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Boston Crusaders Win, Band Trailer Theft & Choreo Tips | Water Break Weekly
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This week on On A Water Break, it’s all about nerves, leadership, representation, and celebrating unforgettable wins in the marching arts. Host Josh Smith is joined by new panelists Dalton Stout, Clara Bagwell, and Eric Levy — all making their podcast debut!
The team kicks things off with their 32 Count Life Stories and a fun icebreaker: “What part of the marching band are you?” Clara relives her gold-medal summer with the Boston Crusaders, Dalton shares his journey from Nebraska to Colorado and launching DVS Choreo, and Eric spotlights his 20+ years of teaching and his work with Drumline Network.
In the News Block, we cover:
- The retirement of Iowa’s legendary announcer Lou Crist after 44 years
- Miami budget cuts cutting $12.8M in arts funding
- A stolen band trailer in Colorado and tips for protecting your equipment
- PASIC 2025 announcements featuring RhythmX and George Mason
Dalton delivers the 60-Second Tech Block on choreography hacks, and in Water We Doing?! the crew takes on audition nerves, teaching leadership in a post-COVID generation, body shaming in DCI, and the importance of ensemble unity. The episode wraps with Gush & Go, highlighting Boston’s first DCI championship, new percussion challenges, and student success stories.
Panelists & Socials:
- Dalton Stout – IG/TikTok: @saltydalti | daltonvstout.com
- Clara Bagwell – IG: @_clara.01100010
- Eric Levy – IG: @worldoferic | Drumline Network & Percussion League
- Josh Smith – TikTok: @mr.smiths.band
Sponsors:
- Peak Group Travel – @peak.group.travel | peakgrouptravel.com
- Guard Closet – @guardcloset | guardcloset.com
✨ Don’t forget to subscribe, leave us a review, and share this podcast with a friend.
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Transcript
Overcoming Nervousness in Band Rehearsals
00:00:00
Speaker
Hey everyone and welcome back to On A Water Break, the podcast where we talk about everything you and your friends are talking about at rehearsal on a water break. This week we're all about being nervous and overcoming obstacles.
00:00:11
Speaker
We'll also find out what Mae Dalton say, For the color guard folks listening, I also have no idea really what they're talking about. And why Clara said, Because I think what everybody does is lame all the time. Like we're doing band, we're throwing in the air, we're hitting things with sticks, we're just like running around.
00:00:28
Speaker
Like that's kind of silly. All this and more on this week's episode of On a
Host and Guest Introductions
00:00:32
Speaker
Water Break. um adolf the met and go book of you want a water break podcast where we brought
00:00:51
Speaker
Hey everyone, it's Josh and I'm so excited to be hosting the podcast right now. We have a great episode for you guys this week. It's all about being new because every single one of us on the pod this week have never been on or hosted.
00:01:02
Speaker
And here we are. Before we see who's on the sidelines this week, make sure to go subscribe but on your favorite listening app, write us a review and share it with a friend. Got a question or a good topic to talk about?
00:01:13
Speaker
Email us at onawaterbreakpodcast at gmail.com or find us on social media and DM us if you want to be on the show. We even have a form now for you to fill out if you want to be a guest. Check it out at our link in the bio.
00:01:25
Speaker
So who's on the sidelines this week? We have Dalton Stout, Clara Bagwell, and Eric Levy. So since all of us are new, we're each going to do 32-count life story. I'm going to start things off.
00:01:38
Speaker
My name is Josh Smith. I am a high school band director in South Central Pennsylvania. um I'm in my third year of teaching and my second year at my current school. I have two bachelors, one in music ed, the other in performance, and a master's in instrumental conducting.
00:01:52
Speaker
started in West Virginia, then Ohio, now teach in PA.
Clara's Experience with Boston Crusaders
00:01:58
Speaker
Next, we're going to have Dalton. Howdy, everyone. I'm Dalton Stout. I have been a music teacher for seven years now. i did five years in elementary and two years in middle school.
00:02:10
Speaker
That was back in my life in Columbus, Ohio. I lived there for other seven years after moving there from Nebraska. Now I'm here in Colorado. i followed my husband to Boulder. He's getting his master's music education there.
00:02:23
Speaker
So I am a little bit between jobs at the moment, but doing a lot of choreography through my company, DBS Choreo.
00:02:30
Speaker
Next we got Eric.
00:02:36
Speaker
Hey everyone, my name is Eric Levy. I'm originally from Miami, Florida. I've been teaching for over 20 years and also composing for every 25 years. I've previously ah taught over in China and Taiwan.
00:02:47
Speaker
Currently I'm a regional manager for Young Musicians Unite and the percussion director at Florida International University.
00:02:58
Speaker
And then last but not least, we have Clara.
00:03:05
Speaker
Hey guys, I'm Clara. I'm from Huntsville, Alabama. I graduated from Sparkman High School and i marched Colts from Inbucal Corps in I've done WGI with New City Mystique the last three years. I'm a student at University of Alabama in Birmingham, majoring in elementary education.
00:03:26
Speaker
And this last summer I marched with the Boston Crusaders and aged out of DCI. have one more WGI, but done with DCI.
Marching Band Metaphors
00:03:35
Speaker
And Clara, you are actually totally new. You're one of the DCI correspondents.
00:03:40
Speaker
And so now that you have your gold medal, can you tell about your summer marching with Boston and about what you were most nervous about going into that finals week? Okay, yeah. yeah So my summer was incredible. It was so exciting.
00:03:54
Speaker
I went to a bunch of different places that I'd never been before, and I didn't really know anybody at the Boston Crusaders. I mean, I met them at like auditions and stuff, but I didn't like have like a bunch of friends like going into the summer.
00:04:05
Speaker
So it was super exciting to get a whole bunch of new people and see a bunch of cool places. Like we started in Vermont and we spent like some time in Boston. we went, we flew to Colorado and did like California tour, Texas tour, all the different stuff.
00:04:20
Speaker
And then going into finals week, I wasn't super nervous, honestly. Like the percussion like has been scoring pretty well up until now. And we were feeling pretty good about like,
00:04:34
Speaker
what I could control, I was feeling pretty good about. And obviously we didn't know if it was going to be like us or Bluecoats winning it, but that wasn't like super important to me. It was still like, you know, oh, I hope we win. But it wasn't like something that I could super control because it was mostly just like up to our GE scores and whatever.
00:04:54
Speaker
But i don't know. I think overall this summer, I was super nervous just about like, there's not a whole lot of girls in the Boston Crusaders. Like there's several color guard girls, obviously. But besides the color guard, there's like 10 girls, like horn, line, percussion, drum majors.
00:05:10
Speaker
Like there's not a whole lot of us. So it's kind of nervous about that. But don't know.
00:05:17
Speaker
Okay, since we are all new around here, the producers added in a new segment. The question is, what part of the marching band are you? Now, this isn't meant to be taken literally. They want creative and personality-driven answers.
Upcoming Episodes and PASIC Performances
00:05:29
Speaker
So I'll go first, for example. ah I, in the marching band, am a really strong flag feature because i am passionate, I'm full out, but I make things a little more difficult than I need to be. Does anyone else have anything? That's great.
00:05:45
Speaker
I thought a bit about this and what I came up with was I'm the ticks on the rehearsal field. It's a great support that's there to give you the information that you need and set you up for success, but then stepping away from the actual performance when you're on the field going at it, knowing that you have the tools that you need to be successful, even though the tools aren't right there with you.
00:06:09
Speaker
I actually think I'm more like the brand new Megavox. So I'm pushed out on the field. Some people know how to use me, some people don't. And no matter what style it's going to be used with, I always fall accurate and I always make everything better.
00:06:28
Speaker
I'm definitely like someone's younger sibling who's just like running around and causing chaos. And I'm just like making fun of everybody because I think what everybody does is lame all the time.
00:06:40
Speaker
Like we're doing band, we're throwing in the air, we're hitting things with sticks. We're just like running around. Like that's kind of silly. And I'm definitely just like someone's little sibling making fun of everybody. That's great.
00:06:52
Speaker
That's awesome. Okay, we want to take this time to preview some amazing episodes and bonus content we have going on. Check out our latest episode where Alicia Sharp and Nicole Younger sat down with Angela and Adam Miller to talk about the evolution of the Meridian Guard, college audition prep, and why WGI's regional formats are changing the game.
00:07:13
Speaker
Plus, inside stories from the field about touring, teaching, and what it takes to grow the next generation of performers. And don't miss the conversation with Lori from Guard Closet, FruHop uniforms and virtual assistant director, sharing why slow tempo training is a secret to cleaner shows and stronger marching technique.
00:07:33
Speaker
If you're looking for history and inspiration, go back to our On a Water Break with the 1934 Foundation episode from for a powerful look at community, tradition, and the future of the marching arts.
Guard Closet Advertisement
00:07:47
Speaker
Thank you for that, Clara. And now we're gonna go to a commercial break.
00:08:00
Speaker
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00:08:29
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00:08:41
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00:08:53
Speaker
Have you listened to our podcast on a water break? Weekly episodes and bonus content keep you entertained and informed with what's going on in the marching arts. For over 25 years, Guard Closet has been here to help.
00:09:06
Speaker
Check us out at guardcloset.com or follow us on social media.
Impact of Budget Cuts in Miami
00:09:21
Speaker
So why don't we see what's happening in the news this week?
00:09:40
Speaker
To start things off, the retirement University of Iowa's announcer, Lou Crist, after 44 seasons with the band, he started with the band just by reaching out saying, hey, do you guys need an announcer? And they responded saying, yeah. And so he spent 44 years with them.
00:09:56
Speaker
I have a good friend who's a band TA um Iowa right now, Kevin Neese. Shout out to Kevin. I texted him earlier asking if he had any inside scoop. And the first game, the first halftime show, may or may not include songs and drill from his time as a member of the band all the way back in 1959 and then as announcer over the past 40 years.
00:10:14
Speaker
So that should be pretty cool and a great honoree of New Christ. Eric, you were part of some news today. Can you share a little bit of that with us? Yeah, so today we were actually performing at the commissioner's meeting down in Miami-Dade in downtown, where we've actually been experiencing mass seeing.
00:10:34
Speaker
Sorry. We've been experiencing massive budget cuts down in Miami and throughout the state of Florida. So just recently it was announced that the mayor was cutting $12.8 million in cultural arts funding, which supports our museums, groups like the New Deco Ensemble, and a bunch of other things, including the arts...
00:10:55
Speaker
that pretty much support Miami. So things like Wynwood, things like Art Basel are all supported through stipends, um different grants and funding. So today we performed as a full drumline on behalf of YMU using the FIU Ensemble and we made our voices heard.
00:11:12
Speaker
So hopefully that's something that they reverse pretty soon and it comes to fruition in the best way possible. That's awesome. Just get out there and say, this is what you're cutting. This is pretty cool.
00:11:23
Speaker
And you're trying to take this away from people and away from the community. So thank you for that work, Eric, that you're doing. Clara, do you have anything for us? Well, they announced that Adam Norris, Thomas Clayson, and the RhythmX Quadline are going to be making an appearance at PASIC this year. That's pretty cool.
00:11:42
Speaker
That's super exciting. love, like, seeing... for the mix they're always super clean and super cool. I wish I could be like them, but. Sweet. Dalton, do you have anything?
00:11:54
Speaker
Y'all, another band trailer was stolen in Colorado. This, I remember the first time I heard of a band trailer being stolen. i was so shocked by that news because who would do that? But as I've like grown up, especially in Ohio where my car was stolen twice, it's such a common like thing that happens. And so maybe this is just a good reminder to everybody out there locks aren't enough for your van trailer the locks on this one here in colorado were cut they were cut off so like they did everything they were supposed to do but when somebody wants what's inside of that they're going to take it so maybe take some extra precautionary steps park some cars around it or put it in another like gate if your school has like a gated place to put trailers make sure it goes there every night because it's not enough it's the kind of thing you just want to think about either like why are you stealing a trailer
00:12:40
Speaker
And some of the reports of people talking about this, like the parents and kids are just so shocked and devastated. And like I know exactly what that feels like to walk out and it's not there. And you're like, wait, I thought I parked it here. Maybe I didn't. And then just hours of panic and like, you know, right before a show even. I can't.
00:12:56
Speaker
That's too much. And Eric, do you have anything to share about the George Mason drumline and them performing at PASIC as well? I think that's going to be a super amazing thing. George Mason shows are always super fun.
00:13:07
Speaker
For as clean as they are, they definitely throw it on a lot of things and they give a lot of old school vibes, especially like a major shout out to Dartmouth, of course, with a lot of their fun shows.
00:13:18
Speaker
So that's always going to be an awesome thing. So we're looking forward to seeing George Mason out there and just having some nice beats and giving great information. Yeah, it should be cool. mason actually was the first like legit drum line that I got to watch during my student teaching when I was in college.
00:13:32
Speaker
I didn't have a drum line in high school or I didn't have an indoor program in high school, but I was teaching, student teaching at school with a drum line and ah the first competition we went to, Mason played and it was a really cool experience. They're a great group.
00:13:45
Speaker
I love the George Mason show. It's like my favorite show of all time. I remember like hearing rumors about it like last fall and like, oh, this show going to be so silly. And then I started seeing videos and I was like, oh my goodness, I love this so much. And it was so exciting.
00:14:00
Speaker
We need to see a Father Ryan revival. That would be a game changer today.
00:14:06
Speaker
For the color guard folks listening, I also have no idea really what they're talking about. So you're not alone.
00:14:15
Speaker
I've never been to PASIC. Is it worth it to try and get out there? i mean, I teach middle school band. It's very percussion heavy. I've never been to PASIC. A lot of my percussion friends go, but it's very, very weird percussion, like hitting random objects
Travel Tips and Peak Group Travel Advertisement
00:14:30
Speaker
and metronome pieces. Everything. Everything you could ever want.
00:14:34
Speaker
Percussion. Like everything. I think it's cool that marching ensembles are getting featured at PASIC, though, since it is such a different style and different technique than traditional concert playing or even soloistic percussion playing.
00:14:46
Speaker
I think it's cool that those kind of groups are getting recognized at such a big, big event. Speaking of traveling to PASIC or anything else, it's time for your Peak Group Travel Tip of the Week, brought to you by our sponsors at Peak Group Travel, helping you navigate your next adventure, whether it's across the country or just to your next competition.
00:15:05
Speaker
Hi everyone, it's time for your travel tip of the week with me. I'm Beth with Peak Group Travel. When you start reviewing the calendar for the dates for your next performance tour, avoiding major holidays is strongly recommended.
00:15:18
Speaker
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00:15:30
Speaker
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00:15:54
Speaker
Ready to elevate your travel game? Welcome to Peak Group Travel, the ultimate adventure creators. Whether you're planning an unforgettable class trip, a once in a lifetime parade experience for your marching band, or a choir tour full of memorable performance venues, Peak Group Travel handles it all so you can focus on making memories.
00:16:12
Speaker
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Choreography Tips for Color Guard
00:16:56
Speaker
You pick the date, and we'll make it great.
00:17:10
Speaker
Okay, everyone, we are back. And it is time for 60 Second Tech Block. 60 seconds, take back.
00:17:26
Speaker
This is the segment where one of our hosts or guest clinicians is put on the spot to deliver a nonstop 60 second tech section text session tech session on a topic that needs some serious attention after the last run.
00:17:39
Speaker
Our special tech this week has to come fully prepared with three topics they think that they can talk about for a full 60 second straight. No hesitation, no pauses, just pure technical gold.
00:17:50
Speaker
And this week, I think we're going to throw it to Dalton. Dalton, you said your best topics were bad color guard drill, prioritizing EQ over body, and how to choreograph.
00:18:03
Speaker
So what do we think Dalton should talk about? As a band director who needs to choreograph holds in my show, i think I would love for Dalton to give a little six-second spiel on how to choreograph, but that's just my two cents.
00:18:14
Speaker
I want to know about bad color guard drill. I'm in a pit, so i don't really know anything about drill in general, period. But i want to know whats what makes it good makes what makes it bad, you know? Eric or the time breaker, what do you think?
00:18:26
Speaker
I have to vote with choreography just because we see a lot of bad choreography to music. That makes no sense. Nothing quite like band legs.
00:18:40
Speaker
Sweet. So Dalton, are you ready? I am ready. Claire, can you put up a 60 second timer for us? I got you. Sweet. 60 seconds on the clock.
00:18:51
Speaker
Dalton, ready, set, go. All right, y'all. So I've had a good amount of experience choreographing for color guards in all of the equipments, dance, flag, rifle, saber, and also for band bodies, drum lines and bands.
00:19:05
Speaker
So this goes for everything. ah What you need to know is if something is happening in the music, something should also be happening with your body. If the music gets louder, what you should do what you're doing should get bigger.
00:19:19
Speaker
And if the music gets quieter, what you're should doing what you're doing should get smaller If there's music happening somewhere on your field or coming from a direction, you should be over there doing something to that music where it's coming from.
00:19:33
Speaker
And then from there, it's really just about how you feel. If the music is happy, make sure you're jumping with the music. If the music is sad, make sure you're reaching with the music.
00:19:45
Speaker
If it's a long note, make it a long move. If it's a short note, make it a short move. Follow those rules and everything you write will be musical and beautiful, I promise. And that's it. That was right on the money. i That was great, Dalton. Way to go. She can meet a deadline. Okay.
00:20:07
Speaker
Eric, Clara, any any comments on that? Clara, are you excited to do some choreography in the pit? Oh, I cannot wait. I love pit choreo. We need more band people to choreograph stuff for the pit. We want to do it.
00:20:18
Speaker
We want to do it Come up and- Is that real? People like- Yeah. The pit players want to dance more. Yes. We love doing like visuals and Okay. And sometimes we add visuals and then like the visual coordinator like, hey, pit, why you look stupid right now? Like, okay, come down here then. Tell us what to do. We want to do stuff.
00:20:34
Speaker
I'm going to roll to all my clients and say a Boston Crusader told me. Yes. Told me that you want to dance. So you're dancing. Sorry. Just standing there and playing is so boring and lame. Like we want to do some stuff.
00:20:46
Speaker
That was awesome. I would definitely say some something awesome to think about. I do this a lot with a ah lot of my front ensembles and even like in our concert percussion groups that go to WGI.
00:20:57
Speaker
We take a lot of show style things from HBCUs and show style groups and put it in there and it just blows everybody's minds. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. It's super fun to teach. Yeah.
00:21:08
Speaker
There really isn't anything like experiencing an HBCU band for the first time. The kind of performance is just off the chart. I grew up near Morgan State and Howard, um seen Morgan State a lot, and they are such an awesome band.
Challenges and Leadership in Marching Arts
00:21:23
Speaker
Well, that was a solid 60-second tech block. Hopefully someone out there just got a little bit of tech advice they didn't know that they needed. But now it's time to switch things up. It's time for everyone's fame favorite, what are we doing?
00:21:35
Speaker
what are we doing
00:21:44
Speaker
what are we doing This is the part of the show where we let loose a little bit or maybe a lot. This is your chance to rant about something in the marching arch that just doesn't make sense. Maybe it's your tradition that needs to go.
00:21:56
Speaker
Maybe it's a habit that performers can't seem to break. Maybe it's something that makes you think, why are we even doing this? Or why haven't we started doing this yet? Whatever it is, this is your moment to call it out. So who's got something that they need to get off of their chest?
00:22:10
Speaker
Clara? Oh yeah, I got something. So we're talking about like being nervous and stuff a whole lot today. So what are we doing cutting ourselves from groups? Like why are we deciding that we're not good enough to try out for like that indoor group or that drum corps or like whatever it is.
00:22:28
Speaker
Like there are so many people who just get anxious and nervous and decide that they aren't good enough. to be in the group, like let let them decide that. Let them decide you're not ready yet. You know, like build those connections, make people know who you are.
00:22:42
Speaker
There's so much benefit in like going and auditioning somewhere and meeting new people. Like even if you don't think you have a chance, like you're gonna learn something, you're gonna get something out of it. I totally agree. I got my first job because I auditioned for a a voice competition. I'm not a vocalist.
00:22:56
Speaker
I got my first job because auditioned for a voice competition and I got in and then I was like, do you guys need an intern? And they're like, yeah. And then my first job came out of that. So I totally agree. Just go for it.
00:23:07
Speaker
Eric, what do you have? So it's definitely been an interesting few years, especially evolving through what we do here in the United States and overseas. And honestly, what are we doing when we don't set up the members for for success by teaching them how to be better leaders and also learn how to learn?
00:23:25
Speaker
There's so many instructors that I've met over the years, so many students that just don't have a foundational level of how to create camaraderie, what their roles are as actual leaders. And that affects them long term. They don't know how to run sectionals. They don't know how to properly go home and practice.
00:23:40
Speaker
And they end up falling short of what our expectations are. And really, it comes back to us not setting them up for success. So let's fix that. I think as a community, we got all just so comfortable with like,
00:23:53
Speaker
Everyone knew what was supposed to happen for marching band before COVID. And then COVID happened. And there's this generation of kids who didn't get that like really young training. And these COVID kids are different. It's nothing like, it's nothing their fault, but we have to teach them the things that they don't know. And I've seen too many instructors just like yell at their kids when they don't know what's happening because they don't know what's happening because they never told them what's happening.
00:24:14
Speaker
Like that's tension that doesn't need to happen. Friends, just communicate and ask questions. That's all it takes. Oh, thank you for saying that. Yeah, I couldn't agree more. And- In one of the one of my philosophies on music education in general is that what we're really teaching are those skills. Eric, you you're talking about time management, how to practice and boil down something and learn and grow from that.
00:24:37
Speaker
We're just doing so through the medium of music and performance. But those skills that go hand in hand with the performance and the learning and and the rehearsal is really what the goal of the ensemble is at the end of the day.
00:24:48
Speaker
We want them to make music and be musical, of course, but that's the skill and the learning that happens in the classroom, on the field, um <unk> cetera. So great point. Dalton, what's your hot take?
00:25:00
Speaker
All right. And we're going to get real hot here for a minute, friends. Sorry for it. um What are we doing still um still body shaming and misogynizing this activity.
00:25:13
Speaker
I, this was not, not intentional, um not on purpose because I'm like looking for a problem, but this summer, like I would just, there's a lot of flow marching flow marching on my feed. And I would swipe away from a video of a drum corps because most of the video was some skinny boy.
00:25:30
Speaker
And I don't want to see all these skinny boys doing this activity that is full of not skinny boys. There's so much diversity and like, just happiness in this activity that needs to be celebrated.
00:25:42
Speaker
But so many of some really top people in this activity are making some really poor decisions on how, like how their performers are chosen. And I just think that we could all take a step back and check out why we're choosing the performers we're choosing and make sure that what we're seeing matches what we feel like we should be seeing from communities. I tried to stay really PC about that.
00:26:09
Speaker
Clara, was there anything with your summer at Boston that you saw that kind of relates to what Dustin was saying? guard instructor's name is Dustin. I'm sorry. i get it a lot. That's fine.
00:26:20
Speaker
Like representation is huge. I mean, I told you, like I was the only girl in the pit this last summer and I would, there was one girl in the snare line, but there's just the two of us in the percussion section.
00:26:31
Speaker
And there were very few girls in the horn line. And this is definitely nothing against like Boston, but this is very much like, there's not that many girls that do this activity. And it's because they're seeing all these videos of skinny dudes and it's not like they don't associate, they don't see themselves being a part of something like that.
00:26:52
Speaker
Sorry, that takes us back to what you were saying. Like, don't cut yourself before you're cut. Like, if you don't, if you can't see yourself there, then you're never going to go for it. And when that, when that image of you has never been represented, it is like 10 times harder to visualize yourself there and make it happen.
00:27:08
Speaker
Oh yeah. Like I can like count on my hands, like the number of like girls and percussion that I saw like growing up that were like, like and influenced me and inspired me. And there's like not, there's so many guys out there that do like so well and there's so few girls and don't know, of bummer, you know?
00:27:26
Speaker
bummer, a super bummer.
00:27:29
Speaker
Mine is, I think that in general, we need to do better at making the ensemble feel like an ensemble.
Celebrations and Achievements in Marching Arts
00:27:38
Speaker
I think it's really easy because of how we differentiate the learning and the teaching experience to have drumline feel like a group, front feel like a group, winds feel like a group, guard feel like a group.
00:27:48
Speaker
um And that's something that my current school, when I came in, I saw a little bit of in the last two years, I've been working to try and mesh and fix but make it so the band is a band and everyone's goal is to work together. And what the guard person doing on flag relates to how the the front ensemble person is playing their line relates to what the batteries do relates to the wind player relates to the drum major up on the podium.
00:28:11
Speaker
Like it's a full ensemble and every voice and every person matters on the field and making sure that even outside of like section or especially outside of sectionals time or small ensemble, small group time. It's a one entity as opposed to multiple smaller groups that just happen to perform the same thing at the same time in the same place.
00:28:34
Speaker
Something that Robin Wells, one of my, the one of the best flag techs in the entire universe um said to me my first year at the Cavaliers, it was to the group, but it hit my heart was, oh my God, now it's just in my brain.
00:28:47
Speaker
um This show, only exists in your brains. Like us in the band, like the show only exists inside our brains, nowhere else. And so like when we're, when we leave this season, it's gone forever. We have video cameras now, but it's gone.
00:29:03
Speaker
And so that, that's something that really made me like, whoa, music is special. Band is special. Cause like, we're all doing this together and it only exists between us. Like that's so magical.
00:29:16
Speaker
All right. Great job, everyone. Set your equipment down. got and
00:29:24
Speaker
Now that we got that off of our chest, let's time let's get into our gush and goes. Welcome to gush and go. This is your chance to shout out something awesome happening in your life, marching arts related or not.
00:29:36
Speaker
Maybe you're just excited about performance, a student success, a big life event, or just something cool you want to brag about. No negativity here, just pure, unfiltered hype. We will start by gushing for ourselves for doing a great job with this part podcast so far.
00:29:50
Speaker
So how how's everyone feeling?
00:29:55
Speaker
We feeling good?
00:29:58
Speaker
like keep tripping up in the middle of some of the long lines. If I could stop doing that, tod be better. but now you're doing perfect. Thank you. Absolutely perfect. dar Do you have anything you want to gush about?
00:30:10
Speaker
um I would like to gush about just the original storytelling that I'm seeing in the activity. There are so many like new stories and new ideas that are being told and put in front of me. that is just It's so exciting.
00:30:23
Speaker
And that feeling of what's going on right now? Like when you're looking at the field and you can't understand it. That's my favorite part because it makes me ask so many questions and I want to just like find the staff and pick their brains. what What's going on? Tell me more, tell me more. And that's what makes art interesting to me.
00:30:42
Speaker
Clara, what's your gush? I'm still very much like riding the high from the last DCI i season. Like, mean, Boston's never won.
00:30:55
Speaker
like Boston's never won ever. And like, that's 85 years worth of like alumni and like people making this possible. don't know. It's just like surreal that like, I mean, I went to Boston, like knowing that they were going to place pretty well.
00:31:12
Speaker
like never expected like to win. And it was just insane. Like the amount of like alumni support and like Everyone, everyone's a Boston fan. Like everyone, like, mean, everyone was like rooting for us. I mean, obviously like the Bluecoats had their fans for sure, but like everyone was rooting for us and that was like insane. Like, ah I don't know.
00:31:29
Speaker
It's just insane. And then like, we got a perfect score on percussion. What? Like that that's, that's wild. Wild.
00:31:40
Speaker
I'm still just very much riding that high. um My friend Uptown also told me to shout out him during my gushing go, so shout out Uptown. And that's it
00:31:51
Speaker
Eric, what is you what are you gushing about? So there's definitely a ton of stuff to gush about. Biggest one is ah few brands that I've been launching. so I own the Drumline Network, and we've been doing some really cool stuff. We just ran some events over in the Philippines. We actually just started something called the Catch These Hands Challenge, which is way different. It's just we play a lick, and it's the kid's job to transcribe it, play it back, and then we give away some prizes.
00:32:18
Speaker
But the biggest thing with that is just enhancing percussion education through the brand, through the networking, and literally connecting the dots through our motto, which is bridging the gap of all rhythms. So I've been super excited about that. And it's just growing more and more every day.
00:32:35
Speaker
Cool. ah My gush is ah I have a couple of students that have amounted some pretty awesome things. um I had two students that I've taught. One is a senior right now with me and then a couple of staff members that all marched with the Reading Buccaneers.
00:32:49
Speaker
um And so they won open class this year. um I got to see them and actually got to see Boston as well at the Downingtown show the week before championships. um And so super proud of of all those people that I have in my little corner from Bucks. Shout out to Chesky, Colin, ah Matt, Aiden, a great group of people there.
00:33:10
Speaker
um And then I also had two students of mine get accepted to a local youth symphony, which is really cool too. um I need experience for them.
Closing Remarks and Credits
00:33:19
Speaker
Hey, it's called Gush and Go, not Gush and Stay. Let's go.
00:33:28
Speaker
Well, thank you all for a great rehearsal this week. And thank you for everyone who is spending some time listening with us today. Dalton, Clara, thank you so much for a great rehearsal this week. And thank you everyone who is spending time with us today.
00:33:43
Speaker
ah Where can we find each of you guys? Dalton, where can we find you at? um I am on social media, Instagram, and my TikTok are both salty Dalty. That's S-A-L-T-D-L-T. Y-D-A-L-T-I. Or you can check out my website if you're interested in my choreography business, daltonvstout.com.
00:34:00
Speaker
Clara, where can we find you? um You can find me on Instagram. It's underscore Clara dot zero one one zero zero zero one zero. That's the letter B. That's the letter B in binary for anyone who's curious.
00:34:15
Speaker
incredible
00:34:19
Speaker
Very unique. i love that. Eric, what about you? So you can find me on Instagram at world of Eric. um You can also just branch off from there. Drumline network, percussion league, essentially any of the 50 things I'm doing, you'll find it from my page.
00:34:37
Speaker
And then you can find me on Tik TOK, Mr. Smith's band. There's periods between each of the words, Mr. dot smiths dot band. um And I'm hoping to grow my band in any way I can.
00:34:50
Speaker
Got a question a good topic to talk about. Got a question or good topic to talk about? Email us at onawaterbreakpodcast at gmail.com or find us on social media and DM us if you want to be on the show.
00:35:02
Speaker
We even have a form now to fill out if you want to be a guest. We love having people on the podcast. So check that out at our link in the bio on our social media. Or you could just take out your phone, make a video and send it to us.
00:35:13
Speaker
Maybe you'll see yourself on the podcast soon. And one more thing. Don't forget that we have a YouTube channel now. So go and subscribe so you can see all of us there. Before you close out of your podcast listening app, go subscribe, write us review, and share this with a friend.
00:35:26
Speaker
Follow us on all social media at On A Water Break, and we'll see at the next rehearsal, On A Water Break.
00:35:34
Speaker
The On A Water Break podcast was produced by Jeremy Williams and Christine Reams. The intro and outro music was produced by Josh Lida. To learn more, visit LidaMusic.com.
00:35:46
Speaker
And until next time, thanks for tuning in.
00:35:53
Speaker
she okay