Timing the start of an Independent Group

Not many people (including twin cities students) know what WGI Winds is. There were 37 units that competed at WGI in Dayton last year – across all divisions (A, Open, and World). Only one of them was from Minnesota – River Valley Sound (RVS) a.k.a. Elk River Combined Schools.

Having worked with RVS since 2020, I felt there was enough momentum from graduates to make an independent group happen. At the start of the season it seemed promising. This was a screenshot of the registration list that wound up in the staff chat for RVS:

AND there was another Independent group from Mankato that was supposed to come out in Exhibition.

The timing seemed right! But I underestimated how hard recruiting is. Recruiting is hard. Harder than getting a college degree. Harder than marching an entire season of drum corps. It was draining! 😓

It wasn’t just me. I soon came to find out that both Minnetonka and Mankato would not be coming out this season for recruiting reasons. I kept at it through late January – that was when we filled our remaining saxophone spots. I was content to keep the group at 20 members even though the drill (and budget) was written for 24. Otherwise I would have gone insane 🤪

Independent Groups are Hard

We don’t have a captive audience like a student body. Members are paying to participate. They can decide in an instant that it’s not worth their time or money. This fact is not lost on anyone inside an independent organization, but I’m not sure if outsiders realize it.

We don’t own any real estate, so facilities are a big deal. The days of hand-shake deals with local band directors are over as just about everything goes through Community Education. Some of the best things Independent Groups can do are:

• Partner with a local church or other space that might not otherwise receive income/donations to use their facility.
• Find a school district that operates without a Community Education management system and negotiate a partnership directly.
• Negotiate a deal with Community Education based on the number of rentals (this is rare, but sometimes possible)

Paying for all of our facilities means we must maximize what we can do in that time. Sometimes the work isn’t sexy, so we must fall in love with chopping wood & carrying water.

All instructors & administration of independent groups are underpaid. In most cases they need to be – to ensure affordability for the members, and the survival of the group. Staff should be there for the love of the activity & the members. If money is what you’re interested in, you’re better suited to finding a scholastic program in a ritzy neighborhood.

Independent Groups are Important

The success of any independent group is usually reflective of the success of scholastic groups in their region. Band directors – think about what your goals are. Not just the goals of your program this year or the next 5 years – over your entire career. One thing that is not lost on me is making music last a lifetime.

50% of students are going to quit playing after high school. What if we could encourage students to keep playing just a little longer by asking them to follow-through on something outside of school? Independent groups (including community bands!) are part of that equation.

How can people help right now? Local band directors, we need your help specifically. None of the things I will suggest are groundbreaking.

Answer your email and return phone calls. I get it, we all have hundreds of unread messages. For every band director I contact I typically get a 35% response rate on messages.

If someone from an independent group is asking for interested members, ask. Even if you think no one is interested, just ask. If someone is interested, great! If not, then you can at least say you did.

We are on the same side. MBI Winds maintained a policy that outside music commitments come first unless it impacts a competition. Recognize that members participating in independent groups are high performers. They’re the ones in all-state band, honor band, etc. There’s a compromise to be made on both sides and communication is the key.

Making it last

I was speechless when I was recognized by peers as going above and beyond to make the season work.

I was super greatful, but my favorite “trophy” for the season was this:

I’m forever grateful for these 20 musicians that dedicated themselves to an idea. We had no basis to know what the group could or couldn’t do – we all just had to believe. I’m hopeful that next season might be a little easier 🤞The groundwork that was laid will hopefully be a good foundation. If we turned some heads and got people to say “that looks like fun” then I think we’re on the right track.

I haven’t found much written about the mental run-throughs, so I’ll give two examples of how I like to do them:

Real-Time Run-Through

This one is easy and only takes 5-10 minutes, depending on how long your show is. Find a recording of your show, hopefully the most recent one. If you’re doing winter guard, use your copy of the soundtrack. If the recording is a video, that’s fine, but don’t watch the video. Instead, close your eyes, listen to the audio, and use your minds eye to put yourself on the field or floor in your spot.

Follow through your entire show in realtime. Imagine yourself moving through your drill, playing the notes, and doing the work. Picture the relationships to others around you as the drill changes.

Bookmark anything that is unclear so you can review it later with your equipment. If there’s anything that felt too-fast, you might want to try a different approach…

Mind-Time Run-Through

Mind-time run-throughs don’t require anything but yourself. You don’t need a recording, just the memory of it. Work through your show from top to bottom. You don’t have to go at show tempo! You can slow things down and work through the count structures and checkpoints.

If you know where your dots are, say them to yourself as you pass those sets in your mind. But also make sure you are imagining those around you and your relationships to them. Know your dot… but also know if you’re covered down, have good intervals, are part of a smooth arc, are in the diagonal, etc.

Using mind-time you can slow or even pause and rewind if needed, but don’t overdo it! The point is to make it all the way through the show in one go. Again, mentally bookmark the things that are unclear so you can check with your dot book, your equipment, your captain, or your instructor at the next opportunity.

Results

The goal of a mental run-through is to keep things fresh in your mind, even if you won’t rehearse again for a week or two. We all need time off for rest and relaxation, but we should keep our current season programs at top-of-mind until the final show. Everyone has put in so much time, taking a step backwards is not an option.

Is there any other mental run-through advice that I didn’t mention? Let everyone know in the comments!