Indeed I have been in marching band and am proud to say so. There has been something that I have noticed throughout the years of being in band however, and that is every marching section has a certain personality to go along with it. This phenomenon is not just in my marching band, but marching bands all around. For those of you in a marching band, you will understand of which I speak; however, those who are not so familiar, I will point out the personalities for you. You can think of people you know who play these instruments and see if they fit these categories.
Flutes/Piccolos- Typically girls who have drama and/or get stressed easily who are usually smart and care what others think.
Clarinets- No extremists here, clarinet players are usually more reserved than the other woodwinds. Generally pretty smart, more laid back than the flutes but also can get stressed easily
Alto Saxophones- The highest percentage of good looking guys who a more charming and flirtatious compared to other wind instruments. Also typically intelligent.
All the woodwinds are usually a little more high maintenance and technical than brass. They all care more about what people think than the brass also, but don't you think it's interesting that their parts are also high maintenance and call for the most technique and dexterity between blowing, articulating, and fingering?
Don't be offended woodwinds, as a brass player, I know more about brass than I do you guys.
Trumpets- 'Who ever plays louder is better'... not true by the way, but that seems to be what they think. Usually competitive and ostentatious. If there are girls in it, they HAVE to prove themselves one of the guys and as good if not better. Confidence is their strength, their weakness is over-confidence.
French horns/Mellophones- Now these musicians are more reserved (a brass version of the clarinet.) Ambitious and seem to get along with anyone from any section, but prefer ultimately to be with their section. Also competitive in a different fashion than the trumpets. It is a passive competition that isn't spoken, but proven when the results of 'who is first chair' is placed on the table.
Trombones- 'who ever plays louder and bad is better'... When I mean bad, i mean the tone is gone and all you hear is a gross blaze that makes statues cringe. Between these guys (typically male) and the tubas, they have the ultimate marching band pride. Quite talkative and friendly and for those of you who have read the color personality books, the full spectrum of Yellow.
Tuba- 'Life is a party' I have yet to meet a boring tuba player. Like the trombones, they are talkative and friendly and the epitome of Yellow. Sometimes they love talking so much they are annoying, not gonna to lie. Usually tubas are the last type of person you would expect to hurt a fly. That rhymed- unintentional.
Drumline or Battery- Is the name 'battery' derived from the energizer bunny? If it is, it would work because the energizer bunny wears sunglasses to show how cool he is, and that is generally the appearance of drumline. The ladies on drumline are one of the guys and pretty chill. There are, however, subdivisions of personalities within the drumline of which I will hit on from what I have observed.
Snare- 'Shirts optional' ... these musicians are a combination of instruments. With the looks of a saxophone, mouth of a trombone, and confidence of a trumpet these guys enjoy being in the spotlight. They are also extremely flirtatious. They learn the drum lick and then proceed to play it as fast as possible. When it comes time to play with the marching band, they have a rushing problem. Why keep life as it is when you can take the faster road?
Tenor- Probably the most complex of the drumline, these musicians can play anywhere from two to six different drums in sequence. You can attach anything you want like cymbals or cowbell. Like walking percussion ensembles, they are excellent at multi-tasking. Probably the most surprising and quirky that I have met, they are not afraid to do hard things. However, these musicians are doomed to have back problems.
Bass- Also doomed for back problems, these are the most chill people I have met. Life happens, may as well enjoy it. They take their drumming seriously, but not serious enough to have drama over. The basses have to all work together to get the best sound too. The entire section depends on everyone playing their part right, so they are definitely team players. If I wasn't a brass, I would definitely have fun playing a bass.
The Pit- this includes timpani, guitars or electric basses if the song calls for it, mallet instruments like xylophone and marimba and anything else that the tenors couldn't carry. These guys practice and practice their parts till it's memorised as much as possible, and then that is it. They probably get the full effect of marching band the least, but I couldn't fully say. I don't know much about them because they were always distant. They must have the most boring time though because they are not out marching, but at the same time, they don't have to sweat as bad as everyone else.
The Colorguard- Dancers both in action and personality. These ladies (sometimes guys) have a bit of a gossiping problem. They are very aware of appearances and when ever they get together to practice and march it is like one big sleepover. They also tend to have the most radiant smiles. If marching band was a high school, colorgaurd would be the popular-flirty-boy-crazy girls and the drumline would be the popular-attractive-flirty-ladies-men who go after them.
Now these are all generalizations and throughout my years of marching band, I have met exceptions to the rule, but these are definitely the general personalities of band members whom I have observed. So here I pose the question:
Do the musicians choose the instrument or do the instruments choose the musician?
Now this is for marching band. Symphonic Band, Full Orchestra and Jazz Bands complicate and change things, but the underlying personality is still there. Why are there personalities that fit with the instrument? Is it a happy coincidence that an outgoing girl who cares about what others think picks a flute when she could have choosen to play a tenor? I think not. It's kind of like the chicken and the egg thing, which comes first?
Post any of your thoughts and ideas on the subject. I find this all very interesting
