A marching band plays music while it moves. It performs outdoors, at parades and at sports games. It has woodwinds, brass, and drums that the players carry, and it often has dancers with flags. This page explains each group and what its members do.
Quick facts
- Where it plays: parades, football fields, and festivals
- Families: woodwinds, brass, and percussion
- Led by: a drum major
- Music: played from memory, or read from a small clip on the instrument
- Also in the band: the color guard, with flags
The groups in a marching band
| Group | Who is in it | Its job |
|---|---|---|
| Woodwinds | Piccolos, flutes, clarinets, and saxophones | The tune and the high sparkle |
| Brass | Trumpets, mellophones, trombones, baritones, and sousaphones | The power and the bass |
| Drumline | Snare drums, tenor drums, bass drums, and cymbals | The beat, on the move |
| Front ensemble | Marimbas, xylophones, timpani, and other large percussion | Color and tunes, from the sideline |
| Color guard | Performers with flags and other props | The show for the eyes |
| Drum major | One or more student leaders | Conducts and gives commands |
Instruments that change for marching
Some concert instruments are hard to carry or do not send their sound forward. A marching band swaps them.
| In the concert band | On the march | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Tuba | Sousaphone | It wraps around the body and rests on the shoulder. |
| French horn | Mellophone | Its bell faces forward. |
| Euphonium | Marching baritone | It is held out in front, like a large trumpet. |
| Timpani and xylophone | They stay at the front and do not march | They are too large to carry. |
The sousaphone is named for John Philip Sousa, the March King, who asked for a bass instrument that a player could wear. Read John Philip Sousa for kids.
Oboes and bassoons often sit out. Their reeds are fragile, and their sound does not carry far outdoors. Those players may switch to another instrument for the season.
The drumline
The drumline is the heartbeat of the band.
- Snare drums play the fast, crisp patterns.
- Tenor drums are a set of four to six small drums on one harness, played by one person.
- Bass drums come in a row of different sizes, from high to low. Each player has one note, and together they play a tune of thumps.
- Cymbals crash and flash in the sun.
Between songs, the drumline plays alone to keep the band in step. That pattern is called a cadence.
Read the snare drum, the bass drum, and the cymbals.
How a band marches
In step. Everyone steps with the left foot on the first beat.
Smooth on top. Players roll each foot from the heel to the toe, so the upper body glides and the instrument does not bounce.
Eight to five. On an American football field, a common step is eight steps for every five yards. Players learn the size of that step until they can do it with their eyes closed.
Shapes. In a field show, the band forms lines, curves, and pictures. Each player learns a list of spots to reach on certain counts.
From memory. Most field shows are played with no sheet music. In a parade, a small clip called a lyre can hold a card of music on the instrument.
Kinds of marching bands
- School and college bands. They play at games and in contests.
- Military bands. They play at ceremonies and parades.
- Drum corps. Brass and percussion alone, with a color guard.
- Pipe bands. Bagpipes and drums.
- Parade brass bands. In New Orleans, small brass bands lead parades through the streets.
The music
Marches are written for marching. They have a steady beat in two, and several tunes in a row. Sousa wrote more than 130 of them.
Bands today also play film music, pop songs, and pieces written for the field.
Read The Stars and Stripes Forever for kids.
Joining one
Many marching bands are in high schools and colleges. A child gets ready by playing in the school concert band first. Marching adds memory work, fitness, and long rehearsals outdoors.
Read band instruments for kids: the full list and how to choose a band instrument.
Things to do together
March in step. Play a Sousa march. March around the room, left foot on the first beat.
Roll step. Carry a full cup of water across the room without spilling. Roll each foot from heel to toe.
Be the drum major. One person conducts with big arm motions and calls “band, halt.” Everyone stops on the same count.
Bass drum tune. Line up five pots from small to large. Play them in order, and then make up a pattern.
Spot the swaps. Watch a video of a marching band. Find the sousaphones and the mellophones.
Make a shape. With four or more people, form a line, a circle, and a letter, with eight counts to move between them.
Print and play
Clap through the rhythm cards. Set a marching speed on the metronome for kids. Read band vs orchestra.
More from this guide
This article is part of Instruments of the orchestra for kids: the four families and how they sound.
Band instruments for kids: the full list
Every instrument in a school concert band, in one list: woodwinds, brass, and percussion, how each makes sound, and which ones beginners start on.
Band vs orchestra: what is the difference?
Band and orchestra compared for kids and parents: which instruments each one has, what music each plays, and how to choose between them at school.
Bass clarinet and contrabassoon: the low woodwinds for kids
The bass clarinet and the contrabassoon explained for kids: how each makes its low notes, what each sounds like, pieces to hear, and who plays them.
Best instruments for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds
The best instruments for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds: what works at each age, when lessons make sense, what to wait on, and what to keep in the toy box.
Brass instruments for kids: what they are and how each one sounds
The brass family explained for parents and kids: how the trumpet, French horn, trombone, and tuba make sound, how to tell them apart, and pieces to hear.
Cello vs double bass: how to tell them apart
Cello vs double bass for kids and parents: size, strings, sound, how each is played, their jobs in the orchestra, and two pieces that show the difference.
Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.