Plastic Piccolos for Marching Band... Worth it?
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Plastic Piccolos for Marching Band... Worth it?
I have a beautiful Armstrong piccolo which I love to death... It is a concert piccolo. I am starting marching band, playing piccolo, and I really don't want to mess up my Armstrong! I have seen the instruments that go through marching band, and the piccolos.. and they look horrible. I want to get a Plastic piccolo to use, but I hear that they are junk.. Should I get one? (I hear Concert Piccolos are too soft for Marching Band, anyway..)
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LaDanseuse
- Posts: 33
- Joined: Sun May 22, 2005 7:20 pm
I don't play pic, but if any part of your concert piccolo is wooden, DO NOT MARCH WITH IT!! Wooden instruments suffer horribly in humidity and changes in weather, not to mention you will have to set it down on the grass sometimes 
. Clarinetists, for example, march with their old plastic clarinets from middle school because no clarinetist in his right mind would take a wooden instrument outdoors.
That said, buying (or renting from the school) a decent, relatively cheap plastic piccolo is worth it if you don't want to damage your current one. Besides, not all plastic piccolos are junk; some are actually pretty good (Yamaha, for example). But if you really don't want plastic, metal should be fine also.
And keep in mind that, even if a plastic or metal pic doesn't sound as lovely as your current instrument, you'll be marching OUTSIDE. Field playing will eliminate any semblance of good tone quality
. Clarinetists, for example, march with their old plastic clarinets from middle school because no clarinetist in his right mind would take a wooden instrument outdoors. That said, buying (or renting from the school) a decent, relatively cheap plastic piccolo is worth it if you don't want to damage your current one. Besides, not all plastic piccolos are junk; some are actually pretty good (Yamaha, for example). But if you really don't want plastic, metal should be fine also.
And keep in mind that, even if a plastic or metal pic doesn't sound as lovely as your current instrument, you'll be marching OUTSIDE. Field playing will eliminate any semblance of good tone quality
Plastic absolutely doesn't equal junk, but it's hard to find a good picc for cheap regardless of its material. 
Our town's resident 'old dude' (retired chemical engineer-flutist of 85!) owns a veritable suitcase full of expensive stuff---Haynes, platinum Powell, Louis Lot, etc. He was the victim of an unfortunate accident last year; the community band conductor--klutz!!--knocked over the stand holding his Louis Lot piccolo and it shattered!!!!!!!!!!! Last summer he bought a new Burkhart piccolo plus a plastic Armstrong with both metal and plastic heads, to play for outdoor concerts. One of my students is off to college and looking for a marching band "junker" as we speak. She plays a Yamaha YPC-81 (her own) in wind ensemble, and has used a school picc (metal) for marching. Never take a wooden instrument outside, too much can go wrong. Maybe look for used Armstrong, Yamaha, Emerson. Try not to pay much, especially if it'll need any work or repadding. Metal headjoints do usually project more brightly than wood or plastic, so a plastic body with a silver or silver-plated head might be a good choice. 
Our town's resident 'old dude' (retired chemical engineer-flutist of 85!) owns a veritable suitcase full of expensive stuff---Haynes, platinum Powell, Louis Lot, etc. He was the victim of an unfortunate accident last year; the community band conductor--klutz!!--knocked over the stand holding his Louis Lot piccolo and it shattered!!!!!!!!!!! Last summer he bought a new Burkhart piccolo plus a plastic Armstrong with both metal and plastic heads, to play for outdoor concerts. One of my students is off to college and looking for a marching band "junker" as we speak. She plays a Yamaha YPC-81 (her own) in wind ensemble, and has used a school picc (metal) for marching. Never take a wooden instrument outside, too much can go wrong. Maybe look for used Armstrong, Yamaha, Emerson. Try not to pay much, especially if it'll need any work or repadding. Metal headjoints do usually project more brightly than wood or plastic, so a plastic body with a silver or silver-plated head might be a good choice. I have to agree with the last opinion. If you're playing a wood pic, do not take the risk of using it for marching band. One slip on the roadway if you're doing parades, or a parking lot and you could wipe out your pic. If you are using a silver pic for concert use you have less to lose if it's dropped. Dings could be removed, as well as buffing out any scratches. You haven't said how old you are, and to me as a parent that says something about what might happen to your pic in marching. Are you marching with gloves or bare hands? Most likely you're not going to drop your pic, but I've seen some lovely instruments (black sax) scratched terribly from just lying them down on a rough sidewalk during a break. Though accidents happen, most likely you're very careful with the piccolo you love so much. That being said, "plastic" has come along way. Though I'm a wood purist, plastic has it's uses in instruments, and marching bands are one of those times for me. Plastic with a silver head is going to give you the bright sound you're looking for and the projection. If you have a silver head versus silver plated, any scratches can be buffed out without removing plating. My daughter marched from 6th grade through 12th with a pic and never had any damage to her instrument. Though I've read complaints about them, she's been happy with a Gemeinhardt plastic body and silver head. I've also read some comments on here about Barrington piccolos and both are pretty inexpensive. I'd say the price of your current piccolo would be a deciding factor here also. My daughter never took her "good" flute onto the street. The pro level sax stayed home also and my other daughter used the band's sax, old, ugly, but with a great sound. Have fun marching, there are some great pic parts in the music.