Jafus (Thinker)
Well-Known Member
NCAA takes note of Marching 100
Performing for posterity
By Frank Khalifa
DEMOCRAT WRITER
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/sports/colleges/florida_am_university/6120007.htm
More photos Craig Litten, Tallahassee Democrat
Bob Perrin shoots video of the Florida A&M Marching 100 drum line on Wednesday morning in Tallahassee.
Fighting the heat under threatening skies Wednesday morning, the drumline from the Florida A&M Marching 100 pounded its way into the NCAA Hall of Champions.
A film crew shot the performance at Bragg Stadium, and the footage will be part of a display at the hall.
"FAMU is considered one of the better bands in the country and pioneers in the style and use of drum cadence that is so popular today," said George Smith, director of the hall. "That is why we chose them."
The Hall of Champions is a 25,000-square-foot visitors center and museum located in Indianapolis. It celebrates the accomplishments of student-athletes in all 23 sports and four divisions that are sponsored by the NCAA.
"It's an honor to be asked to do this," said Shaylor James, director of percussion and assistant director of bands for the Marching 100. "This piece really shows off the sticking technique and sticking sequence that people identify the band with."
The selection, "Q-Smith," was written for Quinton Smith, a member of the percussion section who was killed in an automobile crash in 2001.
"The cadence is played in the stands at every football game and means quite a bit to the band," said Julian White, director of bands and chairman of the music department at FAMU. "I certainly am elated and honored that the NCAA would want FAMU for this exhibit."
The Marching 100 also was used as a model for the movie "Drumline." The movie's production team hired Don Roberts to serve as the film's technical adviser. Roberts, a high-school band director in Atlanta, is a graduate of FAMU and a protege of William Foster, who started the show-style marching tradition at the school more than 50 years ago. Jason Price, a percussionist for the Marching 100, served as a drumming double for actor Nick Cannon, the star of "Drumline."
The band is currently holding a camp in which roughly 600 high-school students from around the country are taking part. The drumline that performed Wednesday is made up of band members that came back to town to volunteer for the camp.
"This feels great," said Samuel Dennis, a 22-year-old senior tom-tom player from Tallahassee, who has been in the band for five years. "We are already known as the nation's best band, and now people get a chance to see us in action."
"FAMU is considered one of the better bands in the country and pioneers in the style and use of drum cadence that is so popular today. That is why we chose them."
hhhhhhhhhh
George Smith
director of NCAA Hall of Champions
Performing for posterity
By Frank Khalifa
DEMOCRAT WRITER
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/sports/colleges/florida_am_university/6120007.htm
More photos Craig Litten, Tallahassee Democrat
Bob Perrin shoots video of the Florida A&M Marching 100 drum line on Wednesday morning in Tallahassee.
Fighting the heat under threatening skies Wednesday morning, the drumline from the Florida A&M Marching 100 pounded its way into the NCAA Hall of Champions.
A film crew shot the performance at Bragg Stadium, and the footage will be part of a display at the hall.
"FAMU is considered one of the better bands in the country and pioneers in the style and use of drum cadence that is so popular today," said George Smith, director of the hall. "That is why we chose them."
The Hall of Champions is a 25,000-square-foot visitors center and museum located in Indianapolis. It celebrates the accomplishments of student-athletes in all 23 sports and four divisions that are sponsored by the NCAA.
"It's an honor to be asked to do this," said Shaylor James, director of percussion and assistant director of bands for the Marching 100. "This piece really shows off the sticking technique and sticking sequence that people identify the band with."
The selection, "Q-Smith," was written for Quinton Smith, a member of the percussion section who was killed in an automobile crash in 2001.
"The cadence is played in the stands at every football game and means quite a bit to the band," said Julian White, director of bands and chairman of the music department at FAMU. "I certainly am elated and honored that the NCAA would want FAMU for this exhibit."
The Marching 100 also was used as a model for the movie "Drumline." The movie's production team hired Don Roberts to serve as the film's technical adviser. Roberts, a high-school band director in Atlanta, is a graduate of FAMU and a protege of William Foster, who started the show-style marching tradition at the school more than 50 years ago. Jason Price, a percussionist for the Marching 100, served as a drumming double for actor Nick Cannon, the star of "Drumline."
The band is currently holding a camp in which roughly 600 high-school students from around the country are taking part. The drumline that performed Wednesday is made up of band members that came back to town to volunteer for the camp.
"This feels great," said Samuel Dennis, a 22-year-old senior tom-tom player from Tallahassee, who has been in the band for five years. "We are already known as the nation's best band, and now people get a chance to see us in action."
"FAMU is considered one of the better bands in the country and pioneers in the style and use of drum cadence that is so popular today. That is why we chose them."
hhhhhhhhhh
George Smith
director of NCAA Hall of Champions
