While playing music during a field show, the band makes a series of formations, called drill, on the field, which may be pictures, geometric shapes, curvilinear designs, or blocks of musicians, although sometimes it may be pure abstract designs using no specific form.

Typically, each band member has an assigned position in each formation. In many show bands and most drum corps, these positions are illustrated in a handheld booklet called a drill book. Drill books, or drill charts, show where each person stands during each set of the show. The drill charts include yard lines and hashes as they would be on an actual football field, which shows the band members where to stand in relation to the yard lines and hashes. There are many ways of getting from one formation to the next:

* each member can move independently – this is called scattering or "scatter drill"
* all the members can move together without deforming the picture – this is called floating
* the members can stay in their lines and arcs, but slowly deform the picture – this is sometimes called rotating or expanding
* the members can break into ranks or squads, each of which performs a maneuver (such as a follow-the-leader) which may or may not be scripted – an unscripted move is sometimes called a rank option
* each member may have a specifically scripted move to perform – in these cases, the desired visual effect is often the move itself and not the ending formation

Many bands use a combination of the above techniques, sometimes adding dance choreography that is done in place or while marching. Players may point the bells of their instruments in the direction they are moving, or slide (also called traverse) with all the bells facing in the same direction. Bands that march in time with the music typically also synchronize the direction of individuals' turns, and try to maintain even spacing between individuals in formations (called intervals). Sometimes bands will specifically have wind players turn their instruments away from the audience in order to emphasize the dynamics of the music.

Auxiliaries can also add to the visual effect. Backdrops and props ("scrims") may be used on the field that fit the theme of the show or the music being performed. In comedic shows, particularly for university bands, an announcer may read jokes or a funny script between songs; formations that are words or pictures (or the songs themselves) may serve as punch lines.

In Minnesota, Upstate New York, and Wisconsin, bands perform on city streets (called a performance route) with compact formation elements, sometimes referred to as a street show. These shows are judged using similar criteria as any other marching band competition. Elements of difficulty increase with street marching competitions because of the varying widths of streets in each community. Street marching is typical for bands who operate during the spring and early summer months. Typically, a band that performs street marching competitions will not be involved with field marching, and vice versa. Various venues exist for street marching competitions between high school marching bands.

For parades, bands usually line up in a marching block composed of ranks (rows) and files (columns). Typically, each member tries to stay within his or her given rank and file, and to maintain even spacing with neighboring musicians. It is usually the responsibility of the people at the end of each rank and the front of each file to be in the correct location; this allows other band members to guide to them.

Band members also try to keep a constant pace or step size while marching in parade. This usually varies between 22 and 30 inches (56–76 cm) per stride. A step size of 22.5 inches is called 8-to-5 because the marcher covers five yards (about 4.6 m) in eight steps. A step size of 30 inches is called 6-to-5 because five yards are covered in six steps. Because yard lines on an American football field are five yards apart, exact 8-to-5 and 6-to-5 steps are most useful for field shows.

A drum cadence (sometimes called a walkbeat or street beat) is usually played when the band is marching, sometimes alternating with a song. This is how the band keeps time. Alternately, a drum click or rim shot may be given on the odd beats to keep the band in step. Between songs and cadences, a roll is usually given to indicate what beat in the measure the band is at. Cadence tempo varies from group to group, but is generally between 112 and 144 beats per minute.

Some dvds, primarily, use a simple walking motion. This is done to conform with military regulations regarding marching and uniformity.

Many bands use some variation of the glide step, also known as the roll step. This step involves bringing the heel gently to the ground with the toe pointed up, and then rolling forward onto the toes before lifting the foot (or walking on the ball of the foot with heel elevated when backwards marching). This style is a direct mitation of drum and bugle corps. It gives the drill a fluid and smooth appearance, and allows for better control of the difficult formations and various styles of music played by those bands which roll step.

In addition, walking in place allows for a much broader range of tempos to be performed; the proper execution of a roll step will give a player marching at 40 beats per minute the same smooth tone as a player who is marching at 180. The roll step allow for much better control of the upper body, and better control of the air support needed for playing. The proper form prevents the wind player from bouncing and moving around unnecessarily, thus producing an unstable tone. Marching percussionists generally use a roll step exclusively, as drum harnesses (especially in the case of marching snare and tenor drums) make a high step impossible.

The high step is used by many colleges and universities such as all the Big Ten Conference bands, the University of California- Berkeley Cal Band, the University of Southern California Spirit of Troy, and The Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band, as well as most Historically Black Colleges or Universities. Some secondary schools that have deep tradition in their marching band also utilize a high step. And some bands, such as the Auburn University Marching Band and the Kansas State University Marching Band use both high step and glide step, depending on the situation.

Variations of the high step

* In one high step, the band member rolls his or her foot out to the toe, bending the knee. The knee then locks, and the leg is lifted out in front of the marcher before it is put down in the new position.

* Another high step involves bringing the foot up to the inside of the leg to the knee before coming down and forward. Some bands may refer to this as "tucking" and others as "ankle-knee".

* An older high step involves the lifting of the knee with legs directly in front, thighs parallel to the ground, and toes pointed downward. When the leg is elevated, there should be a 90-degree angle with the body and the thigh, and a 90-degree angle with the thigh and the shin. The leg is then lowered, and this is repeated with the other leg. This is informally referred to as the "chair step". This is also the style for many HBCU bands.

* Another, very physically demanding, style of high step marching is extended high step. This version requires the thigh to be parallel to the ground (perpendicular to the body) with the lower leg extended outward at a 45-degree angle from the body (135-degrees from the thigh), toes pointed downward. The leg is then driven quickly back to the ground while the other leg repeats in this fashion. At the same time, the upper body swaggers 22.5-degrees left or right of center with each step. The Ohio University Marching 110 is an example of a band performing this step.

The most important part of this style of marching is known as "stop action", which means all movement ceases momentarily at the apex of each step. This requires a band to have a great deal of stamina, but is effective visually. This style is common among most marching bands of the Big Ten Conference (e.g., Wisconsin, Purdue, Ohio State, Michigan, etc).

Marking time

When a band is not moving, the members may mark time, or march in place. The step used usually resembles the step that is used for marching forward, though mixing a high step mark time with a roll step march (or vice versa) produces an interesting visual effect. For a typical mark time, the foot is raised to the ankle bone of the opposite leg. The toe should not come off the ground and the knee shouldn't come out much past the still-straight leg.

Some bands mark time by bringing their feet all the way up to their knee, this is also known as high-mark time. Some bands practice marking time during concert arch with the toes coming off of the ground in order to give the marcher a greater sense of marching while actually standing still. The heel should hit the ground on the beat. Some bands forgo marking time and instead come to a complete halt when not marching. Traditionally, the drumline would put their feet in a V-shape and lift their feet fully off the ground a few inches. This is to avoid hitting the drums.

Changing direction

When band members are marching in one direction but want to focus their sound in another, they may rotate their bodies at the waist, so that only the upper portion of the body faces in the direction of play. This is known as "shifting" or "sliding". Percussion players, whose large drum harnesses often prevent them from twisting their torsos, and sometimes tuba and sousaphone players, will instead use a crab step when moving sideways. During a crab step, the musician crosses one leg over the other, either marching on the toes or rolling the foot sideways. Percussionists may also substitute roll step when their instruments would interfere with performing the high step.

When certain band members need to change the direction in which they are marching (sometimes called the "line of march") while facing the new direction, a "flank" is used. Flanks have their history in military maneuvers and are executed so that the entire body will face the new direction. This provides a definite sense of change rather than the more fluid slides.

Backward marching

A back march may be used when the band wishes to move in the opposite direction from where it is projecting its sound. There are several ways to back march, one of which is to walk backwards, putting each foot down and rolling from the toe to the heel (the exact reverse of the roll step). Another variation involves marching on the toes, dragging the toe of the moving foot on the ground or simply walking backwards on your toes. Some people feel dragging the toes gives better balance, while others feel lifting the toes gives better balance. Using peripheral vision to align oneself to formations or field markings is even more important during backward marching.

Staying in step

Even when marking time, it is often considered good form for all band members to stay in step—that is, step with the same foot at the same time. A large majority of bands step off with, or start marching on, the left foot, the Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps being one exception. Staying in step is generally easier when the band is playing music or when the drums are playing a marching cadence.

When the band and percussion are not playing, rhythm may be maintained in a variety of ways: a drummer may play clicks or rim shots, the drum major may clap or use a wood block, a drum major or band member may vocalize a sharp syllable like "hit", "hut", or "dhut" (the latter is usually characteristic of the drum line, and often said before playing in the rhythm; dhut, dhut, dhut-dhut-dhut-dhut [one, three, one two three four] ), or band members may chant the military call of "Left, left, left right left". Band members may count the steps of the move out loud so as to keep the entire band together. Typically most moves consist of a number of steps that are a multiple of four. This is because most marching band music is in the time signature of 4/4. Even-numbered time signatures like 4/4 aid in staying in step because they assign odd-numbered counts to the left foot, and even-numbered counts to the right foot.

The traditional music of the marching band is the military march, but since show bands also evolved from the concert and brass band traditions, music has always been varied. Often, music from other genres is adapted for the specific instrumentation of a marching band.

Commercial arrangements that are tailored for the "average" band instrumentation are also available. Military and university bands typically have a repertoire of "traditional" music associated with the organization they serve. Many competitive bands will choose to use an arrangement of popular music varied for marching band, as well as music from a movie or other such theme.

Music may be memorized, or it may be carried on flip folders that clip onto the instruments, called lyres. Having music memorized is usually considered an advantage for competitive bands, and there is usually a penalty for the use of the sheet music on the field written into the scoring rubric. Practically, memorization prevents obstruction of vision caused by the folders.

The field leader in drum & bugle corps is called a drum major. Some corps appoint more than one, but there is usually one designated chief drum major who leads the corps in both marching direction and musical direction. Traditional corps drum majors are effective showmen who command the corps in all venues. Early in the 20th Century, commands were usually issued either through a mace or baton, and/or with whistle signals. Eventually this evolved into vocal commands and manual signals, although military units still maintain the baton-signaling methods.

The color guard and non-musical marching members in drum & bugle corps largely developed out of military honor guards. Over the years, some corps have included baton majors and majorettes — but largely, the auxiliary units have consisted of tall flag carriers (8' foot pikes), rifles (developed from military rifle drill teams) and saber squads.

The drum & bugle corps still maintains an honor squad, consisting of the corps' country's National Flag and "protectors", or "sidearms". Often, the honor squad will contain rifle or saber carriers, or carriers of sponsors/posts' flags. Sometimes the "sidearm" member is just that — someone who sports a gun holster.

In the 1960s and prior, most color guards tended to be small, consisting of a few squads. As most big corps — again, with exceptions — were often all-male, many color guards were all-female in order to provide a marching opportunity for young women. There have, however, been many all-girl and all-male corps throughout drum and bugle corps' rich history, up to the present time. But prior to 1960, there were far more, which provided competitive opportunities for those corps who wished them, often without the touring requirements of today. And some units/areas of the country had mixed-gender corps going back decades.

Today, now that gender is culturally less divisive and the requirements of corps memberships being military veterans (to a certain percentage) is uncommon, sections are much more rarely limited by gender. Mostly during the late 1960s, flag lines in particular mushroomed in size. During the days of execution drill, wherein yardlines on football fields were more rare and optional, the color guard often was an integral part of drill "dress" (positioning by sight, interval and direction).

The percussion section consists of two distinct but equally important divisions: the front ensemble or "pit" and the drumline or "battery" ensemble.

Front ensemble members perform on orchestral percussion instruments, including marimbas, xylophones, vibraphones, glockenspiel, timpani, various types of drums, cymbals, gongs and many other auxiliary percussion instruments. As the physical nature of these instruments requires them to be stationary, the pit is typically stationed at the 50 yard of the front sideline, closest to the audience. Full-sized corps feature between 8-12 members in their front ensembles. Many corps now make use electronic amplification so that delicate percussive instruments can be heard in the stadium setting. However, amplification has also been used for the more controversial purposes of talking, singing, and "drumspeak" (beat boxing). Prior to 1982, corps did not have a "pit". Some corps (Phantom Regiment and Blue Devils among them) placed a single tympanist on the 50 yard line just inside the sideline. This performer was on the field. Since 1982, there has been a pit in front of the field, and the days of marching keyboard instruments and tympani have disappeared.

The battery consists of percussionists who march on the field along with the hornline and color guard. They commonly play four types of instruments: the marching snare drum, tenor drums (also known as "quads", or "tenors"), marching cymbals, and marching tonal (pitched from high to low) bass drums. In large DCI-related competing corps, the battery typically consists of 7–10 snare drummers, 4–5 tenor drummers, 4–6 cymbal players, and 5–6 bass drummers. Many corps within the last few years have disposed of their cymbal lines in order to utilize the members for additional instrumentation. The cymbal lines that still exist, however, are known for their signature visual effects, as well as contributing various metallic musical effects. Corps that currently use cymbal lines are the Santa Clara Vanguard, the Crossmen, Pacific Crest, the Academy, and the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps

Classic corps drum lines of the 1950s and 1960s used fewer exotic percussion instruments and relied instead on the stadium-filling power of a traditional line (or "battery") consisting of six or eight 12-inch deep by 15-inch wide double-tension maple snare and tenor drum shells and two or occasionally three 26-inch wide by 12-inch deep bass drums with an ornamental shell covering of hard plastic in a glossy sparkle or pearlescent finish.

Until 1965, usually only one cymbalist was used in the field corps although two or even three cymbalists were not uncommon, especially on parade.

Until 1963, bass drummers used one stick or mallet and provided the foundation note in the battery. But in that year, drum instructors nationwide added two-stick rudimental bass-drumming to their drumlines, a historic style adopted from fife and drum corps. While rudimental bass drummers now had more to do, the one-stick bass drummers were often kept on as "foundation bass" or "straight bass" drummers.


The older-type, less-expensive and lighter single-tension drums, such as most corps used through the 1940s, were most often ordered for novice and feeder "cadet" corps.

Until 1956, drum heads were of stretched unborn calfskin, but beginning in 1957 the Ludwig Drum Company introduced mylar drum heads that gave a crisper sound and were impervious to damp weather.

The movement in classic corps is to drums which retain the Golden Age's unique sound.

The size and composition of a marching band can vary greatly. Some bands have fewer than twenty members, and some have over 500.

A marching band is typically led by one or more drum majors, who are called field commanders in some ensembles. Other student leaders may include field lieutenants and captains of sections such as brass, drumline, and woodwinds. The drum major often conducts the band, sometimes using a large baton or mace. In many school bands, the drum major is the student leader of the band, followed by students within the band that lead a section, squad, letter, row, etc. Sometimes there is more than one drum major; one may be the head drum major who runs rehearsals and who stands on the 50-yard line while conducting, the other often directs from convenient angles (should the marching block not be facing forward) and/or functions as an apprentice of sorts. Bands may also be led by a more traditional conductor, especially during field shows, where a stationary conductor on a ladder or platform may be visible throughout the performance. Aural commands – such as vocal orders, clapping, or a whistle – may be used to issue commands as well.

American marching bands vary considerably in their instrumentation. Some bands omit some or all woodwinds, but it is not uncommon to see piccolos, flutes, clarinets, alto saxophones, and tenor saxophones. Bass clarinets, alto clarinets and baritone saxophones are more likely to be found in a high school marching band. Bassoons and oboes are very seldom found on a field, due to their "exotic" sound, risk of incidental damage, the impracticality of marching with an exposed double reed, and high sensitivity to weather.

The brass section usually includes trumpets or cornets, mellophones and/or alto horns (instead of French horns), B♭ tenor trombones, euphoniums or marching baritones, and tubas or sousaphones, a version of which also converted to be carried over the right shoulder and called a contra, sousaphones are named after John Phillip Sousa). Some upright tubas can also be converted, with a moveable lead pipe which allows the player to face the bell towards the box or crowd. These are normally carried over the shoulder and do not wrap around the player as the original Sousaphone did. E♭ soprano cornets are sometimes used to supplement or replace the high woodwinds. Some especially large bands use flugelhorns and bass trombones. The Saxophone, while not a true brass instrument, is often grouped with the brass section depending on their part. The Tenor and Bari-sax are more commonly placed in the Brass section than the Alto due to their low pitch and similarity in tone to the baritone horn.

Marching percussion (often referred to as the drumline, battery, or back battery) typically includes snare drums, tenor drums, bass drums, and cymbals and are responsible for keeping tempo for the band, which ultimately is the center snare's feet or the bottom bass drummer's beat. The drum major derives his/her title from his/her role in visually representing their tempo. All of these instruments have been adapted for mobile, outdoor use. Marching versions of the glockenspiel (orchestra bells), xylophone, and marimba are also rarely used by some ensembles. Historically, the percussion section also employed mounted timpani that featured manual controls.

For bands that include a front ensemble (also known as the pit or auxiliary), stationary instrumentation may include orchestral percussion such as timpani, tambourines, maracas, cowbells, congas, wood blocks, marimbas, xylophones, bongos, vibraphones, congas, timbales, claves, guiros, and chimes or tubular bells,concert bass drums, and gongs, as well as a multitude of auxiliary percussion equipment. Drum sets, purpose-built drum racks, and other mounted instruments are also placed here. Until the advent of the pit in the early 1980s, many of these instruments were actually carried on the field by marching percussionists by hand or on mounting brackets. Some bands also include electronic instruments such as synthesizers, electric guitars, and bass guitar, along with the requisite amplification. If double-reed or string instruments are used, they are usually placed here, but even this usage is very rare due to their relative fragility. Unusual percussive instruments are sometimes used, including brake drums, empty propane tanks, trashcans, railroad ties, stomping rigs, and other interesting sounds.

One of the defining musical elements of drum corps is the exclusive use of bell-front brass instrumentation. Throughout the years, the horns used in drum corps have evolved from true, valveless bugles to modern multi-valved brass instruments. These changes have effectively eliminated bugles from the activity, since the current three-valve approved instruments are more akin to band instruments than true bugles. Competitive drum and bugle corps have not used true bugles for several decades. Traditionally, corps use three-valve vertical-piston horns in the key of G, but horns in other keys are also allowed. From highest pitched to lowest they are: sopranos (trumpets), mellophones, baritones and euphoniums, and contra-basses.

All these instruments can appear in any key, with G, Bb, and F being by far the most common; the name of the activity is not dependent on the key of the instruments. Sopranos are essentially trumpets, but tend to have a narrower bell flare and larger bore than the trumpets used in other venues, a characteristic found in most of these horns but most obviously in the soprano. Although many corps have recently started using Bb trumpets instead of sopranos, most purchase trumpets that are specifically designed for outdoor use and resemble sopranos in shape and sound. Mellophones are only one of many midrange or alto-voice horns that have been experimented with, but they have become the most widely used because of their consistent playability and tone quality compared to the alternatives, which include marching French horns, alto horns, and flugelhorns. A contra-bass is essentially a tuba configured so that it can be carried over the shoulder with the bell facing forward.

Until 1999, American drum and bugle corps hornlines were required to be pitched in the key of G. That year, the DCI rules congress passed a proposal to allow any key of bell-front brass instruments on the field (no Trombones-no valves, no French Horns-not bell front, and no Sousaphones-not really a bell-front instrument)(Open Class opted for a two-year moratorium on the proposal. Corps could first use instruments in other keys in 2000). DCA followed suit in 2004. This allows music to be arranged truer to its original form and gives corps access to more affordable and higher-quality horns, along with a much wider resale market for used instruments. Hornlines now are most commonly pitched in Bb, with mellophones usually pitched in F.

With the widespread use of the 1892 Army field trumpet, which was actually a "straight" (valveless) bugle in the key of G, American drum & bugle corps evolved in that key. However, it wasn't long before some members in some corps wished to add more notes to their brass repertoire. Early lines in the 1920s added D crooks on some horns in order to play more complicated songs in two lines, similar to a handbell ensemble. Ludwig added the first valve to a bugle to make the G-D horn-in-one, wisely making the valve horizontal rather than vertical in order to preserve the look and handling of the straight bugle (and to make it more difficult to spot by unobservant judges in circuits which had not yet legalized the valve). The single horizontal valve allowed the diatonic scale to be played by each bugle.

The acceptance of the single-valved bugle took some time. Originally, the American Legion required that valved bugles have screws to allow the valve to be locked onto either the G or D open scale during certain competitions. Some smaller corps had straight bugles even into the 1960s, and there are still some corps, bands and other groups who continue to use straight bugles or G-D piston bugles to this day, as entire horn lines or as bugle sections.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, inventive buglers across the country took to sanding one of the tuning slides so it could be used like a trombone slide. By the late 1950s and early 1960s, the slide was sometimes replaced with a half-tone rotary valve to F#, which allowed for nearly a full chromatic scale to be played. Some bass-baritones were equipped with full-tone rotary valves to F in order for some of the hornline to be able to achieve the desired Bugle Low A, and in the mid-1960s a bass-baritone rotor to E was briefly offered.

By 1967, the American Legion Uniformed Groups Rules Congress approved a mutual request by a number of instructors and managers to permit G-F-F# piston-rotor bugles in competition. This lighter bugle is able to achieve better intonation and a more complete chromatic scale than the G-D-F# bugles.

Slide-piston and/or rotor-piston bugles were common into the mid-1970s, and many non-competitive parade corps still existed that used straight bugles and single-valved models.

Manufacture of horizontal-piston bugles ceased in the 1990s with the desire of competitive corps management to convert to band-like three-valve brass instruments pitched in B-Flat, although today the honorary term "bugle" is applied to all competitive corps brass instruments.

The main advantages of horizontal-valved one-piston-with-slide and/or piston-rotor bugles include:

1) Ease of learning. The basic simplicity of the instrument allows for the possibility of rapid mastery by beginners.

2) Substantially lower cost.

3) Lightness.

4) Ease of repair.

Additions to drum and bugle corps voicings occurred in the mid-1930s with the popularity of the baritone bugle, pitched one octave below the soprano.

The tenor bugle also came into use at about this time, and although it was pitched in the soprano range, its slightly larger bore offered a darker, almost cornet-like and more robust tone. The tenor bugle fell from general favor by 1960 though they remained in bugle catalogs.

French horn bugles became popular by mid-century, serving as bridges between sopranos and baritones.

By 1950 a few bass-baritone bugles began to be seen. These larger euphonium-like instruments, pitched like the baritone one octave below the soprano and tenor, added a deep foundation. By 1960 the bass-baritones had largely supplanted the baritones in most corps.

One widely applauded and popular 1962 addition was the contrabass, the biggest horn and lowest voice, two octaves below the soprano, which partially rests on the shoulder.

The mellophone or mellophonium was introduced soon after, and was quickly popular for its capability of soaring above the rest of the bugle section. However it did not supplant the French horn, which remained the dominant middle voice.

Other less-popular bugle types introduced in the 1960 included herald bugles, euphoniums, pistonless slide sopranos and piccolo bugles or "angel bugles" pitched an octave above the sopranos. The valve-rotor bugle remained popular until the late 1970s, when rules changes moved toward two-valve upright bugles.

A typical show usually revolves around one genre of music, or sometimes melds separate genres together. Modern corps programs have become increasingly conceptual and programmatic, with overarching show themes rather than loosely-related musical selections. Often, especially within classical selections, a single composer's material is featured. Corps have performed virtually every genre of music that can be fit for on-field adaptation, including jazz, new age, classical, and rock music. It is becoming increasingly common to hear corps performing original music, composed specifically for the corps by their musical staff or consultants.

Structurally, shows typically share a few common components: an "opener", a piece designed to grab the audience's attention, a percussion solo or "features" laden throughout the show, a ballad (featuring the hornline and pit percussion), and a "closer", which is often the climax of the performance. Depending on the length of each piece, there may be additional pieces interjected to showcase various musical concepts and elements of the corps. The goal is to have a well-balanced program with a wide variety of dynamics, tempos, and feels to showcase the corps' abilities.

To many, the late 1960s marked a high point in American drum corps activity and participation. At this point a group of a dozen or so managers and directors of the higher-scoring corps of the era met to organize a by-invitation-only cooperative group that took on the working title of "The Combine". The Combine's member corps all agreed to demand, starting in the 1970 competitive season, a fixed and predetermined appearance fee from contest sponsors where Combine corps would compete, rather than accept traditional prize money awards dependent on contest placements.

Contest audiences of 1970 also noticed that some Combine corps were attempting "Total Programs" - a phrase describing daring, controversial theme-based competitive innovations in costuming, marching and music that were clearly different and more radical than the then-standard norms.

From the Combine soon evolved the more structured, open-membership Drum Corps International (DCI). The first DCI National competition was held at Warhawk Stadium at Whitewater, Wisconsin in August 1972.

Beginning in the early 1970s, many corps chose to become members of DCI or DCA (the "modern" drum corps organizations), often driven by the withdrawal of support by their traditional veterans-group or church sponsors, although it must be pointed out that by this point in time, the traditional sponsors were in many cases already withdrawing their support of the activity. The increased requirements of time and money to participate in DCI and DCA circuits proved prohibitive for many non-profit organizations with other primary missions. Groups without adequate funding did not survive. Many other groups chose not to move to the new style, citing tradition or principle. It was at this point that "classic" and "modern" drum and bugle corps became two very different activities.

Since the mid-1980s the classic "Golden Age" drum corps movement has continued to grow with approximately forty such American corps currently active; these have lately become known as "alumni corps" whether or not the majority of the membership is indeed a veteran of the Classic era.

Most current classic corps are intended to serve as tributes and to remember the heritage of the Golden Age. Even so, they still are usually made up of people from a much larger area than the immediate city each represents.

The main Classic corps organization is the East-coast-based Great Alliance Seniors (GAS). Forsaking competitive judging, the GAS-affiliated corps meet to rehearse, socialize, and perform to parade, standstill and field-exhibition audiences.

Drum and bugle corps stems from a rich American military history, separate from other marching musical activities. Beginning after World War I through the 1970s, corps and competitions were often sponsored by the VFW and the American Legion. Owing to these groups' roots, corps were traditionally militaristic. By the late 1960s, many corps wanted more creative freedom and better financial compensation than was offered by the sponsors. Some felt the prize-money structures, based on competitive placement, were not fairly compensating all corps for their appearances. Additionally, some felt the current judging rules were stifling musical and theatrical possibilities. At the peak of American drum corps participation (with perhaps a thousand active corps nationwide), several corps decided to band together and form their own organizations, which ultimately led to the formation of Drum Corps Associates in 1965 and Drum Corps International in 1972. By this time, many corps had already lost their church or community sponsors.

For the corps that remained, longer travel times were necessary to attend the shrinking numbers of contests, further adding to the financial and time demands on the organizations and their individual members. At the same time, costs for the increasingly complex field shows mounted, and creative and instructional demands rose, leading many competitive corps to falter and become inactive. By the late 1990s, only a fraction of the corps that existed in the 60s and 70s remained, although several new corps, some of which have become very successful, did start up along the way.

Also, non-competitive classic-style corps (often and sometimes inaccurately known as "alumni corps") saw a renaissance beginning in the mid-1980s, and they continue to organize in the 21st Century; members often remain vigilant about the traditions and virtues of the drum corps activity before the advent of more modern influences.

Freed from the traditional and more-restrictive judging rules of the late 1960s, corps began making innovative changes such as the use of multi-valve horns, wide-ranging tempos, intricate asymmetric drill formations, elaborate guard costumes and props, and the use of stationary orchestral percussion instruments. A common criticism of drum corps is that it has become too similar to marching band, although in truth the two activities have evolved together over the years. The most apparent difference between the activities is the fact that corps use only bell-front brass instrumentation. The competitive season for corps is in the summer rather than fall, with audition and initial ensemble rehearsals actually beginning as early as late October of the previous year. The top-tier competitive drum corps programs are often far more complex and more professional than marching bands, as members in full-time touring corps have no distractions outside of corps during the season and membership is achieved only through highly competitive auditions.

Classic drum corps can trace their origins to many Veterans of Foreign Wars ("VFW") and American Legion ("AL") meeting halls, where veterans met and formed musical ensembles to entertain their communities. In addition to VFW- and AL-sponsored corps, other drum corps were founded by Boy Scouts of America troops (such as the corps that would become the modern-day corps The Cavaliers and the Madison Scouts), Elks lodges, YMCAs, the Catholic Youth Organization, Police Athletic Leagues (such as would found the Bluecoats), fire fighter organizations, and local businesses, as well as Churches, grammar schools, high schools and colleges. By far, Church-sponsored organizations predominated the east-coast drum corp circuits.

Rivalries between corps led to a shift towards competition and the AL and VFW both ran successful competition circuits through the late 1960s and early 1970s.

With improved national transportation trends by the 1960s, drum and bugle corps proliferated, both in the sheer numbers of both new and established corps across North America, in the many competitions held then, and in the stadium attendance counts. This was the Golden Age of drum and bugle corps.

At this time, however, there was unrest among some directors and instructors who were critical of the competition-rules committees of the veterans' organizations which governed and sanctioned state and national championship competitions.

The VFW and American Legion rules differed to a degree (although American Legion rules predominated in nearly every contest) and pressure increased to find a common judging system. Concerns were also voiced over contest promoters' rights in choosing sponsors and judges, and complaints arose regarding the lack of self-governance of competition circuits. The dissenters also expressed reservations about the increasing numbers of independent non-corps-sponsored competitions.

Some corps managers, directors and instructors walked out of the 1969 VFW national rules committee meeting after their requests for major rules changes were not approved, and some of the protesting participants then formed the by-invitation-only (and short-lived) Midwest Combine in 1971. This apparent rebellion was heralded by some as the beginning of the death of drum and bugle corps as it was known, as one after another long-standing traditions were broken.

In 1972, Drum Corps International was founded, and was designed to create one uniform, corps-governed competitive circuit for junior drum and bugle corps (members aged twenty-one or less). DCI formed its own rules-governing body and enacted membership fees causing further disparity between startup drum corps and more professional units. This milestone event marked the beginning of the modern drum corps era.

The revolt against VFW and AL governance can most likely be attributed to two reasons. The payment structure for shows was weighted so that the corps with the highest placement got the most prize money; corps who attended shows from great distances but placed poorly were at times left with financial losses, and dissident corps sought a fixed payment structure for all participating corps.

The second major reason was the desire by the dissident corps to have more control over their competitive performances. As an example, at the height of the Vietnam War a 1971 show by the Garfield Cadets drew criticisms from VFW organizers over a formation where the corps formed a large peace sign, which angered the staff of that corps over its loss of "artistic freedom". Both the Combine and Drum Corps International demanded that corps themselves should control rulemaking decisions.

Most of the still-numerous North American competitive corps joined in the movement of change under new leadership, and by the mid-1970s the rapid introduction and proliferation into competitive drum and bugle corps of previously-unfamiliar innovations (on-field dancing, creative costuming, novelty effects and unusual instrumentation) effectively ended the Classic competitive era.

However, a Classic corps renaissance would begin within a decade.

The marching band originated with traveling musicians who performed together at festivals and celebrations throughout the ancient world. It evolved and became more structured within the armies of the early city-states, becoming the basis for the military band, from which the modern marching band emerged.[1] As musicians became less important in directing the movement of troops on the battlefield, the bands moved into increasingly ceremonial roles - an intermediate stage which provided some of the instrumentation and music for marching bands was the modern brass band, which also evolved out of the military tradition.

Many military traditions survive in modern marching band. Bands that march in formation will often be ordered to "dress their ranks" and "cover down their files". They may be called to "attention", and given orders such as "about face" and "forward march". Uniforms of many marching bands still resemble military uniforms.

Outside of police and military organizations, modern marching band is most commonly associated with American football, specifically the halftime show. Many U.S. universities had bands before the twentieth century. The first modern halftime show by a marching band at a football game was by the University of Illinois Marching Illini in 1907 at a game against the University of Chicago.[2][unreliable source?]

Another innovation that appeared at roughly the same time as the field show and marching in formations was the fight song. University fight songs are often closely associated with a university's band. Many of the more recognizable and popular fight songs are widely utilized by high schools across the country. Three university fight songs commonly used by high schools are the University of Michigan's "The Victors", the University of Notre Dame's "Victory March", and the United States Naval Academy's "Anchors Aweigh".

Other changes in marching band have been:

* adoption of the tradition by secondary schools (high schools, junior high schools, and middle schools)
* the addition of a [[dance line and baton twirlers/majorettes
* the addition of color guard members

Since the inception of Drum Corps International in the 1970s, many marching bands that perform field shows have adopted changes to the activity that parallel developments with modern drum and bugle corps. These bands are said to be corps-style bands. Changes adopted from drum corps include:

marching style: instead of a traditional high step, drum corps tend to march with a fluid roll step to keep musicians' torsos completely still (see below)
the adaptation of the flag, rifle, and sabre units into "auxiliaries", who march with the band and provide visual flair by spinning and tossing flags or mock weapons and using dance in the performance
moving marching timpani and keyboard percussion into a stationary sideline percussion section ("pit"), which has since incorporated many different types of percussion instruments such as: Tambourines, Crash Cymbals, Suspended Cymbals, Bass Drum and Gong Sets, Chimes, EWIs (Electronic Woodwind Instrument), and most Keyboards
marching band competitions are judged using criteria similar to the criteria used in drum corps competitions, with emphasis on individual aspects of the band (captions for music performance, visual performance, percussion, guard (auxiliary), and general effect are standard).

A drum and bugle corps or drum corps is a musical marching unit (similar to a marching band) consisting of brass instruments, percussion instruments, and color guard. The activity originated in the United States and Canada, but has spread to parts of Europe and Asia. Typically operating as independent non-profit organizations, drum corps perform on-field competitions, parades, festivals and other civic functions. The prime age for participation is 14–22, but the activity extends throughout age groups younger and older.

Competitive corps participate in summer touring circuits. Competitions occur on football fields and are judged based upon general effect, visual performance, and musical performance. Every year, each drum corps prepares a single new show, approximately 8–12 minutes in length, and carefully refines this throughout the entire summer tour. This focus on a singular show takes advantage of the large amount of time needed to hone and refine a modern drum corps program, with a momentum that continues to build up toward the last performance of the season. Musical repertoires can vary widely among various groups, including symphonic, jazz, big band, contemporary, rock, wind band, vocal, Broadway, Latin music and many other genres. Highly competitive corps regularly dedicate 8–10 weeks on tour, practicing and performing their program full-time. Less competitive corps have less demanding schedules, allowing members to participate and still have a little free time outside drum corps. Some corps are not competitive at all, serving as education for youths, as alumni corps for adults, or for other traditional civic functions.

Classic drum and bugle corps are North American musical ensembles that descended from military bugle and drum units returning from World War I and succeeding wars. Traditionally, drum and bugle corps served as signaling units as early as before the American Civil War, with these signaling units having descended in some fashion from ancient drum and fife corps. With the advent of the radio, bugle signaling units became obsolete and surplus equipment was sold to veteran organizations (such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion, two major organizers for classic drum corps). These organizations formed drum and bugle corps of civilians and veterans, and the corps performed in community events and local celebrations. Over time, rivalries between corps emerged and the competitive drum and bugle corps circuit evolved.

Traditional drum and bugle corps consist of bell-front brass horns, field drums, a color guard, and an honor guard.

Drum and bugle corps have often been mistaken for marching bands, since there is a similarity to both groups having horns and drums; and they are both essentially bands of musicians that march. The activities are different in organization (marching bands usually associate with high schools and colleges while drum corps are freestanding organizations), competition and performance (marching bands perform in the fall at football games, drum corps usually compete during the summer), and instrumentation (classic drum corps use only brass bugles and drums, marching bands incorporate woodwinds and other alternative instruments).

A marching band is, in the broadest terms, a group of performers that consist of instrumental musicians and sometimes dance teams / color guard who generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching (and possibly other movements) with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands use some kind of uniform (often of a military style) that include the school or organization's name or symbol, shakos, pith helmets, feather plumes, gloves, and sometimes gauntlets, sashes, and/or capes.

Marching bands are generally categorized by function, size and by the style of show they perform. In addition to traditional parade performances, many marching bands also perform field shows at special events (such as football games) or at competitions. Increasingly, marching bands are performing indoor concerts (in addition to any "pep band" duties) that implement many of the songs, traditions, and flair from outside performances.