Corps-Style Marching/Technique/Backwards Step

The Backward March is a major departure from the "Big Ten" style of marching. Many college show bands have no concept of marching backwards, they instead turn and face the direction they're moving. This is sensible for their purposes, because the audience at a football game is spread all around the outskirts of the field, so it's less important to focus on just one direction.

But in a Drum Corps show and many high school shows, the audience is all clumped up on one side of the field, and so we face towards the audience. The backwards march is a natural consequence of the desire to primarily face one direction throughout the show.

Backwards marching is more difficult than forward marching, mostly (and obviously) because you can't see where you're going. Like Forward Marching, you can step off on either the left or right foot and engage in either a straight-leg or bent-leg technique. This book will cover both straight-leg and bent-leg with a left foot step-off.

Not only do we have to shift our weight, but bent-leg marchers have an additional responsibility on the prep step.

The prep step is the exact same as it was for forward marching. We're going to stand up straight, and use the prep to shift our weight, pushing our right leg into the ground and thus freeing up our left leg for the first step. Let's refresh with a metronome at a comfortable 100 beats per minute:

One and Two and Three and PUSH!

Your weight should now be entirely on your right leg, as though you were driving it into the ground, with your left leg ready to move. This should be identical to the forward march.

Remember how, in the forward march, we imagined a string attached to our knee being gently tugged? On the prep step, we will do the same motion with the left knee, popping it forward to lift our left heel off the ground. Try it with a metronome at a comfortable 100 beats per minute:

One and Two and Three and POP!

In this position, your left knee should be popped forward in front of you with your left heel in the air, as though the string on your kneecap was tugged. It should be impossible to tell whether you are about to go forwards or backwards. Your weight should be shifted onto your right leg, as though you were driving it into the ground.

Stand in your tall posture, and then lift yourself so that you're only standing on the balls of your feet. Not all the way onto your tip-toes, just enough so that your heels lift off the ground by less than an inch. This is essentially how we will be backward marching; the heels never touch the ground and it's all on the balls of the feet, while we maintain the same stiff pendulum leg that we used in forward marching, with the toes facing straight forward.

Let's try taking one step backwards. You will shift your weight onto your right leg in the prep count, push yourself backwards from the ball of your right foot, and land on the ball of your left foot precisely on One, with your toes facing forward and your heels slightly off the ground.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE!

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count, pushing my right leg into the ground?
• Did I keep both of my legs straight throughout the motion?
• Did I push myself backwards using the ball of my right foot?
• Did the ball of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"?
• When the ball of my left foot struck the ground, was my left heel above the ground, and were my left toes pointed forward?

Keep practicing this first step motion until you can answer "Yes" to all of these questions. Congratulations, you have taken the first step backwards!

Similar to marching forward, the bent-leg backwards technique feels similar to how one would normally walk backwards—except that we start by popping the knee forward before stepping backward.

Additionally, this is another case where it's difficult to describe exactly how the technique should look. While a straight-leg marcher simply attempts to keep the leg as straight as possible, the use of intentional bend opens questions regarding how much exactly the knee should be bent and how high exactly the foot should be lifted off the ground. This guide will speak somewhat generically, and the visual director should specify the technique for their group.

Try taking one step backwards. You will pop your left knee forward on the prep step, push your leg behind you, and land the front of your left foot precisely on "One."

One and Two and Three and POP and ONE!

You'll notice it was described as "front of the foot" rather than the toes or the ball. This can depend on the marching ensemble, but it's generally sort of in between. You're not striking with your toes, which implies tapping like a ballerina; and you're not striking with the ball, as that doesn't set you up well for rolling into the heel for subsequent steps. Try to find a middle-ground, and consult video examples.

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count, pushing my right leg into the ground, and popping my left knee forward like it was being tugged by a string?
• Did I keep my left knee bent while pushing it behind me?
• Did the front of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"?
• When the front of my left foot struck the ground, were my left toes pointed forward?

Keep practicing this first step motion until you can answer "Yes" to all of these questions. Congratulations, you have taken the first step backwards!

After having taken your first step, you should be standing on the balls of your feet—not all the way on your tip-toes, just enough so that your heels are off the ground by less than an inch. Subsequent steps will follow the same principles as the first step, just mirrored for the right leg this time.

You will swing your right leg behind you while remaining on the ball of your left foot. Your ankle bones will cross each other precisely on the upbeat, and the ball of your right foot will strike the ground precisely on the downbeat, with your toes pointing forward. Try taking two steps and freezing:

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO

Since your entire body weight is on the ball of your left foot, you may find this especially difficult to balance. Avoid extraneous movements with your upper body and tighten your core.

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count?
• Did I keep both of my legs straight throughout the motion, swinging them like pendulums?
• Did I push myself backwards using the ball of my feet?
• Did the ball of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"? Did the ball of my right foot strike the ground precisely on "TWO"?
• Did my ankle bones cross each other precisely on "CROSS"?
• Are both of my toes pointing forward?
• Did I step straight behind me in a ski-line path? In other words, did I avoid stepping inwards and tripping over myself, and did I avoid stepping outwards and waddling like a penguin?

Keep practicing until you can answer all of these questions with "Yes." Congratulations!

Straight-leg marchers always march entirely on the balls of their feet. Bent-leg marchers roll down into the step; except instead of heel-to-toe like when forwards marching, it's a toe-to-heel roll.

Try that motion a few times by walking backwards without any specific technique. With your toes pointed forward, really think about striking the ground with the front of your feet, and then accepting your body weight by rolling down into your heel. Just like the forward march felt pretty similar to normally walking forward, this should feel pretty similar to normally walking backward.

Try taking two steps and freezing. At the same time as your left foot is rolling down from toe-to-heel, your right knee will pop forward to prepare for the next movement. Your ankle bones will cross each other precisely on the upbeat. Your right foot will strike the ground precisely on the downbeat.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count, pushing my right leg into the ground, and popping my left knee forward like it was being tugged by a string?
• Did I keep my left knee bent while pushing it behind me?
• Did the front of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"?
• When the front of my left foot struck the ground, were my left toes pointed forward?
• Did I pop my right knee forward while my left foot was rolling down?
• Did my ankle bones cross each other precisely on "CROSS"?
• Did the front of my right foot strike the ground precisely on "TWO"?
• Are both my toes pointing forward?
• Did I step straight behind me in a ski-line path? In other words, did I avoid stepping inwards and tripping over myself, and did I avoid stepping outwards and waddling like a penguin?

Keep practicing until you can answer all of these questions with "Yes." Congratulations!

Once you're getting the hang of your technique, try the same challenges we did during the forwards march. Try taking four steps in a row, or eight steps in a row. Try speeding up the tempo (say, 132 beats per minute) or slowing down the tempo (say, 84 beats per minute).

We are still just freezing on the final step as of now. Become comfortable with taking multiple steps in succession, and then move on to stopping.

At this point, we are standing on the balls of our feet with our toes pointing forward. To come to a stop, we will roll down our right heel onto the ground, and then bring the left foot together. We will end in our tall posture, 70/30 weight distribution, 45-degree angle between the feet stance as always.

Try practicing this motion a few times without a metronome. With your right toe angled outwards, roll down from the ball of the foot so that your heels touch the ground. When you feel ready, try it with a metronome: take 4 backward steps and come to a halt.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count?
• Did I keep both of my legs straight throughout the motion, swinging them like pendulums?
• Did I push myself backwards using the ball of my feet?
• Did the ball of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"? Did the ball of my right foot strike the ground precisely on "TWO"? etc?
• Did my ankle bones cross each other precisely on "CROSS"?
• Were both of my toes pointing forward during the movement?
• Did I step straight behind me in a ski-line path? In other words, did I avoid stepping inwards and tripping over myself, and did I avoid stepping outwards and waddling like a penguin?
• Did I roll down onto my right heel and bring my left foot in?
• Am I standing in my tall posture, with 70/30 weight distribution and 45-degree toe angle?

Keep practicing until you can answer all of those questions with "Yes." Congratulations, you have learned the backwards march!

Stopping is fairly simple for a backwards marcher. You are already rolling toe-to-heel with your steps, so this is just a matter of rolling your toes outwards and bringing the feet together.

Attempt the motion without a metronome a few times. Roll down toe-to-heel with your right foot turned outwards, and then bring your left foot together. We should end up right where we began: in our tall posture, 70/30 weight distribution, left and right feet making a 45-degree angle. When you feel ready try it with a metronome: take 4 backward steps and come to a halt.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT

Take stock of a few important questions:

• Did I shift my weight on the prep count, pushing my right leg into the ground, and popping my left knee forward like it was being tugged by a string?
• Did I keep my left knee bent while pushing it behind me?
• Did the front of my left foot strike the ground in front of me precisely on "ONE"?
• When the front of my left foot struck the ground, were my left toes pointed forward?
• Did I pop my right knee forward while my left foot was rolling down?
• Did my ankle bones cross each other precisely on "CROSS"?
• Did the front of my right foot strike the ground precisely on "TWO"?
• Are both my toes pointing forward?
• Did I step straight behind me in a ski-line path? In other words, did I avoid stepping inwards and tripping over myself, and did I avoid stepping outwards and waddling like a penguin?
• Did I roll down onto my right heel and bring my left foot in?
• Am I standing in my tall posture, with 70/30 weight distribution and 45-degree toe angle?

Keep practicing until you can answer all of those questions with "Yes." Congratulations, you have learned the backwards march!

To test your knowledge and expand your skills, try some of these challenges.

Instead of just 4 steps, try taking 16 steps backward and then halting. Since you can't see behind you, make sure to leave plenty of room, and focus extra hard on moving straight back, not drifting off to one side.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS FOUR CROSS FIVE CROSS SIX CROSS SEVEN CROSS EIGHT CROSS NINE CROSS TEN CROSS ELEVEN CROSS TWELVE CROSS THIRTEEN CROSS FOURTEEN CROSS FIFTEEN CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT

Try marching at different tempos. Instead of 100 beats per minute, try speeding it up with 8 steps into a halt at 132 beats per minute, or 84 beats per minute. Straight-leg marchers may find it especially difficult to balance at slow tempos—avoid extraneous movements and tighten your core to maintain your balance.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS FOUR CROSS FIVE CROSS SIX CROSS SEVEN CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT

Try going 4 steps backward, halting, and then taking another four steps backward.

One and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT and Two and Three and PUSH and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT

Try mixing and matching the two techniques we've learned: start by marching 4 steps backward, halt for 4 counts, take 4 steps forward, halt.

One and Two and Three and BACK and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS ROLLDOWN HALT and Two and Three and FORWARD and ONE CROSS TWO CROSS THREE CROSS FOUR and TOGETHER

You may be prone to drift off to the left or right, and because you can't see where you're going, this can even be dangerous. It is important now more than ever to focus on stepping straight behind you in a ski-line path. If you are having trouble, try backward marching on a long and straight line (like a 5-yard line on a football field) to lock in what it feels like.

Especially at slow tempos, straight-leg marchers may find it very difficult to balance. You are essentially balancing your entire weight on the ball of one foot. To keep steady, engage your core muscles and avoid extraneous movements with the upper body.

Straight-leg marchers should be marching on the balls of their feet, with the heels only slightly above the ground. Take care to not march flat-footed, nor to march on your tip-toes like a ballerina.

We have not talked about step sizes yet, but people tend to inadvertently take larger forward steps than they take backward steps, even if both are intended to be the same size. Practice with guiding lines to lock in the muscle memory; anecdotally, a backward step should "feel" larger than a forward step.

For various reasons (an effort to stay balanced, trying to shift your momentum) your instinct may be to lean backward, stick your butt out, or otherwise compromise your upper body. Be sure to maintain a tall posture at all times.