Bands_West Coast-fun without snow
Danny Marquardt
big eleven. While we don't have as much 'grand tradition' as those bands, the
west coast has a lot of quality bands out here. I can't speak for everyone
and their own unique traditions but I can mention a few things about various
Pac-ten schools(please add on so others can know how great we are).
Here goes:
I'm from UCLA and I'm damn proud of how good we are. Here's why:
We perform a variety of shows every year, never content to rely on old
standbys and rehashed material. These shows are always memorized and
innovative, generally including two moving(marching and playing) numbers and
one 'park and blow' tune('hella loud). It seems that every year we have a set
schedule incl.; with at least one thematic show(Disney, Grease, Disco,
etc...), one artistic(see drum corp) and one hodge-podge show with a bizarre
collection of tunes(SHAFT, Tommy, etc....). We perform on average of 3-5
shows for our home crowd, usually to the student side but at least one entire
show to the press box.
We can't visit all the other schools in our conference due to the extreme
distance involved, the farthest being the Washington schools. It just isn't
economically feasible for us to travel past the Northern California schools,
which take eight hours to reach by bus, except in the case of a rare migratory
pep band. This limits the number of shows we perfom each year but allows us
to concentrate on our shows to an extreme level.
I have heard horror stories of early morning practices from the Big Eleven but
we generally only practice 2-3 days a week with an early morning practice
before the game. Even with this limited practice schedule we can put on a
number of different shows that we are quite proud of.
We are nationally recognized for excellence(see sudler trophy) even though we
don't know how to do that funky high step. We do a high step in our pregame
drill but only to get into a block UCLA formation.
We have (I think) the greatest book of stand tunes ever written. This maybe
prejudiced but we have been told "Ya'll f*ckin' ROCK!!!"(see Final four) by a
few bands impressed with our selections(see our home page-that will be on the
net soon for a complete list). We add about five to ten current songs each
year. We have also been written to by one of the original artists(Offspring)
who was impressed by our commitment to preserve the integrity of his
song(what?).
We march a combination of all the main national styles(so I've been told). We
scatter(ala Stanford), we march like a drum corps, we perform complicated
drill(not grid based lines), we dance, we sing and we play really loud. When
we march, we march. For example; during the U$C game we marched over forty
drill sets(!) of non-stop complicated stuff. It was probally the hardest
thing we put together in a few years and it went remarkably well, the trojan
band even stopped yelling for a minute to watch us. UCLA puts together an
entertaining show with a combination of artistry, chutzpah and just a little
adrenaline that would easily impress any of those mid-western types. The
problem is that our football team usually stinks so we don't get to perfom for
a larger audience evey year at a big bowl game.
As far as crowd response goes, we have a problem with our fans. Most of
people in L.A. have something else to do every Saturday, so the Rose Bowl is
NEVER sold out. The apathy level is extremly high(see RAMS and RAIDERS). We
have never gotten the support to bring our band into the national spotlight.
I have some theories but it mainly stems from the fact there are so many other
things to do in California then sitting watching college football. I wish it
were otherwise, but it's not. Damn.
Out of uniform we can party like there is no tomorrow. I hope Kansas can keep
up in Hawaii.
We have some unique traditions and quite a colorful history. The most visible
being our script UCLA that we form in pre-game(I don't know who did it first
but it looks great with a ripple bow and cape flourish). Our fight songs were
written by famous people, though I don't remember who though I do know my part
is really boring. We even stole 'Sons of Westwood' a few decades ago from our
brothers in the UC system, CAL. That must really piss them off. Every four
years we perform the "Downfall of Troy" show which is a re-enactment of the
history of the trojan war. You know the story; girl gets grabbed, city gets
mad, city fights for girl, city resorts to trickery to get girl back. This
involves a large number of props, including a really big horse constructed by
the ANIMALS(our equipment crew, I was a fifth year rookie named 'Tox).
Everyone in band dresses up as a greek or a trojan and acts goofy during
halftime. We even bring in extras from the regular student population. This
is quite a spectacle and it has to be seen to be belived. I don't want to
drag on so I'll wrap up.
We get featured in a few movies and comercials as well as tv shows. I can't
list them all but you can eventually see them all on our home page soon.
(hurry up Ryan Stern)
Here's a thumbnail sketch of the other PacTen bands. I can't even begin to do
them justice, they will have to eludicate on their own;
U$C: trojans, either you hate them or you like them. California attitude.
(beat them in the band bowl this year, I had a sack)
CAL: the west coast version of Ohio State. They have a really long history
and even publish a book about themselves. Talk to them to see what they are
all about.
STANFORD: scatter band. wacky. student run. banned from tv. don't let them
stay overnight at your house.
WSU: never seen 'em.(too damn far away)
Washington: loud. play elvis songs. home of the 'virual girlfriend'.
Hosted a boat party for the Final Four.
ASU-Arizona: They both come from the desert and generally perform an
entertaining show. I don't like the fans from that state but the bands get
along nicely. That's all I know.
Oregon-OSU: Never met these guys. They both have the worst school colors I
have ever seen. Once again they live too far away for me to know anything
about them whatsoever.
BYU: not a PACTEN band but pretty cool. They are the nicest people. They
never haze us and bring food when they show up. A great way to make friends
if I say so myself. University won't let them play Ozzy Ozborne.
SDSU: there band is ok but the student section gets in a dozen fights each
game so they are amusing to watch.
I hope this brief intro into the bands in the west will alieviate the
preponderance of "damn I'm great I'm from the Big eleven" woofing. I'm sure
I'd like to hear from the southern bands as well(our pep band was crowned
'funky' by a southern band a few years ago(I wasn't there so I don't remember
which one)). I do know that the ones I have seen can dance like there is no
tomorrow. Did you know that the horn visuals in Rock bands were taken from a
marching band, I believe it was U of FL. As for the Big eleven, there are 131
other Div 1 schools, who is to say which ones are the best?(sudler? see above)
This doesn't represent the official view of the band (hi HONDO!) but just a
fifth year senior tired of having his band degraded because we live in a warm
state. Don't you want to play in Pasadena anyway? That's my home.
Danny Marquardt
Solid Gold Sound of the UCLA Bruin Marching Band
"Detox to my friends"
Horn line spitual guide
ALOHA!!!
P.S. I think we get to visit Michigan next year so we'll be watching
Edward D. Herko
on this newsgroup have to degrade other marching bands in the nation. It
very much bothers me that the post about Big Ten bands being superior was
even posted. There are many great bands out there. While the Big Ten has
had their own traditions i.e. some form of raised leg step, it doesn't
mean that we are superior in any way.
In fact, I really don't care what organization you are from, each
organization has its own traditions, its own focus, its own way of doing
things. Some bands are there to support the team (Northwestern) others
are there to cater towards their crowd. And even then, each school's
crowd is different so the type halftime entertainment will vary from
location to location across the country. For many years, Northwestern
didn't have a crowd. Our stadium holds something like 50,000 people and
this is the first year of my four at NU, that I've ever seen it remotely
full, let alone sold out. Thus, we were there primarily to support the
team, to led in school spirit as well as to provide a pregame and halftime
show that was as bonified as possible.
There are some bands who don't rehearse as much as others. NU
rehearses 8 hours a week plus a morning rehearsal before Saturday games
(bus runs at 7am). Bands who chose not to rehearse as much probably don't
do as much, and that is perfectly alright. There has to be some truth to
rehearsing less, being in an organization that is less demanding so that
you can concentrate on your studies - if that is one of the priorities in
your school community. There are times during the marching season when
mid-terms are right around the corner, you have the fourth different show
for the year in as many weeks, the band always memorizes their music, and
it is very trying on you because you just require sleep.
Some bands aren't as large as others. *Yes*, even in the Big Ten, some
bands are smaller than others. Northwestern University has a band
totalling about 170 and so we are able to do more corp-like movement than
say a 300 piece band. When you get that large, it is more difficult to
move people around the field. Similarly, a larger band will allow you to
do certain cool drill maneuver such as doing a script UCLA or a solid
block that leaves out the school's letter so the letter is shown by the
backdrop of the grass (I think of University of Michigan). A large band
should also project more merely because they have more people.
Each organization has its differences, but we all do the same thing -
we all enjoy providing musical entertainment and school spirit through the
medium of a marching band. If you can't look at the brighter points off
the other organizations and have to degrade them, especially in public, I
am really sorry that you have to dwell on all of the negative aspects of
life!
--
Edward D. Herko, Head Drum Major
Northwestern University 'Wildcat' Marching Band
e-h...@nwu.edu
Jeff Leeds
them
>>stay overnight at your house.
>>
>as well...
>
>The (ahem...how to put this...) right? Or howabout the term we
>prefer is scramble band. Marching bands might scatter onto the
>field (like you mention, and like the Dook band does here in
>the ACC) but we *scramble*.
>
>Just kind of a terminology note, but we're not anal about it.
>You're a marching band, we're a scramble band.
>
>With a big :):):):):):)
>
>SeanMike
>
Thanks for the info. I have question for you. Who was the first scramble
band? How many of them are there? I noticed a lot of them in the ivy league,
coincidence or what? I don't really know too much about them except when we
see Stanford. I know a few stories (they might just be suburban myths) but I
have no way of validating them so I won't spread anything.
Once again, thanks for the clarification.
Ryan J. Stern
Marquardt) wrote:
>(see our home page-that will be on the net soon for a complete list).
>I can't list them all but you can eventually see them all on our home
page >soon.
>(hurry up Ryan Stern)
Actually, the homepage is out of our hands now, and on to the hands of the
DUBTP (the Dreaded-University-Burocracy-Type-People). We currently have
the page running on a temporary server. If you would like the URL, please
e-mail me.
rY.
Ryan J. Stern
http://s247_21.resnet.ucla.edu/
===The Southern Pacific Daylight===>
Heavy Metal Hero
Danny Marquardt <dmar...@ucla.edu> wrote:
>all about.
>
>STANFORD: scatter band. wacky. student run. banned from tv. don't let them
>stay overnight at your house.
>
as well...
The (ahem...how to put this...) right? Or howabout the term we
prefer is scramble band. Marching bands might scatter onto the
field (like you mention, and like the Dook band does here in
the ACC) but we *scramble*.
Just kind of a terminology note, but we're not anal about it.
You're a marching band, we're a scramble band.
With a big :):):):):):)
SeanMike
--
"Liberty is *never* unalienable; it must be redeemed regularly
with the blood of patriots...liberty is least likely to be
cheap and is *never* free of cost." Robert A. Heinlein,
_Starship Troopers_
Adam Elman
sm...@fermi.clas.Virginia.EDU (Heavy Metal Hero) wrote:
>In article <49vm9j$3...@nntp3.news.primenet.com>,
>Danny Marquardt <dmar...@ucla.edu> wrote:
>>all about.
>>
>>STANFORD: scatter band. wacky. student run. banned from tv. don't let them
>>stay overnight at your house.
>>
>I'm sure they'll point out but as a fellow scrambler I'll do it
>as well...
>
>The (ahem...how to put this...) right? Or howabout the term we
>prefer is scramble band. Marching bands might scatter onto the
>field (like you mention, and like the Dook band does here in
>the ACC) but we *scramble*.
>
>Just kind of a terminology note, but we're not anal about it.
>You're a marching band, we're a scramble band.
>
>With a big :):):):):):)
>
>SeanMike
Thank you for playing, Mr. two-names, but in fact, Mr. Marquardt has it
correct -- the LSJUMB is a _scatter_ band. If y'all on the East Coast
want to keep calling it scrambling that's okay, but out here it's
scattering. I scatter, you scatter, he/she/it pukes...
As for the UCLA band scattering -- never seen it; all they do when we play
them is corps-style marching. Good marching, too, generally.
Later,
Adam
P.S. See above for the smiley-faces.
--
Adam Elman
elm...@leland.stanford.edu
http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~elmanad/
"It's cold, and there are wolves after me!" -- Grandpa Simpson
Danny Marquardt
>Thank you for playing, Mr. two-names
It wasn't my fault! really! someone who I work with, who shall
rename nameless, commandeered my computer and used it to post to this news
group after I showed him my lengthy rambling. He just didn't change it back
afterwards. Makes me look like an idiot is all that it accomplished. And I
can do that on my own thank you very much.
Kurt Ludwick
: I just wanted to say that I think it is absolutely wrong that people
: on this newsgroup have to degrade other marching bands in the nation. It
Give up. Every year, a new crop of freshmen get accounts from their
educational establishments. And the results are inevitable. There's
no way to stop the idiot posts; the best thing we can do is ignore
them, and kill-file the idiots if possible.
(Not to imply that ALL idiot posts come from freshmen, or even
newbies, but they're a major and unstoppable source. It will
*always* happen, is the point.)
Kurt Ludwick lud...@math.temple.edu
------------
PSUMBB r00lz, urs sux!! :)
Simon Avery
> I don't know what your talking about in terms of crowd response. We alumni
> love you guys. The band is an important part of the football expierence.
> Without you guys it wouldn't be half as exciting. Be proud of yuorselves and
> the work you do.
>
> Jeff Leeds
> UCLA Alumni '90
That's great to hear. Its always nice to know that someone in the
crowd really likes us. I do think that crowd reaction could be improved
though (providing of course that they like the show). Personally I have
two things that I will always judge crowd reaction by. The first was the
Wisconsin crowd's reaction to their band in the 1994 Rose Bowl. I have
never even heard of a crowd that went so nuts over their band. As they
marched onto the field the Wisconsin crowd yelled so loud it was
completely amazing. They were also the most fanatic fans I have ever seen
(try to imagine over 80,000 people singing their alma mater together).
They love their band. The second event was when the UCLA Marching Band
played at a high school tounament of champions. When we started
performing they were screaming their heads off for us. Talk about a power
trip for everyone in the Band. BTW if any band out there is looking for a
good recruiting gig, playing a Tournament of Champions is a great one to
do. Maybe I'm asking too much to get that kind of response from UCLA
football fans but a guy can dream.
)
Just because a band is student run does not mean it's
not legitimate.
Paradox !-)
:):):):):):):):)
--
ivotedeathwecantakeemmaybeheknewwherehistowelwasthirtyseveninaroweeker
(! Paradox !-) Evan Macbeth -UVa '97 ed...@virginia.edu !)
(! http://darwin.clas.virginia.edu/~edm5s !)
warisallhellgiveaskingnothingthereoflifeisfunfehdickbagwewelcometheodd
Kate Christopher
Here's my 2 cents:
Marching on the East Coast in the Snow can be just as Fun!!
Jason Harlan Speck
: crowd really likes us. I do think that crowd reaction could be improved
: though (providing of course that they like the show). Personally I have
: two things that I will always judge crowd reaction by. The first was the
: Wisconsin crowd's reaction to their band in the 1994 Rose Bowl. I have
: never even heard of a crowd that went so nuts over their band. As they
: marched onto the field the Wisconsin crowd yelled so loud it was
: completely amazing. They were also the most fanatic fans I have ever seen
: (try to imagine over 80,000 people singing their alma mater together).
: They love their band. The second event was when the UCLA Marching Band
: played at a high school tounament of champions. When we started
: performing they were screaming their heads off for us. Talk about a power
: trip for everyone in the Band. BTW if any band out there is looking for a
: good recruiting gig, playing a Tournament of Champions is a great one to
: do. Maybe I'm asking too much to get that kind of response from UCLA
: football fans but a guy can dream.
You want to know the greatest incident of crowd reaction ever? Too
bad because I'm going to tell you about it.
'92 Georgia Tech-Georgia game, Tech marches onto the field and right
before we started playing, props pulled out a green astro-turf carpet with the
GT logo on it. They covered the UGA logo with it and at that point, 70,000+
Drunk UGA fans began booing us for the entire 8 min and 56 secs of our show.
During the entire show, I could never hear the person playing two to four steps
away, and we were playing LOUD!! That is a moment I will never forget as long
as I live. On a good note, appently, the show was flawless, since everyone
watched the drum majors (after all, we couldn't hear anything except the UGA
fans). Needless to say, the rough equivalent of this 9 min standing ovation
has yet to be topped to the best of my knowledge.
Thanks for listening to the ramblings of a Tech Senior after brain frying finals
--
Jason Harlan Speck--------------------------------------------------------
THE PRESSURE! HOW CAN YOU EXPECT ME TO THINK OF SOMETHING WITTY TO SAY IN
ROUGHLY FOUR LINES!!!!!! I JUST CAN'T TAKE IT!!! Wait, I've got it:
'Don't count your chickens all in one basket', or was it 'Necessity is bliss'
Tina
> >>STANFORD: scatter band. wacky. student run. banned from tv. don't let
> >
> >prefer is scramble band.
Actually, unless I'm mistaken, the term "scatter" is used as
well, by Stanford I think.
> Thanks for the info. I have question for you. Who was the first scramble
> band?
I believe it was Stanford. I may be mistaken. The Virginia
Pep Band was officially founded in 1974.
How many of them are there? I noticed a lot of them in the ivy league,
> coincidence or what?
Most scramble bands are in the Ivy League, I think that has to
do with the fact that Ivy League football doesn't get the
coverage and fan base, no offence, that division I gets, so
they can be controvercial and have fun more easily for the most
part. I'm not exactly sure how many of us there are...around
10 maybe? Anyone want to help me out?
> I know a few stories (they might just be suburban myths) but I
> have no way of validating them so I won't spread anything.
Where scramble bands are, myths and stories are not far behind.
I've never been in a university marching band, so I can't
compare it with scrambling, but I know we party a lot, have
strange fun experiences, drink a lot, and party with other
scramble bands when we can.
Tina
Virginia Pep Band 'Bone
This thread doesn't have much to do with the thread title...
sorry about that. I didn't start it. =)
--
***TA-WVaFCI/OP?MPB&CSR,U!!!**TA-WVaFCI/OP?MPB&CSR,U!!!***
~ ~
~ "We are the music-makers, we are the dreamers of dreams" ~
~ ~
Ken Jr.
marching band in the history of the universe) has marched more ROSE BOWL
parades than any other band. Hey, where is the UCLA so-called band going
to be on Jan. 1st? Not in pasedena. In fact, they are only sending 40
members to the Aloha Bowl. When USC went (1984, I believe) we sent our
ENTIRE 300 member band. Now, why can we do this? Because we have more
fans that give us more money. I think the FUCLA alumni would send their
band on a long trip, on the condition that they not come back!
Hey, remember to turn on ABC Jan. 1st to WATCH US ON TV!!
Fight on Trojans!!!
Rob Hart
rh...@scf.usc.edu
Adam Elman
cr...@fermi.clas.Virginia.EDU (Tina) wrote:
>Jle...@ucla.edu writes:
>> >>STANFORD: scatter band. wacky. student run. banned from tv. don't let
>> >
>> >The (ahem...how to put this...) right? Or howabout the term we
>> >prefer is scramble band.
>
>Actually, unless I'm mistaken, the term "scatter" is used as
>well, by Stanford I think.
It's an East vs. West coast thing, I think. We and Rice use "scatter",
you East Coasters use "scramble". I say tomato, you say tomahto.
>
>> Thanks for the info. I have question for you. Who was the first scramble
>> band?
>
>I believe it was Stanford. I may be mistaken. The Virginia
>Pep Band was officially founded in 1974.
Nope -- we started scattering in the early 60's (the canonical date of the
change was 1963, but I don't think we actually scattered till '65 or so),
but evidence suggests that there were scatter bands around well before
that; rumor has it that Harvard did a funny Cuban Missile Crisis show that
weekend in 1962.
In fact, this has come up on the ivy-bands mailing list, but I can't
remember what the conclusion was...I think Dartmouth claims to be the
oldest marching band in the Ivy League, but then so does everybody else.
I think Rice started within a couple of years of us -- 1966?
>How many of them are there? I noticed a lot of them in the ivy league,
>> coincidence or what?
>
>Most scramble bands are in the Ivy League, I think that has to
>do with the fact that Ivy League football doesn't get the
>coverage and fan base, no offence, that division I gets, so
>they can be controvercial and have fun more easily for the most
>part. I'm not exactly sure how many of us there are...around
>10 maybe? Anyone want to help me out?
There are 10 that I know of, including all the Ivy's except Cornell:
1.Brown Band
2.Columbia University Marching Band
3.Dartmouth College Band
4.Harvard University Band
5.LSJUMB (that's us)
6.The Penn Band
7.Princeton Band
8.Rice Marching Owl Band
9.Virginia Pep Band
10.Yale University Band
As for why...another theory is that since most of the above schools have
strong academic reputations, scatter bands developed because students
needed to relieve stress more than they wanted to march in straight
lines. Scatter bands also tend to take less rehearsal time (and
rehearsals are less stressful) than traditional bands.
>> I know a few stories (they might just be suburban myths) but I
>> have no way of validating them so I won't spread anything.
>
>Where scramble bands are, myths and stories are not far behind.
>
>I've never been in a university marching band, so I can't
>compare it with scrambling, but I know we party a lot, have
>strange fun experiences, drink a lot, and party with other
>scramble bands when we can.
From what I've heard on this group, that's true of most bands, not just
scatter/scramble bands. But we definitely have a lot of fun doing what we
do.
Later,
Adam
Maximilian Waugh
On 13 Dec 1995, Ken Jr. wrote:
> to be on Jan. 1st? Not in pasedena. In fact, they are only sending 40
> members to the Aloha Bowl. When USC went (1984, I believe) we sent our
> ENTIRE 300 member band. Now, why can we do this? Because we have more
> fans that give us more money.
Uh... no. U$C is a private school. UCLA is not, and gets its money from
the state of California. 'Nuff said (where did this guy come from?).
Go Purple!
Max Waugh
Husky Tuba '94-
Ken Jr.
On Wed, 13 Dec 1995, Maximilian Waugh wrote:
>
> Uh... no. U$C is a private school. UCLA is not, and gets its money from
> the state of California. 'Nuff said (where did this guy come from?).
Well, the fact that we have alumni that give a lot of money to us has NO
relation to whether we're public or private. We get very little money
from our school. We got 1400 people to come to an event at $150 a head,
plus a $500-$10,000 donation. That's $22,000 on admission alone. Plus
the donations, you can see that we fund raise A LOT. We had a 90 year
old restauranteur donate $100,000 for a new facility. There are so many
more examples of people who were either in, or love the band. That is
why we take the whole band to Chicago every other year. Part of the band
is at EVERY SINGLE GAME. If people truly loved the UCLA band, they might
donate money, too. Problem is, they don't.....
FIGHT ON, TROJANS!!
Rob
TMB Clarinets
Nikki
In article <wkaye-14129...@koh-mac65.usc.edu>, wk...@usc.edu (Doc
Noodle) wrote>>
> ... Northwestern Marching Band.
> Despite what you might have read about us in this news group, we are not
> out to get you. Speaking for myself, I wish you the best of luck and hope
> you enjoy your time in Pasadena.
I believe that you are speaking for a lot more of the Band than just yourself!
Wildcats, see ya at the ROSE BOWL!
> David Brenneman
> USC Trojan Band 1993-1996
> USC Trojan Band Uniform Manager 1994-1996
> GO TROJANS!!!! BEAT THE WILDCATS!!! GO JAYHAWKS!!!
> REMEMBER: ALWAYS FIGHT ON TO LIVE AND LIVE TO FIGHT ON!!!!!
--
"Nikki" | FIGHT ON!!!!
Trojan Marching Band | TGMBITHOTU
Cymbals | Rose Bowl, T-shirts, More Money!
nol...@aludra.usc.edu | "Ching, Boom"
Spaulding
stated the fact that we don't get as much money as you. I also don't
think that I would give either of my testicles to be in Pasadena. I have
done that gig once all ready, and it wasn't that great. Marching six
miles hung over isn't very fun at all. I would much rather wake up hung
over and go to the beach to let the sun kill it off. Colt also didn't
say we were all that great, we just beat you... 5 times. The truth of
the matter is that I at least don't want to take the whole band because
that would mean that we would have to do a field show, and that means
having to practice. Anyway, you guys have fun in Pasadena and we'll
dance a hula for you. Oh, and Ken, I'll be partying in Mexico on Jan.1,
but I will be sure to watch you guys on TV, I'm even looking forward to
it.
Bryan "Spaulding" LaCaille
ALOOOOOHA!!!!!!!
"Hey Shaft--Where are you goin'?
"I'm going to get lei'd!!"
Nikki
>
> Well, all I can say is that I'll be in Hawaii for a week, while you guys get
> to visit beautiful....Pasadena. Trust me, there's nothing new to see in
> Pasaena. Just be glad your team finally did something right and wrapped up
> the conference title before playing the Bruins......
>
> Aloha,
> colt
> UCLA Bones
Oh, please...As though you wouldn't give your left testicle to be at the
Rose Bowl on Jan 1st.
As far as whatever "Ken, Jr." is going off about...he's on his own <<What
year are you anyway, Ken?>>
I AM curious however as to why you didn't address his question. If your
fans love you guys SO much and you are so great, why do they not support
you financially so that a bigger portion of your band might go on the trip
to Hawaii that you are so thrill about?
Just asking ;)
Doc Noodle
I have been a long time reader of this news group but never really
responded to any of the posts. But after a season of reading constant USC
bashing I feel that I must respond. I want to respond to this post with
an explaination. Rob responded to a jab by trying to explain the large
alumni and individual support that our band recieves. In fact we have
recieved in an one year period nearly ONE MILLION DOLLARS in support of
our new facility and for our student scholarship fund. Also, we do
several gigs as the season progress to raise money for the trips that we
take, the uniforms that we buy every year and for the scholarships that
some of the members in the band recieve. It is these gigs and donations
that allow the USC BAND to send the whole band to Hawaii for our last
appearence in the Aloha Bowl. I read postings about how we are all
arogant "Hitler Youth"(sound familiar Jason Berman?), which is all
untrue. While our drive and pride in our organization and in our football
team is well known, we have tried to present ourselves with pride and
class, which I might add some of the other bands in our conference seem to
lack.
This portion of my post is directed to the Northwestern Marching Band.
Despite what you might have read about us in this news group, we are not
out to get you. Speaking for myself, I wish you the best of luck and hope
you enjoy your time in Pasadena. Having said that I conclude this post.
P.S. If any of you out there have something to say about this, you can
e-mail me directly at bren...@mizar.usc.edu.
)
believe. I have heard from two or three places that Harvard was
the first to Scramble.
Paradox !-)
just in it to scatter and scramble... :)
Orson
>I would just like to say that the Trojan Marching Band (the greatest
>marching band in the history of the universe) has marched more ROSE BOWL
>parades than any other band. Hey, where is the UCLA so-called band going
>members to the Aloha Bowl.
Well, all I can say is that I'll be in Hawaii for a week, while you guys get
to visit beautiful....Pasadena. Trust me, there's nothing new to see in
Pasaena. Just be glad your team finally did something right and wrapped up
the conference title before playing the Bruins......
>Hey, remember to turn on ABC Jan. 1st to WATCH US ON TV!!
I'd turn the TV anytime to see '$C lose! Go 'Cats!
-------OK, next article......
In article <Pine.SOL.3.91.951214...@castor.usc.edu> "Ken Jr." <rh...@castor.usc.edu> writes:
>Well, the fact that we have alumni that give a lot of money to us has NO
>relation to whether we're public or private. We get very little money
>from our school. We got 1400 people to come to an event at $150 a head,
>plus a $500-$10,000 donation. That's $22,000 on admission alone.
Uhh... I just did the math in my head, and if you had 1400 people at
$150 a head, that would be _$210,000_ on admission alone. Let me guess, are
you a math major, Robbie?
>Plus
>the donations, you can see that we fund raise A LOT. We had a 90 year
>old restauranteur donate $100,000 for a new facility. There are so many
>more examples of people who were either in, or love the band.
Are you saying that people who were in the band don't love it? Hmmmm......
>That is
>why we take the whole band to Chicago every other year. Part of the band
>is at EVERY SINGLE GAME. If people truly loved the UCLA band, they might
>donate money, too. Problem is, they don't.....
Oh, how exciting: freezing your butt off in Oregon seeing your team barely
beat the last place team (no offense, OSU), not to mention the exciting trip...
>FIGHT ON, TROJANS!!
>Rob
>TMB Clarinets
Aloha,
colt
UCLA Bones
Ken Jr.
Corp style band. We, as you have noticed, are not a corp style band.
There are many nationally recognized, non-corp style bands, like Grambling.
We have won national recognition, as well. We have a different
philosiphy, and we think that our style is better; just as you feel the
same way.
Now, first of all, I am NOT a FRESHMAN. Second, I am not starting
anything new. I am responding to the same type responses that I have
gotten from Washington Band members, and from UCLA band members. Based
on the way other band members have acted, my behavior is not unique. So,
if we are to be civilized, then everyone be civilized. I thought this
was supposed to be fun. I just have a problem with everyone hating us,
and getting upset when I send the same feelings back. If you want me to
be civilized, then act the same way. Problem is, the USC-UCLA rivalry is
unlike any in the country. We have NEVER been civilized to each other.
So why start now?
FIGHT ON SC!!!!
Rob Hart
Sophomore Clarinet
Trojan Marching Band
TGMBITHOTU
Ken Jr.
On 14 Dec 1995, Spaulding wrote:
> stated the fact that we don't get as much money as you.
nobody likes you...
I also don't
> think that I would give either of my testicles to be in Pasadena.
you would rather send part of your band to Hawaiii than have YOUR school
be at the top of Pac-10 football, playing in the Rose Bowl
I have
> done that gig once all ready, and it wasn't that great.
losing to Wisconsin will do that to you...
Colt also didn't
> say we were all that great
exactly, your band sucks, great school spirit...
The truth of
> the matter is that I at least don't want to take the whole band because
> that would mean that we would have to do a field show, and that means
> having to practice.
Some bands work hard to achieve success, and others (ie, UCLA) just want
to take their government check and suck...
So what do we have here, well, you can see for yourself....
FIGHT ON TROJANS!!!!
Rob
Trojan Marching Band
TGMBITHOTU
)
> I would just like to say that the Trojan Marching Band (the greatest
> marching band in the history of the universe) has marched more ROSE BOWL
Just a point of information.
A member of your trumpet section RAN SCREAMING from USC and the
Trojan band. He ran so far physically and ideologically that he
is now here at UVa in the Virginia Pep Band (a scramble band)
:):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
Just in it to see the big "TOJANS" button on the guy's vest...
with the word SUCK in BIG BLACK letters across it.
:):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
Paradox !-)
Jim King
>I have been a long time reader of this news group but never really
>responded to any of the posts. But after a season of reading constant USC
You know, David, I doubt that many people are fooled. Most people here can
probably recall that you bombard the group with letters like this about every
six months, always trying to claim victim status and that everyone ELSE
crosses the line. I doubt that many people are foolded by your wounded tone
and marketing-style writing. We've all read way too much of that in direct
mail scams.
Sorry, but the U$c band deserves the reputation it has. Look around! Just in
this newsgroup we have bands from all over the Pac 10 saying nice things about
each other, but all bashing U$c. But I know ... <sarcasm> The world hates you
because you're so good. And you guys are the only ones with class out
there.</sarcasm> Or maybe it's a conspiracy.
Give it up. If you guys are going to be *ssholes everywhere you go, people
will always know and spread the word. People from your band have stated here
before that you are PROUD of the way you act. If so, more power to you for
living your life on your own terms, but learn to accept the back-lash.
Jim King
UCLA Trombone '86-'90
UCLA Alumni Band President
ji...@hitchhiker.com
http://www.hitchhiker.com/users/jimk/alumband/
Greg Teal
>What we have here is a battle of styles. The Sudler Trophy is awarded to
>Corp style band. We, as you have noticed, are not a corp style band.
>There are many nationally recognized, non-corp style bands, like Grambling.
>We have won national recognition, as well. We have a different
>philosiphy, and we think that our style is better; just as you feel the
>same way.
Not that this really matters in any way to the current flame war, but I
thought I'd clarify that the Sudler Trophy is not just awarded to corps-
style bands. In fact, most of the Big-10 bands have won the award and as
far as I know none of them march corps-style. UCLA and ASU are the only
corps-style bands I can think of that have won the trophy.
You may continue now...
Greg Teal
UCLA MB Trombone Section Leader
KKPsi Western Dist. Member-at-Large
Aloha.
Yvonne Lee
> There are 10 that I know of, including all the Ivy's except Cornell:
> 1.Brown Band
> 2.Columbia University Marching Band
> 3.Dartmouth College Band
> 4.Harvard University Band
> 5.LSJUMB (that's us)
> 6.The Penn Band
> 7.Princeton Band
> 8.Rice Marching Owl Band
> 9.Virginia Pep Band
> 10.Yale University Band
Williams College also has one.
Roscoe P. Coltrain
>be at the top of Pac-10 football, playing in the Rose Bowl
UCLA 24, usc 20
nuff said,
colt
Ray Alconcel
ed...@darwin.clas.Virginia.EDU (Paradox !-)) wrote:
> "Ken Jr." writes:
> > I would just like to say that the Trojan Marching Band (the greatest
> > marching band in the history of the universe) has marched more ROSE BOWL
>
> Just a point of information.
> A member of your trumpet section RAN SCREAMING from USC and the
> Trojan band. He ran so far physically and ideologically that he
> is now here at UVa in the Virginia Pep Band (a scramble band)
> :):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
Kristopher Kenneth Kopitzke?!
Is that where you've ended up?
If you see this, write back soon. Same old address, alco...@scf.usc.edu.
RaynMann
http://www-scf.usc.edu/~alconcel/
Danny Marquardt
I'm sorry. this is too rich. You have to be a freshman, right? I apologize
in advance to all other bands in the nation. We shouldn't have this kind of
fight on the internet, but.......
Just where do you get all this useless drivel? no one cares where you get
your money from or where you go with that cash. no one. Leave the posturing
and chest thumping to your own area of L.A. it has no place for an audience
here. Just thinking to myself now, was I too nice in my initial post in
describing you? have you done anything to deserve my self restraint? Every
band/school has an arch rival yet this is the only one that has a consistant
tone of venom every year. We are instructed by our elders that this is not
normal behavior. So we strive to overcome it in our dealings with other
bands. I hope this the case. I myself have made a sincere effort. Only
other schools can judge that however. Yet there is a constant stream of
self-promotion and disdain from the south central school. It's hard to garner
national respect when with so much visible hatred in your tone. I know we are
as guilty as you are in this regard, but only in regards to you we try(I
didn't say we accomplish it) to cease this sophmoric behavior towards everyone
else.
>
>Some bands work hard to achieve success, and others (ie, UCLA) just want
>to take their government check and suck...
>
admit that we don't practice that often (especially compared to our brethen
east of the Miss') but are practices are quite intense. We get more done in a
half hour than almost anyone else(this is a guess). In fact let's compare
some hard facts; during the halftime of our .5 decade of beating you we
performed a halftime that included over 40 sets and not one stand still
section, while you performed as show that had something like thirteen sets of
follow-the-leader and park and blow. Now this doesn't mean anything in itself
except that our show was more technically demanding then yours in terms of
marching and playing. I would even venture to compare it to a DCI show (ooooh
evil bad language). You are entitled to your vision of how a band should
perform, go ahead. That does not make yours superior to mine because its
different, in fact it looked a lot simpler to perform.
but we suck????? do you know the sudler trophy is awarded to a band that is
innovative and typifies excellence(I think that was the spiel). Many great
bands have been awarded this trophy, many from the big ten and other
conferences. We were awarded it. So in the eyes of a NATIONAL panel of band
directors(who probally know what they are doing) we were among the best. Have
you received such national praise? no. This doesn't mean you suck. but you
are not regarded to be in that upper echelon of bands. maybe you will. not
yet. One of the things they look at is attitude(so I'm told). You have that
in enormous quantities. Is that what you want to represent of your school? I
imagine it is. Though I have seen a softening in your band recently (some
were even nice after the band bowl, I told one guy to represent the pac-ten
well). The hatred still is there.
I apologize again to everyone else. Maybe we should just establish a seperate
newsgroup for flaming. That might solve the idiot posts of which I am now a
member.
Danny Marquardt
5th year high ruler o' mellophones
UCLA "Solid Gold Sound"
ALoha!!
Go NorthWestern!!!
Kansas: prepare to be inebriated
ChiBoyinLA
"What we have here is a battle of styles. The Sudler Trophy is awarded to
Corp style band."
WRONG - Michigan and Ohio State were the first two recipients of the
Sudler Trophy. Neither (especially OSU) would ever be considered a
corps-style band. I could go through the list of winners in an attempt
to identify all those that aren't "corps-style" bands, but I have better
things to do.
"Problem is, the USC-UCLA rivalry is unlike any in the country."
Sure, Michigan/OSU, Alabama/Auburn, Florida/Florida State, Army/Navy, etc.
don't count?? How come we don't see posts on this newsgroup about much
people hate the bands at those schools. Hmmm......
"We have NEVER been civilized to each other. So why start now?"
Who is "We", Rob. I saw a member of USC's band staff running around the
sidelines encouraging the Trojan band to yell obsenities and make obscene
gestures to the UCLA band while UCLA was performing their pregame show
(many band members then did so). I didn't see the UCLA band staff doing
that, and I didn't see a single member of the UCLA band do ANYTHING to
distract from your performance. You see, the UCLA band is content to
make a statement with a professional performance.
BTW, to follow up on an earlier post, I counted 12 drill moves in your
show (most of which was at a 120bpm tempo or slower), while UCLA had 42
drill moves, and marched tempos as fast as 192.
Nikki
(ChiBoyinLA) wrote:
>> "Problem is, the USC-UCLA rivalry is unlike any in the country."
>
> Sure, Michigan/OSU, Alabama/Auburn, Florida/Florida State, Army/Navy, etc.
> don't count?? How come we don't see posts on this newsgroup about much
> people hate the bands at those schools. Hmmm......
I don't know. I think that the rivalry we have with you guys is pretty
unique. I've had verbal thrown at me from ucla alumni when I was
graduating high school and getting ready to come to SC. I wasn't even a
student here yet. Worst of all it was by a man who was a family friend of
ours through my church! Plus a cross state rivalry is one thing but we
are just minutes away from each other and the spotlight is constantly on
our two teams since we represent the sport of football in the LA area. I
admit that there are other rivalries elsewhere but not like the one we
share.
>. I saw a member of USC's band staff running around the
> sidelines encouraging the Trojan band to yell obsenities and make obscene
> gestures to the UCLA band while UCLA was performing their pregame show
> (many band members then did so).
Hmmm...I'm unclear as to how you were certain ( and I'm sure that you'd be
certain before making such accusations) that it was a BAND STAFF member
and that s/he was encouraging us to yell, etc. I personally cannot recall
a time when I was told by a Red Coat (the staff members who, among other
responsibilities, are there to protect us and make sure we don't get into
too much trouble) to yell or jeer or any of the things you are claiming.
>
> BTW, to follow up on an earlier post, I counted 12 drill moves in your
> show (most of which was at a 120bpm tempo or slower), while UCLA had 42
> drill moves, and marched tempos as fast as 192.
Correct me if I am wrong (which I'm sure you'll do anyway) but wasn't your
show a combination of shows you performed throughout the year?
RAM 61
Michigan won the Sudler, so did Illinois. Iwas not aware these were "corp"
style bands.
So, what national recognition has Southern Cal's Band won. Won any drum
competitions? UCLA has. Won the Sudler? UCLA has.
For those wishing to study the 'SC Band, Rob seems to be a prime example
of the Trojan mentality.
ChiBoyinLA
>"Hmmm...I'm unclear as to how you were certain ( and I'm sure that you'd
be
>certain before making such accusations) that it was a BAND STAFF member
>and that s/he was encouraging us to yell, etc. I personally cannot
recall
>a time when I was told by a Red Coat (the staff members who, among other
>responsibilities, are there to protect us and make sure we don't get into
>too much trouble) to yell or jeer or any of the things you are claiming.
Well, I was standing right in front of part of the 'SC drumline (during
UCLA's pregame) when I observed a "Red Coat" egging on your band as I
described in my earlier post. I won't reprint his statements here,
because they are obscene, but if you really want me to, I can E-Mail you.
I can't identify which band staffer it was, but it wasn't Tad Carpenter,
who I know.
>Correct me if I am wrong (which I'm sure you'll do anyway) but wasn't
your
>show a combination of shows you performed throughout the year?
Yes it was. The first two numbers were from the Arizona show, and the
closer was from the Cal show. But what's the point? UCLA still managed
to learn and execute those drills in less time than the Trojan band
learned their drill. It's not like UCLA was performing that show ALL
year. And to my knowledge (and you can correct ME if I'm wrong), SC
practices a heck of a lot more than the UCLA band.
Just stating the facts as I know 'em.
Nikki
(ChiBoyinLA) wrote:
> Well, I was standing right in front of part of the 'SC drumline (during
> UCLA's pregame) when I observed a "Red Coat" egging on your band as I
> described in my earlier post. I won't reprint his statements here,
> because they are obscene, but if you really want me to, I can E-Mail you.
Would you? I'd been interested in hearing what this person had to say.
> And to my knowledge (and you can correct ME if I'm wrong), SC
> practices a heck of a lot more than the UCLA band.
>
I don't know how long you guys practice so I can't say. We have Tuesday
in which we usually run through the music. Thurs for drill and Friday we
finish the drill (or try to anyway) and spend the rest of the practice
doing a "Jock Rally" for the football team. Sat we review halftime and do
a pregame run-through. Some sections (ie.Drumline) have sectional
rehearsal but most others do not to my knowledge. And you...?
.
Nikki
>
> So, what national recognition has Southern Cal's Band won. Won any drum
> competitions? UCLA has. Won the Sudler? UCLA has.
Nope, your right... No drum competitions lately...Most of us don't even
know what the Sudler trophy is ( so most of us are not really all that
impressed to hear that you've won it.) Nope, we are too busy supporting
our teams, making movie appearences and recording platinum albums to worry
about competitions.
Ralph Furley
things I feel I need to say.....
>Now, first of all, I am NOT a FRESHMAN. Second, I am not starting
>anything new. I am responding to the same type responses that I have
>gotten from Washington Band members, and from UCLA band members. Based
>on the way other band members have acted, my behavior is not unique. So,
>if we are to be civilized, then everyone be civilized. I thought this
>was supposed to be fun.
First of all, let's look at how your first post came to be: A member of the
UCLA band posted a sincere article about the merits of West Coast bands, after
seeing several posts implying that the Big 10 had the only "real" bands.
Obviously, most of his post involved our band. The only thing he said about
the trojan band was "you either love 'em or hate 'em". No bashing, no cheap
shots, just an accurate statement that people tend to be on one extreme or the
other when it comes to your band. Then your posts came along, with numerous
shots at our band, our school, and other bands. Saying things like "nobody
likes you" and implying that our alumni want to get rid of us is probably not
the best display of the "class" you see your band as having (not to mention
the fact that these statements are completely untrue).
Rob, you started off by talking about all the money your band gets and how
that shows how much people love you. First of all, try telling all the bands
out there that unless their alumni give them a million dollars for a new
facility then no one likes them. In any category, usc probably gets more
alumni $ than most other schools. Second of all, I believe your new facility
was part of a university organized fundraising effort, not just a few band
people asking their friends for money and getting a million dollars as you
seem to imply. Third, I get things in the mail all the time from people
trying to give me millions of dollars (I may aleady have won!). Does that
mean Ed McMahon loves me? Probably not.
>I just have a problem with everyone hating us,
>and getting upset when I send the same feelings back. If you want me to
>be civilized, then act the same way.
Well, maybe there is a reason everyone has the feelings they do towards your
band. (I don't mean this to put you down, but it just makes sense that the
majority of people is probably right.) If anyone outside of our bands could
maybe give an impartial view here, please feel free. But the only posts I've
seen from other schools have not been favorable towards the 'sc band. And
when I compare the tone of most UCLA peoples' posts to that of the responses
from usc folks, it seems pretty clear who is being more rational and
civilized, and who has more "class" (again, anyone else following this may
comment on their perception of the whole argument). But time and again I or
other UCLA people are accused of having no class. Note, I'm not saying all of
our posts have been completely proper, but I'm looking at the overall picture
and comparing posts from each side.
Lastly, i just want to comment on the debate on our bands' relative quality.
All I konw is that much of the stuff we have done in our shows has been
difficult. To put together high-caliber music and complex marching routines
the way we have done over and over, all the while having fun and entertaining
the crowd, is quite a feat. I'm even amazed by much of what we've
accomplished. And when I compare this to a standing version of "Mony, Mony"
and a show with few drill moves, I'm not overly impressed. I don't mean to
bag on your band, I'm just commenting on what I saw. I'd be interested to
hear some evidence supporting the perception you guys have of your band,
because I honestly haven't seen it from what I've seen of your shows the last
few years.
The fact is that our band has been recognized nationally by other bands. (see
Sudler Trophy) You can say that you are too busy with other things to worry
about this, but one doesn't pursue awards. One pursues excellence, and the
awards come as a result. I honestly hadn't heard of the Sudler Trophy until
we won it.....
Out,
Colt
P.S. Can I have my football back (the one someone accidentally "picked up"
after the Band Bowl......)
Jason Berman
> In article <4av0bk$k...@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, ra...@aol.com (RAM 61) wrote:
>
> >
> > So, what national recognition has Southern Cal's Band won. Won any drum
> > competitions? UCLA has. Won the Sudler? UCLA has.
>
> Nope, your right... No drum competitions lately...Most of us don't even
> know what the Sudler trophy is ( so most of us are not really all that
> impressed to hear that you've won it.) Nope, we are too busy supporting
> our teams, making movie appearences and recording platinum albums to worry
> about competitions.
>
You know...I love it when you write my hate mail for me...I don't have
to say a thing about USC, my error is that I am the only one who hasn't
figured out that the whole world knows what dicks the SC band is...
I am sorry, I promise I will never address the SC issue again.
-Berman
(Again...I only speak for myself and nobody else)
Lara Jean Loyd
like to say that I'm looking forward to partying with you
stanford guys (and gals) my god, did I just say "gals"? Anyway,
I miss the good old scatter band days. Until I see you all in
Memphis, keep safe.
Ever onward in beauty and grace,
--Lara
--
----------------------------------------------------------------
Remember: 'Tis better to have loved and lost than to be trampled
by an elephant!
----------------------------------------------------------------
Jeff Randall
>Rob Hart Wrote:
>"What we have here is a battle of styles. The Sudler Trophy is awarded to
>Corp style band."
>
>WRONG - Michigan and Ohio State were the first two recipients of the
>Sudler Trophy.
BZZZZT. Michigan, Illinois and Ohio State were the first three recipients
of the Sudler (in that order).
The complete list of Sudler recipients is:
1982 University of Michigan
1983 University of Illinois
1984 Ohio State University
1985 Florida A&M University
1986 University of Texas at Austin
1987 University of Oklahoma
1988 Michigan State Univeristy
1989 Kansas University
1990 University of Iowa
1991 Arizona State University
1992 Northwestern University
1993 University of California at Los Angeles
1994 James Madison University
1995 Purdue University
Jeff "Euclid" Randall - MI 'bone 1990-1994 BBB 1990-1995
--
ran...@truth.uph.com | George Orwell was an optimist:
I speak for myself... | "The Constitution is a radical document...it is the
until they destroy the | job of the Government to rein in people's rights."
1st Amendment as well. | -President Bill Clinton
Adam Elman
ed...@darwin.clas.Virginia.EDU (Paradox !-)) wrote:
>Don't forget UCal Davis, which also has a scramble Band, I
>believe. I have heard from two or three places that Harvard was
>the first to Scramble.
>
> Paradox !-)
Nope, Davis is most definitely NOT a scatter band. However, they are
very, very cool folks, and have some excellent arrangements.
[Yeah, like I'd leave out the hosts of the Picnic Day Battle of the Bands...:-)]
Later,
Adam
--
Adam Elman
elm...@leland.stanford.edu
http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~elmanad/
"It's cold, and there are wolves after me!" -- Grandpa Simpson
David G. Thom
Subject: Re: scatter/"scramble" bands (was Re: Bands_West Coast-fun without snow)
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(In reply to Jle...@ucla.edu 's post from a while ago...)
I noticed in one of your posts that you were wondering about scatter bands in
the Ivy League. Every single Ivy (except Cornell, I'll explain) has a
scatter band, and I have a theory about this:
1) Tiny schools. Princeton has 4,500 students, all of whom like to do things
other than watch or play at a football game it seems. Most other Ivies
are almost as small, and Columbia has only 2200 students.
2) No band dept. All Ivy Bands are student run, partly by choice, but partly
because the schools won't pay for the expenses of a large marching band. Most
of the schools, including Princeton, have a non-faculty music advisor or
no advisor at all. The whole idea of a "Department of Bands" is a
bit absurd here.
3) Ivy Football is dead. Despite actually founding the game
(Princeton-Rutgers, 1869) and creating the entire concept of football
rivalries, football is dead here. Princeton is down to 7,000 fans a game,
and that's triple what many schools (Brown, Columbia, Harvard) get. With
the death of the game-day atmosphere and empty stadiums, playing in the
band loses a lot of its attraction.
4) Academic Hell. Students have no time for extracurriculars, mostly due
to the extreme academic demands placed on them. (I'm writing this as a
break from my senior thesis, and it's Christmas "break" for god's sake and
I'm sitting in a packed Engineering building). So, most bands in the
league operate on 3-6 hrs of rehearsal before each game, and even that is
usually optional.
5) Driven Students. I think that one last reason is that HUGE traditional
bands project a robot, machine-like mentality which is not popular with
over-achieving independent-minded Ivy-Leaguers. After all, most of us
marched in drill bands in high school, so we've been there, done that. So
Ivy students (I guess) prefer the fun, relaxed atmosphere and
individuality of scrambling. It's been this way since 1969 at almost
every school and won't change anytime soon.
So, given these constraints, you're left with a small group of people and
a few hours to create a band from. So, the most logical answer to
providing entertainment and making the game fun for members is to become a
scatter band with humorous halftime shows that will please the sparse
crowds and keep them laughing and happy. I think the Ivy scatter bands do
a great job at this, and when they write clever shows the audience
response is terrific. (Imagine being on stage in the world's largest
comoedy club.) The scramble exception is Cornell, which has a loose
high-school style traditional marching band that even still emphasizes fun
over drill. My theory for why Cornell is different is because they have
25,000 students and can therefore have enough people (150) to stay
traditional. The rest of us have either 100 members (Harvard, Penn),
60-80 members (Dartmouth, Princeton, Yale) or 30 or less (Brown, Columbia).
I don't know if this makes sense to you now, but I hope it does. We all like
to watch big traditional bands since we all are hard-working performers,
but it just wouldn't survive on this campus.
Finally, look at other schools in similar environments as the Ivy League
schools. Rice, UVa, Stanford, Williams and a few other places are all
scatter. Only Northwestern is traditional, and again it's because that is a
big school in the Big 10 that still has a football atmosphere on the
campus on gamedays.
Have fun with the Solid Gold Sound. God willing, we'll see you at the NCAA's!
- Dave Thom '96
PUB
Yvonne Lee
> Finally, look at other schools in similar environments as the Ivy League
> schools. Rice, UVa, Stanford, Williams and a few other places are all
> scatter. Only Northwestern is traditional, and again it's because that is a
> big school in the Big 10 that still has a football atmosphere on the
> campus on gamedays.
I agreed with most of your posting until you got to that point.
Sure, Northwestern has a "football atmosphere" this year because they're
having their best season since 1949, but its Stanford, and probably Rice,
as well "still have a football atmosphere on campus on game days."
Stanford plays in a conference where EVERY team has a natural rival, and
some have secondary rivalries, as well (Washington-Oregon, Cal-UCLA,
Stanford-USC). Playing teams like Notre Dame every couple of years,
hardly negates a football atmosphere, and it doesn't hurt to have gone to
a bowl game 3 of the last 5 years, nor does having acres of land for
tailgating.
As for Rice, they haven't had the success that Stanford has had, but
almost went to the Cotton Bowl a couple of years back. More importantly,
for atmosphere is that they're in Texas, where football from high school
up is a religion. The intensity of the competition brings about a
"football atmosphere."
Random
: In article <DJLFv...@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU>,
: ed...@darwin.clas.Virginia.EDU (Paradox !-)) wrote:
: >Don't forget UCal Davis, which also has a scramble Band, I
: >believe. I have heard from two or three places that Harvard was
: >the first to Scramble.
: >
: > Paradox !-)
: Nope, Davis is most definitely NOT a scatter band. However, they are
: very, very cool folks, and have some excellent arrangements.
: [Yeah, like I'd leave out the hosts of the Picnic Day Battle of the Bands...:-)]
: Later,
: Adam
We are on the fuzzy edge of being a scramble band, mainly because of our
show style. While we do use the infamous "Big Ten Style"/high step/chair
step/show step/etc step, our shows are generally specific pictures tied
together with a (hopefully) humorous script. And our basketball shows
are pure scramble.
Just proving how hard it is to pigeonhole any given band,
Russ
DM '95, Snare '91-?
--
----------------------------------------------- [>------------------------]
Russell Bowlus is Random --------- / /O//OO/ | | /OO//OO/ | |\
rcbo...@ucdavis.edu ----- | _ | | _ | |7
Insert witty comment here --- d--(_)--------------(_)---b
Ken Jr.
On Sun, 17 Dec 1995, Adam Elman wrote:
> Nope, Davis is most definitely NOT a scatter band. However, they are
> very, very cool folks, and have some excellent arrangements.
now, who does those arangements for the Davis band... why, according to
their web page, it's Tony Fox, the arranger for the Trojan Marching
Band. In fact, the arrangements they use were first used by the Trojan
Marching Band. Amazing. Fantastic.
FIGHT ON TROJANS!!
Rob
Adam Elman
Jr." <rh...@castor.usc.edu> wrote:
Actually, according to their Web page, only four of the fourteen
non-traditional songs listed are arranged by Tony Fox. While that's nice
'n' all, Davis' own Paul Zinn has five of the fourteen, and I would guess
at least a couple of the other five are home-grown as well.
Emmanuel
Children, children...you are at universities. Please represent same with
some intelligent decorum and debate. Is the band more important than
literacy?
Grungy
elm...@leland.stanford.edu (Adam Elman) wrote:
> I think Rice started within a couple of years of us -- 1966?
As near as I've been able to determine the first scatter show was vs USC
in either '69 or '70 at Rice Stadium. That's the earliest script I can
find. Oddly, they still did some "traditional" shows later that year,
possibly because the (now deceased) drum major from that time really
wanted to stay "traditional".
I'm slowly building contacts with former MOBsters to get more of the
history straightened out.
I thought that Princeton had scramble scripts dating back to '55 on their
web site...
bcnu - Grungy (John Gladu)
Systems Support Center -- Baylor College of Medicine
INTERNET: jgl...@bcm.tmc.edu | VOICE: (713)798-7370
US MAIL: One Baylor Plaza, Houston, Texas 77030
.opinions expressed are just that.obviously.
fegorote n. an unintelligible public announcement
saxiii
traditional
bands project a robot, machine-like mentality which is not popular
with
over-achieving independent-minded Ivy-Leaguers. After all, most of us
marched in drill bands in high school, so we've been there, done that.
So
Ivy students (I guess) prefer the fun, relaxed atmosphere and
individuality of scrambling. It's been this way since 1969 at almost
every school and won't change anytime soon.
I was going along with you until No. 5. The reality is, if you think
that you high school drill band measures up to the Ohio State, Florida
State, Michigan "drill" bands you are sorely mistaken. Just like you
can not compare your high school academics to your college academics.
That number five statement really got me going. I know that it may be
hard to believe but there are bright independent-thinking people
in "HUGE traditional drill bands" ll over the country. Scatter bands
have their place I guess, but to think that they are a better
alternative, I must disagree.
Peter H. Tait
> that you high school drill band measures up to the Ohio State, Florida
> State, Michigan "drill" bands you are sorely mistaken. Just like you
> can not compare your high school academics to your college academics.
> That number five statement really got me going. I know that it may be
> hard to believe but there are bright independent-thinking people
> in "HUGE traditional drill bands" ll over the country. Scatter bands
> have their place I guess, but to think that they are a better
> alternative, I must disagree.
True, h.s. bands never measure up to the huge college
marching bands, but I strongly dislike the rigidity and
precision of marching bands. Sure, they're ok to watch, but in
my former institution I grew weary of marching in my band very
quickly. (maybe it helped that my high school marching band was
downright pathetic, and perhaps I would feel differently if I
hadn't moved away from N.C. before high school where I would
have been in the Hendersonville H.S. band, the best in the
state)
I am now in the Va. Pep Band, and I couldn't be
happier. I love the freedom of scrambling. Some people think
we're a disgrace ("Why don' you boys march lahk ev'ybody
eylse?!"), but we just think we're different. It's a difference
that the UVA powers that be have tried to get rid of, and in
trying failed miserably. That athletic director (and,
one-by-one, many of his associates as well) have since
resigned. (we like to think we had a little part in that... :)
You guys may boo us or turn your backs on us while we're
performing (previous discussion), but we ain't goin' nowhere! :)
Peter Tait
3rd Year Trombone
The Award-Winning, Virginia, Fighting Cavalier, Indoor/Outdoor,
Precision (?), Marching Pep Band and Chowder Society Revue,
Unlimited!!!
GO HOOS!!!
--
"For every mother that ever cursed God for her child dead in
the road, for every father who ever cursed the man who sent him
away from the factory with no job, for every child who was ever
born to pain and asked why, this is the answer. Our lives are
missl...@gmail.com
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