why the HELL can't our band do something this awesome?

[Todd4State]

In my opinion, though, college marching bands should be first and foremost about entertainment for the crowd.



You can't watch this video and not be entertained, in my opinion. Especially at 5:40.



<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FQJJP3YFljA?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowScriptAccess="never" width="480" height="385" ></embed>

a band should be entertaining AND be able to play.

Ask yourself why are you entertained by that? It's because of their dancing. Not their playing. It's very similar in the pop world when people like someone that dances around a lot- such as N'Sync- people like their dancing as much if not more than their music. Saying a band should only be able to dance around- well, you might as well just put out a dance team out there. Not that some wouldn't be against that.


I think I am one of the only band people that realize what the REAL function of a college band is- and this would upset some band directors- but really the function of a college band is to play the fight song and try to keep the crowd into the game. Again NOT that MSU's band does that well. Maybe becuase I'm more of a sports fan than a lot of band people, but I realize it's a FOOTBALL game and not a band contest.

I think if you have a band that dances to the point where it compromises their playing, they might as well just put the horns down.

 

[Todd4State]

I think we should fire our director and hire Jacksonville State's director and call it a day.

http://www.youtube.com/wa...n6Wk&feature=related

Our fan base would love this. Its DCI style for sure, it has some flash, its different than the rest of the SEC.

If not Jax State, we need to go Texas A&M or Ohio State - military style.

the DCI part- but it's not realistic because we would need an actual music department that offers more degrees in terms of perfromance and stuff like that. I don't think the state of Mississippi would allow that.

Modeling ourselves after OSU or A&M or LSU is realistic though.

 

[mstateglfr]

and i STILL dont understand what is awesome about any of it.

F it, its above my pay grade.

 

[MSUArrowCS]

but we're never going to have a band full of people who came to MSU to be in the band. That's the case at the HBCUs and Jville States out there. It will never be the case at MSU because of who we are as an institution. Plus, when you're paying even your best players $400/semester for 15-20 hours/week, there's only so much you can ask.

I'm certainly not here to defend the band or anything, but "Don't Fear the Reaper" and the video game show both come to mind as decent stunts the past few years, as well as the cursive "State" and other elements of the drill that you won't really see unless you're watching for it. I think the best thing they could do is put more effort into the musical selections, because that's all the average fan ever notices.

They've been on an upswing with Taylor and Aarhus, and the general consensus for a decade has been that EKL is holding them back. Nothing's probably going to change until she retires.