My role at basketball games not only involved playing guitar with a drummer, a bassist, and another guitarist, but accompanying the entire pep band. This required that I learn the songs that the pep band played, often transposing them from their original key signatures, most of which I committed to memory. Eric would play guitar with Karmageddon, then run up the stands and play trumpet with the pep band while the remainder of Karmageddon acted as the rhythm section for the pep band. There is absolutely no need for two guitarists to play with the pep band. In fact, I think I speak for everyone when I say that it wouldn't work. I myself am also a sousaphone player, opening up a few more options. Here are my suggestions for solutions:
- If by chance our new guitarist plays a brass or woodwind instrument, more power to them. They can play said instrument with the pep band, and life goes on as normal. They could still play some guitar with the pep band if they would really like this.
- If they don't, I could teach them some or all of the pep band's songs and they could take over my role last year while I joined the sousa section. Be forewarned, some of the songs have some weird chords and require some knowledge of theory.
- Said guitarist just doesn't play with the pep band. Not my first choice, but cuts the commitment of said guitarist by a lot, because they could go home once Karmageddon finished our weekly practice and not have to stay for the entire pep band practice.
- Working as a team and switching roles every so often, we let one person play guitar while the other runs errands for the rest. This involves communication with lots of people, maintenance, food runs, and securing the best seats to nearby Motorhead concerts and Potato Farmers of Washington events.
Regards,
Denin Koch
Lead Guitarist for Karmageddon