Blue Thunder (Seattle Seahawks drum line)
Encyclopedia
Blue Thunder is the name of the roughly 33 piece drum line for the Seattle Seahawks
, a team in the National Football Conference
of the National Football League
. The Blue Thunder made their debut in 2004, the first year in which Seahawks Stadium was renamed to Qwest Field, now known as CenturyLink Field.
The Blue Thunder consist of 33 pieces: 10 snares
, 7 bass drum
s, 6 Tenor drum
s and 10 Cymbal players
. They can be seen performing around the stadium and in local fan bars two hours before and after each home game, as well as on their stage by the 12th Man
Flag during TV timeouts.
Along with performing at the home games, the Blue Thunder also participate in over 100 different events throughout the year, including parades, corporate events, fund raisers, and local festivals.
Many celebrity drummers have joined the group for single games, including Alan White
, Will Calhoun
, David Garibaldi, Byron McMackin, Mike DeRosier, Steve Smith
, Jason McGerr
, and Yuri Riley
.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
, a team in the National Football Conference
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the American Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL.-Current teams:Since 2002, the NFC has comprised 16 teams,...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. The Blue Thunder made their debut in 2004, the first year in which Seahawks Stadium was renamed to Qwest Field, now known as CenturyLink Field.
The Blue Thunder consist of 33 pieces: 10 snares
Snare drum
The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
, 7 bass drum
Bass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
s, 6 Tenor drum
Tenor drum
A tenor drum is a cylindrical drum that is higher pitched than a bass drum.In a symphony orchestra's percussion section, a tenor drum is a low-pitched drum, similar in size to a field snare, but without snares and played with soft mallets or hard sticks. Under various names, the drum has been used...
s and 10 Cymbal players
Cymbal
Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...
. They can be seen performing around the stadium and in local fan bars two hours before and after each home game, as well as on their stage by the 12th Man
12th Man
The phrase 12th Man or Twelfth Man can refer to:* The Twelfth Man, Billy Birmingham, in satirical cricket commentator parodies* The 12th Man , an album by rap duo High and Mighty* 12th man , the fans at a football game...
Flag during TV timeouts.
Along with performing at the home games, the Blue Thunder also participate in over 100 different events throughout the year, including parades, corporate events, fund raisers, and local festivals.
Many celebrity drummers have joined the group for single games, including Alan White
Alan White
Alan White may refer to:*Alan White , English footballer*Alan White , English novelist, author of The Long Day's Dying*Alan White , English drummer in rock group Oasis...
, Will Calhoun
Will Calhoun
Will Calhoun is an American drummer, who graduated with honors from Berklee College of Music.-Career:...
, David Garibaldi, Byron McMackin, Mike DeRosier, Steve Smith
Steve Smith (musician)
Steve Elliott Smith is an American drummer who has worked with hundreds of artists in his career, but is mostly known for being the drummer of the rock band Journey during their peak years of success. Modern Drummer magazine readers voted him the #1 All-Around Drummer five years in a row...
, Jason McGerr
Jason McGerr
Jason McGerr is the current drummer for the band Death Cab for Cutie. McGerr was previously in Krusters Kronomid and Eureka Farm as well as the Seattle jazz trio Rockin' Teenage Combo. McGerr is an instructor at the Seattle Drum School when not playing drums for Death Cab for Cutie...
, and Yuri Riley
MxPx
MxPx is a pop punk band from Bremerton, Washington with connections to the Christian punk scene. The band has recorded eight studio albums, four EPs, four compilation albums, a live album, a VHS tape, a DVD and released 20 singles....
.