University of Notre Dame Band

UPDATE: Spring Concert Band Tour

Alison Thigpen — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 11:45:09 +0000

From May 10-13, members of the Notre Dame Concert Band will participate in a spring tour to Michigan and Pennsylvania. The concert program will include a wide variety of music including marches, wind band classics, transcriptions, and traditional Notre Dame favorites, and will feature baritone Stephen Lancaster and Notre Dame’s New Orleans Brass Band.

Hope to see many of you there!

Blissfield High School – Blissfield, MI – Friday, May 10, 2013 – 7:00 pm

Tickets: $2 at the door

*Marian High School – Bloomfield Hills, MI – Saturday, May 11, 2013 – 7:00 pm

Tickets: Free

*Different location from previously announced schedule

Holy Cross Parish – Fairview, PA – Sunday, May 12, 2013 – 2:30 pm

Tickets: $5 at the door; $3 for students

Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center – Midland, PA – Monday, May 13, 2013 – 7:30 pm

Tickets: $20 and up, $10 for students; Call 724-643-9004 x 2 or visit http://www.lppacenter.org/

Spring Band Concert April 21

Alison Thigpen — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:19:19 +0000

The Notre Dame Band is proud to present its Symphonic Winds and Symphonic Band in concert on April 21 at 3 pm in the Leighton Concert Hall at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. The Bands will perform a program featuring classical, modern, and popular music, with pieces by John Williams, Leonard Bernstein, and many others.
The concert’s grand finale will feature nearly 200 musicians performing on stage as both bands combine for several selections and traditional Notre Dame favorites.
The April 21 concert is a free, but ticketed event. For tickets, visit performingarts.nd.edu or contact the DPAC Ticket Office at (574) 631-2800.

JPW Concerts February 15-16

Alison Thigpen — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:17:09 +0000

Notre Dame Band to Present Concert and Jazz Bands in Concert February 15-16
The Notre Dame Band is proud to present its annual Junior Parents Weekend concerts. The Concert Bands, Symphonic Winds and Symphonic Band, will perform at 6 pm in the Leighton Concert Hall at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on Friday, February 15. The Bands will perform a program entitled ‘Symphonic Dances’, with the grand finale featuring nearly 200 musicians performing on stage as both bands combine for several selections and traditional Notre Dame favorites.
Jazz Bands I and II will perform in the Leighton Concert Hall at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on Saturday, February 16 at 2 pm. Their program will also feature several selections from the Notre Dame New Orleans Brass Band.
The February 15 and 16 concerts are free, but ticketed events. To acquire tickets, visit performingarts.nd.edu or contact the DPAC Ticket Office at (574) 631-2800.

Band Performances in Miami

Alison Thigpen — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 21:13:02 +0000

From January 4-7, the Band of the Fighting Irish will travel to Miami to support the Irish as they play in the National Championship Game vs. Alabama.

Scheduled appearances by the band include a Saturday night marchout and pep rally at the Discover Championship Fan Experience in Miami, and rehearsals at local high schools on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
Sun Life Stadium will be the site of the game, which is set to kick off at 8:30 p.m. on Monday, January 7. Go Irish!

Rehearsal/Performance Schedule
Saturday, January 5 – Rehearsal at Cardinal Gibbons HS– 10:00 am- Noon
2900 NE 47 Street, Fort Lauderdale
Marchout and Pep Rally – Discover Championship Fan Experience, Miami Beach- 6:45 – 8:00 pm

Sunday, January 6 – Rehearsal at Nova HS – 1:00 – 2:30 pm
3600 College Avenue, Davie

Monday, January 7 – Rehearsal at St. Thomas Aquinas HS – Noon – 1:00 pm
2801 SW 12th Street, Fort Lauderdale
Sorin’s Band Performance – Championship Game Day Fan Zone – 4:55 pm

Meninos do Morumbi Band at Notre Dame

Alison Thigpen — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 16:30:12 +0000

The Notre Dame Concert Band performs for the Meninos do Morumbi Band in São Paulo, Brazil – May 2011

The Brazilian musical group Meninos do Morumbi is traveling to the University of Notre Dame and will do a performance/masterclass in the Ricci Band Rehearsal Hall at 8:15PM on Wednesday, October 10. The performance is free and open to the public.

The group, created by Flávio Pimenta in 1996, consists of adolescents from the city of São Paulo, Brazil, and provides an educational alternative to the drugs and juvenile delinquency prevalent in their city. The Meninos do Morumbi band has performed over 500 concerts in Brazil and in Europe, including a performance for the President of the United States.

The Morumbi students have become increasingly popular by playing, dancing, and singing in diverse styles such as samba, maracatu, funk, and Aguere among others.

Through music, the group provides an escape from hunger, exclusion, abandonment, social inequality, and to situations of personal and social risk in which they live. The formative role and transformative art emerges as a collective voice for citizenship.

During their visit to Notre Dame, Meninos do Morumbi students will participate in numerous social and cultural events on campus and in Notre Dame classrooms. The culmination of their visit is a performance with the University of Notre Dame Marching Band during halftime of the football game versus Stanford on October 13.

This is the 2nd collaboration between Meninos Do Morumbi and the University of Notre Dame Band. In May 2011, members of the Notre Dame Concert Band performed with the group in São Paulo as part of their 5-city concert tour of Brazil.

For more information on Meninos Do Morumbi go to: http://www.meninosdomorumbi.org.br/

Band of the Fighting Irish in Chicago

Alison Thigpen — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 17:50:09 +0000

The Band of the Fighting Irish will travel to Chicago, IL this weekend for the neutral-site home game vs. Miami. In addition to performances during pregame and halftime, you can also see the band at several other events:

Friday, October 5
6:00 PM Pep Rally – Pritzker Pavilion @ Millennium Park

Saturday, October 6
12:00 NOON Drummer’s Circle at Pioneer Court
3:30 PM Concert on the Steps at Stadium Green

The Pep Rally, Drummer’s Circle, and Concert on the Steps are all free and open to the public.

Notre Dame Band’s First 2012 Marchout

Alison Thigpen — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 15:54:05 +0000

The Band of the Fighting Irish lines up for the first marchout of 2011

The University of Notre Dame Band will kick off its 167th year with a marchout around the Notre Dame campus on Thursday, August 16th at 9:30 am. Beginning outside the Ricci Band Rehearsal Hall, the marchout route takes the band past several Notre Dame landmarks including the Hesburgh Library, Clarke Memorial Fountain, and Grace Hall. The marchout concludes at Stepan Fields.

One of the traditional campus events ringing in the beginning of a new school year, the marchout will feature nearly 500 students. Among them both veteran band members and students auditioning for a spot in the 2012 Band of the Fighting Irish. Over the course of the four day audition process, students receive instruction in marching and musical fundamentals, and will complete a musical and marching audition. The audition process concludes the evening of Sunday, August 19th.

Dating back to 1845, the Notre Dame Band is the oldest college band in continuous existence in the United States and was honored as such by being declared a “Landmark of American Music” by the National Music Council and the Indiana Music Educators Association.

The Notre Dame Band is the recipient of the 2011-2012 Sudler Trophy. The trophy is considered the “Heisman Trophy” for college bands and recognizes the band’s current excellence and historical contributions.

In addition to a rich history of performing at concerts, campus celebrations and religious ceremonies, the Band of the Fighting Irish has a long tradition of providing music and pageantry for Notre Dame football games and athletic events. The Band was on hand for the first game against the University of Michigan in 1887 and has performed at every home game since.

Sudler Trophy Presentation October 8th

Alison Thigpen — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 19:53:39 +0000

The University of Notre Dame Band will be presented with the Sudler Trophy at halftime of the Notre Dame vs. Air Force game on October 8.

The Sudler Trophy is considered the Heisman trophy of college bands. The John Philip Sousa Foundation presents the award to “collegiate marching bands of particular excellence that have made outstanding contributions to the American way of life.” The Notre Dame Band joins an elite group of college bands which have won this award, which recognizes both Notre Dame’s historical contributions to college bands and the excellence of the current Notre Dame Band.

The trophy consists of a marble base with a bronze drum major astride a football stadium. The drum major stands 22.5 inches tall, the same measurement as one standard marching step. The trophy is produced by Dieges and Clust, who also make the Heisman Trophy. The Sudler Trophy will be displayed in the Ricci Band Rehearsal Hall at the University of Notre Dame.

The trophy will be presented by Dr. Timothy Rhea, director of bands at Texas A&M University and chair of the Sudler Trophy Selection Committee. Receiving the award will be Dr. Kenneth Dye, director of bands at the University of Notre Dame, and university president Rev. John Jenkins, C.S.C.

In addition to a rich history of performing at concerts, campus celebrations, and religious ceremonies, the Band of the Fighting Irish has a long tradition of providing music and pageantry for Notre Dame football games and athletic events. The Band was on hand for Notre Dame’s first football game in 1887 and has performed at every home game since then.

Help the Band Look Its Best: Sponsor A Uniform!

Alison Thigpen — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 18:50:03 +0000

OLD UNIFORMS: In addition to color difference, the band’s oldest uniforms are frayed and worn.

THANK YOU to everyone who has already sponsored a uniform! Over 250 uniforms have been sponsored to date, and we are well on the way to our goal of 380 sponsorships.

It is not too late to contribute! For a $250 donation, alumni, parents, and friends of the band can sponsor a new marching band uniform and keep the Band of the Fighting Irish looking its best.

Sponsor’s names are engraved on a new plaque that is displayed at the Band Building.

To sponsor one or more uniforms, visit the Webstore or contact the band office for details.

For information about the many different ways you can help the Notre Dame Band, please visit our website’s giving page.

Band Completes Concert Tour of Brazil

Emmett O'Leary — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 16:44:28 +0000

The Notre Dame Concert Band completed a thrilling tour of the nation of Brazil from May 23rd through June 4th. The tour featured performances in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Ouro Preto, Belo Horizonte, and Manaus. The band performed a diverse repertoire of music including classic American wind band music, jazz standards by Duke Ellington, European concert marches, music from the Olympics (which Rio de Janeiro will host in 2016), a selection featuring Notre Dame’s New Orleans Brass Band, and a number of Brazilian selections.

Band Performs in the Oldest Concert Hall in the Americas

The band performed in some of the most famous concert halls in all of South America. In Ouro Preto, the band played before a near capacity crowd at the Teatro Municipal de Ouro Preto. This theatre was constructed in 1770 and is the oldest theater in continuous use in all of the Americas. In Manaus, the band held a concert in the stunning Teatro Amazonas. This venue opened in 1895 and was built as Manaus was becoming one of the wealthiest cities in Brazil because of the rubber boom of the early 20th century. The Teatro Amazonas was designed by a European architect and many of the building materials were imported from Italy and France giving the building the feel and look of an Italian opera house. In Rio de Janeiro the band performed in the beautiful and historic Candelária Church. This church is one of the oldest Catholic churches in all of Brazil and is the iconic place of worship for the city of Rio.

Performance at the Teatro Amazonas

Each performance was attended by an enthusiastic Brazilian crowd, but the most rewarding performances and enthusiastic audiences seen on the entire tour were in Sao Paulo as the Band performed for the Meninos de Morumbi program and for the students at the Colégio Santa Maria. The Meninos de Morumbi program is a children’s non-profit foundation that teaches drums and music as an alternative to “street life” in Brazil. The Colégio Santa Maria is a Holy Cross school offering k-12 instruction to Brazilian students in the same Holy Cross traditions as the University of Notre Dame. The reaction by the Sao Paulo students to the Notre Dame Band’s performances were unbelievable and hopefully the ND Band’s visit will serve as an inspiration for those students to remain involved in music throughout their lives.

The Brazil Concert Tour featured 66 student musicians from Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s College, and Holy Cross College. In addition to their efforts on this international tour, these students also performed at a number of ceremonies and events throughout Notre Dame’s Commencement Weekend and prior to that completed a domestic tour of the state of Ohio that featured a performance at Cleveland’s famous Severance Hall.