Anyone who has performed in a competitive marching band knows how mentally demanding the experience can be. Those who have not can learn from Adam Shipman.
Shipman, 16, is a junior at Santa Gertrudis Academy High School in Kingsville, Texas. He’s also a flute player and squad leader – equivalent to an assistant section leader – in the Mighty Lion Band, which regularly competes at the state’s highest level.
To be that good takes work. During the fall, that means up to 90 minutes of rehearsals each day as part of a regular class. “Then after school, we meet from 6 to 8 every day, except for Wednesdays and Fridays,” he said.
Fridays are for football games. An away game might mean the band doesn’t get home until 1 a.m. or later. When competition season heats up in what some call “Bandtober,” Shipman might have to report for duty at sunrise.
Shipman has to perform solos for stadiums full of people and, at competitions, in front of exacting judges. It’s not enough to just know his own part; he has to be aware of the positions and performances of everyone around him, too.
It’s a lot of pressure, he said. “It takes time and practice to be able to understand your instrument and understand what’s happening,” he said. “But those are things that I’ve learned to do over the years.”
He feels rewarded for all that work. But researchers are just starting to take note of that line between pressure and pride that Shipman and thousands of other marchers walk each season.
A blend of athletics and performance art, marching band is on the periphery of several areas of study but fully embraced by none. So research on mental health and the marching arts is limited, said Dr. DaSean Young, an assistant professor of psychology at Pace University in New York.
Even getting a precise read on how…