimes formed.

All-region bands

Perhaps not associated with the individual school, All-Region bands are audition-only groups for the most advanced players in each school. There are many different "All-Region" bands, ranging from the most local "All-County" or "All-District"(when referring to school districts) to the more prestigious "All-State". Many states also have a level between County and State bands which varies in name according to the area. These events are often highly enjoyed by the students that attend them. Musical literature is often increased in difficulty for the concerts, providing a challenge that isn't seen at schools. Students also get to meet new players on their instrument and share stories from their own band experiences. Region bands typically last over a weekend, though some may meet for over a week before performing a concert.

Though not associated with All-State, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

has a statewide band festival called Festival of Winds, held in Tampa

Tâmpa

Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city...

at The University of South Florida in the first weekend of December

December

December is the 12th and last month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days.December starts on the same day as September every year and ends on the same day as April every year.-Etymology:...

. Also, Florida, Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

, and Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

have a band festival called Tri-State, held in Tallahassee, Florida at Florida State University

Florida State University

The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...

in the same time period as Festival of Winds.

'Band geek'

"Band geek" is, in a literal definition, a person obsessed with playing band music. However, the term usually relates to the belief that most people who are in school bands are socially inept. The term is sometimes used to describe any student who plays an instrument and is in a band class (including students in the orchestra

String orchestra

A string orchestra is an orchestra composed solely or primarily of instruments from the string family. These instruments are the violin, the viola, the cello, the double bass , the piano, the harp, and sometimes percussion...

), or those who play an instrument outside of school, as long as it is an instrument typically found in a concert band or orchestra. "Orch dork" is a variation of this term that is applied specifically to members of school orchestra

Orchestra

An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...

s.

Note that the term, as well as many stereotypes has fallen out of popularity in many schools. In fact, it has become a label of pride for many band members, being found on t-shirts, bumper stickers, etc.

The term "band nerd

Nerd

Nerd is a derogatory slang term for an intelligent but socially awkward and obsessive person who spends time on unpopular or obscure pursuits, to the exclusion of more mainstream activities. Nerds are considered to be awkward, shy, and unattractive...

" is also used as well as band geek, depending on the school.

Gender stereotypes in instrument selection

In school bands, more girls than boys tend to play most woodwind instruments, especially flute, and more boys than girls tend to play brass instruments, saxophone, and percussion. However, this is not always the case.

Movies

Popular films with school bands in its storyline

Strike Up the Band

Strike Up the Band (film)

Strike Up the Band is a 1940 American black and white musical film. It is directed by Busby Berkeley and stars Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland.A very famous, memorable quote from the film is "Take that boy on the street...

, 1940

A musical regarding a teen's attempt to meet director Mr. Paul Whiteman

Paul Whiteman

Paul Samuel Whiteman was an American bandleader and orchestral director.Leader of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s, Whiteman's recordings were immensely successful, and press notices often referred to him as the "King of Jazz"...

Mr. Holland's Opus

Mr. Holland's Opus is a 1995 American drama film directed by Stephen Herek, produced by Ted Field, Robert W. Cort, and Michael Nolin, and Executive Produced by Patrick Sheane Duncan. It stars Richard Dreyfuss in the title role, and the cast includes Glenne Headly, Olympia Dukakis, William H. Macy...

, 1995

A struggling composer ends up making an impact on the lives of high schoolers through music.

Band, 1998

A reflection of a school's marching band from summer camp to competition and everything in between.

American Pie

American Pie (film)

American Pie is a 1999 teen comedy film written by Adam Herz. American Pie was the directorial film debut of brothers Paul and Chris Weitz, and the first film in the American Pie film series...

Series,(American Pie 2

American Pie 2

American Pie 2 is a 2001 comedy film and sequel to American Pie and is the second film in the American Pie film series. It was written by Adam Herz and David H. Steinberg, and directed by J. B. Rogers. The film picks up the story of the four friends from the first film as they reunite during the...

2001); American Pie Band Camp 2005)

Although a movie about teen angst, a male teen falls for a female "band geek".

Drumline

Drumline (film)

Drumline is a 2002 American film directed by Charles Stone III. The screenplay, which was inspired by The Southwest Dekalb High School Drumline , was written by Tina Gordon Chism and Shawn Schepps...

, 2002

The members of a collegiate marching band fight their way to get noticed by its director.

August Rush

August Rush is a 2007 drama film directed by Kirsten Sheridan and written by Paul Castro, Nick Castle, and James V. Hart, and produced by Richard Barton Lewis.-Plot:...

, 2007

After a one night stand between two great musicians a woman becomes impregnated. The mother is misinformed that her child has died right after birth. 11 years later the child is living in a Gotham City Boys' Home. He runs away in search of his parents and finds his incredible talent for music and uses it to bring both his parents back together.

Popular collegiate marching bands used in films

USC Trojan Marching Band, over 13 films and 48 Television Shows

UCLA Bruin Marching Band, over 20 films

Popular collegiate marching bands used in film soundtracks

University of Southern California Marching Band, 1 film

Los Angeles CA Marching Band, 1 film

Other collegiate bands in movies

The University of North Alabama

University of North Alabama

The University of North Alabama is a coeducational university located in Florence, Alabama, and the state's oldest four-year public university....

Pride of Dixie Marching Band

The University of North Alabama Pride of Dixie Marching Band, or POD, is the official marching band of the University of North Alabama. The POD is the largest organization on campus, and performs at all North Alabama Lions football home games, as well as local parades and high school competition...

was featured in the 1994 Academy Award winning movie Blue Sky

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Middle school bands

Essential Elements 2000

Accent on Achievement

Yamaha Band Student

Standard of Excellence

Belwin 21st Century

Conclusions

High school bands

College bands

Other school bands

Marching band

Jazz band

Chamber Ensembles

All-region bands

'Band geek'

Gender stereotypes in instrument selection

Movies

See also

External links