2009

UNIVERSITY OF

WASHINGTON

DRUMLINE

HANDBOOK

Compiled by Nicholas Molenda

Instructor, UW Drumline

Rev. 6/2009

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Welcome The purpose of this handbook is to provide the necessary information for a percussionist to prepare for performance in the University of Washington Husky Marching Band Percussion Section. The techniques and information presented here represent the most contemporary practices in marching percussion. It is the goal of the Husky Band Percussion Section to present high-energy, entertaining performances of high musical merit for the benefit of both its audience and players. Besides serving as an audition guide this book should be used throughout the season for ongoing technical development both individually, and in an ensemble setting. Personal improvement should not end with the assignment of instruments. Continued progress by all players throughout the year is essential to the ensemble performing at its potential. Please take note of what will and will not be required of you come auditions. There is A LOT of material in this handbook, and while you will eventually have to memorize it all as a member of the line, not ALL of it is required to be memorized for the audition.

Auditioning For The Drumline Each year drumline auditions are held as part of a mandatory week-long camp that is typically held in late-August at the University’s campus in Seattle, Washington. The process is very low-pressure, and usually takes about two days to “set” the drumline. The rest of the week is then used participating in various activities and intensive exercises designed to prepare the drumline for success on the field during the season. Those interested in auditioning for the drumline should frequently check the online home of the UW drumline at http://www.huskydrumline.com for specific information regarding dates, audition music, and other helpful resources.

History The UW drumline has been under the instruction of David Reeves since the fall of 2001. Prior to that, the line was instructed by Brian Akesson, and before him, Alec Wilmart. Since 2001, David Reeves has slowly built a solid program at UW. In the fall of 2008, David Reeves hired former member, Nick Molenda to come in as an assistant. Currently, David and Nick both instruct and arrange for the group. The UW Drumline proudly endorses Pearl Drums, Innovative Percussion Sticks/Mallets, Zildjian Cymbals, and Remo Drumheads. It is the result of the hard work of both the staff and the members over the past several years that we get to enjoy the relationships we have built with these companies.

Final Notes If you plan to audition for the UW Drumline, we urge you to read and comprehend the technical descriptions as well as memorize the music for your section. We take pride in creating an educational atmosphere in our audition process, though applicants who are most prepared will certainly have a better chance at earning a spot in the line. We look for members who are mature, musically intuitive, technically proficient, teachable, humble, who can afford the time commitments, and who have a mature drive to be the best they can possibly be. Being a member of the Husky Marching Band is a large commitment, but it is also an extremely rewarding experience. Even if you don’t make the line, the audition process will be very enlightening and educational. We encourage you to go for it and look forward to seeing you there! -UW Percussion Staff

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The Foundations Of This Program

Music is what drives the philosophy of the UW Drumline. While marching percussion has become somewhat of an athletic activity, all members need to be musicians, not just technical players with a lot of chops. Each year the UW drumline has consistently had several members that are also involved in the University’s Music School as music majors, performing in many of the school’s top classical and jazz ensembles. Music is probably what gave most of us our start and ultimately brought us to the UW Drumline. Sometimes our musical education focuses on academia and the technical chores of becoming proficient on our instrument. These are important aspects to development, but we have to remember to stay in touch with why we’re doing it all in the first place. This is why listening is so important. The more diverse your musical palette, the more intuitive you will be when playing music with the ensemble. Spend as much time listening to music as you do practicing your instrument. They are mutually beneficial. Defining things as dictated by the music As marching percussionists, we often have an overly analytical side to how we define the things we do. These details are part of the gig. However, don’t let definitions such as stick heights or stick angles drive everything you do. They’re merely reference points and need to be flexible in order to adapt to the needs of the music. Here is a basic reference for stick heights as they relate to written dynamics.

Often in marching percussion music, a written dynamic will only refer to the accent height of a particular phrase. For example:

The phrase above would generally be interpreted with the following stick heights:

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Also, phrases with crescendos or decrescendos would generally be interpreted as shown below:

Music is flexible and, as musicians, we need to be flexible with it. For example, sometimes we may ask for a mezzo piano to sound a little softer than what a 6-inch height would dictate. Using definitions is fine for reference, but they are only a guide. A musical ear will dictate how each phrase should be approached. Timing This is a percussion program – timing is a very important aspect of what we do. Timing is important for our role within the musical ensemble and for maintaining the integrity of the rhythms we play. Remember: Rudiments are rhythms! Know your rudiments and know them well, but be sure you are playing them CORRECTLY – meaning, pay attention to how certain sticking patterns affect your rhythmic tendencies. Don’t practice certain things at tempos that are faster than your hands can play, or you’ll end up practicing bad habits. At the same time, don’t be afraid to push the limits of your abilities so that you can grow. Practice with a metronome to focus on good timing and rhythmic accuracy. To make it more enjoyable and realistic, play your various exercises along with music you like to listen to. It’s generally the same thing as using a metronome, but it gives you a musical context on which to base your playing. This is the foundation of ensemble playing. Groove along with it, and enjoy it. Chops This is a collegiate drumline. You must have a certain amount of chops to get by. Your chops will be the basic building blocks of how well you contribute to the ensemble. This doesn’t mean showing up to auditions with every hybrid rudiment and stick trick ever invented ready to whip out at the first chance. That stuff is a lot of fun and we don’t mind seeing it, but it’s not really the basis for making music. We’re more interested in making sure you have a strong foundation of all the standard rudiments at a variety of tempos. This includes very slow tempos! As mentioned above, practice physically demanding parts CORRECTLY and do so for extended periods of time. Chops aren’t something you’re going to build in a week. It’s a progressive and continual process. Confidence Performance must be authentic. At the levels we strive for, you can’t fake it. It is important that you play with a high degree of confidence and authority so you can be in charge of what you are doing. This doesn’t mean putting on a “mean face” and acting tough. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Confident players play with a level of calmness and relaxation that should “feel good” to both the player and the listener. True confidence is a powerful thing and will help you fit into the line.

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Snare Technique Guidelines

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Snare Drum

Contrary to some schools of thought, percussion technique does not have to be “forced” or “hard”. Just as it’s possible to over-blow a wind instrument, it’s also possible to overplay percussion instruments, distorting the sound quality. We take a very relaxed, real-world approach to playing the drum which is applicable to many areas of percussion, not just marching. Essentially you should find a GROOVE in everything you play so it FLOWS. Not just “groovy” music but even more abstract, sparse music has checkpoints that allow you to find some form of “pocket” if you approach it the right way. Strive to stay completely relaxed from the neck, through the shoulders and arms, all the way down to the fingers. It is very easy to see and hear when a player is not relaxed. Tension affects sound quality and disrupts the flow of the music. Although chops are a necessity at the levels we strive for, sound quality is key. Grip RIGHT HAND

1) The grip follows the line of the forearm. The top of the hand should be slightly sloped down and to the right in its natural state.

2) The butt end of the stick can be seen. It should not be hidden under the forearm.

3) The right hand fulcrum: The thumb is positioned directly along the side of the stick. The index and middle fingers wrap around the stick and are even with the thumb. This three-finger “tripod” is your fulcrum. The stick is cradled by the middle, ring, and pinky fingers. All fingers are in contact with the stick and will remain free of tension.

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LEFT HAND

1) The natural curvature of the hand should be maintained when moving to the playing position. Observe how the hands look when they’re hanging by your side. This is exactly how they should look when holding the stick in playing position. Avoid straight fingers or a condensed, collapsed hand.

2) The thumb connects to the first knuckle of the index finger. In this position, the thumb rests on top of the index finger with no tension.

3) The stick rests on the cuticle of the ring finger.

4) The middle finger rests along the stick, relaxed and never straight.

5) The ring finger and pinky work in unison to support the stick. They should remain relaxed and together at all times.

6) The left hand fulcrum is created with the thumb and first finger. The thumb and first finger should always remain connected.

7) The rotation of the left hand should be just like turning a door knob.

PLAYING POSITION The snare drums are played using a slight tilt to create a more traditional-grip-friendly playing surface. There is no precise measurement as to how much the drum should be tilted. Basically, the drum should simulate the angle of the stick in the left hand when placed in the playing position as described below. The following is a basic rundown of how to create your “set” playing position:

1) Relax with your arms at your sides.

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2) With relaxed shoulders, bend the arms from the elbow so your wrists are just about waist-level. This will determine the height of your drum.

3) When holding the left stick with the grip guidelines above, follow the resulting angle of the left stick to determine the angle of your drum. The tilt is very slight, so there’s no need to whip out a protractor. With the arms in place and the height and angle of the drum set, there will probably be about two fingers’ clearance between the rim and the stick. Again, don’t worry about using a slide rule here.

4) Beads will be in the center of the head, as close as possible without touching one another. Keep the beads as close to the head as possible without resting on the head.

THE STROKE Our strokes are primarily made with the wrist; however, they aren’t isolated to JUST the wrist. The forearm does play a role in contributing weight to the stroke, and fingers need to come into play during certain sticking patterns, like doubles. Don’t worry yourself with how much arm or how much wrist to use. The primary goal is to make it a natural motion that uses a harmony of wrist, forearms, and fingers. The music will dictate how much of each is necessary at any given time. Focus on allowing the stick to vibrate in the hand. Squeezing the stick too tightly will choke off the stick and diminish sound quality. If you notice yourself wanting to squeeze or choke off the stick, consider eliminating pressure from the forefinger and shifting a little bit of fulcrum control to the middle finger. This will help to maintain a natural stroke. Another way to achieve this is to play on a surface that will give you rebound but won’t produce a lot of sound other than what you hear from the stick itself, such as a rubber practice pad or a concrete floor. A good pair of matched sticks will have a “singing” quality to them when played with a light or loose grip. This is the vibration of the stick in action. Your goal is to find the point at which that vibration starts to occur, and use that touch on the stick as a basis for how to hold the stick while playing. Start by squeezing the stick (to choke off all stick vibration) and playing as you normally would, while gradually decreasing the amount that you are squeezing the stick with your fingers. Once you begin to hear the stick vibrate, you’ve found it. There should be a weight to your strokes which will produce a big, full sound. Make the sticks feel heavy in your hands. To achieve this, it’s important to realize that higher volumes will typically require a higher stroke velocity. This is partly to ensure you’re producing a big sound, but also to propel the stick so that it rebounds back to its full stroke position. A little bit of arm in your stroke isn’t a bad thing. Watch professional players from any area of the percussion world (Steve Gadd, Stanton Moore, Evelyn Glennie, Peter Erskine, Bob Becker, just to name a few), and you’ll see plenty of arm contributing to their sound. We aren’t looking for our players to

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manhandle the drums or beat them senseless. Aim for achieving a big, full, round sound at all dynamic levels. The sticks should rebound straight off the angle of the head. Since our drums are slightly tilted, this is pretty self-explanatory for the left hand stroke path. The right hand pathway is at a very slight angle. Do not call this a “slice”. It’s actually a stroke path that allows the right stick to bounce directly off the head in the most natural way. If we attempted to play a vertical stroke with the right hand, THAT would be a slice. If you are used to playing on a flat drum, adjusting your right hand for the angle is a very natural and automatic transition that won’t take long. During the up-and-down motion of the stroke, focus on creating a CONSTANT MOTION with the sticks. When stopping the sticks (i.e., during accent/tap patterns), don’t squeeze the stick or choke it off. This is one instance where marching drummers have a tendency to tighten up. Make a point of practicing accent/tap patterns slowly, focusing on eliminating tension in the grip. Basic Drumming Notation Key

Special Snare Drum Notation

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Tenor Technique Guidelines

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Tenor Drums

Contrary to some schools of thought, percussion technique does not have to be “forced” or “hard”. Just as it’s possible to over-blow a wind instrument, it’s also possible to overplay percussion instruments, distorting the sound quality. We take a very relaxed, real-world approach to playing the drum which is applicable to many areas of percussion, not just marching. Essentially you should find a GROOVE in everything you play so it FLOWS. Not just “groovy” music but even more abstract, sparse music has checkpoints that allow you to find some form of “pocket” if you approach it the right way. Strive to stay completely relaxed from the neck, through the shoulders and arms, all the way down to the fingers. It is very easy to see and hear when a player is not relaxed. Tension affects sound quality and disrupts the flow of the music. Although chops are a necessity at the levels we strive for, sound quality is key. Grip

1) The grip follows the line of the forearm. The top of the hand should be slightly sloped down and to the right in its natural state.

2) The butt end of the stick can be seen. It should not be hidden under the forearm.

3) The fulcrum is created by placing the thumb directly along the side of the stick. The index and middle fingers wrap around the stick and are even with the thumb. This three-finger “tripod” is your fulcrum.

4) The stick is cradled by the middle, ring, and pinky fingers. All fingers are in contact with the mallet/stick and should remain free of tension.

Playing Position

1) The bead of the stick/mallet should rest as close to the drumhead as possible without touching it.

2) Arms should rest comfortably and naturally at the sides so that the shoulders are relaxed. Elbows should not be pushed away from the body, nor should they be unusually tight against the body.

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When in this position, sticks/mallets will create a natural angle of sticks that is close to but not quite parallel to the floor. The Stroke Our strokes are primarily made with the wrist; however, they aren’t isolated to JUST the wrist. The forearm does play a role in contributing weight to the stroke, and fingers need to come into play during certain sticking patterns, like doubles. Don’t worry yourself with how much arm or how much wrist to use. The primary goal is to make it a natural motion that uses a harmony of wrist, forearms, and fingers. The music will dictate how much of each is necessary at any given time. Focus on allowing the stick to vibrate in the hand. Squeezing the stick too tightly will choke off the stick and diminish sound quality. If you notice yourself wanting to squeeze or choke off the stick, consider eliminating pressure from the forefinger and shifting a little bit of fulcrum control to the middle finger. This will help to maintain a natural stroke. Another way to achieve this is to play on a surface that will give you rebound but won’t produce a lot of sound other than what you hear from the stick itself, such as a rubber practice pad or a concrete floor. A good pair of matched sticks will have a “singing” quality to them when played with a light or loose grip. This is the vibration of the stick in action. Your goal is to find the point at which that vibration starts to occur, and use that touch on the stick as a basis for how to hold the stick while playing. Start by squeezing the stick (to choke off all stick vibration) and playing as you normally would, while gradually decreasing the amount that you are squeezing the stick with your fingers. Once you begin to hear the stick vibrate, you’ve found it. There should be a weight to your strokes which will produce a big, full sound. Make the sticks feel heavy in your hands. To achieve this, it’s important to realize that higher volumes will typically require a higher stroke velocity. This is partly to ensure you’re producing a big sound, but also to propel the stick so that it rebounds back to its full stroke position. A little bit of arm in your stroke isn’t a bad thing. Watch professional players from any area of the percussion world (Steve Gadd, Stanton Moore, Evelyn Glennie, Peter Erskine, Bob Becker, just to name a few), and you’ll see plenty of arm contributing to their sound. We aren’t looking for our players to manhandle the drums or beat them senseless. Aim for achieving a big, full, round sound at all dynamic levels. The stroke should move vertically up and down. This may seem like an obvious point to make, but with multiple-drum tenor configurations, it’s easy for tenor drummers to slice certain strokes. When moving from drum to drum, the upper arms (above the elbow) should remain free to move in conjunction with the forearm. The

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upper arms should remain controlled, but still relaxed as you travel around the drums. During the up-and-down motion of the stroke, focus on creating a CONSTANT MOTION with the sticks. When stopping the sticks (i.e., during accent/tap patterns), don’t squeeze the stick or choke it off. This is one instance where marching drummers have a tendency to tighten up. Make a point of practicing accent/tap patterns slowly, focusing on eliminating tension in the grip. It is very important for tenor drummers to have full control of a natural stroke and good sound on ONE DRUM before applying it to split parts around the drums. Playing Zones Playing zones are a very important part of creating a good sound on tenors. Each drum has a particular “target” for each particular stick to shoot for. This gives each stick the least amount of distance to travel in any given pattern around the drums. Refer to this general zone diagram to view different sticking scenarios. It’s very important to practice patterns around the drums SLOWLY, striving for accurate zones before increasing tempos.

Special Tenor Notation

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Bass Technique Guidelines

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Bass Drums

Contrary to some schools of thought, percussion technique does not have to be “forced” or “hard”. Just as it’s possible to over-blow a wind instrument, it’s also possible to overplay percussion instruments, distorting the sound quality. We take a very relaxed, real-world approach to playing the drum which is applicable to many areas of percussion, not just marching. Essentially you should find a GROOVE in everything you play so it FLOWS. Not just “groovy” music but even more abstract, sparse music has checkpoints that allow you to find some form of “pocket” if you approach it the right way. Strive to stay completely relaxed from the neck, through the shoulders and arms, all the way down to the fingers. It is very easy to see and hear when a player is not relaxed. Tension affects sound quality and disrupts the flow of the music. Although chops are a necessity at the levels we strive for, sound quality is key. Grip The bass mallet should be held comfortably along the lower end of the mallet. The thumb should be on top of the mallet and should “point” to the mallet head. There should be no visible daylight between the thumb and the index finger, and it is essential that no tension exists between the thumb and the index finger. Make sure the back 3 fingers (pinky, ring, and middle) are consistently in relaxed contact with the mallet, cradling it all the way around.

Begin with both arms hanging down to your side with the thumbs on the top of the mallets and your hands by your legs. The mallets should point forward and down at a 45-degree angle. Next, bring your arms up (bending at the elbows) until the forearms are approximately parallel to the ground. The position of the hand, wrist, and mallet should not change. This playing position should feel very relaxed and natural.

From this position, we will adjust the carrier and stand so the center of the bass head is lined up with the head of the mallet. It is important to adjust the drum to the player, not the player to the drum. Once the drum has been positioned to fit the player, bring your forearms toward the drum so they touch the bass drum rim. Memorize what part of your arm touches the rim so you will be able to always find the center of the bass head. The size of the drum will determine whether your forearm, wrist, or fingers make contact with the hoop.

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In playing position, the mallets should be parallel to the drumhead. Your arms should hang naturally on both sides of your body. The amount of space between your elbows and ribs depends on the size of your body frame. You upper body needs to remain relaxed and free of tension at all times. Rotation All strokes are initiated from a simple rotation of the forearm. Let the weight of the mallet help with the rotation. As bass drummers, we play AGAINST gravity. You can practice this by sitting with your arms on a table, as if in playing position. The motion we use for bass drumming is almost always legato. However, there are instances in which the music calls for a different type of sound and, accordingly, a different stroke style. Although some of the UW bass drum sound comes from muffling and tuning, there is no substitute for consistent technique player to player. The path that the stroke takes while playing should be a straight line that matches the angle of the mallet. If you were able to draw a three-dimensional chalk line in the air with the mallet head, the profile view would look like a straight line that follows the angle of the mallet. Consistency is key when delivering an equal amount of energy from each stroke to the drum head. The stick height system established for the snares and tenors has a somewhat different definition for bass drum because of the orientation of the playing surface. When in playing position, with the mallets parallel to the bass head, the mallets are actually set at the 1” stick height. Rotate the forearms out (90 degrees) so the mallets are perpendicular to the head to establish the forte stick height. The piano stick height can be achieved with a very slight wrist rotation away from the playing surface. The mezzo piano stick height can be achieved with a one-third rotation from the playing surface. The mezzo forte stick height can be achieved with a two-thirds rotation from the playing surface. The fortissimo stick height is rotated another third beyond the forte position.

These measurements are merely a general guide as dynamics (heights) will always be dictated by the needs of the music.

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In addition to playing in the center of the head, other playing areas for bass drum are also used. We will change to other playing zones such as “edge” (usually just below the rim saver), and “halfway” (halfway between the center and bearing edge). Each of these playing areas have different sound qualities and are usually played during softer passages. A Few Timing Tips Good timing starts from the ground up. The feet are the most important asset to the success of marching percussion. It is important that the feet are the source of pulse and the hands “line up” with the feet, not the other way around. Always practice with a metronome or recorded music and always practice while moving your feet. It is essential that all the players in a bass line understand their individual part, how it relates to their feet, how their part relates to other parts, and have the same interpretation of the space between all the notes. On bass drum, all split parts can be simplified to some sort of “check” or “skeleton” pattern. Before we can play 2’s, 3’s, and 4’s, we must be able to play the check pattern in time, with the feet. Once the check pattern is well-established, any subsequent notes added must be evenly spaced (relative to the first note on each drum). It is imperative that bass drummers understand basic note grouping and are able to play any partial (with either hand) comfortably. Special Bass Notation

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Cymbal Technique Guidelines

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Cymbals

Contrary to some schools of thought, percussion technique does not have to be “forced” or “hard”. Just as it’s possible to over-blow a wind instrument, it’s also possible to overplay percussion instruments, distorting the sound quality. We take a very relaxed, real-world approach to playing cymbals which is applicable to many areas of percussion, not just marching. Essentially you should find a GROOVE in everything you play so it FLOWS. Not just “groovy” music but even more abstract, sparse music has checkpoints that allow you to find some form of “pocket” if you approach it the right way. Strive to stay completely relaxed from the neck, through the shoulders and arms, all the way down to the fingers. It is very easy to see and hear when a player is not relaxed. Tension affects sound quality and disrupts the flow of the music. Although chops are a necessity at the levels we strive for, sound quality is key. Having that said, the cymbal techniques that we use here at the UW will require you to use quite a bit of muscle. The cymbals themselves carry a decent amount of weight and if you are somewhat lacking in upper-body strength, you will find most of these techniques to be quite physically challenging. Proper conditioning is essential to your ability to play the cymbals correctly. THE POSITIONS In the UW cymbal line, we operate out of five basic positions illustrated as follows:

1) Set Position – This is the position that the group arrives at when starting or finishing an exercise or piece of music. There are other instances in which this position is used, but these are the most common. Notice the elbows are slightly bent and the wrist is as straight as possible, following the path of the forearm. This helps keep the cymbals parallel to each other, and perpendicular to the floor, which is the look we want. The shoulders and other upper-body muscles are relaxed, but also engaged.

2) Relax position – This is the position the line stands in while waiting for something, such as instructions, when the group wants to maintain a uniform look. The cymbals are positioned flat against the lower body, right over left, with the edge of the right cymbal tucked under the pad of the left. Feet are shoulder-width apart in this position.

3) Flat position – This is the position that we work most out of. From this position, we can take care of most all the necessary cymbal techniques that we use, such as flat crashes,

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crash chokes, orchestral crashes, sizzes, sizz/sucks, and hi hat chokes.

4) Port position – This is a secondary position that we also use. This position is achieved by raising the cymbals straight out in front of you so that your hands are even with your eyes. From here, we can play port crashes, eval crashes, sizzes, sizz/sucks, taps, dings, and zings.

5) Choke Position – This position is achieved by hugging both cymbals into the sides of your abdominals as shown. You will use this position when performing crash chokes, and clicks.

The Flam The flam is a basic concept of our cymbal technique that is adopted from the world-renown cymbal section of the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum & Bugle Corps. This “flam” is something that will occur in some fashion on every single cymbal crash that is played. The picture to the left illustrates the point of contact that we would want to shoot for in order to achieve this “flam” with an

orchestral crash from flat position. In this case, you’re aiming for the first contact to be made by the right side edge of the right cymbal about 3 inches inside the right edge of the left cymbal. Ideally, once this contact has been made, the crashing of the cymbals themselves happens immediately after, in the same way that an accent note of a flam played on the snare drum immediately follows the grace note. This technique allows you to achieve maximum volume with both cymbals, while exerting only a moderate amount of force.

The Orchestral Crash This type of crash can be played at either flat or port position. If played at port position, it is called an Eval. Beginning from flat position, move the right edges of the cymbals away from each other first, then using a “wave”

motion bring those edges back toward each other, aiming to hit a flam as pictured

Left to right, then top to bottom.

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above. When the cymbals make contact, be sure to straighten your fingers so that the sound of the cymbals is dampened as little as possible. Finally, immediately following the crash, perform the same wave motion again, keeping the fingers straight while the cymbals vibrate, and return to flat position. The Flat Crash

This is probably the most frequently used of the crashes. This crash uses three very sharp and distinct movements: 1) The Prep 2) The Crash 3) The Release For the prep, you do two things, with the right arm, pull the cymbal all the way back past your shoulder in one sharp and crisp movement. At the same time, slightly cock your left wrist upward, giving yourself a flam target on the left cymbal. For the crash, you will explode your right arm forward, aiming to contact the left cymbal about 3 inches away from the far edge with the right cymbal. This will ensure you get a quality flam and therefore, a quality crash. You will continue to trust the cymbal forward until your right arm is completely straight, while straightening your fingers at contact. For the release, quickly bring the cymbals back to flat position, while keeping the fingers straight to preserve the vibration of the cymbals. The Sizz/Suck

The sizz/suck can be played in either port (above) or flat position. The Sizz is performed by carefully crashing the cymbals and holding them close to one another in a way that allows them to vibrate against each other for several seconds. You will want to straighten your fingers to achieve maximum resonance. The suck is performed by forcefully sliding the right cymbal downward into the left until you

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create a “vacuum” pocket with the two cymbals that quickly eliminates all sound. You can aid this by clamping down on the cymbals with your fingers. Dings Dings are played by hitting the top portion of the underside of the left cymbal bell with the edge of the right cymbal. It is very important that you contact the correct part of the bell to achieve the desired sound. Again, try to straighten your fingers to avoid dampening either cymbal.

Clicks Clicks are performed from choke position by simply tapping the underside of the right cymbal onto the edge of the left. The result is a muted “click” sound. Zings

Zings start by contacting the cymbals at the same point that you do with dings, only instead you will drag the edge of the right cymbal along the underside of the left cymbal, trying to dig into every groove along the way. The result is a

very shimmering sound effect. Taps Taps are performed in a modified port position where you tilt the tops of both cymbals toward each other and “tap” the underside of the right cymbal onto the edge of the left to simulate the sound of a stick hitting the cymbal.

Tap Chokes Tap chokes are a more aggressive version of the tap where you execute a forceful tap and then immediately bringing the cymbals to choke position, dampening all sound. The far edges of the cymbal are typically used with these. Crash Chokes Crash chokes are usually a flat crash that ends at choke position immediately after the cymbals are crashed. This is one of the most aggressive cymbal techniques when done properly.

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Hi Hat Chokes Performed in flat position, hi hat chokes are performed by opening and closing the cymbals together with the edges lined up so that the sound produced resembles that of a hi hat on a drumset. Over the years, cymbals have developed a common stereotype of being one of the easiest instruments to play in a marching ensemble. This is a TERRIBLE STEREOTYPE. The truth is just the opposite. You can clearly see that, like any other percussion instrument, cymbals have an almost endless amount of intricacies. This combined with the sheer physical demand makes cymbals a very difficult instrument to truly master. There are indeed many more techniques than the ones contained in this portion of the handbook, but all of those contained should serve as a basic foundation for any potential cymbal player to grow upon. Special Cymbal Notation

Good Luck!

For more information about auditions as well as audition music and exercises,

Visit http://www.huskydrumline.com

For more information on the University of Washington Husky Marching Band,

Visit http://www.huskymarchingband.com

Works Cited:

Casella, Ancona, Jim. Green Beats. Portland, OR: Tapspace Publications, 2006. Print.