band tek marching band drill design

 
 

Stock Marching Band Shows
drill & show design

FREE show design tools

pre-designed (stock)
marching band shows

instrument jokes

FREE metronome/tuner

FREE service band CD's

FREE finale notepad

FREE music games

music ed links

music industry links

free fingering charts

free scale sheets







I think that custom drill is the best way to put a band on the field.  Most stock drill has inherent problems having to do with staging and ensemble balance, because the numbers aren't the same in any band. So I've never sold used drill - until now.





A few years ago some friends convinced me that offering the stock shows was in the best interest of their bands.  That worked very nicely, so I'm offering them on bandtek.  A more indepth explanation of my viewpoint is given at the bottom of the page.
To the right is a list of shows.  I'm going to process the oldest ones first, so if you don't find what you need, come back in a few days.   This project is going to take me a while to complete.





Oh, and here's a cool thing - since it's stock drill, you can lift the counts from the easy shows, and they'll work with most easy stock marching band music arrangements.  It's a fringe benefit of the 4 measure phrase.


If you'd like to see a set of charts, click the link and a PDF file of the entire show will download your computer. 
(You'll need a PDF viewer, like Adobe, to view the files.)  The files are locked, so you can't print them very easily.


I respectfully request that you don't hack and print the files.  This marching band thing is how I afford to be a band director. The honor system will apply.  Am I naive?  Maybe a little, but I also have a lot of trust in band directors as role models.  Most of us didn't get into this line of work because we like the sound of 24 alto saxes. (Not that that's ALWAYS a bad thing.)  We band directors teach kids some of the best things they'll learn in their whole lives.


If you'd like to purchase one of the shows, send a check, paypal or purchase order.  I'll send the unlocked version of the PDF drill file or for a little more, I'll send the pyware drill file itself.  If you need coordinate sheets, I can print those as pdf for no additional charge.





You'll need to purchase the music separately from someone else. I like Pepper best, but there are a lot of great custom arrangers out there too.













Welcome to the Bandtek library of stock marching band shows and drill. 

There are a many good reasons to march custom drill, but not everyone has the resources.  If you need to buy a stock show, there a many good reasons to buy it here.  My prices make sense for small bands.  My drill works.  It's centered on principles of music education which makes it fun to march, easy to teach, and likely to earn high scores in competition.

There's no sheet music here, just drill.  Prices are listed by individual song.  Click the show title to download an Adobe PDF file.
Thirties Swing Show

Written with Pyware 3D
     Non-competitive

     Difficulty level is E-ME

     Instrumentation
        36 winds

           8 flags
           7 drums

           39 moves

Songs include:

      Rock This Town
             arr. Nick Baratta      

      Zoot Suit Riot
             (score is lost - Murtha arr. works)

      Minnie the Moocher
            
(score is lost - probably arr. Ralph Ford)
      Jump, Jive and Wail - arr. Michael Sweeney

      
PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                     $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE

Broadway Show

Written with Pyware 3D
     Non-competitive

     Difficulty level is Very Easy - Easy

     Instrumentation
        64 winds + 3 sousas charted with drums

           12 flags
           12 drums
          
     18 moves



Songs include:

      I Got Rhythm
            
(Score lost - arr. Burns or Lopez)      
      I Dreamed A Dream
             arr. Sweeney

      Master of the House
            
arr. Sweeney
    On My Own - Do You Hear The People Sing?
             arr. Sweeney

       PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                     $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE


Beatles Show

Written with Pyware 3D
     Non-competitive

     Difficulty level is Easy

     Instrumentation
         81 winds

           12 flags
           12 drums
          
     15 moves

Songs include:

      Hold Your Hand
            
arr. Higgins     
      Yesterday
             arr. Lavender

      She Loves You
            
arr. Wallace


       PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                     $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE
New York Swing Show

Written with Pyware 3D for a
    
competitive small band
     Difficulty level is Easy

     Instrumentation
         40 winds

         5 flags and 1 baton twirler
         7 drums
          
     31 moves


Songs include:

      Sing Sing Sing
            
arr. Ford     
      Harlem Nocturne
             arr. Higgins

      Don't Mean A Thing
            
arr. Clark


       PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                     $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE

Non-competitive Generic Show

Written long ago with Pyware 3D for a
    
non competitive small band
     Difficulty level is Easy

     Instrumentation
         40 winds

         5 flags and 1 baton twirler
         7 drums
          
     31 moves


Songs include:

      Jubilant Prelude
         
Permanently out of Print
          move counts follow
               28, 16, 28, 20, 16, 32, 28, 16, 22

             A Non Charted Guard Feature
                - choose your own standstill music

      When You Wish Upon A Star

          Permanently Out of Print,
          move counts follow

               32, 28, 4, 16, 16, 24


        PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                      $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE


Blues Brothers Show 
(Paul Murtha Arrangments)

Written with Pyware Java
        for non competitive
small band
             Difficulty level is Very Easy

     Instrumentation
         24 winds

         Percussion is staged in the pit
          
     20 moves

Songs include:

      Turn You Loose/Soul Man
           arr. Murtha
    
Flip Flop Fly
           arr. Murtha
      Soul Finger
           arr. Murtha
      Think/Can't Turn You Loose
           arr. Murtha

         
     PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                   $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE
West Side Story Show 
(Tom Wallace Arrangements)

Written with Pyware Java
        for
small competitive band
             Difficulty level is Medium Easy

     Instrumentation
         39 winds + 3 tubas charted with drums

         4 snares + 2 tenors + 4 basses
         11 flags
          
     33 moves

Songs include:
      Maria
           arr.
Tom Wallace
     America
           arr. Tom Wallace
      Tonight
           arr. Tom Wallace
      Somewhere
           arr.
Tom Wallace
         
     PRICE = $25 PER SINGLE PDF CHART or
                   $30 PER 3D DRILL FILE

































Here's how it happened - in 2005 a couple of things happened.  First, a friend persuaded me to let him use a show I had written for a band in another state.  I was very skeptical, but he convinced me that it was a better alternative for him and his students than the other stock shows available.  I gave him the drill files, and he changed the instrumentation and spacing, using his own copy of PyJava. I charged him a little less than half the going rate for stock marching band drill and it ended up working very nicely.  It still looked and sounded good; he saved A LOT of money, and the kids had a very positive experience.  The band also won and placed in a few shows.

Second, a very able band director who student taught with me a few years back called and asked for help fixing a stock show he had purchased.  Between ordering the drill and teaching it, he had recruited a half dozen more kids, (good thing) but the drill wasn't available as data he could edit (bad bad bad).  He was also right in the middle of drum and flag camp and didn't have time to rechart the show.  The company he had chosen wouldn't refund or exchange his drill (even worse). They had the money and he was stuck. When I fixed the problem (for free, cause he's my buddy), I got to look at the stock drill. It was even more disapointing than bad service he had received.  It seems to me that when drill is paid for by parents cooking bratwurst or kids selling candy, the drill writer should do his best to serve the needs of the band. 

So, I looked at the files on my hard drive and decided to make them available.  They're going to cost about half the going rate of other stock marching band drill, because that's what I think stock drill design is worth.  The understanding is that the school who buys the drill designs has to rework the inherent staging problems. That school will also have exclusive rights in their area. You'll never get a show that was originally performed in your area.

I'm putting them out there as PDF files because it's easier for the band directors.   Am I worried about someone ripping off my ideas?  Not much.  I have two main reasons.

First, totally original drill is pretty hard to find.  Some moves I use I've learned studying battles between the Romans and Carthegenians.  I once wrote a civil war show where the opening move was based on the battle plans drawn up by the town's own civil war general.  I've watched the old films of Ohio and Michigan from the 40's and have grown up on a steady diet of drum corps.  I learned creativity first hand from John Brazale and Michael Cesario.  Discipline, cleaning and organization I learned from Steve Suslik and Richard Clary (yes he once had amazing marching bands.)  Philosophy I gleaned from Tim Salzman and Don Peterson.  I'm always "ripping off" my best teachers.

Second, my bands win A LOT, and they grow.  One reason they do is that my drill provides amazing opportunities for musical experience.  That happens because I don't just write nifty moves.  I write nifty moves that do cool things like create antiphonal brass moments and highlight important musical ideas.  Sometimes I even write visual motifs that reflect the motivic development of the musical composition.  I ripped off that idea from Garfield '88 by Zingale.  He was amazing. 

Every band director out there learned four part chorale writing, but none of us write like Bach, and very few of us write like Ann McGinty.  Sharing drill ideas won't hurt the activity and I think it will probably be better for everyone in the long run.