Glossary

For those of you who are new to marching band competitions (and for those of you who are looking for a refresher or maybe have always secretly wondered what a shako is), this glossary of marching band terms may be useful.

Adjudicator – The judge at a marching band competition. Adjudicators are usually focused on a specific aspect of the marching band's performance. Examples include: Marching and Maneuvering General Effect, Music General Effect, Marching and Maneuvering Execution, Music Execution, Percussion, and Color Guard.

Band Camp – An intensive summer training program where marching band students learn music, master marching fundamentals, and prepare their field shows for the upcoming fall season.

Battery – The mobile percussion section of a marching band that marches and plays while carrying their instruments on harnesses. The battery is commonly made up of snare drums, tenor drums (quads), bass drums, and cymbals.

Bibs – Black, overall-style pants worn under a uniform jacket.

Cadence – A short, energetic, percussion-only piece (also sometimes called a street beat) played by the drumline to keep the band stepping together at a steady tempo. The cadence is often played as the band marches on and off of the field.

Caption Awards – Awards that marching bands win at competitions. Examples include: Best Winds, Best Percussion, Best Color Guard, Best Drum Majors.

Color Guard – Students who perform during a marching band show with flags/silks and props.

Cover – When a student who is marching aligns directly behind the person in front of them so that they are hidden from view.

Dot Sheet – The sheet given to band members to show them their field positions during a marching band show.

Drill – The steps and positions that make up the marching band show.

Drill Chart – The charts that show the position of the entire band in different sets.

Drum Major – A student conductor who directs the marching band as it plays.

Drumline – The entire percussion section (battery and PIT).

Flags – Flags/silks used by the color guard.

Front Ensemble – The keyboard instruments and auxiliary percussion instruments placed at the front of the band during a show. Also referred to as the PIT.

Interval – The side-to-side and front-to-back distance/spacing between individual students who are marching.

Movement – The songs that the marching band plays. Marching band shows usually have 3-4 movements.

Percussion Instrument Team (PIT) – The keyboard instruments and auxiliary percussion instruments placed at the front of the band during a show. Also referred to as the Front Ensemble.

PIT Crew – Volunteers who help move, load, assemble, and push the PIT instruments onto the field for performances. 

Plumes – The feathers on the shako.

Podium – A raised platform where the drum majors stand.

Quads – Tenor drums, which are a set of 4-6 connected drums played by a member of the battery.

Roll-Off – A short rhythmic pattern played by the drumline to signal the tempo, establish the beat, and cue the rest of the band to start playing together.

Run-Through – Practicing the entire show at once.

Section – Students who play the same instruments, such as the "trumpet section" or "clarinet section".

Section Leader – The student who is in charge of an instrument section.

Sectional – A practice or rehearsal by only a section of instruments.

Sets – The formations that the marching band makes.

Shako – A marching band uniform hat.

Silks – Flags/silks used by the color guard.

Step Off – The precise moment when a marching band begins moving or playing.

Trooping the Stands – A traditional post-performance ritual where a marching band marches directly up to and alongside the audience seating as they exit.

Winds – The non-percussion part of the band. Winds refer to any instrument that is played by blowing air (this includes both brass and woodwinds).