Alumni Band Newsletter October 2011
UNR Alumni Band
As usual, the formatting is better if you open the attachment. Enjoy!
Alumni Band Newsletter October, 2011
Dear Band Alumns,
Happy Halloween! You are getting your newsletter a few hours early than normal in order to accommodate the Trick or Treating schedule. This is a long newsletter, but I hope you enjoy it!
Homecoming 2011
We had a wonderful time at Alumni Band this year! We had 30 Alums playing in the band and another small group that joined us at our Friday and Saturday events. We welcomed new alums from the 2011 graduating class, as well as some new ‘old’ alums, and our regulars. Thank you so much to everyone who made this weekend a success, including: Dawn Etcheverry Miller, Cristie Gilkey, Aaron DeJan, Dr. Will Plenk, Yolanda Cowell, Juliane DiMeo, the Wolf Pack Marching Band, and the Band Boosters. Thank you so much for all you do! Also a big thanks to Michael Sweeney of Everythingnothing.com for all his photography work. I have included some of his pictures here and there are more available (as always) on our Facebook page.
There are a few “housekeeping” items to wrap up Alumni Band this year. If you ordered a shirt and were unable to make it to Alumni Band this year, please make arrangements with Dawn (musi...@hotmail.com) to get your shirt. As the Alumni Band is largely self-supporting, Dawn and I usually cover expenses until we are reimbursed by you. Unfortunately we were unable to sell off the unclaimed shirts this year. Also, there are several extra kids shirts left over from previous orders, so if you are interested (maybe a holiday gift?) contact Dawn and see if she has the size you need. THANK YOU!
Also, I need your feedback. After @13 years of putting together Alumni Band, I want to make sure I keep what works and change what doesn’t and avoid going on autopilot. If you have any ideas, anything you’d like changed, or any part you’d like to ‘take over’ please don’t hesitate to let me know. My feeling will not be hurt, nor will I be offended. If the Alumni Band stops attracting new members and/or disappoints the ‘regulars,’ it will cease to exist. Please help me out with your comments!
Janet Traut, Marie Sutherland, David Chain, and Kevin Freels
Dr. Mack McGrannahan A very serious Kevin Freels
Information about the current Wolf Pack Marching Band:
For immediate
release: Oct. 4, 2011
The University’s marching band welcomes new director, new
goals
University of
Nevada, Reno’s Wolf Pack Marching Band grows in size, sound and spirit; biggest
band in several years debuts large sound to crowd at this Saturday’s football
home opener
RENO, Nev. – The atmosphere of any
University of Nevada, Reno athletic event has been illuminated with the sounds
of Wolf Pack school spirit since 1981, when the “Pride of the Sierra,” the University of Nevada Wolf Pack Marching Band, was
established. This year, three years after the 2008 budget cut threat of program
elimination, the Wolf Pack Marching Band has a new director and reinvigorated
mission. Director of Athletic Bands, William Plenk, has many goals, but at the
top of his list is a bigger and louder marching band that will bring the
community and the campus together as one.
“We want to sound great, look great,
and become a fixture in the community at large,” Plenk, director of the
marching, pep and symphonic bands, and conducting instructor, said. “We are
here to support the University and we can do that in many ways.”
Plenk received his bachelor’s degree
in tuba performance at Ithaca College in New York and received his master’s
degree in tuba performance and doctorate in wind conducting at the University
of California, Los Angeles and served five years as the teaching assistant with
the UCLA marching band. Now, in his first year at the University of Nevada,
Reno, Plenk has developed a vision for the marching band that extends far past
his initial year.
“It’s not about what we have done,
but where we will go from here,” he said. “I want students to feel challenged,
and at the end, feel that they have accomplished something.”
Part of Plenk’s vision has already
come to fruition as 35 new members have joined the band making the total count
of musicians 130, the biggest band the University has had in several years.
Over the past 30 years, more than 3,500 students have played in the program.
“People will notice our larger size
and the impact of our sound,” Plenk said.
Another goal for this year is to be
at more events. Also new is the branding of the pep band. The pep band, now the
“Howlers,” is a smaller band that plays at other, non-marching events and has
already played at a soccer game and a few volleyball games.
“We want to all work together,” said
Plenk. “The athletic department, the cheer squad, the students, the faculty and
the community, we are all part of the game-day experience.”
The Wolf Pack Marching Band is
supported by a $5 surcharge on all football season ticket sales.
“Most of our budget is generated by
Athletics, but comes directly from Wolf Pack fans,” Plenk said. “Without ticket
sales and support from the fans, the marching band would not exist today.”
The University College of Liberal
Arts and Department of Music also support the bands’ operating budget.
As the marching band begins to
accomplish set goals and its size grows, fundraising efforts will also
increase. To help the Wolf Pack marching band or to hire the band for special
events, contact Plenk at wpl...@unr.edu or 775-784-6807.
# # #
Photo
cutline: University of Nevada, Reno’s Director of Athletic Bands Will Plenk
begins his first year at the University, pictured here with a few members of
the beloved tuba section. The Wolf Pack Marching Band is the largest band the
University has had in several years and rehearses six hours each week in
preparation for half time and pre-game presentations. The Wolf Pack Marching Band
will debut its larger size and sound at this weekend’s home football opener
against UNLV, 4:05 p.m., Oct. 8.
Note
to editors: The University’s Wolf Pack Marching Band practices are held this
week from 2-4 p.m., Wednesday and Friday, in the north parking lot on campus,
just behind the post office off of 17th Street. The band will also rehearse at
Wolf Pack Park, the practice field east of Mackay Stadium, at 11:30 a.m.,
Saturday, Oct. 8, prior to the Nevada Wolf Pack vs. UNLV Rebels football game.
Media are requested to contact Nonie Wainwright at 775-815-4707 prior to
arriving to a practice.
Nevada’s
land-grant university founded in 1874, the University of Nevada, Reno has an
enrollment of 18,000 students. The University is home to the state’s medical school
and one of the country’s largest study-abroad programs, and offers outreach and
education programs in all Nevada counties. For more information, visit www.unr.edu. The
University of Nevada, Reno is part of the Nevada System of Higher
Education.
More information about the current Wolf Pack Marching Band:
William
Plenk: Director helps UNR band march to a new tune
To view the contents on from the www.rgj.com, go to:
http://www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/201110100600/LIV/110090304
Other Alumni Band Programs:
In case you have ever wondered what other Alumni Bands do, here are a few links. I tried to find out about the UNLV Alumni Band. A web search shows a web page for them, but it was ‘not found.’ If anyone knows more about it, or any other Alumni Bands, I’ll be happy to share.
http://oregonalumniband.com/default.htm
http://central.colostate.edu/events/2011-alumni-band-reunion/
http://www.cougaralumniband.org/
More pictures:
Here are some more pictures from the Homecoming game. Most of them are football, but there are several excellent, and adorable, pictures of the Alumni Band and some of our future band members.
Member Updates:
Happy Birthday Malia Mcstroul Walter (October 30)!
Condolences:
The Alumni Band would like to extend our condolences to Debbie Taft Galloway on the loss of her father in law and her brother in law. Our thoughts are with her during this difficult time.
We would also like to extend our condolences to Joanna Ambroz on the loss of her step-father. We are looking forward to a happier announcement from her in the future.
Here is the link for Jessie Turner’s obituary from the Reno Gazette Journal: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/rgj/obituary.aspx?n=jessie-turner&pid=154077184
At our gathering at Archie’s, we raised a glass to all of the Alumni Band members who have passed on. If you know of anyone I need to add to my sad roll call, please let me know.
Until next month, take care!
Kiara