Expectations of a Drum Major

Hey there! This week I'd thought I'd talk about what exactly it means to be a drum major. In my first post, I gave a little background, but that was just a little about what the whole job is about.

So, a drum major is the one who leads the marching band. He or she is expected to conduct (in a field show or pep band setting), control tempo, show dynamics/assist in musicality, lead on the street (in a parade setting), and be a sort of bridge between the band and the band director.

There are different sorts of drum majors, as well: mace and military. Mace means the drum major uses this:

Which, comparatively, looks like this:

The proper height for a mace is from the ground to the drum major's shoulder.

Drum major military looks like this: 

Which, for comparison, is this:

It's a much smaller baton, used for sort of speedy maneuvers. 

Traditionally, Oak Ridge drum majors use the mace, and so I probably will too. (There's a slight debate on this, given the fact that I'm small, and the mace is heavy... But I'll probably end up mastering it and blowing everybody's minds.) I'm super excited to learn; I know I can, since I can use a bo staff in taekwondo pretty well. Anyways, just to recap: the drum major has a pretty important job. He or she is a conductor, a time-keeper, and, most importantly, a leader. 

See you later!

Oh, and just because it's funny...