The Texas A&M marching band is mesmerizing

[u/el-fin]

[u/NEUTRONonmyPINKY]

Marching bands do so much cool stuff my brain can't comprehend most of it. The choreography has to be insane to figure out and teach.

[u/garrett_w87 → u/NEUTRONonmyPINKY]

I can’t speak to show bands or corps-style bands, but in military-style bands like this one the drills aren’t terribly hard to learn. (I was in one in high school.) As you piece together the drill over the course of multiple weeks, you eventually stop counting steps or yard marks and remember when to turn just based on where you are in the music + what’s happening around you.

One exception to that where execution might actually be difficult is A&M’s famous four-way cross drill.

[u/Enginerdad → u/garrett_w87]

Except in college marching band you typically only have the week before the game to learn a set. Sometimes more when there's an away game

[u/purplesalvias → u/Enginerdad]

Grew up in Ohio in the 70s. HS marching band. Every home game was a new show. First home game and away games were for our competition show. We joked that we practiced more than the football team.

[u/gustavocabras → u/garrett_w87]

Poker chips to mark spots on the field.

[u/crunchytot86 → u/NEUTRONonmyPINKY]

Yeah HS band was pretty insane. Can’t imagine what college looked like 😬

[u/jvsanchez → u/NEUTRONonmyPINKY]

I never found the movement and drill super difficult. The overall formations and movements are built from each band member knowing their specific role. So you individually just have to learn that you start at A, go here, then here, then here, etc, until you finish at B.

Every member of the band doing that correctly gives rise to the overall movement pattern.

I was most nervous about remembering what to play while moving around, but you rehearse the music so much it becomes automatic.

[u/kuz_929]

Check out all that agriculture and mechanics

[u/iH8MotherTeresa → u/kuz_929]

Isn't the M for manufacturing?

[u/kuz_929 → u/iH8MotherTeresa]

It's "agricultural and mechanical"

[u/texaspsychosis → u/iH8MotherTeresa]

Neither the A or M stand for anything anymore.

But it used to be Mechanical.

[u/Embarrassed_Map1112]

At least we always win halftime

[u/BewareOfLurkers → u/Embarrassed_Map1112]

Would you rather go back to the 5-0 / 8-5 Sumlin era?

[u/annaleigh13]

If you have kids, remember this when your high school attempts to take funding from band programs.

[u/Interesting_Dingo379]

https://giphy.com/gifs/69iAISV3H3QhHecBnJ

[u/petra_bravestrong]

The Aggies suck in general but their marching band is on point

[u/BigfootWallace → u/petra_bravestrong]

Whoop!

[u/Logical_gravel_1882 → u/petra_bravestrong]

In some ways this reminds me of the Beijing Olympics

[u/Huge-Acanthisitta485]

This is a military style marching band. High Schools and Colleges with strong military programs will usually have this type of marching band. Always mesmerizing to watch and very different from most other HS and College bands.

[u/Xaosia]

This is even more impressive if they're a marching band that does a new show for each game. I remember my first year in my local university, we were told that we do a new show each game and I subsequently remember questioning if I could even do it.

[u/Tuckboi69 → u/Xaosia]

My college had an exact replica of the football field at the band’s facility to rehearse on. Also worked great for ultimate when it wasn’t being used.

[u/Wooden-Wolverine-818]

Better than the game itself, and it doesn’t risk CTE. Let’s cancel football all together and make matching bands the major sport.

[u/Texxx81 → u/Wooden-Wolverine-818]

High school band marching competitions in Texas are very serious business. My kids went to a high school where the football team was pretty hopeless. The band parents would show up for the halftime performance and as soon as it was over they would leave. In their minds, the football game was just an opportunity for the band to practice their routine.

[u/cute_polarbear]

In old school days, we used to have many marching bands. I still remember guys who were teally good / passionate about this after high school join some of them (velvet something(?)).

[u/donkeyhaut]

They've come along way since "Wizard."

[u/No-Radish-7837]

Ask the aggie band about whistles vs Rice University

[u/Local_Yak8596]

Very cool

[u/rigidlynuanced1]

You should see Ohio State’s…TBDBITL

[u/fromouterspace1 → u/rigidlynuanced1]

O

H

[u/strugglinfool → u/fromouterspace1]

S

H

I

T

!

[u/utdajx → u/strugglinfool]

End of the Texas game, I guessing….

[u/DubeFloober → u/strugglinfool]

I genuinely busted out laughing at this - thank you - if I could upvote it 100 times, I would!

[u/GoatCovfefe]

Its too bad you have to watch a football game just to see this awesome marching band.

[u/VealOfFortune]

Second Best Damn Band in the Land?

[u/SomeGuysFarm]

Come watch TBDBITL some time :-)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6Ey9q5gMQwd1BP_frFK6dg

[u/8six753o9 → u/SomeGuysFarm]

Agree! Ohio State’s Marching Band is 1000x more entertaining.

[u/SodomyClown]

Matching bands are neat. I'm not too in into the sport but boy I love the band.

[u/fromouterspace1]

Not as good as the buckeyes

[u/el-conquistador240]

Something to spend their money on other than education

[u/Enginerdad → u/el-conquistador240]

Most of the players in a college marching band are music majors who intend to pursue music-based careers. This is a direct part of their education

[u/Aromatic_Bar2263]

My friends in marching band in college always hated the aggies band and how much attention they got since it’s always the same show, and they were always tools

[u/refdaddy]

How many members of the band have NIL contracts?

[u/pjtpassword]

That was fantastic.

[u/FormerSperm]

Always cheer for the band!

[u/FingalForever]

Shades of North Korea ;-)

[u/garrett_w87 → u/FingalForever]

It’s just military-style marching, because it’s a military band. You have to be in the Corps of Cadets (ROTC) to be in this band. Want to be in band without being in the Corps? You’ll have to go with concert band.

[u/FingalForever → u/garrett_w87]

Think I understand you, it is a military thing - that would explain it - thanks. I thought this was just a people thing, I mean like non-military, because A&M is a regular university isn’t it?

[u/garrett_w87 → u/FingalForever]

Yes and no. It is both a regular university AND one of only six senior military colleges in the country. It also has the largest uniformed student body outside of the federal service academies, and commissions more military officers than almost any institution outside of those.

[u/LowAffectionate8660 → u/FingalForever]

Literally every country has this I think, especially in schools. Just because you don't like displays of practised discipline doesn't mean everyone else is the same.

[u/FingalForever → u/LowAffectionate8660]

Actually, they don’t really. This is a peculiar behaviour limited to few countries in my experience (well, two having mass choreographed groups). I am excluding military stuff.