Cavalier Marching Band
Encyclopedia
The Cavalier Marching Band (CMB) is the marching band
at the University of Virginia
. The band's director, William Pease, is the first full-time marching band director in University of Virginia history. The Cavalier Marching Band made its debut on September 11, 2004, and is currently entering its eighth season as of 2011, after a considerable donation was made by University of Virginia benefactors Carl and Hunter Smith to found the band in 2003. The CMB uses a mixture of both DCI
style glide step
and high step in its performances. Of its almost three hundred members, all seven undergraduate schools at the University of Virginia are represented.
The band performs a traditional pregame show prior to the start of football games, which usually features school songs such as The Cavalier Song and Hoo Time. The band also performs during halftime, with a wider variety of music ranging from Broadway show tunes to top 40 hits. Following home games, selections from halftime are repeated for a postgame show for the remaining fans in Scott Stadium
.
The Cavalier Marching Band has performed at a number of bowl games, most recently the 2008 Gator Bowl
. The CMB was also featured in the 2009 film Marching Band, a documentary directed by French filmmaker Claude Miller
.
The Cavalier Marching Band is assisted by the Beta Chi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi
and the Iota Kappa Chapter of Tau Beta Sigma
.
without a true marching band. In the wake of the banning of the Virginia Pep Band
from all future editions of an ACC-tied bowl game (the Meineke Car Care Bowl
) a donation was made by Carl Smith for the establishment of an official university marching band. The director of the Pep Band at the time, Adam Lorentson, said that cost was the key reason the University did not have a traditional marching band, while Smith's multimillion dollar donation made the new marching band a reality.
One of Pease's first moves as director was to invite members of the Pep Band
to join the new band. In further recruitment efforts, Pease went on to offer spots in the band to musicians at Piedmont Virginia Community College
. Pease was given university songbooks from 1907 upon his arrival, and at the 2004 debut featured such University fight songs as "The Orange and the Blue" and "The Virginia Yell Song."
The band performs new halftime shows at every home football game and travels to two or three road games per season (depending on distance and available funding), as well as occasionally performing in exhibition at high school competitions. In its inaugural season, the Cavalier Marching Band had 170 members. Over 90% of members were UVa students; nearly 100% were from the greater Charlottesville community. By its fourth year (2007–2008), the band reached 232 members. As of the sixth season (2009–2010), the band's size has been capped at around 280 members. Whenever describing the composition of the members of the band, Pease typically states that almost none are music majors, but almost a third hold leadership positions, thus emphasizing the virtue of student-self-governance, an ideal widely emphasized at the University of Virginia
.
in Nashville, Tennessee
, and was declared champion of the event's "Battle of the Bands" the night prior, defeating the historic 300-piece Minnesota Golden Gopher Band
. Most recently, the CMB performed at the 2008 Gator Bowl
in Jacksonville and in Universal Studios
in Florida.
The December following the violence
at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
, the Cavalier Marching Band joined forces with The Marching Virginians of Virginia Tech to host their first annual joint concert, held at John Paul Jones Arena
. The aim of hosting this concert was to raise money for scholarship funds at both schools. Half of all proceeds went to the CMB's scholarship fund while half were given to a memorial fund to honor one of the Marching Virginians who were killed during the violence. It was the first time in the history of both schools that their bands performed together.
In their inaugural season, for their October 7 game against Clemson
, the band performed with The Temptations Review starring Dennis Edwards. In the fall of 2007, Chad Hugo
performed with the band during the halftime show of the November 3 football game against Wake Forest
along with his brother Victor Hugo, on saxophone
and keyboard, respectively. In addition to the band, over three hundred high school marching band students accompanied them on the field, playing three pieces Hugo had helped produce: Justin Timberlake
's Like I Love You
, No Doubt
's Hella Good
, and N*E*R*D's She Wants to Move
.
Early in the fourth season the UVa Drumline was chosen by Yamaha Corporation of North America to represent them in an advertisement campaign that was aimed at high school students to promote Yamaha musical products. Interest in the Cavalier Drumline was initiated when a representative of the Yamaha Corporation paid a visit to a spring rehearsal. The representative noticed and commented on the drumline's professional attitude and was compelled to have them added to the national advertisement campaign. The drumline shares the honor with other big college bands.
, the band had dwindled to 25 members by the early 1960s. The band's performances at football ceased in 1964.
Though no band performed at athletic events during the period of 1964 to 1974, the Virginia Pep Band claims that the band at the time remained a club until it became the Pep Band in the mid-1970s. The student-run Pep Band was the official band of UVa athletics for the period between 1974 and the formation of the Cavalier Marching Band in 2003, with the exception of about one month during 1993.
The next faculty-led band at UVa athletic events, subsequent to the demise of the University Band, was the UVa Sports Band, a tiny 24-piece band started by UVa's athletic department in 1993 as a replacement for the Pep Band. It played for only a few home football games before disbanding.
Marching band
Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
at the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
. The band's director, William Pease, is the first full-time marching band director in University of Virginia history. The Cavalier Marching Band made its debut on September 11, 2004, and is currently entering its eighth season as of 2011, after a considerable donation was made by University of Virginia benefactors Carl and Hunter Smith to found the band in 2003. The CMB uses a mixture of both DCI
DCI
-Technology:* D-chiro-inositol, an isomer of inositol* Data, Context, and Interaction, an architectural pattern in computer software development* Direct Count & Intersect, an algorithm for discovering frequent sets in large databases...
style glide step
Glide step
Glide step is a form of movement used by marching bands to minimize upper body movement, enabling musicians to play their instruments and march without air-stream interruptions. Standardizing the style of marching also serves to add to the visual effect of a marching band. Sometimes special shoes...
and high step in its performances. Of its almost three hundred members, all seven undergraduate schools at the University of Virginia are represented.
The band performs a traditional pregame show prior to the start of football games, which usually features school songs such as The Cavalier Song and Hoo Time. The band also performs during halftime, with a wider variety of music ranging from Broadway show tunes to top 40 hits. Following home games, selections from halftime are repeated for a postgame show for the remaining fans in Scott Stadium
Scott Stadium
Scott Stadium , located in Charlottesville, Virginia, is the home of the Virginia Cavaliers football team. It sits on the University of Virginia's Grounds, east of Hereford College and first-year dorms on Alderman Road but west of Brown College and the Lawn...
.
The Cavalier Marching Band has performed at a number of bowl games, most recently the 2008 Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...
. The CMB was also featured in the 2009 film Marching Band, a documentary directed by French filmmaker Claude Miller
Claude Miller
Claude Miller is a French film director, producer and screenwriter.-Career:Claude Miller was born to a Jewish family. A student at Paris' IDHEC film school from 1962 through 1963, Miller had his first practical cinematic experience while he was in uniform, serving with the Service Cinéma de l'Armée...
.
The Cavalier Marching Band is assisted by the Beta Chi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi
Kappa Kappa Psi
Kappa Kappa Psi is a fraternity for college and university band members. It was founded on November 27, 1919 at Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College in Stillwater, Oklahoma. William Scroggs, now regarded as the "Founder," together with "Mr. Kappa Kappa Psi" A...
and the Iota Kappa Chapter of Tau Beta Sigma
Tau Beta Sigma
Tau Beta Sigma is a co-educational national honorary band sorority dedicated to serving college and university bands. The Sorority, headquartered at the historic Stillwater Station in Stillwater, Oklahoma, numbers over 3,500 active members in 145 active chapters, and over 40,000 alumni...
.
History
In the years leading up to the formation of the Cavalier Marching Band, the University of Virginia had become the last remaining program in the Atlantic Coast ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
without a true marching band. In the wake of the banning of the Virginia Pep Band
Virginia Pep Band
The Virginia Pep Band is a student-run band at the University of Virginia , officially known as The Award-Winning Virginia Fighting Cavalier Indoor/Outdoor Precision Marching Pep Band, & Chowder Society Review, Unlimited!!!...
from all future editions of an ACC-tied bowl game (the Meineke Car Care Bowl
Meineke Car Care Bowl
The Belk Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. First played in 2002, it was certified by the NCAA as the Queen City Bowl and was previously known as the Continental Tire Bowl and the Meineke Car Care Bowl before Belk acquired...
) a donation was made by Carl Smith for the establishment of an official university marching band. The director of the Pep Band at the time, Adam Lorentson, said that cost was the key reason the University did not have a traditional marching band, while Smith's multimillion dollar donation made the new marching band a reality.
One of Pease's first moves as director was to invite members of the Pep Band
Virginia Pep Band
The Virginia Pep Band is a student-run band at the University of Virginia , officially known as The Award-Winning Virginia Fighting Cavalier Indoor/Outdoor Precision Marching Pep Band, & Chowder Society Review, Unlimited!!!...
to join the new band. In further recruitment efforts, Pease went on to offer spots in the band to musicians at Piedmont Virginia Community College
Piedmont Virginia Community College
' is an open access community college offering two-year associate's degrees, one-year certificates, continuing education and workforce training. The campus is located in Albemarle County, Virginia, south of Charlottesville...
. Pease was given university songbooks from 1907 upon his arrival, and at the 2004 debut featured such University fight songs as "The Orange and the Blue" and "The Virginia Yell Song."
The band performs new halftime shows at every home football game and travels to two or three road games per season (depending on distance and available funding), as well as occasionally performing in exhibition at high school competitions. In its inaugural season, the Cavalier Marching Band had 170 members. Over 90% of members were UVa students; nearly 100% were from the greater Charlottesville community. By its fourth year (2007–2008), the band reached 232 members. As of the sixth season (2009–2010), the band's size has been capped at around 280 members. Whenever describing the composition of the members of the band, Pease typically states that almost none are music majors, but almost a third hold leadership positions, thus emphasizing the virtue of student-self-governance, an ideal widely emphasized at the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
.
Notable Accomplishments
The band was featured in the halftime show at the 2005 Music City BowlMusic City Bowl
The Music City Bowl is a post-season American college football bowl game certified by the NCAA that has been played in Nashville, Tennessee, since 1998.-Site:The first Music City Bowl was played at Vanderbilt Stadium in 1998...
in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, and was declared champion of the event's "Battle of the Bands" the night prior, defeating the historic 300-piece Minnesota Golden Gopher Band
University of Minnesota Marching Band
The University of Minnesota Marching Band is the marching band of the University of Minnesota...
. Most recently, the CMB performed at the 2008 Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...
in Jacksonville and in Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
in Florida.
The December following the violence
Virginia Tech massacre
The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting that took place on April 16, 2007, on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. In two separate attacks, approximately two hours apart, the perpetrator, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people...
at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, popularly known as Virginia Tech , is a public land-grant university with the main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia with other research and educational centers throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and internationally.Founded in...
, the Cavalier Marching Band joined forces with The Marching Virginians of Virginia Tech to host their first annual joint concert, held at John Paul Jones Arena
John Paul Jones Arena
John Paul Jones Arena, or JPJ, opened for the 2006–2007 NCAA Division I basketball season and is located at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia...
. The aim of hosting this concert was to raise money for scholarship funds at both schools. Half of all proceeds went to the CMB's scholarship fund while half were given to a memorial fund to honor one of the Marching Virginians who were killed during the violence. It was the first time in the history of both schools that their bands performed together.
In their inaugural season, for their October 7 game against Clemson
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
, the band performed with The Temptations Review starring Dennis Edwards. In the fall of 2007, Chad Hugo
Chad Hugo
Charles Edward Hugo is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as one half of the music production and writing duo The Neptunes and as a member of the funk/rock band N.E.R.D. He is a saxophonist, pianist and guitarist...
performed with the band during the halftime show of the November 3 football game against Wake Forest
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
along with his brother Victor Hugo, on saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
and keyboard, respectively. In addition to the band, over three hundred high school marching band students accompanied them on the field, playing three pieces Hugo had helped produce: Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
's Like I Love You
Like I Love You
"Like I Love You" is the first single from Justin Timberlake's solo debut album Justified, featuring a rap from hip hop duo Clipse. Released in 2002, the Neptunes-produced single peaked at #11 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at #2 in the United Kingdom, with Dilemma keeping the song...
, No Doubt
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California that formed in 1986. The ska-pop sound of their first album No Doubt , failed to make an impact...
's Hella Good
Hella Good
"Hella Good" is a song written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, and The Neptunes for No Doubt's fifth studio album Rock Steady . The song draws influence from electro, rock, and funk music...
, and N*E*R*D's She Wants to Move
She Wants to Move
"She Wants to Move" is a single by hip hop and rock group N*E*R*D from their album Fly or Die. It was written by Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo....
.
Early in the fourth season the UVa Drumline was chosen by Yamaha Corporation of North America to represent them in an advertisement campaign that was aimed at high school students to promote Yamaha musical products. Interest in the Cavalier Drumline was initiated when a representative of the Yamaha Corporation paid a visit to a spring rehearsal. The representative noticed and commented on the drumline's professional attitude and was compelled to have them added to the national advertisement campaign. The drumline shares the honor with other big college bands.
Previous Band Organizations at UVA
The earliest appearance of a faculty-led music group performing for sports events was in the mid-1920s, when the University Band provided music for pre-game rallies and at the games. The band suffered from poor funding and outright disasters through the subsequent years, including a loss of its instruments and uniforms to a bus fire in 1941. After a brief resurgence in the late 1950s, including allocation of $12,000 for uniforms, instruments, and facilities by a faculty committee under University President Colgate DardenColgate Darden
Colgate Whitehead Darden, Jr. was a Democratic Congressman from Virginia , the 54th Governor of Virginia , Chancellor of the College of William and Mary and the third President of the University of Virginia...
, the band had dwindled to 25 members by the early 1960s. The band's performances at football ceased in 1964.
Though no band performed at athletic events during the period of 1964 to 1974, the Virginia Pep Band claims that the band at the time remained a club until it became the Pep Band in the mid-1970s. The student-run Pep Band was the official band of UVa athletics for the period between 1974 and the formation of the Cavalier Marching Band in 2003, with the exception of about one month during 1993.
The next faculty-led band at UVa athletic events, subsequent to the demise of the University Band, was the UVa Sports Band, a tiny 24-piece band started by UVa's athletic department in 1993 as a replacement for the Pep Band. It played for only a few home football games before disbanding.