Approach and results

Drum Corps International is considered the major league of marching bands. The twenty-two world class corps perform and compete across the country in a summer long tour. Each corps consists of brass, color guard, and percussion. Percussion is further broken down into battery percussion, which includes drums that are seen in college marching bands, and a front ensemble. Front ensembles include instruments that do not march such as xylophone, or timpani. The front ensemble is also in charge of the massive amount of electronics that go into such a show. These world class corps are massively competitive, and the Blue Stars are one of the best in the country.

I drove to Indianapolis my senior year of high school for two weekend long auditions, auditioning to be their synth player. Being a synth player has multiple duties such as playing piano, triggering vocal cues and sound effects, ensuring all electronics are operational and accounted for. It is a heavy blend of musical responsibilities and electronic management. After the difficult audition process I was offered a contract for the 2020 season. I accepted, but due to Covid-19 the season was cancelled and they offered me a contract for the following summer.

I accepted. Once the summer of 2021 arrived I left to live in Forest City, Iowa for a month learning the show and everything that was involved with being their synth player. We rehearsed twelve hours a day for twenty-eight straight days. After the so-called “pre-season training” we went on tour. Due to the unknown circumstances of the 2021 summer the Drum Corps International organization decided against making the season competitive, but yet we travelled for forty days, playing shows to packed stadiums.

The particular show we played had a demanding synth part, and it was immensely stressful. People both in the corps and in the audience expect greatness every time we are on the field, and that level of demand takes time. However, we talked about this demand extensively. We learned how to “turn-on the switch” and keep focus during stressful moments. We talked about the importance of how we carried ourselves. We were some of the best in the nation, and we rehearsed together for hundreds of hours. We had merit to be great, so we learned how to know we’re great without it deceiving us. We didn’t act cocky or boastful. We simply knew all the work we put in and we knew that when we were performing in front of a packed Lucas Oil Stadium that we had the work-ethic and drive to succeed in any situation. Whether it be public or private, calm or chaotic, music or engineering, short-term or long-term, we learned not only how to succeed at a set goal, but how to become great by consistently giving it a little extra push everyday.