12th KL Drum Line Training Camp 2015

By Lance Corporal Siew Hui Zhuan of the 12^th Kuala Lumpur Company

April 18, 2015 

SENTUL - During the March school holidays, the 12^th Kuala Lumpur Company Boys’ Brigade held its first ever drum line training camp. The camp was held on the 19^th and 20^th of March 2015 in Wesley Methodist School Kuala Lumpur. The aim of this camp is to train up the new drum line members and prepare the existing members for future performances and competitions. As a matter of fact, this camp was a follow up from the drumming workshop held in February. The total number of participants was 15, and the camp trainer was Encik Haziq, our very own Drumline Instructor.

On the first day, the participants arrived at 8.50am on the dot to register themselves and to be briefed on the purpose of the camp followed by the itinerary. The registration was held in the drumline room. The first session started at 9.00am sharp at the assembly ground. On the first session, members were trained on marching techniques. The techniques learnt were forward, backward, sideways and oblique marching. Memory of the drumming workshop sprang to mind as we began the session.

The third session was held in the chapel at 3.30pm. The performers for the school concert were working on fine tuning their sound quality and learning up movements and actions for the song. The non-participants were taught on 8^th notes, 16^th notes and double strokes. The session was long and intense but effective, as both the concert participants and non-participants quickly absorbed what was taught.           

After a brief wash up and dinner, members started the fourth session at 7pm. That session was used for training cadence for competitions. The members’ learning curve was as at a snail’s pace but I believed that we were making significant progress in our skills. The beginners had a continuation of the last session, and were trained on up strokes and down strokes. They were taught on the concept of the strokes, the differences and the application of both of the techniques.

The next day, participants woke up as early as 7.00am to start their morning exercise. After the exercise, participants had breakfast. The fifth session started at 8.45am. Participants continued training for the competition cadence. The cadence was proven to be as difficult as nailing jelly to a tree for some players but we all managed to pull through the end of the session.           

After a short lunch, participants started their sixth session at 1pm. The session was a continuation of the previous session, focusing more on the details and visuals. A few members had to take in-between breaks to rest their tired hands and / or fingers. The session ended at about 3pm.           

After the session, participants cleaned up the facilities and areas used, and kept the instruments. After the clean-up, participants had a camp evaluation and feedback session. The responses were positive but with we all unanimously agreed that with some improvements, the camp may have been operated smoother. The suggestions made were: more practice time, longer exercise sessions and a separate training for the P3.

How time flies! The participants had a wonderful time together learning and experiencing the joy of playing music. We hope that this camp benefited the participants, especially the  in many ways. The senior players are on the threshold of exciting developments in the team, getting prepared for our upcoming performances and competitions. In the long run, I really wish to see we will all make a strong drumline team, ever ready for action!