5 tips on
How to be a good bandsman

 

1. Always attend rehearsals
A band is a team effort. Other people rely on your contribution, so your absence does not only affect you. If it is impossible for you to attend, give as much notice as possible. It may well affect the preparation for the rehearsal.

2. Respect the conductor
Bandsmen prepare for concerts and contests which occur only a few times per year. The conductor has to prepare for each and every rehearsal. Let him know if you are not going to be there. When he announces the next piece to be rehearsed, don't treat this as an open invitation to complain or choose something else. When the conductor speaks, you listen. When he stops the band in the middle of a piece, you stop playing.

3. Do your home practice
There's nothing more frustrating than sitting in a band practice listening to someone being rehearsed on something that he was individually rehearsed on last week and the week before that and the week before that. Even if you can't take the music home, you can practise exercises to improve your lip stamina, range, tone, reading, speed of fingers and so on.

4. Pay attention to your music
If other players are being rehearsed, don't talk or look around. Follow your part. In other words, rehearse it without playing your instrument. And when you are playing remember to give the notes their full value, especially at slow tempos. A four-beat note has four full beats i.e. it finishes just before the fifth beat would begin, not just after the fourth beat starts. There's more to the music than the dots. Look at the markings, dynamics, repeats, solos, mutes in indications and so on. Look through the music and understand its geography - repeat sections, Dal Segno, Coda. Check your key signature and time signature and know where they change. Pay special attention to those awkward twiddly bits

5. Be well-equipped
Make sure your instrument is always playable and presentable. Carry valve oil (or slide grease) and a polishing cloth. Protect your music from damage and carry any stands mutes etc. you require. Most importantly, take a pencil to rehearsal!

References to the conductor are male for the sake of brevity. Female conductors should not be treated differently! Similarly references to bandsmen apply to female players equally.