Carry the bass drum in front of your body vertically, and hit it with two soft-headed drumsticks. Make sure you can see the drum major or conductor. Stay relaxed, swing your arms loosely and aim for the center of the drum head, keeping your sticks or mallets at a right angle to the drum. Listen to the rest of the percussion. Don't play too loudly or softly; make sure you're balanced with the rest of the drum line.
Carry the snare drum horizontally in front of you as you march. The head of the drum should be at about waist height.
Hold the right drumstick loosely between your thumb and index finger so that it balances in your hand with your palm facing down. Let the rest of your fingers curl lightly around the stick. Some bandmasters prefer that their drummers use a matching grip. If this is the case, hold your left drumstick just as you did the right. However, if your bandmaster wants you to use a traditional, or nonmatching, grip, change your left hand so that it is facing palm up. Hold your left drumstick between your thumb and index finger with your palm facing up, and let your other fingers support your index finger.
Bend your elbows over the drum so they are at a right angle. Position your hands so that the tips or beads of the drumsticks are over the center of the drum. Keep the tips close together, and keep all of your fingers on the sticks.
To play a down stroke, strike the center of the drum, but don't let the stick bounce back up. To play an up stroke, let the stick bounce naturally off the drum head. Again, keep all of your fingers on the sticks. Practice both strokes slowly until they sound even and consistent.