The bassline cranks up the tempo for the “killer-diller” beat of the show’s finale. The piece demanded unusual precision from a drum section hoping to achieve the nearly mystical unified state known as “locking.”

‘finalE drumline’

“The set drummers drove on through the Krupa beat. The bass drummers raced around the circle of drums, beating on them as they passed. The Concord section stood and clapped, and others stood to applaud, too. Max had seen a similar reaction on the Concord practice field. The beat was magnetic. Every time the drums played the pulsing rhythm, it pulled everyone toward it—directors, students, band parents, spectators, and now judges, too. High in the stands, one of them said into her tape player, ‘It’s been nice to watch this program grow and develop. But even nicer to see all of these students who devote so many hours of their lives to this activity really enjoying what they’re doing. And the crowd loves it, too— not just the parents of your children but all the parents in the audience. And that’s what it’s all about.'”