While he was willing to go through the audition process with each Corps Josh knew making the groups would be long. Attendees are these clinics are serious players and marchers. For the 40 open positions with the Crossman they have had about 500 people audition, of which about 7 are baritone positions (Josh auditions on baritone as they do not use trombones).
Josh was pleased to receive “2s” from the Cavaliers for playing and marching as most receive only a “3” grade. Josh knew making Cavaliers would be near impossible since nearly everyone who makes it into the Cavaliers have prior experience marching with a Corps.
Josh has been invited back to San Antonio by the Crossman for a more in depth evaluation of his marching and playing skills. We are proud of Josh for making it this far in his first year of eligibility (most Corps at this level set 16 as the minimum age).
If he makes it into the group he will be flying to San Antonio once a month for rehearsals through May. Starting in May he would be with the Crossman 24/7 through to mid August….each night would be in a different city. This may be the uniform Josh will be wearing this summer. If he makes it, where Evie and I go on vacation will be somewhat decided...we will be at the Rose Bowl for a week for the World Championship.
As you can see Josh has been a busy fellow between these events and the three advanced placement courses he is taking (AP courses high school courses taught at the college level and a student can get college credit if their grades are strong enough). His schedule will only get busier over the winter. In early January auditions for All District Band. Two weeks later he his in Blacksburg VA where he will be part of Virginia Tech’s honor band. A week later he will be in George Mason University’s honor band.
This is along with learning and playing the Clarinet in Concert II, being in Symphonic band and Jazz A. Add to the mix, his is also playing in an Orchestra and pit band for a play. Oh, yes...we must not forget the Corps Band and Songsters.
Somewhere in there Josh will need find time to breath and sleep.
6 comments:
We'll be thinking of Josh as he continues on to the next level of the audition. What an amazing exerience for him to be able to get into a group like that.
I have two issues with black uniforms:
1. They are HOT!
2. Several corps wear black - it gets monotonous looking at similar color schemes throughout a competition. I enjoyed Carolina Crown simply because their cream-colored uniforms were a welcome contrast with all the dark colors I'd seen all night. I didn't even mind the purple trim too much.
Congrats to Josh!
this is probably going to come across as sarcastic - but i don't mean it that way at all. does josh want to be a professional marching band guy? is there such a thing? he seems to really be into it.
Jenn, Josh's goal is to be a high school music teacher. He has started to learn to play the clarinet so that when he gets to college he can breeze through woodwind proficiency. He is going to start to work on his piano for the same reason.
Marching bands are a major element in quality high school programs. Being well skilled in this area increases your chance to secure a quality position. Being in Class 1 Drum Corps, particularly one that frequently makes the finals would be a feather in his cap. Being in a Drum Corps for a year would teach him more about drilling than he would ever learn in a college program. A friend of our's is in the main Army band and he says that Drum Corps drilling makes the Army band marching and drilling look sloppy.
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