ThinkOne Academy
Do you want to learn what it takes to be in a marching band, either as a musician or color guard performer? Peter Gomez has over 40 years of experience as a show designer, instructor, and president of ThinkOne, one of the premiere brands for marching arts, performing arts, and color guard. He has designed and taught choreography for some of the best marching bands in the world, including the Blue Devils and Santa Clara Vanguard, and now he's offering digital instruction so that anyone can be prepared to join this global activity.
The marching arts connect thousands of musicians and performers and inspire stadiums in some of the most heart-pounding performances in the world. They teach discipline, inspire crowds, and link young people to lifelong communities. Get an edge before the season starts, find out how to join a band or march in your local parade, and become one of the premiere performers in the marching arts, testing your skills in national events like the Drum Corp International summer tour or the West Coast Winter Guard competition.
This type of instruction isn't available anywhere online, and Peter and his team will be updating it with new videos every month that include techniques on flag, rifle, sabre, and then footwork, group movement, and instruments. Join now, and use our exercises as a weekly practice to set you apart and give you an opportunity to be a leader in your own band.
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ThinkOne Academy is Here!
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Episode 1 - Flag Maintenance
If you’re interested in joining the marching arts as a color guard performer, flag maintenance is crucial. Your flag has to be weighted and secured so you can toss with dozens of other performers at the exact same time. This is the first tool that you learn when you’re joining a color guard, and ...
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Episode 2 - Flag Hand Positions and Spins
Learning the spin on flag is the first lesson for color guard performers. The same technique will help you master spins on rifles and sabres.
In this episode, we give you instruction and exercises for the THE DROP SPIN, DOUBLE TIME, THE EASTERN SPIN, and THE PEGGY SPIN.
This will allow you to...
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Episode 3 - Flag Tosses
We covered flag pole maintenance and all of the common spins on flag, which will be used later for rifles and sabres. Now let's move into TOSSES.
We cover hand position, posture, and step-by-step techniques for mastering the TOSS on both hands. We also include an exercise you can follow along wi...
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Episode 4 - Flag Practice Exercises for Spins and Tosses
Just like learning a musical instrument, practicing your spins and tosses makes perfect.
We drill all of our tosses and spins on both hands. Rewatch this video over and over again, even slowing down the speed, until they're perfect. It will take time! This is the foundation for everything else ...
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Episode 5 - Flag Carves and 3D Tosses
"Getting out of the toaster" refers to moving your flag in 3 dimensions, using CARVES and 3D TOSSES.
We end with an exercise so that you can work on these techniques over and over again. Be ready for color guard before the season starts, and practice these techniques in between so you never los...
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Episode 6 - Rifle Drop Spins
Taking the same spin we learned on flag, and applying the same technique to rifle.
The rifle is one of the most impactful parts of the best marching arts, drum corps, or color guard, it just requires practice.
