Who we are
We are a group of people with a wide range of experience and skills that like to spin things. A lot. We have experienced guard members, people with just a couple years' experience under their belts, and people who are new but enthusiastic about learning. All of us have a great time putting on a show and wowing the crowds as we lead the marching band in their parades. And we enjoy practicing our own spinning skills as well as sharing what we know so the group as a whole can do more challenging and spectacular shows.
What we do
We accompany the band to parades and festivals, putting on a visual show at the head of the band (in parades) or front-and-center (at festivals where we aren't marching) to accompany the band's music. The band typically has about 5 pieces of music, and we choreograph a routine for each one. Depending on the music, the choreography, and the skill level of our members, we may use flags, sabres, rifles, or a combination of these in our show.
Early in the marching season, we work a lot on developing skills, and then start to focus on developing and memorizing choreography. Our time at the annual music and marching retreat is when we really start to hone our routines and put them to music with the band, and then we perfect the moving show during rehearsals with the band until the parade season starts.
But why just march in the summer? As of winter 2019-2020, we're also participating in winter guard! We'll further hone our spinning skills while putting on indoor shows to fun, inspiring music. Join us!
Our history
For the first ten years of its history, Rainbow City Band marched without a color guard. We talked about it a lot, as many of our members had marched with color guards in high school and college. Finally, in 2008, one of our members volunteered to put together a team to march with us in summer parades. The guard had fun, the band loved having a visual show to complement their music, and in the fall we decided to make spinOUT an ongoing ensemble.
Though we started spinning just flags, we've marched with rifles, sabres, and other accessories to add variety to our shows and match the skill level of our members and the theme of our music. We continue to develop our individual skills and technique as well as working jointly with the band to create a great show. Join us today!