Matt Penland Interview - October 25, 2011
Matt Penland, 2011 DCI Tenor Champ, has been kind enough to answer a series of questions from snarescience forum community.
Quick Background:
Matt Penland, 22, is currently a percussion performer and educator in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. His performance experience includes the University of North Texas (UNT) Steel Bands, UNT Indoor Drumline, UNT Wind Symphony, UNT Classical Percussion Ensembles, and UNT Gamelan Ensemble. Matt also has outside performing experience with Stickworks Inc., the Dallas Cowboys, and Drum Corps International (DCI). His experience in percussion education includes private lessons, percussion ensemble, and marching percussion, while teaching students in the DFW area ranging from the middle school to colligate level.
Matt recently aged out of DCI in 2011 in his sixth year of marching. Starting at Crossmen 2006-07, going to Carolina Crown 2008, then to Phantom Regiment 2009-10, and finally aging out at Santa Clara Vanguard in 2011. He has won solo competitions on quads at PASIC in 2009 and at DCI I&E in 2011.
And now, on to the questions!
swstarks: How many times did you audition for drum corps before making Crossmen in 2006?
Matt: Just once, at a Carolina Crown audition in 2005. Didn't even make it to the Sunday of camp.
Timartin: Other than Paul Rennick, who is your most influential teacher?
Matt: Scott Simon, my quad tech from 2009-2011. He opened my eyes up to so many different ways to think about motion on quads and just technique in general. He has a real creative approach to teaching that I just really enjoy. Not to mention, he is a KILLER quad drummer.
red devils: What was your favorite show to march? And of course, what brands of quad stuff do you prefer?
Matt: My favorite show to march was 2010 Phantom because the drum break was so much fun to play, especially the quad break. In terms of quad mallets I like to use the Innovative Percussion FT-1s. I like how front-heavy they are because it makes it easy to flow with doubles/singles around the drums. My ideal set of quads would probably be Dynasty drums with Remo Renaissance heads.
Buranri: Why did you go to Phantom after Crown?
Matt: I marched Crown in 2008 right after my senior year in high school. Then right after the summer I started college at North Texas, where I met Paul Rennick and made friends with a ton of past Phantom guys. I was in the UNT Indoor Drumline my first semester in college and I loved the way Paul wrote/taught, so it wasn't hard for my friends to convince me to come to Phantom with them.
fatquads: What do you think is the most important lesson/concept a quad player can learn?
Matt: It's tie between two;
1.) Being able to move around the drums while ALWAYS being relaxed.
2.) NO rims allowed
lesterroyer: Biggest impact someone you marched with had on you?
Matt: The person I marched with who had the biggest impact on me was probably my section leader at Crossmen 2006 and 2007, Kimball Seebeck. He was actually a senior at my high school when I was in 8th grade and on the high school battery, so I already knew him going into the season. I was absolutely clueless about the logistics of drum corps when I was 16 that first summer, and Kimball pretty much took me under his wing to show me how to function in drum corps and also how to actually march/play.
drmmrboy88: How did it feel being one of the younger ones at Crossmen?
Matt: It was a cool feeling, knowing that I had 5 years left to march after 2006. I remember the age outs that year freaking out when they realized I was aging out in 2011, the world was probably going to be over then in their minds back then.
awakentosleep: What are your favorite quadlines that you were not a part of?
Matt: UNT Indoor 1996, Cadets 2000, Vanguard 2003, Phantom 2006, Blue Devils 2006, Rhythm X 2008, RCC 2009, Blue Devils 2011 (<---really cool guys)
tommyservo7: How do you prepare for high-profile solos like PASIC and DCI I&E?
Matt: When I was writing my 2009 PASIC solo, I think I played on quads (at least for some amount of time) every single day from August until the competition in November. As soon as I would finish a section of the solo and it was playable, I would play it for my friends and ask thier opinion. In both PASIC and I&E, my solo changed many times in the weeks leading up to the performance because of great ideas I would get from my peers after playing what I had for them. Maybe off subject...but the one important thing I always try to do in solos is incorporate at least one thing that no one has ever seen or done. There are lots of tricks that I have made up by thinking of an idea first, and then figuring out if it's possible later.
MithRas_4: How did you get started at such an early age in regards to rudimental drumming and drum corps? early lessons? just practiced a lot when you were really young?
Matt: I actually started marching and playing tenors in 7th grade in a county-wide middle school indoor drumline. That summer before my 8th grade year I practiced a lot and in 8th grade I was on the local high school's marching band battery (playing top bass though). Then that winter, I played snare drum in the high school indoor drumline and tenors in the middle school indoor drumline. So, before high school, I had already marched and played 4 shows and on three different instruments. By the time I made Crossmen in 2006 tenors were no new thing to me, I was just really lucky to have a middle school drumline program and also have older guys (like Kimball Seebeck, who I mentioned earlier) to look up to.
MithRas_4: Since you are surrounded by music all the time, being a music educator and performer, what are some of your hobbies that provide you a bit of a break from music?
Matt: Since I am still a music student, and it is high school marching band season, I don't actually have time for many things other than practicing or teaching. My biggest break from anything music related during the week comes from occasional visits to the gym or a get together with friends on a weekend. I realize that isn't exciting, but right now my life really is almost completely engulfed by music.
TheseTenors: What's one thing that drum corps taught you that you didn't think you would learn while marching?
Matt: How to manage my time. In drum corps, 1 minute is a lot of time. Days suddenly are broken up into precise minutes instead of just 30 minute chunks. For example: you have to take travel time to the food truck into account, so you can get back early before rehearsal and practice individually, and then have a quick subsectional, and then be ready on the field right at the beginning of rehearsal. Anyways, I have found that it translates back to my normal schedule at school and I have always been able to be very productive with practice time.
WHSnare: Did you march for your high school? If you did what was the most important thing you learned?
Matt: The most important thing I learned in high school drumline was that a lot of negative reinforcement (i.e. excessive yelling, running, push-ups, etc.) hardly ever works. In the long run it makes people dislike you, and therefore ultimately not listen to you or trust you. Taking some time to think about a reasonable response to a problem rather than immediately yelling goes a long way and, I have found, is typically more effective.
To finish up, here is a video of Matt's 2011 DCI I&E tenor solo: