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The One About Marching Band Across the Country
152 Plays1 month ago
Join Austin along with Sean and Woody as they welcome guest clinicians from across the country to discuss what band is like across the US.
Don't miss a beat! Follow "On A Water Break" on social media to stay connected with the latest news, insights, and discussions from the marching arts community. Subscribe now and join us on this captivating journey!
Meet our Hosts
Jackie Brown - @spintronixguard
Stephen McCarrick - @stephenmccarick
Cindy Barry - @leandermomma
Nicole Younger - @o2bnpjs & @thecookoutcg
Trevor Bailey - @t_pain151
Trish O’Shea - @trishdish1002
Beth Beccone - @bether7189
Chris Rutt - @wildhornbrass1
Cynthia Bernard - @cynthiabern
Ashlee Amos - @famousamossss_
Theo Harrison - @harrisontheo07
Stephanie Click - @stephanieclick
Whitney Stone - @dancerwhit
Justin Surface - @J_dex07
Ashley Tran - @itsashleytran
Jack Goudreau - @goudreau_
Bill Woodward - @remoking100
Emily Nee - @tch.makes.art
Ricardo Robinson-Shinall - @ricardorrobinson
Austin Hall - @Austin_hall10
Jose Montes - @joeymontes57
Bobbey Biddle - @bobbeyboy107
Peyton Billhart - @peytonbrillhart
Music provided by leydamusic.com Follow him @josh.leyda
Avatars provided by @tch.makes.art
Keywords: Marching arts podcast, Marching band podcast, Color guard podcast, Percussion podcast, Marching arts education, Marching arts community, drum major, flourish, tatu
Thank you also to @guardcloset
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Transcript
Introduction and Marching Band Styles Across the U.S.
00:00:01
Speaker
Hey everyone, we are back for another week of exciting rehearsals. This week we are talking marching band differences across the US. We'll also find out what made Woody say. That's not so bad, you know, when you first read the announcements you think, oh no, we're gonna lose him.
00:00:17
Speaker
And why Sean said, Oh, I, you know, I haven't before. But now that it's like my gig, I think I'm kind of required to. I think I should. All this and more. So get out on the field and we will see you back on the sidelines for this week's episode of On A Water Break.
Meet the New Host: Austin Hall
00:00:33
Speaker
are Eight off the Met and go. Welcome to On A Water
00:00:53
Speaker
Welcome to another episode of season two of On A Water Break, the podcast where we talk about everything you and your friends are talking about at rehearsal on a water break. I'm Austin Hall, and it's my first time hosting y'all. Marching Band is different all across the country. There are so many different ways to compete, present, and create shows in the marching arts, and we like to explore every single one of them.
00:01:17
Speaker
This week, we have a great group to talk about some of the differences in styles and methods of marching bands across the country. But first, let's see who's on the sidelines this week. Woody, is marching band season over yet? You got cha you had championships? ah Yep, marching band season is over. I am now already into the next mood already. How'd you do? How'd the groups do? Actually, you know ah this was a new group for me. and They finished start eighth, I believe. They didn't finish last. That's a win. Hey, especially for a new group. Hey, for a new group, not bad at all. No. It's only up from here, right? Only up from here. That's why I try to tell them. Absolutely. And Sean, who's actually going to be becoming one of our regular hosts very soon, how's the end of your first marching band season going?
00:02:11
Speaker
Oh man, it's it was a great end to our season. Um, we finished about two and a half weeks ago. Feels like it feels a little longer, maybe a little shorter. I can't really tell. Definitely doesn't feel like it happened two and a half weeks ago. Uh, we did pretty well. I think, uh, this is also my first year with with the brand new group. Um, we got seventh and same feeling as Woody, not, not last. Um, we, we got a couple other awards, which felt pretty good. Um,
00:02:41
Speaker
But yeah yeah, it's nice to have my some of my evenings back. you know Other things tend to fill up that time pretty fast. But it yeah yeah, great end of the first season. Good, good. got Got the foundation set only up from here, right? That's right.
Sherry Kuzil's Move and New Jersey Bands
00:02:56
Speaker
Perfect. Sherry Kuzil, we've had you on before talking mental health and the marching on arts. How was your marching season?
00:03:04
Speaker
Well, I've had a very interesting marching season because I've been busy trying to move from New Jersey to Texas. ah I worked with two groups in New Jersey. Both were, one band got promoted last year from an A class to an open class and mid-season and the other band I work with, this was their first year in open class, same group in the same class group, good old four open in US bands.
00:03:33
Speaker
One band came in third it states and the other band came in fifth. So it's been a pretty good season and now I'm ready to jump into the next season with my new band down here in Texas.
00:03:44
Speaker
That's great to hear. i'm I am really intrigued to hear about this A and open-class thing that U.S. Bands has going on, but we'll have to save that for a little bit later so we can dive a little bit deeper into it.
Genevieve's Focused Marching Band Season
00:03:55
Speaker
And we have a guest clinician on this evening. um She's going to be representing the Northwest area. Please welcome Genevieve Gahagan. Hello, Genevieve. How are you? Hey. Good to see you.
00:04:11
Speaker
yeah think That was your first marching band, or how was the season? How'd we do? How'd it go? Yeah. Oh my gosh, it was crazy. Where to begin? This was my first marching band season ever that I haven't been working like a soul sucking day job. Yeah. But luckily- We're going further. Oh, sorry. Let's do the 32 count life story. Oh my God. You can wrap it all together. Okay, okay, okay. But there's gonna- So you know how this works, right? What's Yeah, up? Thanks! I do. We're gonna have levels. Perfect. Yeah. All right, we're going down.
00:04:45
Speaker
Okay. It's off the mat. You're in. Let's do it. All right. Here we go.
00:05:01
Speaker
Oh no, I think I have to go faster. Um, the costume dropping everything. Ta-da. Okay. Do we have more counts? Keep going. Okay. Okay.
00:05:16
Speaker
Oh, one more.
00:05:22
Speaker
How'd I do? Wow, okay. well That was the most silent version of a 32-count life story that I have ever seen. So don't tell, you know? You are only listening to the podcast. Get on YouTube so you can watch this. Can you sum it up in about three sentences?
00:05:46
Speaker
It was really original after I had to take that. I threw it out of you. Can you sum it up in three sentences for the ah for the people that are only listening? Sean, can you actually say what was in the chat? Because I have a good anecdote that leads into that.
00:06:02
Speaker
and it's like That was an excellent deaf man's 32 count. Yeah, we talk about that like one of my um Awesome kind of like co-instructors at Century High School. This is a good segue. We love a coordinated transition on the fly Was at North Salem High School in Salem, Oregon. um I went to Willamette University and got a bachelor's in French there um and studied a lot of movement and um coming back from my
00:06:34
Speaker
Fourth season of Drum Corps, which was I marched two seasons of Oregon Crusaders who are no longer with us for some really good reasons. um We can come back to that later. I think that loops into some of the topics that we have, but Um, then we won open-class championships in 2012. We had a super strong invested, like aligned staff with a few toxic things that eventually got trimmed out. But some cores, if they can't take care of the membership, just should not exist anymore. Anyway, um, I'll, so I'll keep saying that. And you know, the more we talk about these things, the more I'm going to get hot because it's all about the members.
00:07:19
Speaker
I agree Genevieve. and somebody As somebody who is the mental health counselor for one of the world-class corps, I totally agree. um I think about like the years I was a member of Oregon Crusaders and then the decision strategically that I was able to go to a private college in Oregon whose school year lined up with the drum corps schedule strategically, right? I was thinking about these things when I was in high school. I was able to get into a university and pay for it because I knew that Phantom Regiment, my dream drum corps, started in May and ended in August. So you have to be way more strategic with these decisions when you're living in an area that just does everything different. The Pacific Northwest like finishes school in June and then we resume in September.
00:08:15
Speaker
So if you have a dream that you want to accomplish, but then you go to a big state school where you wrap up your finals week and the end of June, guess what? You've missed all of move-ins and you've missed whatever first tour. Oh, yeah,
00:08:31
Speaker
yeah so yeah we do. Uh, I'll learn them. I like watched like clips of of the EPs in the the the little bit I had to prepare, but um Yeah, it was it was just like things lined up. um I saw the but I saw regiment live in 2011. And then I saw them again in 2012. And like, yeah, I just, ah I think that's a good place to kind of segue into like what the other topics we have tonight that we want to talk about. Yes.
00:09:06
Speaker
I love the introductory insight. We have, we got some news to get to. we got to big We got a lot of news. We got a lot of things going on. So let's throw it. Let's go. Let's roll into the news.
Jersey Surf's Financial Strategy
00:09:19
Speaker
All right, Woody, we got a, we got a sad one to start us off.
00:09:34
Speaker
I come to you with some sad news today. The Jersey Surf, a former quarter I taught with for nearly 11 years, 12 years, something of that nature. They've decided to downsize their participation this summer to prepare for their 23rd anniversary and make sure all their finances are in order. ah Very similar ah
00:10:05
Speaker
to what Genevieve was saying you know you want to make sure the money's in the right place I can remember working there and we would be on tour with some whores that should have gone home but they stuck it out only to die at the end you know kids not eating we would uh give them little food and you know, so very smart choice, but they will be ah participating at a very limited schedule. ah They are having a healthy winter. ah They're going to do the North Carolina show night B on July 30th. They will do the Annapolis show on August 1st.
00:10:53
Speaker
Surf is still hosting the awesome event in South Jersey at Rowan University. It is a very good show because everyone's in town. They'll be doing Allentown on the 5th and Edensborough on the 7th. That's my birthday. And then heading to Annapolis.
00:11:15
Speaker
for championships. So basically they are bagging the first month, month and a half. Okay. That's not so bad. You know, when you first read the announcements, you think, Oh no, we're going to lose them. But actually they're coming in to battle. So maybe this might work out, huh? So are they going to be competing in world-class still Woody?
00:11:42
Speaker
Yes, they still will be a world-class core. They're just downsizing their schedule. You know, sorry those early shows in the Midwest, they're just basically staying local. Actually, Austin, to be quite frankly with you, back in my day, there were always two tours. They're doing a second tour. basically They were. Yeah, they are doing they aren' doing second tour.
00:12:09
Speaker
ah Yeah, I get it. I mean Money's money's tight. You got to take care. You got to take care of the students. I completely get it It makes sense. But hopefully Jersey surf can come back in full capacity and in years in years to come but ah Sean What's going on with your story Yes, so my story Austin is ah about this this Syracuse game where ah ah the kicker and I'm not gonna even name the names because the article goes into the names and the other team and I don't want to
00:12:42
Speaker
I don't want to make this ah more of a nasty mark than it already is for that person and that team. But it's ah it's an unfortunate situation where the opposite team's kicker felt like he had the ability to go on the field during Syracuse's march marching band show, their halftime show, and start practicing kicks.
00:13:01
Speaker
start practicing for field goals. So he he goes, yeah, pretty bad. He goes on and, um you know, while they're literally playing while they're marching and doing, you know, during their show, goes on and starts trying to kick, you know, and it's a disregard for, you know, you you know band member safety, safety it's a a disregard for for what it means to be in a band. It's it's it's kind of sad. ah That person ended up you know apologizing on Twitter, I think, but ah you know never apologized to the band. It's a shame. it's it It's an example you know of how marching band can easily be neglected or or or looked down on in the community that we that we are really for which is which is of well obviously education but also to support you know the community to support the football team and the support
00:13:55
Speaker
the students in the community. It's a shame that that that people are are easily so vulnerable are getting taken advantage of. And yeah, there's no penalty for the other team um of of the kicker who was going on. he mean I mean, it's been I'd be the penalty.
00:14:15
Speaker
yeah I'm not sure like what their marching technique is, but I would switch from straight leg to like high step and I would smash his ankle. like You guys can learn sometimes. I was telling someone about this today. like We got to clap a little bit more and like bite at this shit because it's not acceptable. And frankly, like dumbass coach is going to let his guy like who might be like scoped for drafting and like go and run in the middle of the marching band when like if I'm running past with my rifle, you're getting clocked. Oops. Yeah. and oh Don't be in my room. High school and college playing for them like we wanted to be there anyway. Disrespectful. We're making the game fun. yeah you know We're playing the music. We're getting the crowd amped. What would they do without the band?
00:15:04
Speaker
How many times do you hear about a movie that has a completely different meaning without the music? Like, that's what a football game is for so many people. Without the band they being there, it's just like a completely different It reminds me of where those YouTube videos where they take TV shows and they just cut out all of the background like music and it turns into a horror movie. Because you would just be hearing like their cleats clomping the ground and then just like oh like slamming into each other. it's It'd be kind of like gory. Like, oh my god. This is like they're fighting, but then it's exciting when you have music playing when things happen and the band the the ball goes in the right place, you know?
00:15:43
Speaker
i don't get me started on this yeah let's see what happens next time when they don't get the hey song right yeah my song does not play the the morn song but get off my pitch so i'm gonna start playing so share more with these people share we're gonna move on to uh something about uil what happened All right, so there was the Sherryland Marching Band ah and Sherryland Pioneer Marching Band, and there were allegations made by Brownsville's, I mean, sorry, Port Early College High School from the Brownsville School District, and she alleged that Sherryland gained an unfair advantage in our the UIL l area GU marching contest. So in Texas, we have
00:16:37
Speaker
all these UIL area bands and the one thing in Texas that I am learning is UIL actually mandates how many hours the bands can rehearse. um You can't go over it, you can't, you know, practice at certain times, rehearsals have to end at certain times. So the principal at Porter Early College provided photo evidence that Sherryland not only pulled students from class, but they actually went above and violated UIL guidelines and rehearsal time.
00:17:18
Speaker
ah UIL came back that they were aware of the rule violation and That it was addressed at a formal healing at the local level and the committee reviewed testimony and provided by representatives from Brownsville ISD and Sherryland ISD and that penalties were deemed appropriate under the UIL guidelines the case is closed and the UIL-ARIGE contest both Starryland schools advance to the state marching band contest. So the way it works is
00:17:55
Speaker
in Texas is you start at your area and then I believe it's the top five schools from every area go to states and states are always in San Antonio. But yeah, I guess they allege that they violated all that wonderful time that you are not allowed to rehearse in the great old state of Texas.
Impact of UIL Rehearsal Restrictions in Texas
00:18:18
Speaker
it's i'm I'm learning about all those You know, everybody's like, why is Texas band so good? Well, they have the class time, but really they're outside class time. Those afternoon rehearsals are very limited. Like I'm so used to, Hey, it's Saturday. It's a marching band show. We're going to come in and rehearse all day in New Jersey and then go to the show. You can't do that in Texas. Right. Yeah. They do the eight hours a week.
00:18:47
Speaker
academic, um, they have a lot of academic guidelines with it and everything. And I think Whitney was talking about it. Whitney and Stephanie were talking about it at one point. There are, um, they've had to pull kids from the show two weeks before state. Yeah. It happens. But UIL is, yeah. UIL is no joke out here. They definitely, I mean, I like it. I like that. I mean, in New Jersey, we're not the athletic,
00:19:18
Speaker
You know, UIL is all the athlete athletics in Texas. It's football, it's baseball, it's marching band. Marching band in New Jersey has nothing to do with the athletic departments usually in the high schools. It's sort of like, oh wait, can we get the field today? Can we not get the field today? So that's what I like about being down here is that the marching band is part of the athletic department. Right.
00:19:46
Speaker
and We can talk a little bit more about that later. But yeah, we got we got a whole segment to talk about all the all the regional differences is going to be I'm looking so forward to this. But ah one more thing coming out of Utah. I got a quick news story for us. um The um most of us know who American Fork is. um So not only are they like a very, very solid program, and they're getting more and more recognized nationally, but for the past, I think it's six or seven years, um the high school football team has made it a tradition to show up um to their to one of their competitions each year.
00:20:32
Speaker
And i I mean, I love, I love it. They've been doing it six or seven. They've been doing it for six or seven years now. um The Today Show actually picked it up. There's been an article posted and they were taught and it was all picked up from a band mom who just happened to post it on Instagram. It's like, Oh, I went to my daughter's. um I went to my daughter's band competition. She just so happened to be an American fork.
00:20:53
Speaker
and um and height And then she just took a video of all the high school of the entire high school football team pouring into the backstands. And for those of you who do know American Fork, they're a very large group. like They have at least 250 kids. And they're very well known around the state of Utah for being the best in the state of Utah. It's it's very well known. And it's super cool to see the culture around the program.
00:21:22
Speaker
um but not just from the not just from the students, but from the entire student body. like the like if the entire so If you have an entire student body and administrative and all that support, you're going to be successful. And it seems like American Fork has that figured out, which is super, super cool to see. um And if you haven't seen a clip, there and they're incredibly they're incredibly good at what they do.
00:21:51
Speaker
and Let's see team captain for the football team. He says he's got huge respect for the band. Like we love supporting them. And the band members love it and just creates a better environment for everyone. So that's my new story of the day.
00:22:07
Speaker
I think that's awesome. I want to add, there I mean i don't and don't think we need, i don't need and maybe I don't need to plug any high school. I know a high school, I used to teach at a high school that um did that the band and the football team had this relationship. But I just want to like say this for sure, and this is like something I believe every, this applies to every high school dynamic, like is that it shouldn't take winning first place every single year for years and years and having this huge tradition shouldn't take that to get the good camaraderie between football and and marching band. That needs to be there all the time.
00:22:45
Speaker
it it is It's just, you know, it's free to be nice. It's free to be supportive of each other. It doesn't it doesn't cost money. What costs money sometimes is winning first place. we Having amazing staff and having having awesome designers, and having the props, you know, doesn't cost money to be supportive of each other. But that can go so much farther sometimes.
00:23:06
Speaker
Absolutely. But we got to grab one more sip of water so we can get back out and rehearse. um We got to go rehearse part two and we will see you back after commercial at the next water break.
00:23:28
Speaker
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00:24:13
Speaker
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00:24:40
Speaker
And we are back with our final host who just so happened to be a little bit late to rehearsal because he was at his own rehearsal. Scott Ruiz, how we doing? I think Scott owes us some of that. Yeah, we're good. I'm a little late to the podcast because I was on my own little rehearsal. But everything's good over here. It's a little ah windy and dry in Southern California. We get the ah Santa Ana winds in the fall. I'm not sure any of you familiar with that But it's just kind of like normally we get the ocean air and the flow off of the ocean But right now it's an opposite flow. So it's really dry air from the desert that comes out So I sound a little amazing like I have a cold it's because there's like no humidity in the air over here right now It's like 20% pretty bad
00:25:24
Speaker
Dry mixture, some hard color guard, right? I know. That's when you see, I know they're having a little fires here and there. When you hear about Southern California fires in the fall, it's those winds that fuel those fires. So, you don't like that. Yeah. Yeah. It's a great season. This is our first season in the big 10. So we switched conferences from the Pac-12 to the big 10 as.
00:25:45
Speaker
You know, college band exists and rallies around athletics more than competitions and field show tournaments and things like that. So, you know, it's definitely a change from teaching high school to teaching college, which is, you know, it's wild in its own, its own special way, but it's fun to travel. We just came back from Washington. We played UW. So got yeah, it was cold up there.
00:26:09
Speaker
Really freezing it up a little bit. It was wild, Ben. But I've been getting to travel around the country, do different places now that we're in the Big Ten. We got to go to Minnesota, Michigan, Maryland. We've just got a really interesting schedule than just traveling up and down the West Coast to play schools now. so It's good. We're about 370 in the band, and I have 35 silks in the color guard, which I'm in charge of the color guard. It's a big group.
00:26:34
Speaker
ah So it's a well-oiled machine, but it is a Trojan machine. It's the staple here in Southern California, a great group, very active in the community. Obviously being at USC, dealing with the students here in the culture has just been really cool the last couple of years I've had a job here. So definitely a blessing to be working at a private school right now. Yeah. So we're talking about, uh, we're talking about Southern California and we're talking about everywhere else like Texas, yeah the Northeast, the Northwest. So now what we want to do is we want to unpack the differences in how marching band is done across the country. We got representation from all over the country. um And if you're used to massive competitive programs or a close knit tiny community marching band, each approach brings something special to the marching arts. So let's dive in.
College vs. High School Marching Bands
00:27:26
Speaker
Let's share some stories. Let's share some insights from across the country. I think we should definitely go in and start
00:27:32
Speaker
with Sherry on this because Sherry did just do a move from New Jersey down to Texas and it's kind of getting a fresh take on everything and has that kind of like dual, dual threat for this conversation. So Sherry, what are the different, what are the main differences between New Jersey and Texas that you found? The main differences are just the size of the programs. Like we always, it's so funny when I,
00:28:01
Speaker
I've been talking about coming down here. My daughter's down here. She's our director down here. And I've been talking about coming down here for the last couple of years. And it's so different. Like, you know, Woody and like, you know, and Jeremy and Sean, you know, I was in New Jersey, you know, I taught down in the Philly area. I was at Plymouth white Marsh for a while. And it's like down here, the arts are just like marching band is just supported where in northeast it seems like it's like tolerated by the schools. That's the dream down there. most that you know And just the size of the bands, the program, the the way the band directors are looked at down here versus what they're looked like. you know When I first talked to my friend Kevin Fallon, who's a band director down here at Boswell High School, and he was just like, yeah, the
00:28:56
Speaker
You're expected to be a successful band director down here. You're expected to make finals at area, go to states every year. Those are expectations down here. And in New Jersey, it's just like, let's just make it through the season, guys. Let's just hope we have the funding to put up a good program. That's really similar to what we're facing in the Pacific Northwest. It's like a white knuckle, like, are we going to make it through this one? and ah We had multiple shows this season in the Northwest. It's kind of like a rite of passage, but they dump rain. And your silk gets wet, your equipment is slippery, your costume soaks. We actually had a show a week and a half ago, the Century Showcase, the program that I've been involved with for the past five-ish school years, pending some time off I took here and there, but I love those kids.
00:29:54
Speaker
It's part of the experience. Some of the the craziest run-throughs I remember are similar torrential downpours in the Northeast, where it comes out of nowhere. March in the Midwest, torrential downpour, and you're just like, some places, it's raining, we got to go inside. But certain programs, it's raining, and we're doing color guard outside in the rain. I mean, you guys deal with so much different weather up there. Yeah, we do. It's just, you pretty much, and for lack of better words, you live in a rainforest.
00:30:22
Speaker
Yeah, well, that's actually not true. So that that it's like a really good way to talk about the different climates and how that impacts your ability to do the thing you do. So one thing to think about we have some really well funded large programs that have access to a lot of money, a lot of students on a lot of props. And they do consistently well every year because they can put on this kind of one of my friends worded it as like a little bit catty like the Taylor Swift era store on the field. And then there's bands that are like we have like four flutes, we're going to convince one of the clarinets to play the saxophone and then we're gonna play really loud. And it's it's stunning, you know, so
00:31:07
Speaker
so So if you're a big program that has sunny weather down in southern Oregon, which is on the cusp of northern California, it's a different climate from like, if you're up in the Puget Sound in what you're the rainforest, you know, like, ah, it's so different. But it's it's beautiful, but it's challenging, too. Yeah, I think that's also the difference I found down here. Like the band that I'm at down here now, they have an indoor A lot of the Texas bands have indoor football field. indoor football field so Yeah.
00:31:43
Speaker
oh When the weather's not good, they use the indoor football field. or when or The field house when it's like band camp down here, August is way into the 110, 115 degrees, but you're doing it in the field house. Yeah. You have the climate informing like the approach, right?
00:32:03
Speaker
We're struggling with that right now because of the climate turning upside down. It's changed. So it used to be that like, you know, when I was, I was in high school on the Puget Sound in Muckletia, Washington at Cameac, it was rainy. We had snow sometimes and we were, we had hand warmers in our, in our gloves inside of our gloves as we're spinning and you got to warm up your hands or you're, you know, you're breaking your, your thumb on your saber.
00:32:27
Speaker
But you you persevere. We don't have facilities like that. The U of O marching band, who they're an integral part of the University of Oregon Ducks, like they get access to facilities. And so really the move is like those sorts of programs that are connected to universities that have facilities. It's just tough because how many of you have and how many it's got to get into those places that have the stuff, you know,
00:32:56
Speaker
Yeah, I think like Scott maybe you have some more context working with like a college program Like what access do you have to like the stuff in the places?
Rehearsing Challenges in the Northwest
00:33:05
Speaker
We really I mean just again the weather demographics much different here in Southern California, right? So When we start band camp in early August, we're lucky if we're dealing with like 85, 90, you know, which is kind of nice, you know, when you get the ocean breeze and it's just, it gets warm, but it's not a unbearable warm. So I'm really thankful. There are a lot of shady, like open places on campus where I can take the silks to rehearse the band. We actually just changed the format.
00:33:37
Speaker
this year so that we were marching in the morning doing sectionals in the afternoon marching in the evening used to be marching marching and then sectionals in the evening so now just in case it gets a little too hot in the middle of the day everyone's doing ah sectionals indoors or not out in the sun blazing in the afternoon yeah we don't have any we don't have any field houses we don't have any indoor facilities like that that can house like you know, the amount of students that we have. So I mean, we do definitely have adequate facilities as far as the stadium to rehearse in and different things like that. But it's definitely not on the level of like some other universities that do have field houses or indoor facilities and stuff like that. It might be coming in the future. You know, they are doing a lot of construction here for the football facility and things like that. I don't know if a field house in the in the plan, but if it is, I hope we get to use it.
00:34:28
Speaker
hu We are fighting tooth and nail right now in the Northwest because like, Oh man, there was a discussion with my high school group where the question was whether we were going to be able to be in a school to rehearse a school at all. You know, the high school will rent out to local leagues and the leagues pay money to the school to host. I don't want to get too into the weeds with like.
00:34:54
Speaker
like, damn, but I learned really early from mentors to you got to throw that title nine discrimination out. Like, i I get hot. We got to practice. I agree with you. And just kind of going back and then just fresh out of teaching high school for over 20, like high school color guard for 15, 20 years. So like I dealt with that facility issue of hey, we need to have an indoor space for Winter Guard. And the school's like, oh, well, we have community sports, and they're paying us. So we're not going to give you the space. It's like, you're not going to give the space to your students of the district, but you want to make money off of these other club sports that I'm like, no, no, no, no, no. Like that. We have students who have parents. Yeah, sorry. Go ahead. i makes no sense as far as a priority level I am fighting that issue here on the East Coast myself.
Indoor Space and Resource Limitations
00:35:47
Speaker
And you know, it's kind of funny because it's a new program for me and ah building athletic directors trying to tell me how this all goes. And I'm like, listen, it's pretty much like this all around the country. Even though I don't agree with it, you know, and I have three programs and they're stuck in the cafeteria to learn an indoor program. And like, meanwhile, there's guys who come in and take the gym.
00:36:17
Speaker
They only may play half court, but they get precedence over the kids. You know, I, I, I get it's terrible. He muted there, Austin. Hello. I'm muted. I'm not muted anymore. Overall, it sounds like that's a constant.
00:36:36
Speaker
the fighting for facilities because we deal with that in Florida here too as well lots of lots of facilities like we did outdoor like we did indoor outdoors here in Florida because we're able to do it it's nice in the winter so we can do it so that was kind of our strategy um eventually we did find an indoor facility it took a lot of work it took four or five years to figure out but there's a I mean there's a lot of places up in like the north like in the north the northeast the midwest they can't do that they gotta find the they've got to find those facilities for indoor because it is consistently 30 degrees out we're lucky here in florida where it's 75 80 degrees and it doesn't really rain in the winter but i mean it sounds like that facility thing is a constant constant battle for everybody and i'm sure it happens in texas yeah
00:37:31
Speaker
But not quite, but maybe not quite as frequently. Well, this coming weekend actually is talking, I was supposed to be staging the, we have Emerson will be putting four winter guards out and I am staging two out of the four and we were supposed to stage the JV guard this weekend and we lost the gym to the basketball team. Oh man. So we will not be staging. We had the field house. Oh my God. November
00:38:02
Speaker
when i tell you I've had the same exact conversation so many times in the past years of teaching. It's like, holy, can I swear on here? Probably not.
00:38:17
Speaker
Yeah, it's tough. um Like, you know, that's that speaks to the adversity in the activity. You have to fight for it. It's exhausting, but it's what makes certain programs special. When you do get the space, it's a win. Well, and I think it's crazy that Sherry already is starting to talk about staging her winter guard when we don't even have our championships till right before Thanksgiving here in Southern California. Although I know in Texas,
00:38:49
Speaker
WG, the varsity team is going to WGI and we have a minute 30 on the floor already. I'm just, I'm telling you, and now you understand why. as So Cal people, when they want to have regionals in February, we're like, no, we don't, we're not ready in February. The local circuits, I believe, what area of Texas are you in? I'm right in the DFW area. Okay. So your championships is very early for the regional eight classes. It's like the first recycle league of March.
00:39:16
Speaker
So that makes sense as far as your timeline. Like for us here in Southern California, those groups or those high schools aren't staging until at least that week before Christmas or not even after, like the high school that I taught up for years, we didn't do our staging camp to that till right after the first of the year. And then we moved out from there. I just slept the Northeast and worked with a WGI high school group up there and we didn't stage till Christmas break. So yeah. Yeah, that goes back to the timeline. how is you Yeah. We're here in New Jersey. Yeah, December or so. That's the time for here. We get to January.
00:39:57
Speaker
It varies, right? So I dropped in the chat, but I am going to be involved in a couple of the more like caliber groups. One is like a group that like I really am excited about. I have a friend who moved to the area, Zachary Dye, who decided to pick up and move to the Northwest by chance. It was like one of the first like first Phantom Regiment people that I had in the area. That's a thing. You're isolated out there. It's tough. But then when you get the staff together, you can start building. Shauna, are you doing anything this winter? Yeah, so I've got my band director. um So I've got my own high school's ah indoor group. But I'm also helping out with United Percussion. I'm a for ensemble technician for United Percussion WGI group. And I'm really lucky.
00:40:49
Speaker
but It's kind of like my second home I've been doing indoor for, I came from Upper Derby High School. My first indoor season was 2014. So I guess this is my 10 year anniversary of doing indoor drumline.
00:41:02
Speaker
Um, and I love the sound effects. Yeah. Yeah. Finally ten hit my first, you know, baby's first decade. Yeah. I got a lot of different things going on. My girlfriend, um, she teaches at United Percussion too. So the second group. So we're like, you know, we're just all running around Timbuktu. Yeah. It's resources for staff and.
00:41:29
Speaker
what different groups have to do on the East coast, very different. Um, at least over here, you know, at the high school level, you know, a lot of times there might be a little bit of support from the, from a school district, if it's a public school, but, but a lot of times band parent groups are doing most of the heavy lifting, you know, people should be paid for their time. yeah And that's like the hard thing is like, yes, this is a labor of love, but also,
00:41:56
Speaker
Got bills to pay. Hours and hours and hours. It was so different down here from being when I was up, you know, like in the Northeast and I, you know, I've been guard director, guard assistant director, visual caption head. It's like, here's your stipend. and Your stipend is like, say $5,000 for both seasons. Whereas here it was like, Hey, you're going to get paid because I was a certified teacher, you know, $30 an hour just to be at March.
00:42:25
Speaker
What would I love to like really settle in? About two weeks ago, I was down in Louisiana judging the show, and I was with two Dallas ah band directors. And they were talking about the money being thrown around to the staff, like, 60 grand. I'm like, oh my god.
00:42:47
Speaker
Yeah. it's And band directors down here make a full salary. Yeah. You know, between the two bands that my daughter does as director and assistant director, that's her living. And it's really not a full-time gig. It's teach class at two different schools and do rehearsals at two different schools. That's what they were talking about because this almighty states, the almighty states, everything is based around
00:43:16
Speaker
Yeah, you might say the way that capital flows. It's like an ism. Catch my jive. Yeah. The like integrated positions at a school are so crucial. I think like of a vote winter guard I coached for three or four years, Skyview High School, they also had a had past tense, a strong national presence. um this and The person who's really like integral to the program there is Patty Allinger. She was the dance coach at the school. So she's running classes and then they have after schools and then the dance team
00:43:52
Speaker
but if those twenty two year olds that are coming back from those cores they have to go to school they have to work two part time jobs they can't pay rent and we need them to be there four times a week to check our guard like. It's tough it's the squeeze Scott what are we looking like in so cal like down the coast resource wise like what are we thinking.
00:44:11
Speaker
a general what is it like not like In general, it all depends on the demographic of the cities here. So they're like Los Angeles, you know what I mean? Like LAUSD, like inner city schools. We're not going to find a lot of, ah you know, programs that will come out and do the Taylor Swift era tour kind of a thing, right? But there are pockets here, you know, of schools that you could definitely tell.
00:44:34
Speaker
have a little bit more financial support through you know parents and funding and things like that, because then they do come out with the Taylor Swift era tours. you know So it's a little bit of a um an interesting thing here. I judge locally here.
00:44:50
Speaker
in the fall and also winter. And just to see the the differences in some of the schools, depending on what area they're from and what kind of support they've had for years, we all know that COVID changed a lot of that, especially with funding and and ah different factors. Some schools came out of COVID just still trying to rebuild their numbers and other schools came out like nothing ever happened.
00:45:10
Speaker
So um it's definitely a different flow here. I know in Texas there's funding. Every school has pretty much the same kind of facilities. They have money for the band records. They have money for staff. And I think that's wonderful. They haven't totally figured out there. So kudos to Texas for having that figured out. But I think most of the Midwest, some of the other Midwest states have been to Missouri.
00:45:30
Speaker
the schools there that I've seen ah pretty much have the same kind of buildings, Texas schools, as far as like having the support staff for the music instrument overall. So um it's just, like I said, the financial gain here and paying instructors, like I said, it all depends on what, what district you're in and what city you're working in. And yeah also, you know, is, does that school have a name? Are they competing at the BOA level? Are they out of the area? You know, there's all kinds of factors that go into that. So there's definitely a,
00:46:01
Speaker
And I don't know if inequality is the right word, but...
Funding and Support in Southern California Bands
00:46:04
Speaker
Inequity. Inequity to what instructors will get paid. Like he said you said, you have the really talented kid that's 21 years old who's getting a $2,000 stipend to run to be there five days a week and run marching band. But then you also have right out either a-named designer coming like three times us a year to this school to design this show, write their drill. And he's getting like, whatever, you know, the big, the big, the big cash. Yeah. Whatever it is. And if they can pay it, they can pay it, you know? Um, yeah, I can tell you from my personal experiences, it was always a struggle for me, um, being an established like color guard designer, visual designer to kind of like push these booster programs. Like, Hey, like, if you want me here, you want me doing this, like I produce results. Like you can't have a Ruth Chris state for McDonald's price.
00:46:53
Speaker
you know So that was always you know the labor of where we do love what we do, but we also have to be financially compensated too. And that was a big decision kind of jumping from booster run high school programs to actually coming to an established music program like USC. That was a big change financially. So what you're saying Scott is that this money thing is an illusion because on the East Coast, we look at the West Coast like all of you have money. No.
00:47:21
Speaker
Yeah. Like I said, it depends on the area. It depends on the school. It's very, it's, it's varied on the area. And if there's like parental support and if there's, you know, money in the area, you're not going to find that like in certain places, you know, I think that kind of is how most of the country is where you have schools or their powers house school and they're really good school. They're always going to have the props. They're always going to have this, they're always going to have that. And then you have, you know, other schools that are just,
00:47:46
Speaker
just barely trying to survive with their instrumental program, you know, with the funds they have. So Scott, they're not all Ayala's out there. No, no, no, no, no. But that's what I'm saying. Prop 28 did pass last year. And I know a lot of my friends up in the Central Valley and Hanford area, they're really benefiting from that money as far as buying new instruments. Same with them here in Southern California. A lot of them are buying instruments and doing certain things and able to actually allocate that money a little bit to pay staff as well. So that's really good that that money is coming through from the state. So we're trying here in California. We're trying to do it. We're trying to kind of up the game and do the right thing for the arts here. So we're not on the level of Texas yet. Yeah, it shouldn't. It shouldn't like you shouldn't have to
00:48:34
Speaker
How do I want to phrase this? Like I've taught the schools that have all the things I said about Skyview High School. I've taught the schools where the railroad tracks run next to your football field and you have to wait until like the Amtrak or whatever else is done rumbling before you can give comments, you know, and like there's there's different things there. It's tough to teach. It's tough to teach like the privileged kids because they don't understand that like some of the other kids got, like they have to fight. And it's it's a weird like dichotomy between those two. So, yeah. And that's a that's a stereotype here at USC. Like a lot of, oh, you got all the spoiled privileged kids and blah, blah, blah. And it's like, okay, yes, you know, here and there. And there are kids that come here and this is a private schools, private university. But really because it's so hard to get into the school, what what I personally deal with here and that I've kind of had to change, like my teaching pedagogies is,
00:49:27
Speaker
all these students that come in were number one at their schools, right? So valedictorians will do grades, get accepted to USC. And now all of a sudden, they're in a whole other pool with a bunch of other number ones. Yeah, so that dynamic is wild. As far as like, teaching them, trying to give them basic skills, you know, some of them really get upset, you know, if I'm trying to teach drops, and they've never done one, and they can't get it like in Two minutes and it's like, I can't take time. It's okay. She's been doing that for three years. in the creative is I want to jump over to my phone and be like, Hey, I just heard this thing in this podcast. And like, I think we should talk. Yeah. So yeah yeah I think you deal with that a little bit more on the college level too, but just students coming from
00:50:12
Speaker
their high school programs into a college program and dealing with a whole different dynamic there. Yeah, I mean, to me, it sounds like there's I mean, there are a lot of differences. But to me, it sounds like there's even more similarities throughout most of the country. And for me, this is my personal opinion, minus Texas, they're on a different level in the best way possible. But we got it. We got to jump to commercial. Got to go hit the closer.
00:50:39
Speaker
So we're gonna go we're gonna go hit the closer, grab your last gush, and we gotta do what are we doing next.
00:50:55
Speaker
Hey everyone, it's Jeremy, your producer from On A Water Break, and here are your announcements coming from the box. While you're enjoying this amazing episode, don't forget our other episodes, including the one about Peggy Twiggs, the one where we go behind the scenes of the Olympics and the marching arts.
00:51:11
Speaker
We check out the first female drummers from Crossman. We also have amazing special features, including at Step Off with Jack Goudreau, Lost in Translation with Cynthia Bernard, and Behind the Lens with Chris Marr and Russell Tanakaya. Don't forget our other bonus feature, On a Water Break With, where we explore individuals or small groups. We talk to people like Eric Carr, Forte Athletics, and comedian Tony Deo.
00:51:36
Speaker
If you know of a story, or you know of someone that would make a great story, email us at onawaterbreakpodcastatgmail.com. Okay, field staff, take it away.
00:51:52
Speaker
All right, and we are back. It is time for what are we doing? What are we doing?
00:52:11
Speaker
What are we doing? All right, Woody, let's start off with you. What are we doing? I tell you what, I always think about this segment and I think I'll bring it back to a little bit of what we've been talking about. You know, this new program I'm at, pretty much 90% of the staff is volunteer. And it just really, it really bothers me, you know, that like,
00:52:36
Speaker
I have to try to figure out a way to make the staff better, obviously to get the better people in, you got to have some money. Most of the people on staff that I have now, kids who graduated from high school who just really love the activity, but as we know in this circle, that's not going to get you very far. And like, what are we doing people?
00:53:00
Speaker
You know, I know you as a band parent organization are happy because there are kids involved, but we're going to be at a standstill forever. So I question, what are we doing here? That ties it back to Texas. All right, Sean. So my what are we doing? It's kind of in the same vein as Woody. What are we doing expecting bands to do amazing things with no support?
00:53:28
Speaker
little support or not enough support. Oh, you know, all those things. What are we doing? It's impossible to have expectations that are like your neighbors, but zero ah support, unlike your neighbors. We we got to support our groups. We got to support our kids first. We got to support our teachers. We have to support our instructors. We have to support the entire thing. But of course it's about the kids.
00:53:54
Speaker
But education is also about the kids and we got to pay for that sort of thing. We got to make sure that we have the right people doing the right things for the students, you know? yeah And whether that's establishing our traditions or whether it's paying for you know, good, good quality design or quality instruction or quality instruments, or just, you know, having a good teacher, like, you know, to pace out the entire season. Just, we have to support our peeps. Absolutely agree. i I couldn't agree more, but it's about the it's about the kids.
00:54:38
Speaker
What are we doing not supporting our kids and making sure that they have the best experience possible? Sherry, what you got? What are we doing? To piggyback off that, what are we doing not supporting the arts in general in school? That was going to be mine. Yeah. I mean, and I'm going to come at it from the mental health perspective and the special education perspective where you know the It helps the child mental health. my It really makes well-rounded students when they are our strong arts programs in the schools and there's just not enough of that in the country. and therere you know I know in the Northeast they're being cut left and right. so
00:55:20
Speaker
heavy on the well-rounded one. It makes well-rounded students. that's my big That's my big takeaway. That was also going to kind of segue into my, what are we doing? But Scott, you're next. What are we doing in SoCal? I experienced this actually last night at a local band tournament, but band booster parents, what are we doing sitting in front of the judges box?
00:55:48
Speaker
talking about other bands and other costumes and other shows and how you think your kids are going to score this and then we should do that. We can hear you. And I'm not sure if you know we can hear you, but You're not just all the directors and instructors, tell your parents to be very mindful, yeah very demure in the stands. And I'm sure they are when there are other people around, but when you're sitting and you think you're sitting at the top of the and the press box is here in the windows right there, and you're just Gavin about XYZ band and compared to ABC band, and we should have gotten this score and that score. Yeah, it's hilarious. So booster parents, what are we doing?
00:56:34
Speaker
but um Yeah, that's that's kind of wild. I mean, imagine if that stuff got picked up on a tape too. Okay, but it does though. I know. And that's the thing. I've never heard it on a tape personally. But imagine if you're talking that loud during a performance getting it caught on tape. Okay, so a mess about the band that's on the field. Oh my that is a nightmare.
00:57:03
Speaker
ah Yeah, this whole, like, truth is hilarious here. The water we're doing is so funny. And I do have a good one. You're good. umized but you're good My water we're doing is why aren't we jumping up onto our feet and, like, screaming for our kids when we they nail their shit? You're gonna bleep all the best words.
00:57:22
Speaker
Hey, you're like I make sure I made and I didn't, you know, I didn't go to many competitions because I'm getting my like self employed business up and running. So I have to be strategic about like, when I'm there and what I'm doing, like, I'm not going to run warm up, but I'll go to championships and make sure that we're calm, cool and collected. But like, damn, when I get up into those stands, I'm screaming at the top of my lungs, they're gonna hear when they nail their and like, I'm you know, pissing off the band boosters who are huddled into their umbrellas. Like, um I sit down in front of them like, I hope you know, I'm gonna scream. And they're like, Yeah, as long as you don't block us. I'm like, Are you joking? I like I helped to present this to you. So you're gonna excuse me if I don't, whatever deal with it, you know, and then you hear that. You're like, what are we doing? Why aren't we
00:58:10
Speaker
Why aren't we all doing that? Get up on the feet. I love that for you Genevieve, but just don't do that in front of the judges box, okay? No, no, no, no, I'm doing that. No, I'm in like the top corner or I'm in like the middle. I'm not under the judges window, like in the mind tape.
00:58:27
Speaker
The audience will react to catches and things, but there are times, especially in the winning arts, where instructors get so riled up and they're in like whatever corner of the gym. is um And I'm just like, I'm trying to judge general effect here. And like, are you trying to add to that? Cause yeah, I don't know.
00:58:51
Speaker
Like, I don't know what's going on here, but I... I am so guilty of that. I would be froze if one of my instructors did that to me and I was in the middle of the show. It affected you, so it was generally effective. I have a lot of thoughts and opinions, but I will save it. But now,
00:59:13
Speaker
for my personal favorite part, we gotta gush and go. Woody, what are you gushing about? Man, I have to tell you, how quickly, you know, it's been a while since ah I've been fully immersed in but in a band world. And normally I only had to worry about winning a drumline. Now I have a guard, a drumline, and a wind program. And it just won't stop. Like, ah.
00:59:43
Speaker
My gosh, so then you play a game. You spend an hour putting together a schedule for everybody, for all three teams, and you still get up. um Mr. Woodward, are we supposed to be in on Thursday? Jesus Christ. You know, so it's just, you know, just got to get that off my chest. Read the schedule. Read the damn schedule.
01:00:09
Speaker
yeah And that's one thing that's a constant at every single high school in America with the with the kids. Read the schedule, please. Read the schedule. yeah yeah we are As different and diverse as we are from like the Northeast of Florida to the Midwest to Texas to the West Coast. One constant is kids don't. Kids don't always read the schedule. It's that constant if it was just a kid that would be okay. But is the parents and oh damn
01:00:41
Speaker
oh and this band Who thought it was good enough for us to now involve the parents in something that they're just on the outside looking in and then they read something that they know nothing about and they start sticking their fingers in. Get your fingers out of there. You got to have it so vague, so vague on the parent side, like practice. And then on the staff side, you're like, we're doing five minute breakdown. So, you know, they don't need to know.
01:01:12
Speaker
I'm sorry. yeah what it sounds like You but a you've got a busy winner coming up. I don't envy you, but I envy you at the same time. and I live for it. I do. You know, I do too, but I do like a little work-life balance here and there. Who's the wins group, by the way? Oh, my wins group? It's Collins Point High School. So I have three programs inside the one. Oh, cool. Yeah.
01:01:36
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, I will be I will be looking out for them in the wins idiom excited for that because As much as I am a drum guy i'm more excited for my wins program because The future is the the brass and wind program not the percussion program Shout out to the rooftops shout out to the rooftops but sean what are we gushing and going about?
01:02:00
Speaker
Yeah, this week I'm pretty busy. I got busy two weeks ahead of me actually. I'm driving up to Rochester, New York tomorrow to get ready to perform at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in two weeks. So I'm going up to Rochester to do some rehearsals and then next week I'm driving all the way over to Indianapolis, speaking of.
01:02:19
Speaker
who ah to to play a little bit. So I'm excited to take my band director hat off for a short while, um just, you know, on the weekend, not during the weekend, you know, and then come back, teach all week, go back next week, do the gig, have a good time, see a bunch of old friends, and then back to changing lives, right? Absolutely. Shout out PASIC. Well, you're going to have to put a you're going to have to send us all a YouTube clip of that. We're excited to see it.
01:02:50
Speaker
Yeah. Are you going to catch some Grand Nationals while you're in Indy? Oh, um i you know, I haven't before. But now that it's like my gig, I think I'm kind of required to. I think I should you should. I mean, it's right. It's right across the street. It's right there. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Let me just like start walking to Grand Nationals. I'll get there by the time it starts. I'll see you there. Yeah. All right, Sherry. What are you gushing about?
01:03:19
Speaker
Gushing about Crossman Camp starts soon with one this weekend in Houston. I am not, can't go to there, but I'll be busy with the Bones team again. And gushing that for the first time in the school's history, Emerson will be taking his varsity guard to Dayton after coming in third to NTCA.
01:03:44
Speaker
National A last year, we've decided that it's time to get the team out to Dayton this year. Exciting, exciting. What are you doing? What are you doing with Crossman this year? I am still their mental health coordinator, so we'll be out there working with the kids. I was on tour for a good portion of the summer last summer, and I'm going to start earlier. We're going to start doing some screenings at camps and stuff and just making sure the kids are good to go.
01:04:13
Speaker
love it. It's just as important as physical health. More drum corps need that. I will die on this hill. Moving on to Scott, what you gushing about?
01:04:27
Speaker
I've got shit about the ah marching band season here in Southern California. It's November. Everything is in full swing. ah I adjudicate for the Southern California School and Bandit Orchestra Association. I'm headed to San Diego this but Saturday for a competition. There'll be competitions all over the area. Just seeing the hard work and dedication of all these young performers is wonderful. I'm going to help you to be a part of it, and I'm going to be there ah to kind of give them feedback and be somewhat of an educator within their marching band experience. But again, it's just so cool to see all the groups out here culminating in SSPU championships that weekend before Thanksgiving. um It's a lot of competition, a lot of fierce competition out here. It's great to see and I'm really happy to be a part of it. Yeah, I got my first i got my first dose of Southern California band actually here in Orlando.
01:05:24
Speaker
This to Marietta decided to make an appearance. Yes, they did wonder Yeah, I know their color card staff very well really a lot of good people that I marched with when I was RCC Yeah, they were i was really happy for them. They were really really good. It's like I was Genuinely impressive what they're doing their their auxiliaries their auxiliary sections both garden and percussion were just sure they were next level and Yeah. And that's, and that's one of those schools, again, going back to like the the conversation about, you know, areas of the state where there's a little bit more money, there's a little bit more support. You know, they've got the money and support there and good for them. They were they run a great program over there this year. They do. And um and I know there's a lot of other, a lot of other programs in SoCal that do the exact same thing. Truth. So Go Band and SoCal. Go SoCal Band. Genevieve, what's your gushing about
01:06:18
Speaker
I had to take notes because all I've been doing since our NWAPA championships on Saturday is gushing. The future is bright in the Northwest. We have a lot of people who are just really digging their like 10 toes down. ah We're here, we're patient, and we're here for these kids. I think that we're trimming the fat on a lot of the bullshit that we're not going to put up with anymore, especially as women in the area. Like we're we're riding, we're doing this, and we like we ride at dawn.
01:06:46
Speaker
You know, like we're going to make it happen. And now that I'm locked back in on band, I don't work a day job. This is my day job now. I'm going to be, I'm hoping to be traveling. I'm hoping to be meeting some like really exciting kids. Literally all I do all day now is like.
01:07:03
Speaker
build my tattoo business and listen to songs and come up with a show design. It's so cool that I don't have to like grind my teeth at my day job trying to earn a living wage. I can just like open up my sketchbook and like text a 20-year-old who's very excited, who hasn't gotten that chance. like It's going to be a really, really beautiful WGI this year because we work in a community that like rises against adversity. so Oh man, myself worked out, but like I'm gushing and like it's going to be really special. Um, I wow um can't wait to hang out with y'all in the like national sense. I can't wait to see all the different people I merged with when I like do attend some regionals. So I'll be attending.
01:07:47
Speaker
WGI San Diego I'll be attending WGI like Dayton like if you are like a 14 year old and you love color guard And you see me say hi, and I'll say hi back dude like I love this. It's kept me going through the hardest part Is that a good gush yeah does i got to go Yes, hey it's called gush and go not gush and stay let's go Well, thank you all for coming to rehearsal this week. Thanks to our hosts, Woody, Sean, and Genevieve and Scott. Sean, I think your cartoon avatar will be coming very soon. So keep an eye out for that on the socials. And more specifically, when we launch season three, which will be happening very soon. So listeners, please keep an ear and eye out for that. Sherry, where are we going to find you?
01:08:38
Speaker
You will find me yeah this winter at NTCA shows for a change and not in Maine in New Jersey with the Emerson guards. And you'll see me at the Dallas regional and in Dayton with Emerson varsity. Very good. Where on social media can we find you?
01:08:57
Speaker
You can follow me on Facebook, you can follow me on Instagram, friend request me. If you are involved with a drum corps and your drum corps is looking for a mental health professional, please, please reach out if I can definitely do some consulting and also probably find somebody that would gladly help that drum corps in that area. It is so important that our students and members have not only the physical and medical support, but the emotional support while on tour, especially during movements. There we go. Scott, where can we find you?
01:09:35
Speaker
Shameless plug, go ahead. Shameless plug. Well, I'll i'll start with ah USC. If any of you are listening to this at a time where you know you're going to be coming to USC potentially and want to ah just join the band or have information about the USC Silts, which is our color card here, you can reach me at my name is Scott Ruiz at USC.edu.
01:10:01
Speaker
So if you have any questions or need to know anything about the program here, please reach out to me. I'm more than happy to conversate with you. and If we're talking about socials, I am going to plug my DJ Instagram because I am a DJ now. This is, you know, a long musical journey of, you know, knowing marching band and color garden now.
01:10:20
Speaker
become a DJ. COVID afforded me the time to do that. So my DJ Instagram is retro, as in that's so retro, retro, R-E-T-R-O, C-U-V music, at RetroCov Music. So you can follow me there, follow my music adventures as well as I entertain all the fun nightclubs here in Southern California. I just actually DJed a gig in Spain. So now I'm international. Love it. Genevieve, where can we find you at?
01:10:47
Speaker
Yeah, right now my baby that's allowed me to do all of this is my tattoo business. I love tattoos, and I love doing any tattoos, stupid memes. If you find yourself in the Portland area and you have a core tattoo or whatever BS that you want a drum corps person to do, shameless plug, hit me up. We've done some cool ones. I'm really in my career, so really any engagement is good engagement.
01:11:11
Speaker
Where can you find me at Double Gemini Tattoo? That's all one word, ah exactly how it sounds. And I have the website doublegeminiattattoo.com. Feel free to Facebook friend friend request me and just know that I'm working on putting together a website for these sorts of like, these sorts of color guard things. So that's coming soon. Surprise curveball. Woody wants a, Woody wants a plug. I do want a plug, Austin. So, uh,
01:11:39
Speaker
we put out a test market this fall and I'm starting a a company that is working with all these groups with all this all this equipment but on the front sideline and they don't know how to operate or anything like that so most of the bigger teams they know what they're doing there are a lot of people that are buying equipment they don't even know all they know is the volume button on it you know ah we come we we put the system together for you or even if you have a small system and we get it to work for you and we don't encourage you to spend money and it seems to be working very well in the area. A lot of people don't know how to put the mics on the instruments or if you teach a group
01:12:26
Speaker
You just don't have time to do it yourself. You know it needs to be done. We come in, ah we work up a contract for you. We do to you, miking and everything for you. And if you need some service during the season, hey, give me a call. And it worked well with a couple of groups we had this fall. So we're really looking to push that this winter. I'm very excited you can contact her.
01:12:51
Speaker
contact us at uh licks and kicks we'll put something together for you we love it love it love it love it but one more thing don't forget that on a water break has our new youtube channel now you can see our lovely faces and reactions to the things that we talk about go subscribe so you don't miss those visuals they are not to be missed And, of course, before you close out your podcasting listening app, go subscribe, write us a review, and share it with a friend. Follow us on some media at On A Water Break, and we'll see you at the next rehearsal on A Water Break.
01:13:40
Speaker
intro and outro music was produced by Josh Lyda. To learn more, visit lydamusic.com. And until next time, thanks for tuning in.