Evening Ladies and Gents...

One of the programs I am involved in would benefit greatly from the usage of amplification.  We have a number of older front ensemble instruments that don't seem to project as well as they should.  As a result, I find myself stuck using harder mallets which are more clanky than pretty.  Amplification would provide a nice boost to what we're doing.

Now, I'm dealing with an old school director who has said ";No wires on my field";.  I want to change his mind (and I think I might be able to eventually), but I'd love to see if anyone out there might have some amplification arguments/points that I could make.  He's afraid of the Murphy's Law situation, among other things.

I appreciate all of your help.

One of the best arguments, in my opinion, is that you don't have to teach the kids a different technique for concert band and marching band since you'll be able to attain the necessary volume from the front ensemble without forcing them to pound the keys. As a result the keys will stay more in tune and you'll be able to get the natural sounds of the instrument. You'll also be able to use a wider array of mallets without sacrificing volume.

There's more I'm sure, but these were the first things that came to mind.

The technique argument is a great one.  Overall balance of sound is another.  Unless a pit is really clean, it can't compete with the volume of the rest of the ensemble.  How many times have you seen a drum corps show where the pit is playing a unison run and you can't hear one note of it?  With amps just one or two mallet players can still be heard. 

I had to make this justification during TMEA for a client. I initially stressed the technique argument (which to me is everything). Believe it or not, what sold the guy was the argument of ";everybody else is doing it";! I know that is a cliche, playground argument but it worked!

These people became band directors, (moreso HIGH SCHOOL Band directors) for a reason. They are ultra competitive and some feel the need to ";keep up with the Joneses";; which I of course am more than willing to exploit:)

I think the technique approach might work, only for the fact that our front Ensemble equipment is closing in on fifteen years old and is practically falling apart.  Saving money will work more than the ";everyone else is doing it";. 

Lots of us have probably heard it said that, in sales, people are X more likely to purchase a product, try a service, join a cult, or whatever, if there's some kind of chart or graph that they can physically hold in their hands. Who knows why. Maybe it shows initiative on the part of the presenter, or maybe it's because we're conditioned to believe that an ";expert"; is anyone who wears a suit and comes from more than 200 miles away.

Not that price is a big issue with what sounds like a simple case of orthodox marching band zealotry, but money's always an issue with human beings. Maybe do a little math on how the price of the amps and speakers will be generally offset in X amount of time by savings on broken mallets, keys, cymbals, gongs, heads and hearts, and stick it in his hand.

Can't hurt.

I agree with all that is listed and offer another response to the Murphy's Law. Yes, electronics often cause problems, but after that initial learning curve it done, it shouldn't happen again. One just has to be extra careful to not place too much in the hands of a wireless mic. The rest should be fine if the directors do their homework.


Marsha N., your negative karma is awesome. I didn't think someone had more negative karma than me.