feature Wisconsin Public Television Joins WSMA to
Create New Marching Band Resource Susannah Brooks, Wisconsin Public Television
A
As Wisconsin high school marching bands continue to push the envelope, Cum- berland High School band director Dan Hopkins constantly researches the latest trends in techniques, literature and show concepts. Like many of his colleagues across the state, he enjoys the challenge of keeping up with other schools. To him, it’s a necessary part of staying effective as an educator.
Cumberland, about 80 miles northwest of Eau Claire, serves about 275 students. With a rural location and limited resources, it’s not always easy for Hopkins to learn what other schools are up to, even when he sees other ensembles take the field at competitions.
A one-of-a-kind interactive resource from WSMA and Wisconsin Public Television (WPT), available for free at wisconsin
performs.org, has changed that.
The Competition
On a cold, rainy Saturday last October, 29 high school marching bands from across Wisconsin brought their best to the field of UW-Whitewater’s Perkins Stadium. The 2017 State Marching Band Cham- pionships capped off months of work for each ensemble – often beginning just as the notes from the previous show started to fade.
Traditionally, real-time recorded com- ments from each of the eight judges have been made available to the individual bands. However, it hasn’t always been easy to share this feedback with student performers, or to link the judges’ audio comments directly to the action taking place on the field.
That’s where WPT stepped in.
WPT already partners with WSMA for its Young Performers Initiative (YPI). On the YPI website, Wisconsin teachers and students can now access interactive commentary tailored specifically to their needs. Each judge’s commentary – from the music performance and general effect to visuals, percussion and color guard – is synced in real time with the big-picture video of each band.
The resulting resource is useful well be- yond the schools who competed that day. Directors who field a marching band but choose not to compete can get new ideas – or plan for a season down the road when they might decide to compete. Any band director, regardless of level or size, can learn from the comments of nationally recognized judges.
“This is the first time Wisconsin high school bands can see and hear comments on other high school bands; that’s a great
Josh Kappler, videographer
opportunity,” says Steve Doebel, WPT’s executive producer for cultural affairs, who coordinated the production process. “And it’s a great opportunity for anyone who wants to understand why one school is scored higher than another, when we see scores that are just a tenth of a percentage point apart.”
Hopkins, whose students placed second in class A, calls this resource “ground- breaking.”
“Students (and staff) are able to watch the performance, hear the music, and listen to the judges’ comments all at once,” he says.
Eric Schwierske, audio engineer
The more closely they can examine their work, the more easily they can see where they can improve – which may make the difference between a second-place finish and a win down the road.
52 April 2018
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
