Fans attending the 122nd Army-Navy Football Game were in for a treat as, outside New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, a second epic Army-Navy battle was kicking off. In the open air, two lines of exceptional drummers and percussionists captivated the cheering and chanting crowd with their insane rhythms and musical techniques, their marching band beats serving awe-inspiring military precision, crowned by a solid sense of style.
On one side of the crowd, the Navy lined up in their smart, black suits and sailor caps. Standing opposite in a not-so-oppressive line, members of the Army organized themselves wearing black caps, numbered jerseys and classic camouflage trousers.
The two teams rattled off rhythms from left and right; first the Army, who set a solid beat with their snares, bass drums, and hand-held cymbals, topped with intriguing beats from three men racked up with four-piece sets of tenor drums on their belts. The bass drummers, facing sideways, laced some tiny dance moves throughout their rhythms, swaying in time as their amazing mix-match of beats made the crowd fall silent in awe, before erupting in praise.
Next up, the Navy stole the show with their smart and sleek uniforms, and equally sleek musical patterns. An almost identical, but slightly smaller set of performers assumed their roles — two tenor drummers, three cymbalists, six snare players and four bass drummers wowed the crowd, breaking the traditional marching band style to play some funky beats evocative of African rhythms, djembes and the like.
In the midst of their performance, the Navy snareists even tapped each other’s drums for a snappy interlude which sent the crowd cheering.
For those outside the US, the Army-Navy football game is a nationally televised annual sports event, first hosted in 1890 and persisting uninterrupted to this day. It’s been named “one of the most traditional and enduring rivalries in college football,” as the Army Black Knights of the United States Military Academy go head-to-head with the Navy Midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy, their end goal to “embody the spirit of the interservice rivalry of the United States Armed Forces.”
The friendly competition between these two historic military academies is vivid, inspiring and impossible to take your eyes off, especially once the two lines of opposing performers play dramatically within arm’s reach of each other, backed by a jumping, hollering crowd of fellow uniformed students! This video has gone viral, amassing over 5M YouTube views in less than three years online.