How Do You Select Marching Band Instruments?
A marching band typically has three types of instruments, or “sections”: brass, woodwinds and, of course, percussion. Since the idea behind the music is to provide something to march to, the percussion section (or drum line) plays a vital role. When you select instruments for your marching band, think about the style of shows you want to create. Considering what kind of mood you want to set with your shows will help you when it comes time to select instruments. Decide how many overall instruments you want in your band. This may be dictated by the number of band members you have available to you. Choose your woodwinds, if you want them. Most bands include clarinets, alto and tenor saxophones, and often piccolos and flutes. Additional woodwinds are bass and alto clarinets, baritone saxes, bassoons and oboes. Assemble your brass section. The sky’s the limit here, but standard instrumentation calls for trumpets or cornets, B flat tenor trombones and tubas or sousaphones. Fill up your percu
