Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

[Upacreek]

Hello,
I'm looking for an opportunity to join a fife and drum corp, or a unit with musicians looking to expand, preferably located in the Northern VA area (for convenience of practicing) who would be willing to take on a beginning fifer. I am an adult beginner working on my own with the help of a tutorial. Progress is slow and it is very obvious that I need to learn to play with experienced fifers.

I haven't had any luck finding such units, or persons to contact, so I'm hoping that I might find more info through this forum.

Thank you
George Lewis

[Tapsbugler]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Wow, I could hardly resist...:)

George,

Sign up for the National Civil War Field Music School to be held at Pamplin Historical Park June 13-15, 2008. You will get great instruction plus a chance to meet other players to network with. More information is at:

https://www.nationalcivilwarfieldmusicschool.com

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Jari Villanueva
Music Director, National Civil War Field Music School
www.nationalcivilwarfieldmusicschool.com[/SIZE][/SIZE]

[Upacreek]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Thanks for the response. Sounds interesting. I was hoping to find something much sooner.

George Lewis

[Hardtack Herring]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

George.....

The Liberty Hall Fifes and Drums are based in Hampton Roads Virginia. I know it is a far drive for you. We hold practices once a week and are starting a beginner class in January. The class will take place in Newport News. We have very experienced fife instructors both of whom taught at The Fifes and Drums of Yorktown for many many years. Edwin Santana and Josh Flynn.

We do have a member in Alexandria. He is a very very good drummer and can play a little fife as well.

We are members of the Stonewall Brigade and participate in allot of events in Northern Virginia.

To let you know you can buy a fantastic Tutorial (CD and Book) for learning the fife from www.beafifer.com

Contact me anytime for any help you may need.

The National Field Music School would be a good idea as well. I know several of the instructors and I am certain you would learn allot from them as well.

[Upacreek]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Hello,
Update to my original post:

I am still looking for an opportunity to join a fife and drum corp, or a unit with musicians looking to expand, preferably located in the Northern VA area (for convenience of practicing) who would be willing to take on an adult beginning fifer.

Thank you
George Lewis

[TheColorBearer]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

My son is 9 years old and is interested in learning traditional drumming, and I was wondering if anyone had any info on getting him started down this road. I checked with the local instructors and they aren't geared up for the task at hand. Any info would be of great help.

[Upacreek]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

My son is 9 years old and is interested in learning traditional drumming, and I was wondering if anyone had any info on getting him started down this road. I checked with the local instructors and they aren't geared up for the task at hand. Any info would be of great help.

Not sure if you're looking for an instructor or a group for your son to join, but I haven't had much success. Seems I was mistaken about the number of opportunities that would be available in my area, even with the history here, both Revolutionary War and Civil War. Maybe I'm looking for the ideal situation. If I was proficient at it I might be able to hook up with any group, but I wanted to find a place for a beginner. I've had only one group respond since the original post. Unfortunately, they are based too far from here for me to travel to for practice on a regular basis. I started with a tutorial, but after awhile realized I needed to be playing with others. I tried finding a fife instructor (not necessarily affiliated with any reenacting group), if for no other reason than to play with someone, without much success. I did find a flute instructor with some fife experience but I found that it was different and a bit confusing for someone at my level. Learning to play by yourself is one thing, and only goes so far, playing with others is where I really wanted to get to.

Good luck.

[pfeiffer3964]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

...the local instructors and they aren't geared up for the task at hand.

In my opinion, all styles of drumming start with a commanding knowledge of the 26 Rudiments. A local, private teacher should be able to start your son on learning these rudiments, which will help him to build stick control, dexterity and stamina. Further, a private instructor should be able to teach your son how to read music, which is also essential. Even if your local instructors are unable to train him in "traditional drumming," per se, they should be able to start him down that road by giving him the basics.

Good luck!

Jim

[TheColorBearer]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

In my opinion, all styles of drumming start with a commanding knowledge of the 26 Rudiments. A local, private teacher should be able to start your son on learning these rudiments, which will help him to build stick control, dexterity and stamina. Further, a private instructor should be able to teach your son how to read music, which is also essential. Even if your local instructors are unable to train him in "traditional drumming," per se, they should be able to start him down that road by giving him the basics.

Good luck!

Jim

Thanks for the advice, I will try to see how far the local instructors can go.

[33rdaladrummer]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

In my opinion, all styles of drumming start with a commanding knowledge of the 26 Rudiments. A local, private teacher should be able to start your son on learning these rudiments, which will help him to build stick control, dexterity and stamina. Further, a private instructor should be able to teach your son how to read music, which is also essential. Even if your local instructors are unable to train him in "traditional drumming," per se, they should be able to start him down that road by giving him the basics.

Good luck!

Jim

I agree that the 26 National Association of Rudimental Drummers rudiments are a good starting point for a beginner, and if a teacher cannot play them, you need to find someone who can.

Contrary to popular belief, however, the 26 rudiments were not taken from a Civil War drum manual. They were taken from the veteran NYSM drummer Gardiner Strube's 1869 manual, some of which differs from the 1861-65 manuals of Keach, B&E, Howe, Hart, and Nevins. Perhaps that is the way Strube played them in the war, but maybe that is just how he thought they should be played. We will never know for sure. I would recommend a period manual before a postwar manual, but the focus of today's reenactor drummers is on the 26, which were taken from a postwar (even just by 4 years) manual.

There is more variety in style and accentuation in the 1861-65 manuals. One example is the flamacue, first found by that name in Strube's 1869 manual and written with the accent only on the "e" of the 1-e-&-a-2, different from all the other 1861-65 manuals. B&E have the accent on the 1 and the e of the 1-e-&-a-2 and call it the flamamacue. Hart, Howe, and Keach have similar rudiments spelled out or within actual beatings, but have it written unaccented (except for the natural accent that comes from the flam).

In layman's terms, you do not have to play the 26 rudiments the way they appear in the N.A.R.D. books to play them the "right" way. Some of the 26 may be the wrong way compared to what is documented as the way it was played in the war. Any of the period manuals, except maybe Hart with its strange notation, are just as useful, sometimes better tutorials than more modern methods.

Also, the 40 Percussive Arts Society rudiments, which replaced the N.A.R.D. 26, have drifted even farther from the way they were played 1861-65. The single drag is completely wrong, for example.

Sorry to get off topic, but referring to the 26 as the basis of Civil War drumming is not accurate, and there is much interesting material in the period manuals that is frequently ignored. Hart's manual has been translated into modern notation by George Carroll (www.ropedrum.com) and shows a lot of the variety of Civil War drumming. Hart's Rosebud Reel, for example, is not the same beat as Connecticut Halftime. It is much more syncopated. I have never heard a CW corps play it the way it is written in Hart's, although many refer to Conn't Halftime as being "straight out of Hart's Civil War manual". Army 2/4, probably the most common beat played in the war, is usually heard played the modern way, even though versions are found in Hart, Howe, and B&E.

[DonH]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Not sure if you're looking for an instructor or a group for your son to join, but I haven't had much success. Seems I was mistaken about the number of opportunities that would be available in my area, even with the history here, both Revolutionary War and Civil War. Maybe I'm looking for the ideal situation. If I was proficient at it I might be able to hook up with any group, but I wanted to find a place for a beginner. I've had only one group respond since the original post. Unfortunately, they are based too far from here for me to travel to for practice on a regular basis. I started with a tutorial, but after awhile realized I needed to be playing with others. I tried finding a fife instructor (not necessarily affiliated with any reenacting group), if for no other reason than to play with someone, without much success. I did find a flute instructor with some fife experience but I found that it was different and a bit confusing for someone at my level. Learning to play by yourself is one thing, and only goes so far, playing with others is where I really wanted to get to.

Good luck.

I started out with a similar problem...an incredible desire to learn how to play, but no one around to help me out. All I have to say is, stick with it. You'll be VERY surprised as to how far you can go by just sticking with it. "Learning to play by yourself is one thing, and only goes so far, playing with others is where I really wanted to get to." This is very true...BUT, stick with it. I taught myself (and taught myself many bad habits at the same time lol...nothing that can't be fixed though), but after a while you start meeting people and getting around more and more. Go to the field music schools in June. Talk to field musicians at events. If you stick with it and work hard, it'll pay off in the end when people start coming to you...and/or get invites to perform at places or with corps. I started off similar to you by teaching myself and having no one to play with, but I'm auditioning for The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps in less than a year and will be heading to Australia in 2010 with the Middlesex County Volunteers Fifes and Drums. Stick with it, never give up! Don

[Upacreek]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

I started out with a similar problem...an incredible desire to learn how to play, but no one around to help me out. All I have to say is, stick with it. You'll be VERY surprised as to how far you can go by just sticking with it. "Learning to play by yourself is one thing, and only goes so far, playing with others is where I really wanted to get to." This is very true...BUT, stick with it. I taught myself (and taught myself many bad habits at the same time lol...nothing that can't be fixed though), but after a while you start meeting people and getting around more and more. Go to the field music schools in June. Talk to field musicians at events. If you stick with it and work hard, it'll pay off in the end when people start coming to you...and/or get invites to perform at places or with corps. I started off similar to you by teaching myself and having no one to play with, but I'm auditioning for The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps in less than a year and will be heading to Australia in 2010 with the Middlesex County Volunteers Fifes and Drums. Stick with it, never give up! Don

Thanks Don, for the encouragement.

It has been a discouraging process. Probably my fault to some degree, but I've also been a little surprised at the lack of response. As I said there was only one direct response to my original post here. I think a great group and probably a great opportunity, but I was concerned about how far I had to go to practice. When I finally decided I would give it a try, make the trip, I had to cancel. Not much I could do about it, but not a good way to start.

But aside from this forum, I've made a number of attempts to contact people with little or no success. As I said, I made an assumption about what opportunities would be available because of where I live. It hasn't panned out as expected.

I can play, in the sense I can finger the notes and play some tunes, just not proficient at it. And I do practice, but lately I've been very inconsistent about it. I'll go through periods of regular practice with nothing between. I can't say I've given up, except that I've pretty much decided that finding a group is likely not going to happen, so there isn't the incentive there was initially.

Congrats on your opportunity to auditon for the Old Guard. How long have you been playing?

[Hardtack Herring]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Hi George.....

Glad to hear you are still hard at work with your fife.

Keep up the good work.

If you ever get the chance come on down to our practice. We have a new fife class that is going pretty well.

Donald is correct. You will be surprised at how far you can go on your own.

Donald is a fantastic Fifer. He WILL be in the Old Guard. I am certain of that.

By the way Donald it was great seeing you again at Westbrook. What a good time it was!

George, if you have any questions feel free to call or e-mail me anytime. I wish we could be more help. Distance can be a problem. Glad to see you are still at it!

[33rdaladrummer]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

George,

Have you tried practicing with a metronome? I think playing with others is hard at first because fifers tend to slow down when the hit the hard parts and play faster during the easier sections. At least that has been my experience when trying to fife.

I think there are a couple of modern corps in northern VA. Try looking at www.fifedrum.org under the corps listings. Liberty Hall is the only real historical corps in the state of Virginia that I know of (yes, I know about Williamsburg, but their modern drumbeats disqualify them).

During the 1990s, my brother and I were the only proficient fifer and drummer in the state of Alabama, perhaps even the southeast. Because of that, I do not consider Hampton Roads to be very far! But I am past the learning stage.

The truth is that civil war style, much less authentic cw fife and drums corps are extremely rare. Keep practicing and don't give up. We will always need more fifers in our hobby.

[DonH]

Re: Fife and Drum Corp for beginner

Thanks Don, for the encouragement.

It has been a discouraging process. Probably my fault to some degree, but I've also been a little surprised at the lack of response. As I said there was only one direct response to my original post here. I think a great group and probably a great opportunity, but I was concerned about how far I had to go to practice. When I finally decided I would give it a try, make the trip, I had to cancel. Not much I could do about it, but not a good way to start.

But aside from this forum, I've made a number of attempts to contact people with little or no success. As I said, I made an assumption about what opportunities would be available because of where I live. It hasn't panned out as expected.

I can play, in the sense I can finger the notes and play some tunes, just not proficient at it. And I do practice, but lately I've been very inconsistent about it. I'll go through periods of regular practice with nothing between. I can't say I've given up, except that I've pretty much decided that finding a group is likely not going to happen, so there isn't the incentive there was initially.

Congrats on your opportunity to auditon for the Old Guard. How long have you been playing?

Teaching yourself the fife (or any instrument for that matter) is a hard road to travel. It's good to hear though you haven't given up yet! And like Paul said, if you need help or have any questions feel free to e-mail me...I think my e-mail is on my profile page here...if not I'll add it on. You wouldn't be the first (nor the last) fifer I have helped online.

I've been playing fife for close to ten years now and now teach a Boy Scout fife and drum corps near Lancaster, Pa. I'm also a senior flute major at Millersville University of Pa (also near Lancaster). Fun stuff!

And thanks Paul ;) Now I just need to put together my packet for the audition...ugh! It was good to see you (and Edwin) there as well! What an awesome weekend!