I feel you should always listen to the battery or watch the drum major when they aren't playing. That is how i have been teaching and it is working out very well. the only time i have the pit listen back to horns in our show is the begging of our 3rd movement cause the marimbas and vibes are playing in unison with the horns.

Actually, all three. There are different situations that call for different tempo sources. If it is just the pit playing, I would say to watch the drum major. If the band is playing and they are pretty much centrally located on the field, then listening to the band is fine. If the band is dispersed all over the field (i.e. endzone to endzone), the sound from all of the instruments may not be in sync, thereby making listening to the entire ensemble impossible or impractical, in which case listening to the drumline is a viable option.

I believe that you should do all 3 but always listen back to the battery since that's sound you should be playing with. The drum major/conductor is there for a reference. Usually the drum major listens to the battery percussion and reacts with what he/her sees. Hense, if you watch you maybe behind. It's like elimating the middle man. During ballads, it's important to use the drum major since during many ballads there's no central time keeper (other than the drum major) and the winds usually fall in love with their sound and will stretch out long tones and other such problems. Yes, if you have a unison lick with the horns and they are stratigically placed , then of course you gotta listen back, but that's usually the only time. In Scott Johnson's "Outdoor Gig" video, he touches the subject.

The point is if you ONLY react with what you see...chances are you'll be late. Use your eyes and ears and know your book and how your and the ensembles weeknesses (Anticipation, sound regulations of playing in a dome, dragging, ect.) . That's why it's a good idea during ballads to have a central keyboard player watch the major while others listen in to that player while still being aware of the major's role. This a result of the interaction and being involved with the music/ensemble many on this forum have talked about and will elimate many problems.

I agree with MAM about watching the drum major only if the pit is playing by itself. Other than that, I prefer listening to the drumline over the band, as the beat is usually more discernable from the battery than from the winds.

I feel there are so many factors that it's hard to just make a hard and fast rule for every group. I feel for a drum corps or a very experienced, mature band, that listening back to the drumline makes the most sense if they are rock solid. I feel there is less of a chance for different interpretations from the rest of the ensemble when the beat / tempo of a very good battery is mature enough to them blending passages to the point where 16th notes, 24th notes (sextuplets) and 32nd notes are lining up with each other. With a drum major, some will interpret the tempo differently based on when his / her hands stop on each beat briefly and besides, it's difficult to march complex drill AND to watch the drum major at all times. Listening to the batery elimates that problem.

That being said, a less mature high school band probably should watch the drum major as much as possible. The battery may not be that solid, and even if they are it's easy for less experienced members who aren't that comfortable yet with marching or knowing their drill really well to start adjusting their feet to syncopated accents in the battery or something of this nature. Left foot on 1, Right foot on 2, and repeat is a lot easier to understand for a newbie in staying with the drum major.

As mentioned in other responses, ballads change things, how spread out the band is in drill changes things and so on. Different situations in the drill / music may require the pit to listen back to the band if the drumline is not playing, or everyone to listen to the battery at times, or everyone to follow the drum major at times. As long as it is made clear by the staff where to focus when, it should all work.

I'm surprised that nobody mentioned watching the center snare's feet. I use that all the time for my AUX kids, especially when the drumline's still dirty.

And...actually another thing about pit-only parts. Typically I'd say to watch the drum major, or have one person doing the interpreting of the DM's tempo then the rest of the pit going off of that. But, if you have..say..an isolated attack from the band right after the pit feature, you can't really rely on the drum major, right? The band would be late, unless they learn to play ahead of the hands then settle into the tempo within the first couple beats.

Watching feet can be great on some occasions, but a lot of whether it will work depends on the placement of the battery. If your center snare is backfield behind 50 wind players and a bunch of guard members spinning their flags, its going to be difficult to see the center snare's feet clearly enough to use them to establish rhythm. If the feet are exposed though, it can work great.

Since the topic about time I'll let you think about this question. What's the intial purpose for having a percussion section , especially a battery section? ...for timing. That's the most important role of the percussion section beyond anything else. If your not playing in time, then you shouldn't be out there, lol.

ok here is my $.02

for most everything the drum major should always have an eye on the center snares feet....
unless the drumline is way off to one side or the other.....
it is the job of the wind players to listen to the druline...and use the drum major as a referince.
the other exception to this rule is if the drumline line is in front of the winds....in this case the DMr should look and the feet of the farthest back playing wind player...and the drum line should listen back at this point....

the pit should only look at the drum maj for music that is just pit....and still they should be taking the tempo that they were just playing on the music just befor the pit feature..( assuming this is still the same tempo)

i noticed while watching many Jr corps this year...how far ahead of the beat the Dm was conducting.....this is due to the sound distance from the center snares feet to where the audiences ears hear it....being a good DMr has goot to be a tough job...constantly conducting the music ahead of the beat.....

from my drum corps exp....i feel that the DMr is there for a visual reference....

if you agree or disagree please discuss.

This is the general rule I've always been told. In the back of the field, watch the drum major, in the front, listen back.