Music Checklist
If you have not yet read up on the audition procedure, do so here.
If you're trying out for the 2017-2018 Purdue Drumline, there is an abundance of music that you will need to be familiar with and have memorized. What follows is a full list of music that you will need to have memorized by the audition date. Everything on this list must be memorized unless otherwise noted. This cannot be stressed enough.
Audition Music
You will audition in front of Dr. Nave and the leadership team. While the leadership has input in the audition process, Dr. Nave makes the final decisions and cuts. Your audition time will consist of three pieces:
- Rudimental long roll
- Open roll; slow > fast > slow - Rudiments
- Memorize all of them. These can be found on the Drumline Music page. Dr. Nave will ask you to play a number of them.
- Will be played slow > fast > slow - Audition Cadence
- This year's cadence has not been released yet. Sign up for our email list to be notified when it's published!
Cadence Sequence
When parade marching (marching the band from one place to another), the drumline plays a pre-set list of cadences, with fight songs and other songs placed between and played at the cue of the drum majors. This list of cadences is referred to as our 'Cadence Sequence.' The cadence sequence is what we play a vast majority of the time that we have drums on.
While the Boiler Beats will not parade as often as the AAMB Drumline, the vast majority of their repertoire consists of the same cadences. They are challenging, yet crowd-friendly pieces that fit well for Boiler Beats performances.
The new cadence for the 2017-2018 season has been released. You may find it here.
This is the 2017-2018 Cadence Sequence. The order is open for re-arranging:
All of this music can be found on the Drumline Music page, under your respective instrument. A link is at the bottom of this page. Memorize them all.
While the Boiler Beats will not parade as often as the AAMB Drumline, the vast majority of their repertoire consists of the same cadences. They are challenging, yet crowd-friendly pieces that fit well for Boiler Beats performances.
The new cadence for the 2017-2018 season has been released. You may find it here.
This is the 2017-2018 Cadence Sequence. The order is open for re-arranging:
- Funky Fives/Suncoast (aka Funcoast)
- Cletus
- Casper
- Get After It
- Chunky
- GT (Good Times)
All of this music can be found on the Drumline Music page, under your respective instrument. A link is at the bottom of this page. Memorize them all.
Cymbal Auditions
Cymbal auditions have more audition material than other sections. Check the cymbal audition page for more information.
Pre-Game Music
Before every home game, the band performs a standard pre-game show. For the most part, this show is the same every game. We will be learning this show on the last day of band camp. There will be no time to learn this music during band camp, so it all must be memorized before you come to auditions. All of this music can be found on the Drumline Music page, under your respective instrument. A link is at the bottom of this page.
Since all auditionees go through band camp, even Boiler Beats members will have to memorize this music.
Since all auditionees go through band camp, even Boiler Beats members will have to memorize this music.
Drum Cheers
We also have a series of short 'drum cheers' that are played by the AAMB during shorter breaks and by the Boiler Beats for tailgating fans. The rest of the AAMB has various hand movements, spoken words, and dances that correspond with these cheers. These cheers are really made to fill time, so that there is never down time wherever the band is or wherever the Boiler Beats are performing. These are simple, and there is no reason they shouldn't be memorized. However, they are not top-priority, and we will spend time learning them during band camp. All of this music can be found on the Drumline Music page, under "Sheet Music" on the right sidebar. A link is at the bottom of this page.
This may seem like a lot of music. That's because it is. But there will be no time to learn these pieces after band camp starts. Camp is too intense, and school starts immediately afterwards, so that leaves now as the only time to learn this music. If you know all of these now, the rest of the year will be exponentially easier, and subsequently more fun. If you have any questions at all, please, feel free to contact us!
