Hey there drummers and drumettes. I need some advice.

Next week we're taking our band to Orlando for a festival. My drumline is in the competition but I need some advice on tuning these old hardware worn beat up Premiers.

I know that there are many ways a person can tune a drumline but also I know that in some cases that Southern Drumlines tune differently than Northern Drumlines. Example Southern University which uses Remo drums tend to tune like the old militaristic sound. Norfolk State which uses the Dynasty drums tends to tune like the DCI high pitch Corps sound. Now I love the sound of both but I don't want to go down there blind. I persoanlly have found a medium and tune with the influence of both worlds. But I just want to know what yall think.

Also, if you've been a judge in one of these festivals what kind of advice can ya gimme.

Holla!!

Smeggy

Tune your drums so they pit with the style of music you are playing. Be careful not to over tighten and choke off all of your sound in the snare line. Also the tenors require special care. They will only "speak" clearly and cut through the rest of the battery if the are not all tuned the same.

Well, we used to use the old Mylar Premier Heads on our snares. They were discontinued, but I'm sure you can still find them floating around out there. They give the showstyle snare sound that we all like Don't pitch them too high or you will loose the percussive low end. It's a delicate balance act as I've learned. But if they're too low, you loose sound all together!

Tenors: I have found that tuning them to your liking is the way to go. I like to make sure that the drums harmonize with one another. Don't make drum 1 and 2 high so that you can't hear it. I like having all the voices come through. Makes it perdy

Basses: Don't get them all low and nearly the same pitch! Get some spacing between pitch. Again, do this to your liking! Ad Lib! You know the drill. Whatever sounds goo, DO IT! Harmonize again, if you want. This adds the BOOM in playing. If they are discordant the vibration of the pitches don't amplify each other. Thus you loose the boom.

Hope this helps

OK I meant that the tenors require more attention when tuning them and they will only speak clearly if they are tuned together perfectly. This is the only way the sound will cut through the rest of the battery. Sorry for any confusion.

Hey guys
I like all the advice and I do appreciate it alot a lot.

As far as tuning, like I said I go for finding a medium not to high snares and I tuning my bass drums by fourths between my 28" up to 24" and then from my 24" to my 18" I usually tune in thirds. Then for my toms I base the bottom pitch of my quits by the pitch of my smallest bass drum (18 inch) It has a nice timbre.

Hey can somebody gimme some advice about what to expect and what to incorperate to the kids as far as what the judges will look for in my line? I meant I know as far as playing but wil they actually judge us on the way I tune the drums?

Lenny,
I don't think adjudicators are allowed to judge on tuning of the battery. I know of many who will make remarks about the tuning and produce suggestions on how to 'improve' (to their specifications) the line sound. Otherwise, I believe it is up to the instructor of the line/director to make the tuning calls. Every line has their own style and they have to respect that.

Rock on.

They don't have to respect anything, honestly. KMEA's judges are very biased and corrupt. A lot of the judging pre-championship season is based on the "good ol' boy" system.

well, if i were a judge, and I saw that the tuning was just nasty in general, i'd have three views on the matter...

unfortunately 2 of them are more negative...
the views would be
1.) The organization is low on funding and cant afford to keep cranking drumheads, or buy new ones because of this issue
2.) The caption head doesnt know what he's doing at all and that kind of neglect could trickle down into playing and the overall product of the line/percussion ensemble.
3.) The caption head does know what he's doing, he's just not big on hardware, or doesnt view it as that much of a priority.

choice 3 , when there is poor tuning on the field is hopefully the choice most judges think of, because it's basically unbiased and saying "ok...it's the tuning...big deal...lets judge the playing."

That's how i would view it atleast.

Tuning can effect the percieved cleanliness of a line. Specifically what I'm referring to is the amount of snare response you have. (lack of tension in the snare strainer, low bottom heads, etc.) Some lines will try and "cover up their dirt" by loosening the snares a little, and I think some judges are on to that trick. So, if you have a clean line with a lot of sloppy snare response, a judge might think that y'all are just trying to cover your dirt, and mark you down for it.