Marching band notes 50th birthday

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View SlideStrike up the band, there’s a birthday celebration coming—and this time, the celebration is for the band.

Sacramento State’s marching band turns 50 this year, and to celebrate, the band had a special performance during halftime of the Nov. 15 football game between Sacramento State and Northern Colorado.

“Human beings still respond to human beings performing,” says first-year band director Clay Redfield, describing the attraction of marching bands. “There’s something about the excitement level of seeing the group and feeling the sound.”

“It’s the theatrics of it,” says band member Jill Sayles. “It’s fun, it’s loud, it’s cool to look at and it’s cool to listen to.”

But it can be difficult. In addition to their normal school load, students practice three days a week, have uniforms and equipment to take care of and have to develop an uncanny sense of rhythm and balance so they can keep up visually and musically.

“That’s why being in a marching band is so challenging,” says Sayles. “I can march, and I can play, but it’s putting it together.”

In a time of portable music players, digital music and guitar heroes, joining a marching band itself might seem a little old fashioned. But the band is thriving with 65 very enthusiastic members.

“It gives me a huge rush and makes me feel really great,” says band member Chris Peppers. “Some people might be nervous, but the attention makes me play better.”

“Every student has his own motivation for joining the band,” says Redfield. “It is an organization that allows them to continue to perform as a musician, gives them an opportunity to be involved on the campus and gives them a social network of students they can meet.”

The band has been a fixture here since 1958, but like time, it marches on, staying fresh by bringing in new moves and new tunes.

“Back in the day, there were just flanks, forward march and backward march,” says Peppers, describing band formations. “Now, we have obloquies, left slides, right slides, left back slides, right back slides. Marching bands keep evolving and a lot of things have changed.”

But, some people are still partial to the old school band performances.

“About half of our music was classical literature, and half was modern literature,” says Jim Kenward, a Sacramento State alum from 1959 and a former marching band member. “Now, I don’t hear any of the classical stuff and that’s too bad, because there is a tremendous history of classical music written for band.”

While musical tastes may differ, marching band members past and present can agree; the goal is to go out and have fun and get the crowd fired up.

“It’s exciting and a little scary,” says Redfield. “You want the performance to go very well, you want the students to have a great experience performing and you want the audience to share in the performance.”

For additional information on the marching band, contact Redfield at 278-7571.