Marching Performers are Athletes

Athlete. When you hear that word, what comes to mind? A runner? Basketball player? Maybe a powerlifter? Someone playing a sport?  When picturing an image to fit the word “athlete,” a band student may not be the first image that comes to mind, thanks to old stereotypes and not-so-flattering movie depictions of the “band kids.” However, anyone who has ever witnessed the phenomenon of “drum corps body” knows these stereotypes to be inaccurate.

The Miriam-Webster American dictionary defines “athlete” as a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina. Oxford languages defines “sports” as an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment. Is there any better description for the marching arts? Marching band has come a long way since the inception of the activity, now incorporating more running, dancing, climbing and moving props, and skillfully manipulating their equipment than ever before. The physical demand of performing a marching show requires agility (quick and accurate direction changes in drill), strength (holding instruments up for long periods of time), and stamina (long rehearsal blocks, marching and playing for several consecutive minutes in a performance). Marching performers meet all of these criteria in performances. Thus, marching performers are athletes.

As such, marching performers need to learn how to treat their bodies as an athlete does. Being aware of and understanding obstacles to their physical performance allows the performer more control over the variables that might hold them back from their best performance or rehearsal efforts. For example, slight levels of dehydration (so slight that thirst isn’t even signaled yet) can impact the cardiovascular system in such a way that an athlete’s exercise may cause them to get out of breath faster. This is an important variable for a wind player on a busy contest day when breath control in performance is necessary. A simple solution to eliminate this added obstacle is simply to be aware of their fluid intake on contest day in the hours leading up to the performance (or during a school in preparation for an after school rehearsal) and make a conscious effort to stay hydrated ahead of the thirst signal. This is one simple solution that gives the performer an added boost for their efforts later that day, and all it takes is some awareness and action.

Unfortunately, if we aren’t viewing marching performers as athletes we may spend our educational focus entirely on maintaining our equipment, musical proficiency, drill awareness, and other performance-specific topics. While these elements are critical for our success as individuals and as a team, we hold ourselves and the entire program back by not addressing the primary instrument each student is working with: the human body.

As we learn to perform with an instrument, explore the details of what makes it work or malfunction, how to combine those variables with our marching form and breath control, we practice combining these elements to enhance our skills as a performer. Health is also a practice with variables that help or hinder our performance – hydration can impact cardiovascular endurance and breath control, nutrition can dictate how well a performer concentrates in rehearsal or how much effort their muscles can give in repeated reps (it’s such a waste when the mind is gaining information with increased reps but the muscles fail us before we can get that perfect rep), proper conditioning can improve the quality of an entire group’s program, injury prevention can go a long way to retaining members despite rigorous rehearsal schedules, and recovery practices keep performers ready to come back fresh to each rehearsal. Imagine a group of performers who is conditioned, mentally fresh, physically strong and prepared for every rehearsal and performance? These are the benefits of performers addressing their bodies as athletes do. When we know better, we can do better. 

Understanding is key

As educators in the marching arts, we need to take on the responsibility of educating our students in this category. For some of our students this will be the only health education they will ever receive in an environment where they can actively apply it, practice it, ask questions and receive feedback and guidance from trusted mentors over several years. We do our marching performers a disservice by focusing only on the playing and marching – as we train their bodies we need to help them understand how they work. In return, we stabilize our product (the marching show) by eliminating the frustrating obstacles that can so often be prevented, such as kids checking out mentally in rehearsal when their blood sugar has dropped because they didn’t think to eat or bring snacks for this block. Then the kid is getting called out because they missed a piece of information and got something wrong, a rep is wasted, the kid is embarrassed, the director is frustrated, and perhaps it all could have been prevented with a little bit of nutrition education at the beginning of the season.

To all the directors out there, let’s help our students. The information you can teach them about their bodies and how to manage them will be information they can use for the rest of their lives. They may put down their flute or flag or retire their drumsticks, but this human body will stick with them forever. You may be the only educator in their life that actually teaches them how to care for it.

 Performers, let’s step up for our teammates and for ourselves. Your health is your responsibility, and it directly impacts your show. Just like nobody can play your notes for you in a performance, nobody can control how effective your body will be in rehearsal and performance like you can. And beyond that, picture that perfect run… you know, when you’ve hit everything just right and you walk off the field feeling so thrilled and accomplished. Those runs don’t feel so good when your brain is foggy or your muscles are depleted from poor nourishment that day, or you missed a few phrases because you couldn’t catch your breath. These are variables you can eliminate, and be that much closer to a show to be proud of every time. Ahhh, that’s so worth it.

And to any of the parents out there, you can help your kiddos by understanding this information to help them stay accountable to themselves with it. Perhaps learning how sleep impacts the body in a way that motivates them so you can help remind them about it when they are delaying bedtime, or finding the snacks that will help them at rehearsals and performances that are beneficial AND appealing to your performer. Or simply going on this journey with them to learn about the way the human body responds to all the ways we treat it so you might make helpful choices together so they don’t feel so weird making these changes. (Now whether they choose your snacks or make it to rehearsal with soda and gummy worms is up to them ultimately, but at least you’ll have done your part).

I hope to help you on this journey to educate yourselves in order to share that information to the benefit of your team. Of course I encourage you to seek out resources, explore topics in this field, and search for the answers to questions that may improve the physical health of your program. In the meantime, please reach out to me if you have any topics, questions, or prompts you’d be interested in having answered. A little extra health knowledge goes a long way in the marching performance experience.