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Abstract

International Journal of Exercise Science 9(4): 412-418, 2016. The purpose was to evaluate if playing a musical selection without a metronome would affect the heart rates and rate of perceived exertion for drum corps percussionists. Heart rate and RPE values were collected from 11 battery and 12 front ensemble members from one drum corps. The music consisted of two portions of the show at different tempos of 96 and 176 beats per minute. The music was performed at "standstill" with the battery members lined up behind the front ensemble marching, but not moving around or carrying their instruments. The participants performed each show tempo, with and without a metronome—three times with a one-minute rest period between each rep. Participants recorded RPE values for the two show tempos, with and without a metronome. There was no significant difference in heart rate when playing without a metronome at both tempos. RPE values were higher for the slower (11.83 ± 1.61 vs. 12.65 ± 1.72, p<0.05), and the faster selections (13.87 ± 2.34 vs. 14.48 ± 2.33, p<0.05) when playing without a metronome. The front ensemble heart rates were higher than the battery during the faster selection with (104.39 ± 6.93 vs. 129.19 ± 17.40 bpm, p<0.05) and without a metronome (105.03 ± 8.03 vs. 128.58 ± 18.84 bpm, p<0.05). Playing without a metronome requires more effort, psychologically, but does not affect heart rate. The physical demands of the faster selection are most likely the cause of the significant difference in heart rate between the battery and front ensemble.

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