I have just read a couple of articles on how 3:4 Retreats should be played. They suggest that the prominent accent is actually on the 2nd beat of each bar and in a way I can see where they are coming from. If you relate this back to the drumming then note that the middle unison is most often played from the roll leading in to the 2nd beat of bar 2 for the middle phrase. When you look at how the Bass cut off (the double taps) are played the correct placing is on the 2nd beat of bars 5 and 6.
How does this affect the playing. Well if played correctly the 1st beat should really be a lead in (anacrusis) played on the 1st Right foot after the introductory rolls. This means that the 2nd beat is actually on the Left foot. When this comes to the drumming it doesn't actually change what you are playing, it just changes what foot the beats fall on.
Will we change? This is unlikely in the near future as it would require every band to agree with this. Can you imagine the confusion in a massed band.
In the meantime we will continue as precedent has now set the format, but out of interest I have scored the snare drum for Balmoral in our medley to illustrate this (correct?) way of playing the 3:4's.
