Watch: The Cavalier Marching Band comes home
A permanent home for the University’s band program has been years in the making, but with the opening of the Hunter Smith Band Building this month, the halls are alive with the sound of music.
The dedication on Sept. 2 marked the $12.7 million facility’s official opening, and the torrential rain the following week forced rehearsals inside, fulfilling a vision dating to the genesis of the current band program in 2003.
“It’s been a dream come true,” band director Bill Pease told a standing-room-only crowd at the dedication. The audience included marching band students, their uniforms accented with white spats and orange capes, who were savoring having a permanent home on Grounds.
“Before this building was completed,” says drum major Abby Heider (Col ’12), “our offices and storage spaces were somewhat scattered across Grounds. Now, we have a place where we can rehearse, store uniforms and instruments … and ultimately focus on making our performances better and better.”
With two huge video screens and instant-playback audio recording capabilities, musicians will be able to watch and listen to their own performances to hone their techniques. Beyond that, they will add to the growth of the Betsy and John Casteen Arts Grounds in the Culbreth Road area.
Hunter Smith cuts the ribbon on the band building. Behind her are President Teresa Sullivan, Rector Helen Dragas, Arts & Sciences Dean Meredith Woo, band director William Pease and former executive vice president Leonard Sandridge.
“The band building will, for the first time, give music a presence on the Arts Grounds,” said Meredith Woo, U.Va.’s dean of the College of Arts & Sciences.
The seeds for the building were planted when Hunter Smith and her husband, the late Carl W. Smith, donated $1.5 million in 2003 to launch the Cavalier Marching Band.
“I distinctly remember hearing the announcement that Hunter Smith donated money for us to build a state-of-the-art rehearsal space. I was in my second semester of my first year at U.Va.,” says Heider. “Now, I am in awe of her generosity and the hard work of the construction group.”
The space also provides students a “haven of activity,” Pease says. Few of the 298 students in the program—which includes the concert band, basketball band, wind ensemble and other units—are music majors. Overall, 56 degree programs are represented.
The building spans two floors and includes offices, storage room for instruments, practice rooms and two large rehearsal areas. In a quiet moment before practice on a rainy day, Pease stood in the larger of the rehearsal rooms and reflected. “Two years ago we were standing right here in a dirt pile.”
Now the 4,100-square-foot room is a spacious, light-saturated acoustic gem. Beige “clouds” of acoustic fabric hang from a ceiling 52 feet high; panels of dark blue and beige fabric line three walls with a lattice of sound-absorbing wood on the fourth. Twelve-foot windows, including panels specially buffered against noise from the adjoining railroad tracks, open the room to views of other arts buildings as well as historic Lambeth Field.
The smaller rehearsal room sports gold drapes to soak up sound, making both spaces acoustically “dry”—no reverb, no echo, nowhere to hide if you play a wrong note.
“This is our lab,” says Pease. “This is where we create music, and this is our home.”
Nicholas Vallorano (Com ’12), also a drum major, echoes Pease’s thoughts. “Cavalier band members have always considered the CMB to be a family,” he says, “and we are excited to finally be home.”
Comments
When's the Pep Band coming back?
Congratulations on finally getting a roof over your heads, and best wishes for continued growth and interest in performing music. Within a period of two years membership in the Pep Band grew from barely 15 to having to limit its numbers to 60 (since that's all the seats they would give us at the basketball games). And now 298 in a comprehensive music program? Let us not forget the "founding fathers". Sammy Selmer lives.
The Pep Band predates and is unrelated to the CMB. When will it be permitted back?
AS TRUE FOOTBALL FANS KNOW A MARCHING BAND IS SYNONYMOUS WITH FOOTBALL AND WINNING FOOTBALL...... I FELT THE NEED FOR A MARCHING BAND SO DESPERATLY EONS AGO WHEN MY THEN HUSBAND,GEORGE WELSH, WAS THE FOOTBALL COACH AT UVa. NOW HUNTER SMITH HAS CREATED A Marching MIRACLE AND THE UNIVERSITY IS INDEBTED TO HER FOREVER. THANK YOU,HUNTER, WAY TO GO GIRL ! THE GOOD OLD SONG NEVER SOUNDED SO GOOD. THE WAY YOU WIELDED THAT SWORD TO CUT THE RIBBON ....YOU COULD REPLACE THE CAVALIER ON HORSEBACK !
..... AS COACH WELSH OFTEN SAID THE PEP BAND WAS WORTH SIX POINTS TO THE OPPOSING TEAM.
Sandra, First, there is no need to shout. Second, *true* football fans care about football not the music, not the halftime show, not the uniforms and not the lock-step marching. If you're into that sort of thing, maybe you should check out a DCI competition. Third, any coach or player that blames a loss on anything other than the team's performance and strategy is a laughingstock. Fourth, during his tenure as head coach at UVA, George Welsh had a winning record of 134-86. The Pep Band was present the entire time. Fifth, the Pep Band is the reason we still hear the Good Old Song today. It was almost eradicated in the 70's in favor of something more "peppy" like other colleges have. Sound familiar? Finally, I'll leave you with one last comment about *true* fans. True fans support their teams through thick and thin. They don't choose their favorite teams based on wins and losses. Instead, tradition, loyalty, and heritage passed from one generation to the next define *true* fans. I am, and always will be, a true fan of theeeeee AWARD-WINNING VIRGINIA FIGHTING CAVALIER INDOOR/OUTDOOR PRECISION(?) MARCHING PEP BAND AND CHOWDER SOCIETY REVUE, UNLIMITED!!! Now, that's worth shouting.
The pep band had real character(s). We were always there, and could be counted on to provide entertainment when things got boring, the home team was losing, or when action was otherwise lacking. On the field we were basically a scrambling version of SNL. The shows were creative, politically relevant, and often devastatingly funny. Our in-house writers created each show from scratch, and the musicians were top notch. Yes, we were occasionally banned from other universities, and I admit that we once broke the collarbone of the opposing team's mascot (accidentally!). But I can't imagine what must have transpired to initiate the switch to a conventional marching band. When I was at UVA, the people I knew were anything but conventional.
The quality of a school's academics is usually inversely proportional to its band. Stanford, Rice, Dartmouth, many of the other Ivies all have scramble bands. I always liked that we were different from the other ACC schools with their marching bands. Coach Welsh was a great coach, but I miss the University of Virginia Indoor/Outdoor Precision? Pep Band and Chowder Society Review Unlimited just as much. Still, I guess congrats on the new practice facility.
I think the band is great even though I loved the Pep Band. My only complaint is that they do the "Wahoo Wah " much too fast for us mortals to keep up so it sounds like a quick rumble.
So where did that $12 million for this facility come from? For all it was and was not, the Pep Band was a far less expensive option. And as the years with a marching band have shown, the presence of a large marching band does not actually bring more wins. The Pep Band was a group of students truly passionate about Virginia sports, at least deserving of a respectful dismissal. I hope this fancy new facility brings football wins. Short of that, I hope marching band members find at least half the fun, friendship, and Virginia sports dedication I found with the Pep Band.
The pep band was immature and often obscene.
Alas, At the moment there are fewer and fewer people who remember the Coach Welsh era or The PEp BAND! They are Ancient History. Time marches on.... and at UVa time is marching to a Marching Band!
Jefferson is ancient history too, but he still lives on. Keep tradition alive: bring back the Pep Band!
Tradition : Thomas Jefferson 1743 - 1826 UVa ACTIVE Marching BAND 1930 - 1960 ....off and on. Pep Band 1970-1993...23 years is hardly a tradition ! I am signing off of this prattle.... Bring back whatever ....winning would be good .
I, too, miss the Pep Band. While I intend to no disrespect for the efforts and talents of the members of the marching band, I can hardly watch them when attending games.
@Mark, what transpired was the Pep Band doing a controversial halftime show at a Bowl Game against WVU which offended the entire state of WV and caused their governor to demand an apology from Casteen. @Tina, the money was graciously donated by a Hunter Smith who loves the band, often attending practices and performances. @everyone, I hope no one doubts the unmatched level of dedication to music, The University, and UVa athletics exhibited by the band's members. If you do doubt it, you should attend a practice or game and see for yourself.
I can't believe there's so much drama and discourse over an article on the opening of a much needed facility! The facts are that we do indeed have a marching band and the pep band is no longer in existence. The marching band needed a central location and roof to attain what is synonymous with our athletics program "Uncompromised Excellence". Let's cut the bickering and celebrate another victory for The University.
I do think it is a wonderful thing that the music program at UVa is getting so much new funding. Congratulations on the accomplishment!
Mrs Welsh, shame on you. What a horrible thing to say to the students who were in the pep band at the time. I don't feel one way or another about the pep band or the marching band (I was at UVA during the Welsh era and the pep band era), but those were still students who voluntarily worked hard in their free time to be part of the pep band. Really, must you be so critical as to blame them for whatever games UVA lost at the time (and when I was there the UVA football team did quite well)? Come on.....
Erin, There were no box seats when I was at UVa . I sat in the end zone area of Bryant Hall on the porch.......and the older gentlemam who was hired at the gate under Bryant Hall to check in the Pep Band was overwhelmed at each home game..... The Pep Band came rushing in so fast and so many he could check nobody ! From my vantage point above I could see the beer and hard liquor bottles entering in base horns etc.... Thanks for the memories of youth in action! Still gives me a chuckle. However in my dotage I believe no football wins can be credited to the Pep Band...and there would have perhaps been more wins without them. Yes, shame on me.
I was in the Class of 1974 - the first class in which females were permitted. The Pep Band was small and new. They kept us going because let me tell you, our football team was nothing to brag about then. Years later, our daughter and her husband, met each other through the Pep Band and still are very close to all of the friends they made in the band. The Pep Band was a well run student organization. They were always there, wherever needed. They volunteered to go to other sports, soccer for example, after the "band" had been instituted and didn't go, and the Pep Band was told NO. UVA has always been a very special place, but now it is becoming just like every other large university - new buildings crowded on top of each other and breaking from the style of the original design. I am happy that the students that enjoy playing music have somewhere to practice, store their instruments, etc., but let's not trash those that came before.
The Cavalier Marching Band is something to be proud of at UVA. As a member of the Band, I can attest that the members of the CMB love the organization and could not imagine their time at the University without it. The new Band Building makes the experience even better. (Thanks, Ms. Smith!) I've heard many great things about the Pep Band, for sure, but it is no longer a prominent group on Grounds--like it or not. We can argue about student self-governance or even if Jefferson himself would approve of the CMB, or we can acknowledge that current students and fans love the Marching Band. Go Hoos!
I agree with the early post that the marching band is a symptom of a larger problem -- the movement from being The University to just another university. It galls me that the advertisements for UVA that run during football and basketball games emphasize Access UVA instead of the Honor System or The Lawn or the degree to which students have tremendous say in University life through University Guides, University Union and the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society i.e. things that make UVA unique. Is Mr. Jefferson's University's greatest selling point really that it is surprisingly affordable? The Pep Band was one small way amongst dozens that UVA was different from other state universities. For those of us who find marching bands tedious (admittedly perhaps a minority of football fans) the Pep Band made halftime fun. I learned many verses to "Rugby Road" from Pep Band members, do any of the Marching Band members know more than one?
Over the years, I have enjoyed Cavalier Sports, probably more than most. However, I think this rise of the Marching Band is just another symptom of the nationwide trend of Athletic Departments taking over the universities. We see it with the ACC power grab of Syracuse and Pitt. This is somehow in the interest of the student-athletes? The Football Stadium expansion now must be supported by filling these >61,000 seats at ticket prices of over $40 a ticket. The John Paul Jones Arena which now must be supported. The maw of the Athletic Department sucks in more and more dollars for its own purposes -- not purposes that support the academic mission of the University. Indeed the insatiable appetite of the Athletic Department diverts resources that could otherwise go towards actually supporting the University. Funds that were raised to go towards this Marching Band project, football stadium expansion, and the construction of JPJ could have actually gone to -- say -- the College of Arts and Sciences. Or for that matter while this article celbrates the construction of a home for the marching band, the Rotunda continues to fall into further disrepair for lack of funds. Despite all of this revenue demanded by the Athletic Department, it continues to operate at a persistent deficit. The Athletic Department continues to spend more money it doesn't have. At the time in 2009 when Al Groh was fired, he was making $2.2 million a year, and the Athletic Department handed him a severance package of over $4 MILLION. To do nothing but leave. They hired his replacement, Mike London for a "bargain" annual salary of only $1.7 million. Tony Bennett, the basketball coach, alson makes an annual salary of $1.7 million. When will it be enough already? The point is that it's time for this "public Ivy" to act like one and get off this losing treadmill of more money for the Athletic Department so it can demand more money for the Athletic Department. The Marching Band is but one symptom of this larger problem. Diets are not easy, but it's time for UVA to put the Athletic Department on one.
I'll get off my high horse now, but I thought I'd point out this article from USA Today -- http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2011-06-15-athletic-departments-increase-money_n.htm -- only 22 of the 228 Public Schools in Division I had athletic departments that actually broke even. UVA is not one. It's time for UVA to get out of this game before the ante gets raised even higher for the next round. Staying in is a losing proposition.
To respond to Dennis, yes, we do know more than one! They removed Rugby Road from the Pre-game show, which disappointed all the students in the band, believe me. However, this was done 2 years, and I'm a 2nd year. I've never played Rugby Road, but I can recite two verses, and I know a good number of the upperclassmen in the band know way more. ----- From Rugby Road to Vinegar Hill we're gonna get drunk tonight, The faculty's afraid of us, they know we're in the right So fill up your cups, your loving cups as full as full can be And as long as love and liquor last, we'll drink to you and me. Oh, I think we need another drink, hey (x3) for the glory of the U-V-A The girls of Mary Washington and RMWC Should never let a Virginia man an inch above her knee He'll take you to his fraternity house and fill you full of beer And soon you'll be the mother of a bastard cavalier! ----- There you go =) We love the UVA traditions, and are trying our best to help make the community a better one. I'm not trying to discredit the Pep Band since I'm certainly after its time, but from what I hear, it wasn't giving off a good view of Mr. Jefferson's University to the general public.
@Kyle -- but isn't that the whole point? "[The Pep Band] wasn't giving off a good view of Mr. Jefferson's University to the general public." Why was this a need? The Athletic Department had already thoroughly censored the Pep Band it didn't need to kill it. It wasn't going to give a "bad" image. The Athletic Department had never spent 2 cents on a band until it was viewed as a necessity to play up its image as a "real" football school. Now it has a large expenditure every year to support a Marching Band to attempt to fill a football stadium that needs to be filled to pay for the money already borrowed to fund the expansion of said football stadium. It's all part of a no-win game.
@DKUVA ... you need to check your facts. First of all, no money was "raised" or taken away from other departments to start the band or building its building. The money was specifically donated for those two reasons. Also I don't know if I'd call the band a "large expenditure" for UVa. Do you actually know how much of the band is funded by the University? Do you know the band has actually trimmed its operating budget in recent years? Furthermore, please do not make a connection between the expansion of the stadium and the demise of the Pep Band, there were several years in between... and if the Pep Band wasn't giving a bad image why did the governor of West Virginia demand a formal apology after the Continental Tire Bowl? Also I think we were considered a "real" football school back in the early 90s when we were ranked #1 in the nation.
Oh, and to build on Kyle's comment... some of us also learned an FSU version of Rugby Road when we tailgated with diehard UVA fans in the fall of 2004 when a bunch of band members rode a BUS to Tallahassee to sit in the nosebleeds and watch our beloved #6 UVA football team take on #7 FSU... we suffered everything from glass bottles to water balloons and fruit thrown at us as we proudly wore orange from head to toe and then rode a bus all the way back directly after the game. Please don't ever question the dedication to The University expressed by these kids.
Dennis E.LogueJr. and DKUVa" and ETCs. Perhaps you should all picket future UVa sports games and the Athletic Department to join The Ivy league ? Then the academics at UVa would be challanged (Oh,My,yes! ) and you ould be like "other" Universities with traditions prime and who cares who wins the games.Nothing wrong with The Ivies just with you crybaby wannabes. Another point ....consider the number of true musicians who are benefiting from Mrs. Smith's donation compared to pep bamd numbers. Many of those at games were not musicians, but just included in a skit ...and had free entrance and great seats at games. Plus their music was NEVER geared to the football situation on the field.... as they were convinced they were The Show and not the game. I admit if there now I would miss Rugby Road....but please get Thee to The Ivies or plan on sending you cildren or form picket lines ..... Thank you, Mrs Smith, for reaching out and reaching Many in the Theater and Arts at UVa. Also have you considered the number of true musicians who now
I've given a lot of money over the years to the VAF (money that it was a stretch to give) to help the Athletic Department fund scholarships and build winning programs. I like to have winning programs. I don't think there is any correlation between whatever band is playing and the outcome of the game. In the end, however, as much as I prefer winning to losing, the games are meant as a form of engagement for the players and entertainment for the fans. Some people find the games more entertaining with a marching band, I found them more entertaining with the Pep Band. The Pep Band was more in keeping with the character of The University that attracted me to attend. If causing national embarrassment is a criteria for an apology by a UVA President how come I never heard word one from President Casteen when a certain professor in the history department continuously has called Republicans racists and fascists. Why was there no apology for bringing an "ethicist" who advocates for infanticide on the Grounds to speak? It's these more egregious insults that are part of the reasons I no longer make general donations to the CLAS or GSAS. To me they certainly speaks worse of UVA than anything a few undergraduates have ever done in jest at a sporting event.
Well, with the big marching band UVA has finally become a true State University! Not said kindly. I predate the pep band; backto the "strolling combos" of the 1950's. We were a proud group and never attempted to compare ourselves to the "state university" bands from Maryland, NC, etc. We flourished under the direction of Dr. Busse! While I congratulate the marching band on it's new digs, not sure all progress is good. GAB
Thank you to Elizabeth Ingersoll and others for thoughtfully sharing their memories of Pep Band. This article might have been more complete if it had mentioned that on the same day in 2003 that Mrs. Smith made her donation, the Pep Band leadership was called in and told that their services were no longer required and that the locks had been changed on the instrument storage closets. The Pep Band was an entertaining, original, and really quite musical student-run organization that helped give U.Va. a true sense of place. I expect when the dull era of Pep Band Prohibition passes, the band will reconstitute immediately with vigor and enthusiasm, perhaps in a new and even better form. (...and Kyle, it's "we'll drink to the U. of V.")
With all due respect, Mrs. Welsh, the tenor of your remarks here and the attitude you display are troubling, to say the least. I was a student at the University when your husband took over the program and am appreciative for what he did to right that faltering ship. But I am deeply, DEEPLY, troubled at what college athletics in general -- and at the University in particular -- has become. When I attended home games at Scott Stadium, those games were always on a Saturday afternoon. There was the halftime entertainment ... the marching band from the other school and the Pep Band. It was fun; it was funny; it was a great way to end a stressful week of classes. Most important of all, it was a game ... A GAME! You derisively put down folks on this board who harken back to a time when that's what sports were ... games, entertainment. You say the University should just become a member of the Ivy League, I guess as a putdown of schools that put academics ... not football or sports in general ... first on their priority lists. That's rather small-minded and petty. College athletics today has little to do with colleges and so-called student-athletes. It is all about content for 24/7 sports broadcast networks. Conferences rake in enormous sums of money from broadcast contracts which pays enormous salaries in the head office and in the athletic departments of their member schools. The millions of dollars paid to coaches of the major sports is nothing short of obscene. Students do not benefit; unpaid “student-athletes” do not benefit … the only ones who benefit are the multi-million dollar coaches who retire in luxury in such places as Nantucket and Cape Cod. Athletics does nothing ... NOTHING ... for the school as a whole. Princeton, Yale, Harvard, Penn, Dartmouth ... they're all top academic institutions where sports are still for students. So yes, yes I do wish the University could rejoin the Ivy League, an association it had before the formation of the ACC. The Pep Band represents, for many of us, a time when sports were just entertainment, not big business; when a Saturday afternoon football game was a fun event, whether we won or not; when we, as a university, had our heads screwed on right. That’s what we miss today, Mrs. Welsh. The Pep Band, for us, is just a symbol of a better time at the University, but it’s a potent one. And please, Mrs. Welsh, don’t put us down for wanting something better for OUR university.
Dear J.logan Anderson, The University and The Good Old Days : NO WOMEN ADMITTED, NO BLACK FOOTBALL PLAYERS, FEW BLACK STUDENTS, NO WINNING FOOTBALL TEAMS, A PEP BAND FROM THE 70'S THAT PLAYED BEFOR A CROWD OF ROUGHLY 5,000 FANS IN SCOTT STADIUM. IT IS YOUR UNIVERSITY NOT MINE. IF SO MANY OF YOU WANT TO RETURN TO THE GOOD OLD DAYS AND A PEP BAND MAKE YOURSELVES HEARD AND NOT ON THIS BOARD. I AM PLEASED YOU HAD SUCH FUN AT UVa. THE PEP BAND COULD NEVER COMPARE TO THE STANFORD BAND AND I AM FAMILIAR WITH THE STANFORD BAND .....THEY WERE EXTREMLY CLEVER AND NEVER OBSCENE. ALL I WAS SUGGESTING IS YOU HAVE IVY LEAGUE IDEALS AND SHOULD JOIN. I HAVE ROOTS IN THE IVIES ALSO AND FIND THEIR SPORTS PROGRAMS ABSOLUTELY IDEAL....IDEAL! YES,IDEAL!YOU ARE IN THE ACC SO PUT UP WITH IT,DO NOT ATTEND GAMES IN PROTEST, OR MAKE YOURSELVES HEARD TO THE BOARD OF VISITORS AND THE NEW PRESIDENT. I DO NOT MEAN TO OFFEND,BUT I AM TALKING ACC / CONFERENCE FOOTBALL HERE OF WHICH I KNOW A GREAT DEAL.........YOU ARE IN THE ACC....LIKE IT OR LEAVE IT,OR CONSIDER THE GOOD OLD STANFORD ADAGE : " I AND A "..IMPROVISE AND ADJUST. SEE I AGREE WITH YOU ABOUT THE IVIES.
Wow. That's all I can say. Just wow.
Different strokes for different folks, I guess, but I'll take Funny over Formation any day. And the Pep Band was indeed funny. Perhaps they strove a wee bit too hard to be considered an honorary Ivy* or Stanford East, but at an otherwise uptight joint rife with stodgy, silly traditions (e.g., "grounds", blazers at football games), let alone UVa's sundry unfortunate, ultraconservative issues from the not-long-enough-ago past (guess), the Pep Band's wacky antics were more than welcome relief. *as the great Norm Chad (Maryland class of '81) once observed: "Hey, if there's a Stuckey's down the road, it ain't Ivy League."
Allow me to add another voice of deep disappointment in The University and Hunter Smith. Shame on all of you for contributing to the death of cleverness and humor at The University. I pity those poor current CMB members who will never know the thrill and fame of accomplishing a really surprising and clever show. Even if they march for hundred years, they'll never match the burning bright legacy of the Pep Band, and that's a shame. My significant and numerous alumni family will never give any money to The University until this wrong is righted. And Mrs. Welsh, I think you've added about all you can to this thread. Please stop using the ALL CAPS key. Also, I believe you should ask your son Matt about his opinions of the band. If I recall correctly, I believe they are the exact opposite of yours.
Ed: Crack me up. LOVE Stuckey's, especially the peanut brittle and the caramel turtles! But also love my Grounds and blazers worn to football games. Have a good weekend!
HELLO ! BANDS ARE TO BE HEARD,IT IS CALLED LISTENING TO MUSIC. NO NEED TO PAY ATTENTION....HAVE A HOTDOG,A DRINK, AND CHAT WITH FRIENDS THE PEP BAND HAD TO BE WATCHED AND ITS ROOTS IN SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE DID LEAVE A LOT TO BE DESIRED AS THEY WERE A POOR SUBSTITUTE. WATCHING THE MARCHING BAND FORMATIONS IS IRRELEVENT...ONE HAD TO WATCH THE PEP BAND AS THE WVU MOUNTAINEER WOMEN GAVE BIRTH ON THE FIELD TO GET THE GYST OF THE COMMENTARY. THE MUSIC WAS IRRELEVENT.....THE HECK WITH THE MUSIC. LOVED YOUR NORM CHAD REFERENCE.I LEAVE THIS BOARD WITH SOME SONGS IN MY HEART: RUGBY ROAD, AND SWEET CAROLINE AND DROP KICK MURPHY AND.... GO RED SOX. LOVED YOUR CHAD NORM QUOTE .
Viva la Pep Band! Don't forget the "Curse of the Pep Band" placed by the super double-secret Choweder Society. As punnishment for sacrificing the University's Jeffersonian ideals of student self-government, the Foodball program will not win an ACC Championship until the Pep Band is returned to its rightful place.
And as feared and as dangerous as the Curse of the Bambino. Just look what happened to Cavs after the powers-that-be of U-Hall banned them. From 1993 on, it was just a downhill skid that became a slide that morphed into a plummet. I want my scramble band back!
An intelligent school needs an intelligent band. Here's what Albert Einstein had to say on this subject: “That a man can take pleasure in marching in formation to the strains of a band is enough to make me despise him. He has only been given his big brain by mistake; a backbone was all he needed. This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed.” Bring back the scramble and wit that made U.Va. distinctive and proud.
Ah, you sound as if you're channeling the best of the Pep Band's skit writers from its glory days!!! Where's the great Christopher X. Wist when his alma mater needs him?!?!?
Is the current Marching Band entirely comprised of UVa students? From its inception, it has struggled to fill its ranks from within the student population. I agree with my fellow alum that the Marching Band is better suited to SUVAC (the State University of Virginia at Charlottesville).
Ah, Mrs. Welsh. I remember you well. I was the Director of the Pep Band in the Fall of 1990. One day that Fall when I was over at the Atlhetic Department for a Review Board meeting, you confronted me about the Pep Band. You tore into me with a venomous tirade about the Band, even though as a 21-year-old student speaking with the Football coach's wife, I was powerless to defend myself. It was the absolutely worst day of my student career at U.Va., and one I still remember 21 years later. (Kim Record was a witness to the impact your meeting had on me.) I hope you will reflect on the different ways -- both positive and negative -- you can impact the lives you touch and do better in the future. As for both 1990 and today, there is no need to be so ungrateful and mean-spirited about the Pep Band, which devoted significant time and effort to support Coach Welsh's teams.
DEAR DAVID, SEND ME AN E-MAIL AND I WILL TELL YOU EXACTLY WHY I TORE INTO THE PEP BAND THAT DAY AND COACH TRANQUIL'S WIFE IS MY WITNESS. I GUESS I WAS NOT ALONE IN MY DISDAIN OF THE PEP BAND OR THERE WOULD STILL BE A PEP BAND. PLUS I DO NOT KNOW OF ANY FOOTBALL COACH IN THE USA WHO RECEIVED PHONE CALLS AND LETTERS AT HOME REGARDING THE DISGRACEFUL PERFORMANCES OF THEIR UNIVERSITIE'S BAND. AND DID YOU EVER CONSIDER AT AGE 21 YOUR BAND'S PERFORMANCES EFFECT ON YOUNG CHILDREN IN ATTENDANCE AT GAMES ? ISN'T IT TIME TO GIVE UP THE GHOST? WITCH WELSH
SANDRA HUBICSAK- WELSH virtually screams, "HELLO ! BANDS ARE TO BE HEARD,IT IS CALLED LISTENING TO MUSIC. NO NEED TO PAY ATTENTION....THE PEP BAND HAD TO BE WATCHED..." Noted without comment: "According to the DVD Commentary, then-ABC entertainment president Tony Thomopoulos said "Police Squad! was cancelled because the viewer had to watch it in order to appreciate it." What Thomopoulos meant was that the viewer had to actually pay close attention to the show in order to get much of the humor, while most other TV shows did not demand as much effort from the viewer. In its annual "Cheers and Jeers" issue, TV Guide magazine called the explanation for the cancellation "the most stupid reason a network ever gave for ending a series." "
Please, Mrs. Welsh, stop. You're embarrassing yourself. Apparently, the incident from 20 years ago Mr. Black mentions did in fact take place, as you remember it well and seemingly are proud of it. Nothing, absolutely NOTHING, could have justified that behavior of yours or justified your traumatizing another person like that. What you admit doing was disrespectful and uncalled for; I'll not say it was unprofessional because you were just the spouse of an employee of the University. It was long-rumored in the alumni ranks that you hated the pep band even more than your husband ... now this thread has confirmed it. Please, stop your shouting and your grudge-holding. This thread obviously doesn't embarrass you; we, however, are embarrassed for you. Stop, please, just stop.
Can I just echo everyone's calls to Mrs. Welsh to stop? Seriously, you're approaching "old crank" status, something I wish upon no one. Just stop posting. You've said all you can have to say. If you do post again, please stop using the ALL CAPS key. It's embarrassing and hard to read. I deeply pity the current band. They will never know the joy and the sense of accomplishment you get when you perform a really clever and funny show. They could march for a hundred years but will never be able to step outside of the shadow that the legacy of the Pep Band casts. Shame on Hunter Smith and The University for robbing these students of that experience. Shame on The University for sponsoring the death of humor, creativity and student self-governance. Until this wrong is righted, my numerous and properous alumni family and I will not contribute a dime to The University
Mrs. Welsh, Thanks for remembering our last meeting. I understand the Pep Band drew attention from those lacking a funny bone for its student oriented humor. We had great fun delivering our product. Ultimately, the Pep Band's fate was about the larger issue of whether college football is for the students or for those who try to generate/maximize revenue from it. At U.Va., dollars won over "good college fun," which is sad to many of us who feel that, while selling television rights, stadium naming rights, and season tickets, U.Va. sold its soul in the process. At least Stanford, the Ivies, and even William & Mary still realize that college football should be student-oriented and have scramble bands performing at their games.
I'd like to close by correcting a few "facts." First, the student-run Pep Band performed at U.Va. varsity athletics from 1969 all the way until 2003, not 1993 as you previously stated. Also, reports of the Pep Band's death have been very much exaggerated. The Pep Band remains very much alive as a student group at U.Va. and performs outside Scott Stadium before every home football game. Finally, the "Curse of the Pep Band" is real -- there will be no ACC championship or BCS bowl game for U.Va. football unless and until U.Va. reclaims its soul and brings the Pep Band back. As usual, the Pep Band will have the last laugh. All the best.
Hear, hear, Mr. Black. May the Pep Band live long and prosper!!
Ah, J. Logan, At age 80ish I do not embarrass. It was the PEP BAND that should have been embarrassed. They traumitized, embarrassed, and were disrespoectful of so very many. Why do YOU think YOU were disbanded ....no pun. Did not even one of ou ever think the band went overboard on the crude and supposedly clever cute stuff ? Not one band member ? That is telling. Granted, at your ages then it is usual to think The World revolves around you. I am thourghly educated and at my colleges and post grad universities and as a Woman's Libber(Yes, I am that old.) I learned : " You don't always get what you want, and you don't always want what you get either, but you usually get what you deserve." Again, accolades to Hunter Smith for her generous gift to create THE Marching Band and to her continuous support of The College of Arts and Science. May the Pep Band RIP. I rest my case. As I said before
And that's the pity, ma'am. We fans of the Pep Band are simply recalling fond memories from years past; others are simply behaving boorishly and not feeling one iota of embarrassment at their behavior. How sad.
Times change.The problem seems to be you really want to be an Ivy League school. Honestly,I have believed forever that is where UVa belongs. That is out of the question at this point in time. Get enough of those UVa alums who agree with you and make your case heard........ over,and over,and over again .... You will have to be very united and clever and political to be successful and be heard. Join the Ivies and you have a Pep Band It is that simple though the task is not. Take it upon yourselves on the internet,face book, blogs, and all the other high tech communication arenas available to you. Otherwise you are Preaching To The Choir on this board and reading comments by Boorish Mrs. Welsh. Go ! Fight Win ! Be about it....it can be changed. The only permanent thing in the worls is change.. get Thee to the Ivies. Boorish Mrs Welsh
I don't think anybody wants UVA to join the Ivy League. I'll admit that many of us may have an idealized version of the Pep Band in our heads - remembering the way they would take the field and the general attitude projected rather than the jokes that fell flat. Just as many of us choose not to focus on the 3-8 season when we lost at Homecoming to William and Mary, or the collapse against Georgia Tech in 1990, being 0 for Florida, the poor clock management that cost us the victory at Michigan, etc. Instead we remember the Coach Welsh era fondly as a time when UVA football game into its own. The lament of many posting here is that whereas when you watched the Pep Band take the field you knew you were watching something that you couldn't see at 99% of any other Division 1A schools, the same can't be said when a marching band assembles. There is a fetishization of "diversity" which has swept a lot of academia, yet the things that made the UVA experience truly diverse from other state schools are being tamped down. Again I ask why is The University presenting itself in commercials as being surprisingly affordable rather than emphasizing the tremendous opportunities for self-governance, including the Honor system? I would suggest respectfully that if you haven't worn the honors of honor, you really can't appreciate the sense of loss many Alumni feel regarding the university's march toward bland, generic state universitydom of which the marching band is merely a symptom. I bear no personal animus against the members of the marching band, I'm sure they are good kids.
What Dennis E. Logue Jr. said.
I attended the U.Va./So. Miss. game this weekend. I have never been so embarrassed for my University. We have truly become a big "State U" complete with twirlers, flag carriers, fans who never saw the inside of a college classroom all painted orange and blue, etc. Even the Good Old Song is being overtaken by an unintelligible "Cavalier Song." To many of us alumni the barbarians have finally won. While I will be back to support the academic efforts of the University, I cannot and will not support the rah-rah, sis-boom-bah antics of a marching band in silly uniforms shepherded by older adults, who are apparently paid to take the places of leadership that should be exercised by students. If I had wanted to attend such a University I could have gone to Penn State or any number of other such institutions where football reigns supreme and the coach is worshiped as a god. Long ago I chose Virginia because it was distinctive in a good way. I can no longer say that. I regret that the Pep Band, which I always found refreshingly irreverent, was forced out by those who lack a sense of humor. While watching the opening festivities this weekend I found myself thinking of the final scene in Animal House as Stork leads the blindly obedient marching band into a dead end. An expenditure of 12.7 million for such frivolity? What would Mr. Jefferson say? Does anyone even care anymore? And, by the way Ms. Welch, we LOST the game, so I don't see how the new marching band has improved the playing!
A strong, but sad, second to Mr. Llewelyn.
Mrs. Welsh fills this board with her alternative reality. Football teams and players win games, not bands. The record of UVa football with the CMB has been dismal - can we please beat VaTech just once? Is Welsh still blaming the Pep Band for the football team's collapse against Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl? I do remember Casteen, Smith and Littlepage promising 1-2 extra victories a year when marching band was started. Therefore, per Welsh's logic, the real football record is even worse. The CMB is a waste of money. If the football team wants a marching band, it should pay for the marching band. There is no academic reason why the academic programs should pay for the CMB and subsidize the athletic department's marketing efforts. Yes, UVa academic departments pay the annual operating costs of the band. The relatively small donation years ago was only a portion of the start-up costs. UVa has no degree program in music performance, production or education. So, why did it change it's academic standards to give away academic credit for marching band participation? UVa gives more academic credit than any other school in the ACC - and some of those schools have real music programs. George Mason and even Northern Virginia Community College have superior rehearsal, recording and performance facilities. Do not forget that we ended up with the inadequate (for a true music facility) Hunter Building as UVa could not (or would not) find a way to spend the Smith's previous donation offer of much more for a complete music building. This music building is a sell-out to the athletic department. It serves primarily only the CMB and not the multitude of ensembles and performances of a quality music department. The athletic department also retains privileges to occupy the building for social occasions and game days. This building and article are only another instance in which the academic mission of UVa is subjugated to the needs of the athletic department.
Dear Michael and Dennis, Coach Welsh would never blame any loss on anyone or thing....only on himself. That is an insult to a Hall of Fame Coach. Also, with roots in Pep Band Humor you neglected to see the funny side in George Welsh's ( W-E-L-S-H /not Welch)quote. It was tongue in cheek and all the UVa people and opponents who heard it laughed and went about their day. One smiling moment in time. It was the UVa Quarterback's injury in the Sugar Bowl that contributed to our defeat for those who know football and were there. George Welsh never heard the Pep Band at Half Time... EVER! He is not into Bands at all..... Pep Bands or Marching Bands. He just had to deal with the Fall Out after the fact.....over ,and over,and over. Again, contact " The Powers That Be " at UVA with your ideas ....not me on this Board. I still think the issue is your many numbers wanting to be in the Ivy league and I agrre with that.. The Pep Band is not the real issue. The Ivies would solve both problems ... HAD YOU APPLIED TO THE IVIES OR STANFORD ? Go Cardinal ! Go Red Sox ! And the only other WIN I care about as an Old Lady (Boorish, Embarrassing Herself Old Lady ... and whatever else I have been called here ) is winning at Bridge ...catching a Blue Fish or Bass. and Sailing.
To be completely honest the last couple posts on here are so wildly out of touch with reality that they are, in fact, embarrassing. You’re not only misinformed but you’re rude and frankly hurtful to current students at The University you supposedly love so deeply. These kids have worked incredibly hard to put on a fantastic show for The University and Charlottesville communities, and to represent their school in the best way possible, with class and respect. Remember, those twirlers and flag carriers you deride are students at the University of Virginia, and got in when the admission requirements were more strict and selective than when you attended. On top of ALL their dedication they also do not have one drop of hatred or disdain for the pep band. They understand the two organizations have nothing to do with one another, and you should too. The leadership of the band and its student staff & members never once did anything to cause the removal of the pep band. Your negative feelings about the Cavalier Marching Band need to directed 100% towards the athletic department and the former leaders of UVa, NOT on a celebratory article about furthering the arts at UVa. Now, let’s do some fact checking… Really? The Good Old Song is being overtaken? It was played not only during pregame and postgame (and also sung by the band postgame) but also after every field goal and touchdown during the game. Furthermore, you should try checking out one of the band’s practices, or maybe their week long+ camp before the school year starts. The band is almost entirely run by student leaders. Yes, they have directors, but they are there as a guide in marching formations and musical ability. 100% of the fun, crowd pleasing dance moves, horn movements, cheers, and yes, even some of the music, is created/selected by students. Some of those adults you see with the band are also unpaid community volunteers who work simply because they love the CMB and UVa. I also really don’t understand how you can say this band is “blindly obedient.” They are anything but boring. Perfect example: at the Music City Bowl the CMB was named the winner of the battle of the bands against the historic 300+ member, 100+ year old Minnesota Golden Gopher Band after NOT doing a typical show and in fact performing a wildly popular drumline showcase (along with songs) that wowed the crowd and judges with the band’s excitement. Also, again, for maybe the third time on this thread of comments alone, the $12.7 was a DONATION, not an expenditure. Please don’t act like the band stole the money from some poor underfunded UVa department. Further, in response to the next comment, the band IS under the athletic department, not the music department, so, in a way, I think the football team is paying for the band. It’s not hurting the music department. I’m also confused about why people think there are no music majors at UVa… what do you think the Department of Music is for? And yes, there are music majors in the band, most of the band represents other departments, however, which has always been a source of pride for the CMB. They celebrate their diverse backgrounds. Why shouldn’t we give academic credit for marching band? The students spend WAY more time practicing and preparing with the band than they do in any other single class, and it’s only 1 or 2 credits (forgive me if its changed since I was there), so what’s the big deal? Again, please stop insulting the McIntire Department of Music, they do have “real” music programs. Also, how on earth is the new building inadequate? Have you been inside? Have you been to other marching band buildings at other schools? I was at the ribbon cutting and saw for myself this stunning facility. Yes, it will host other UVa events, but the school is in need of meeting/event space, especially with Newcomb under construction, AND the building will be home to the concert band and wind ensemble, so, again, check your facts. Just to add something about the band, so everyone has a better understanding of the type of organization it is, the Charlottesville community as a whole, in addition to UVa and specifically the Dpt. of Music, benefit greatly from the band. The CMB’s Friday night practices before gamedays have become a gathering place for students and families to enjoy music. Also, since the CMB’s restart (yes, UVa had a marching band in the past) both Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma have been founded (KKPsi RE-founded) at UVa. Both the fraternity and sorority, respectively, are music oriented honor service fraternities that do every from helping the band, to giving music lessons at local middle schools, to repainting music stands used at Old Cabell Hall. Most, if not all, are current CMB members, so, again, another way the band has helped facilitate great assets to the University. I hope former Pep Band members can learn to love the CMB for what it is, fellow music/athletic/UVa lovers just like you were when you were in school. They have nothing against the Pep Band, your beef is with athletics, not them. They deserve your support.
Mrs. Welsh - I do know football and was there at the Sugar Bowl. I did not claim the good coach (Go Navy!) blamed the Pep Band for the loss, it was people like you. I also recall the trip down to the Sugar Bowl, with unplanned stops as the athletic department representatives on the bus were drinking and getting sick. What lost us that Sugar Bowl was the same thing that lost us the game against Georgia Tech earlier in the year when UVa slipped into the #1 ranking. UVa could not cover the half-back option coming out of the backfield during the final drive. I also recall a game at Death Valley in 1989 in which Mrs. Welsh physically assualted my friend and cheerleader captain for not performing a cheer Mrs. Welsh herself had devised. Apparently, the close lost that day during an excellent game was blamed on the UVa cheerleading captain. I do wish the CMB all the best. It would be interesting to see how a truly student-run organization could do with even a fraction of the financial support. I am a fan of the best marching bands in the country and have musical friends who have marched for OSU, Michigan, LSU, Illinois and FSU. We just don't make the mistake that marching band improves musicianship. It is simply a fun, often rewarding activity - and a paycheck for my band director friends. I have seen a few CMB shows in the past couple years. Well done, but somehow predictable and boring. I have also attended wind ensemble concerts, leaving frustrated as I knew the talent on stage was not reflected in a very average program and performance. Though UVa has a major in Music, it is not in the areas of performance, education, production and other disciplines of true music departments that may relate to the activities of a marching band. People like Mrs. Welsh and Hunter Smith value musicians only as marketing devices of the athletic department. Matthew admits he is not sure who actually pays the costs of the band - let alone what the true costs are. The core conflict is that the CMB is a marketing device of the athletic department while its operational costs are paid by the academic departments. It is a time in which every business, and the University is a business, look to streamline operations and not simply increase costs assuming they will be paid. This is the simple proposition - if the CMB is so valuable to the athletic department in terms of either direct (ticket sales) or indirect funding (donations), the AD would be glad to pay all the bills for the CMB.
My roommate was the band "director" in 1964-65, I believe he got $115. They played 2 songs Dixie and the Good Ole Song. You couldn't hear them(about 16 members) but you always knew what they were playing. When we scored- the good ole song. Everytime else it was Dixie and everyone stood up and cheered. No shows though were put on.
I suppose this isn't the Marching Band's official website, but it does nicely capture the core narrative: www.uvamarchingband.com
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Dear Michael, and Matthew, and Et Al, Fight fair,Gentlemen. Fight Fair ! Get the Facts before publishing. First off I never created a cheer in my life ! I remember that scenario as we involved have chuckled about it for years .... It was a sign of the then times of UVa football. An alum in the stands had given a note to Mrs. Tranquill as he was concerned about the Cheerleaders cheering: " Defense ! Defense !" when we were on a scoreing drive on Offense. He also suggested The Pep Banmd might want to accompany the Cheerleaders with music or drums for support The note was ignored ....The tail was wagging the dog for years regarding music and cheerleaders at football games. Now for monday morning Quarterbacking relative to loses at Georgia Tech, Texas, Michigan, Etc.... if you never coached, or have coached somewhere other than UVa....YOU HAVE NOT COACHED AT UVa and that is the issue....it was the best of times and the worst of times depending on one's point of reference.....It was games ....not fun and... from mine. I am sorry you suffer chronic despair from those losses....but they were on a planet long,long,ago in a galaxy far,far, away.....similar to the Pep Band. If there I too would miss Rugby Road... but have you addressed Bill Pease, The Bad Director, about it? Perhaps it could be salvaged. At least try ! Again your issues regarding YOUR University should be taken to the President and Board of Visitors or Regents or whatever they are called.Use your UVa intelectal accumen to get a hearing and results, perhaps. I have no interest in Uva football and have not been in Charlottesville in almost 15 years and I have never seen the Marching Band perform other than on DVD and TV. Still I honor Hunter Smith and her love and support of UVa .....and her band. Wish I could have experienced its arrival and shared in its success. As for football....your references to the good old days means winning is not important.But you beef about losing ? You can't have your cake and eat it too....to coin a phrase Still consider sending your children to Ivy League Schools so they can avoid your heartache and avoid this prattle. Go Standford Cardinal ! Go Red Sox ! And I GO off this board forever...Do I hear cheers ?
I just don't understand all this hate talk in relationshipto a wonderful write up about a beautiful new needed building . The marching band has been a haven to a great group of sweet dedicated UVA loving kids --- lets all just be glad they are pround to be at UVA and lets be proud of their obvious hard work. GO HOOS
Mrs. Welsh, I respect your obvious pluck, determination, willingness to rock the boat with your views, and, yes, your sense of humor. (The comment they just deleted about the gap in your Standford affiliation/education made me laugh.) Ironically, these qualities remind me of the Pep Band. So, while I can't agree that a marching band is better suited to U.Va. than a marching band or tht the Pep Band deserved the treatment it received, I respect your spirited engagement in this discussion and have enjoyed the back-and-forth.
Mrs. Welsh, I also want to follow up on your suggestion that the U.Va. administration be engaged about a possible role for the Pep Band. I was President of Friends of the Virginia Pep Band from 2003-07 and remain on its Board. From 2003-09, we advocated for the Pep Band to fill a niche by performing music-only at non-revenue Olympic sports at which the marching band was to busy to appear. It seems like a win-win that preserves the student-run Pep Band tradition, respects the marching band's dominant role at football and basketball, and facilitates musical support for UVa's under-served varsity teams. We engaged in courteous, ongoing communication with the then-Rector of the Board of Visitors, then-President Casteen, then-COO Leonard Sandridge, AD Craig Litlepage, and Director of Bands Bill Pease. Unfortunately, the key decision-makers (Mr. Sandridge and Mr. Littlepage) refused to pursue our proposal. (Mr. Sandridge gave us a final "no" in February 2009.) FVBP is waiting for an appropriate time to engage the new leadership of the UVa administration about a role for the Pep Band. We hope that fairness and a sense of compromise will someday prevail and that the Pep Band will again be permitted to serve U.Va. varsity sports. Until then, we will continue using our "UVa intellectual accumen" to get a fair hearing and, hopefully, positive results.
I also want to say that Pep Band alums don't hold any grudge the current students performing the marching band. Our bone to pick is squarely with the Administration. We applaud the current marching band member's obvious talent, hard work, and service to the University. We mostly feel sorry for them because they are really missing out on an awesome college experience. There is nothing that quite matches the spirit of fun and sense of purpose and community that comes from performing in a student-run scramble band. There's nothing like the thrill of scrambling into formation and telling a joke that makes 40,000 people (that was Scott Stadium's capacity in my day) roar with laughter or zings a key rival. Although the venues at which it performs have changed, the current Pep Band still has the same plucky, fun spirit. So to current CMB'ers, I say "keep up the good work, enjoy your new building, and joining the Pep Band in your spare time to carry on the tradition." Scramble on.
My appologies, this time *without* the typos: I also want to say that Pep Band alums don't hold any grudge against the current students performing in the marching band. Our bone to pick is squarely with the Administration. We applaud the current marching band members' obvious talent, hard work, and service to the University. We mostly feel sorry for them because they are really missing out on an awesome college experience. There is nothing that quite matches the spirit of fun and sense of purpose and community that comes from performing in a student-run scramble band. There's nothing like the thrill of scrambling into formation and telling a joke that makes 40,000 people (that was Scott Stadium's capacity in my day) roar with laughter or zings a key rival. Although the venues at which it performs have changed, the current Pep Band still has the same plucky, fun spirit. So to current CMB'ers, I say "keep up the good work, enjoy your new building, and consider joining the Pep Band in your spare time to carry on the tradition." Scramble on.
As a former member of the Cavalier Marching Band, I could not be happier that the band has a home. I distinctly remember wondering about the freezing point of saliva and finding out you *can* play a valved instrument with mittens during late-season rehearsals. I'm glad there's a shiny new building for instruments and uniforms to live together in peace and harmony and climate-control. I'm excited to see what bright-eyed first years a big beautiful building like this might draw, and I hope they will have as many wonderful hours under Dr. Pease's leadership and guidance that I had. As former director of the Pep Band, I am disappointed that my little band didn't get these opportunities. I'm not sure what we would have done with such a big building, but it'd have been awfully nice for someone to donate a million bucks to help keep us on our feet (not that the Friends of the Virginia Pep Band aren't doing a wonderful job helping whenever asked). It would have been nicer to have not needed the help in the first place, but until someone invents a time machine, there's not much to do about that. I joined middle school band because I wanted desperately to go to UVA and join the pep band. Between the ages of 9 and 20, I didn't miss a single home football game at the University. I was at the Continental Tire Bowl with my family when the infamous show (that was athletic-department approved, for the record) was performed. I read the papers when the Daily Progress reported that the band was locked out of their closet, and their services would no longer be required at the university. And I'm pretty sure I cried, and started looking at where else I might like to go to college (my list included William and Mary, Dartmouth, Columbia, and Harvard--notice a trend? scramblin' schools, the lot of them). This paragraph wasn't really important, I just wanted to give some of the older folks a bit of perspective on being 15 when the band was banned (PUN). The key difference I've noticed between the two bands (I mean aside from size, performance venues, funding, style of music performed, scholarships awarded) is that the Pep Band is what the students make it. The Marching Band is what it was made to be. I love both bands. I've loved the time spent in both bands. More time should be spent on things that matter--getting students into music and keeping them there, beating Tech, Maryland, and UNC, and sunny afternoons reading on the lawn, or dark nights streaking it. Does the CMB deserve this big gorgeous building? Absolutely! And congratulations to them for having it. Does the Pep Band deserve the kick in the gut it's getting from Mrs. Hubicsak-Welsh, et al? No, I don't think so, but her writing reads like a Hokie from Virginia Tech (go ahead guys, finish that verse in your heads), so I'll forgive it. Did this conversation belong on this article? Absolutely not. Unfortunately, not enough of us are all on the same message boards anywhere else, so these conversations don't happen, except at the expense of the CMB and her hardworking musicians. So, in conclusion, I have spent more time crafting this response than the grad school paper I have due tomorrow. Pep Band advocates, I'm proud you're acting mature, sounds like the banders I've never actually met in person. CMB advocates, I'm proud you're acting mature, sounds like the CMB-ers I've never actually met in person. Mrs Welsh, for shame, you write like a 13-year-old from Blacksburg. Good night, and viva la pep!
Katie, Alas, you are so right, people my age do become increasingly childlike. In about 60 plus years you will know exactly what I mean as you will experience it yourself. Until then Viva your pep! And enjoy Hook ville. However, I am published using my pseudonoym. Not bad for " A thirteen year old from Blacksburg. " Sweet dreams and be about your days.
The University should be about students. Just as we should remember that the Marching Band pours their heart and soul into every performance, we can't ignore that the Pep Band did the same thing in a different way. No one should deride the members of either band; no one can say they love UVa more than the other. But there is no doubt that UVa would be a better place if the heavy hand of the Athletics Department hadn't forbidden the continued existence of the Pep Band at football when they started the Marching Band. Rather than let the two bands work to make a game-day experience of the new and the old together in harmony, the AD exiled the students of the Pep Band with no room for discussion. This in the face of several Student Council resolutions asking for a two band system. UVa used to hold student governance dear, but the AD destroyed any such illusions that students have any say at UVa. I grew up, the son of two alumni, believing that students defined the character of the University. But if that were ever true, those days are long passed.
I've seen a few people say, "Well the Pep Band aren't here" followed by an assumed message that depends on how charitable you are. As Dave Black has intimated, the Band is alive and well. Moreover the important historical fact is that the Band was forcibly pushed aside in favor of tge Marching Band. So it's not a fluke of history. It's a thing of politics and desire for UVa to be a state university.
As the acting director of the Pep Band and a former 13 year old from Blacksburg, I'd like to say that the current band's role at the University has little to do with its past role or the current function of the CMB. To my mind, the band provides an opportunity for students to step outside the box of typical state-U-ism, but more importantly to pursue individualism in all forms. We give students an outlet to choose their own music and events, but also to make a stand against the popped collars and pearls that homogenize the stands almost to the extent that the capes and plumes homogenized the football field. (Not that there's anything wrong with a little prep - a pep bander can be as pretentious about his traditions as the next guy.) When I came to UVa, the band was a welcoming community that gave me a home at a school where otherwise I didn't feel I fit in. Is it for everyone? Almost certainly not, but I'd bet many current and former banders feel the same. Since we left the stadium in 2003, every semester the band has had to redefine what its role should be, but the bottom line is that we have fun and are close to one another, and I don't see that that steps on the CMB's toes at all. While I understand and empathize with our alumni's ire, it's no longer productive to fight over the two bands' positions at the University like they are in any way equal. We've had many members in the past few years who participated happily in both the CMB and the pep band, and I'm sure there could have been more were it not for the ongoing animosity between those who remember the time when the bands were actually rivals. This animosity needs to stop! No one wants to join an organization full of embittered people constantly obsessing over the past. Part of redefining our role has been reassessing our relationship with the CMB. We don't need to be jealous of their new building, their access to the stadium, or (heaven forbid!) their dorky uniforms. (Go on, say vests are dorky, I dare you!) The overwhelming benefit of being a student-run organization is that we ARE student-run and can do whatever awesome things we see fit. If anything, we should feel sorry for them.
As one of the younger people to comment on this thread and the atmosphere at UVA, I know this much can be said about game day at Scott Stadium - it's wretched. I went to every game during my 4 years at the University, but what the AD/football coaches wanted and what the students wanted was often at odds. The idiotic sign ban they tried to implement my 3rd year is a clear sign of how UVA is trying to crush the influence of students. I mean think about it; most of the signs were directed at firing Al Groh, a man paid millions upon millions to have sub-par seasons in the ACC. That's right, the ACC. NOT the Big-12, Pac-10 (as it were), or the SEC. I'm from South Carolina, and let me tell you, talk about a subpar program with avid fans? A big reason for that has to do with tradition and UNIQUE traditions at that. USC, which has a marching band, plays "Carmina Burana" on 3rd downs and the theme from "2001: A Space Odyssey" to open the game - things other schools simply do not do or have since copied. You don't have to have a great football team to have a great game day atmosphere that people want to attend. Williams-Brice Stadium has 88000 seats and constantly sells out with many fans enjoying the game while tailgating in the state fairgrounds that surround the stadium. Students have to enter a lottery process in the hopes of getting seats and season tickets are sold for $1000+. In short, when you attend your friend's wedding and the newlyweds debut to the sounds of cocks crowing and "2001" and have custom Gamecock beer cozies as their commemorative gift, you know just how influenced by their University. As for Mrs. Welsh, who seemingly can't let her case rest, and her criticisms, the Pep Band and Marching Band have their own niches in the greater UVA community. However, the Pep Band has constantly reached out to the AD and Mr. Pease to form a more perfect union of bands. Every time we've been shot down except to be told that students in the Pep Band can play at Scott Stadium as members of the officially University-sanctioned CMB. Leonard Sandridge also strung us along and reneged on his position of allowing "The Banned" to play again should they adhere to a policy of proper behavior and being a positive force on Grounds. This we did and yet we were still denied. The AD couldn't even just let us be, instead actively seeking to limit our performance venues when, again in my 3rd year, the band was approached to play with the "Cavalier One" tailgate on Fridays at local Kroger supermarkets in the area. The MARCHING BAND had ALREADY been offered this gig and turned it down. When we were approached, the guy was really excited and wanted us to do it. However, after talking to his boss, a.k.a. Criag Littlepage, I was told we wouldn't be used. Really? Denying us the opportunity to perform just because of old grudges? A manifestation of the band that was completely different from the pre-2003 form? I had to deal with the administration too many times in denying us sound permits, removing us from performance spaces, and being blamed for the MARCHING BAND'S antics. That's right, during their "Paint the Town Orange" event my 3rd year, I was called by the security guard of a local business who had been harassed by students and the director. The Pep Band wasn't performing that night and it just goes to show you, band students will be band students. Through high school and college and as long as they perform, amateur musicians are always going to be a little different from the norm. I'm in a community band in South Carolina now where the median age is literally about 60 years old and it still feels like being in a high school band with the jokes and texting and having the conductor shush us. Overall, UVA needs to figure out what it wants and it shouldn't be "State U". When your student population plans a protest and you have to do your own bit of "scrambling" to placate them, you're obviously doing something wrong. The fact that there are so many people on this thread who are still hurt by the University's actions and its inability to build up its musical program as much as possible is reprehensible. I believe Mrs. Welsh said something about the number of "real musicians" who will benefit from the building? The article said that over 56 majors were represented and most aren't music majors. So, in reality, these are students who will probably put their instruments down for good as soon as they graduate. The Pep Band, however, has cultivated strong relationships with Alumni who often perform with the band or at least communicate via email and even Facebook. 40+ years of banders are still in contact with one another, still fighting the good fight, and still helping one another personally and professionally. Sorry, but the CMB will NEVER have that because they've never had to work for anything. Student governance can't fight for itself because it doesn't even know it's being repressed.
I think that every freshman, sophomore, junior and senior on the Virginia campus loves the new marching band. Just ask anybody on the quad. I love how they play the Alma Mater. President Jefferson would be so proud of them.
I am so proud of the commentary of the UVA grads and students on this thread. You have eloquently stated your thoughtful commentary in a way that shows your academic strengths. I will not comment on Mrs. Welsh's academic strengths as I find that may be an oxymoron. When someone promises to leave a thread so many times and keeps showing up, one has to wonder if they have a drinking problem, a counting problem, or a memory problem. Cheers to UVA and to musicians of every kind!
Freshmen, Sophomores, Campus, quad, President Jefferson?!? I really hope this is an attempt at dry humor.
......It is called a short term memory loss.
Dear, '84 HOO. I agree with your, "Cheers to UVa and Musicians of every kind." The one point I wanted to make in my verbosity is I spent almost 20 years at UVa ...not just four or eight. In the LATTER part of that period The Pep Band was asked to please " tone down " their presentations and " cool it a bit "... many, many, times. I have nothing but praise for a Student Run Organizatiion....But with that right comes responsibility and respect. The Administration in exasperation was left with no alternative. Trite as it may sound the adage," Fool me once shame on me; fool me twice shame on you." was the consequence and thus rejection of The Pep Band. On this Board one senses the passion and sincere heart break of the many pep Band alums and their fans. Perhaps I increased the reactiion... Now it is up to you to stop speaking to the choir, and organize yourselves. As a former Student Run organization pass out flyers and get out the vote to those past and present( Present, who may never have witnessed your performances ! ) and tout all as UVa History which it is....and you may well be welcomed back with open arms. Some of you will have the chutzpah to make a colosal and fun attempt.Good luck. Oh, I do not drink or smoke... Have trouble with numbers and very severe short term memory loss.
I'll come back for a football game when the Pep Band returns to Scott Stadium. Until then, please stop asking me to buy tickets. Alice (Brown) Taylor, proud member of the U.Va. Pep Band from 1976-78 U.Va. SEAS 1978 Boston College Law School 1996 Proud parent of a real Ivy League grad who played in a real Ivy League pep band
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