THERE is something missing from the Good Ol' Song these days. A certain luster, a certain flair, a certain energy -- all symptoms of a stadium replete with fans but conspicuously absent of trumpets and tubas. The ongoing feud between the Athletic Department and the Pep Band is the reason students are joining hands and giving a cheer to the Virginia Gentlemen and the wind ensemble. It is imperative, however, that reconciliation occurs before the marching band becomes a reality next fall; the two bands need each other, and the University needs a group of which it can be proud.
Virginia has become a football school; there is no doubt of that. With Matt Schaub at the helm, the team was ranked in the top 25 nationally for several weeks and came within one botched snap of competing for the ACC title. It is a fact in college football that established programs have established bands. Ohio State's pre-game show is famous; Penn State and Joe Paterno are defined by the Blue Band. With a team that is playing more and more nationally televised games every year, can the University afford to put an inferior musical product on the field? Unfortunately, that prospect is looming as the administration continues to alienate the Pep Band.
Some may scoff at the idea that a new ensemble sans the Pep Band would be any worse for wear. It would be. These people are the only students who have been putting a product on the field, and the skills and experience that comes with that cannot be underestimated. Furthermore, the Pep Band -- whatever you may think of their collective sound -- is filled with all-state and all-district players; to exclude the Pep Band is to exclude a massive portion of the University's musical talent base. Intangibly, the leadership this group of dedicated students brings to the table should not be dismissed. As anyone who has participated in a marching band can tell you, solid student leadership is the foundation upon which excellence is built.
Just as the marching band needs the Pep Band players the Pep Band would also be well served integrating into the new group. There is tradition in the scramble band, agreed, and it embodies the principles of student self-governance, but there is something to be said for the immense respect and prestige that comes from being part of a major college marching band. To understand this, one needs only to witness the Notre Dame band roll-stepping through streets lined with raucous fans. Imagine the rush of wading through a sea of cheering orange-and-blue Wahoos. Imagine the sight of 60,000 people erupting as you take the field. Imagine the pride of people stopping you just to say thanks for a job well done.
Sadly, the acrimonious relationship between the school and the Pep Band is standing in the way of forming the best institution possible. The Athletic Department in some ways began the war by locking the Pep Band out of their equipment storage, and recently incoming band director William Pease flared the conflict by unwittingly scheduling a marching band interest meeting at the same time as Pep Band practice. The Pep Band, for their part, conducted a highly visible protest after the Duke game, and many members have vowed to boycott the marching band. This fight has received national attention.
The two sides need to clear the air and begin anew. The administration -- specifically the Athletic Department -- should stop treating the Pep Band as an annoyance and should instead invite them for one last performance during the Virginia Tech game. The Pep Band has been a facet of University for thirty years -- let it retire with dignity.
The Pep Band, on the other hand, needs to embrace Pease and the new marching band. There is an unprecedented opportunity here to help mold the new group into such a remarkable force that people begin to speak of the University and the Marching Cavaliers in the same breath. Then, and only then, will all be bright and gay in Scott Stadium once again.
(Elliot Haspel's column appears Tuesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at ehaspel@cavalierdaily.com.)
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