• The KillerFrogs

Disappointed in the Band

Pharm Frog

Full Member
High school marching bands spend about 12-20 hours a week practicing, depending on how good the program is.

Our band practices about 6 hours a week, and is comprised of music majors who are forced to participate (but don't want to be there) and essentially high school caliber musicians who treat the marching band as a pseudo fraternity/sorority.

Ohio State's band requires that everyone audition for the band, and expects them to practice 20-30 hours a week. It'd be nice if you could find 200 kids who were willing to take up essentially a part time job to be in the marching band, but I don't think that's a reasonable expectation.

Any chance we could get a fife and drum corps going? Don’t need as many and can create a lot of racket.
 

Brevity Frog

Active Member
Here's the deal-io

"The band" just like "the football team" is made up of students. Students who have to practice to even make what little they do presentable. And what princely sum do the students who comprise "the band" get for all the hours the put in? The last Steel knew the amount it was $5,000/year. In other words, virtually nothing. In fact, they should just go ahead and make it nothing since $5,000 off of 60 grand is almost an insult.

So, yes, would it be nice if they could "put in" a whole bunch of more songs and marching formations etc for this one event? Sure. Is it practical, or good for "the band"? Hell no.

Their primary job as Steel sees it is making a lot of noise in the stands and helping to keep the energy u[p etc. they do that very well

As usual, stupid post. Other schools are in the same position as us and their bands don’t stink. Ours is literally the worst that I’ve seen in a long while. SMU’s band is far better. And again, yesterday’s performance was just mailing it in.
 

Brevity Frog

Active Member
Embarrassing for who?

For all TCU fans. The main halftime event is the band. It shouldn’t suck. It does. That’s embarrassing.
This is a relatively recent deal to pay band members too. When I was there, they didn't pay band members anything.

I'd read a while ago that the average school has about 1 band member for every 100 students, so TCU's band should be

Check out SMU's band to get an idea of how fortunate we are to have what we have.
Do it right, or give up like Rice, MOB-style. Our uniforms basically look like a high school, really no different than Paschal’s. In fact, sat with a guy who was in the Paschal marching band and he said our band is pathetic. Said a lot of the formations are sloppy, the music is poorly played, etc. I’m no band expert, but I know it seems like a great time to take a piss and grab a beer.

EXACTLY! Pathetic play, effort, marching, planning, uniforms, leadership!
 

Brevity Frog

Active Member
This is a relatively recent deal to pay band members too. When I was there, they didn't pay band members anything.

I'd read a while ago that the average school has about 1 band member for every 100 students, so TCU's band should be about 80 people. I believe the band is currently around 200 people, so much more than we "should" have.

Check out SMU's band to get an idea of how fortunate we are to have what we have.

I actually disagree. SMU’s band is small. But they are louder than ours. Twice as loud. Their uniforms are interesting and reflective of the school and they have verve. They get with it out there. The marching is good and the effort is apparent to all.
 

Brevity Frog

Active Member
Our band is spirited in the stands. Admirably so. I don’t doubt their spirit. But I’d be willing to bet even those students know the band is about 30% of what it could and should be.
 

Brog

Full Member
They have also required any Music Majors that are on any type of music scholarship to be in the marching band for 2-3 years to help with numbers. Can’t create more people coming to a small private school.

Also, the percussion studio is one of the best in the country. So! Many! Kids! That’s part of the reason there are so many “xylophones” on the sidelines.

To the other point of high school marching band kids, if you’ve noticed, corps style is pretty much all high school marching bands do. Since Music Education is the most common degree path, being part of a Corps style band helps in their future band director lives.

The fact that we have xylophones and flutes in our marching band tells us all we need to know.
 

Putt4Purple

Active Member
22,000 enrollment at University of North Texas...compared to 10,000 TCU....University of North Texas band should be proportionately larger....

I know I'm repeating myself but it is all budget related. No support from TCU in general. The administration is as blind now as before they realized the importance of an athletic budget before the SWC break up.
 

QuilterFrawg

CDR USN (Ret)
Wow, they pay the band members? I was in band 1971-75 and it was a .5 hr class, so Dad had to pay $25 a semester. :rolleyes:
We had a sharp uniform. Purple blazer with a white ascot, white trousers and shoes. Wheel cap (à la Ralph Kramden). Very hip.
Our precision halftime shows were great - Prof Jacobsen made sure of that.
And we had an amazing graduate assistant whose arrangements and cadences were awesome. As you know, our football team was terrible during those years and we were often the most entertaining thing in the stadium. We could get the folks on their feet and boogying! I can still tap out the drum parts to "Hush", "Tommy", "Joy to the World", "Spinning Wheel", "Get It On", and several cadences.
I didn't have to be in band, I wanted to be.
 

Long Time Fan

Long Time Fan
As usual, stupid post. Other schools are in the same position as us and their bands don’t stink. Ours is literally the worst that I’ve seen in a long while. SMU’s band is far better. And again, yesterday’s performance was just mailing it in.

ok, I can put up with criticism of our band. But to say SMU’s band is better is ridiculous. You totally negated anything you said before as valid. The SMU band is the worst.
 

Pharm Frog

Full Member
Is this 1994? A quick Google search will help one see University of North Texas's enrollment is nearly 41000.

Too lazy to look it up or call my former colleague in their registrar’s office but I’d take “enrollment” numbers with a heavy dose of salt. The counting can be done in almost an infinite number of ways including part-time, concurrent, online, continuing education, and other non-traditional means. Not saying this is happening in this case but gotta know what’s going on with the numbers. FWIW — 22K seemed low to me. 41K seems high. Don’t really care. I do recall when University of North Texas passed Tech in the enrollment funding formula.
 

Eight

Member
That band is truly sad.

Especially bad when they play North Texas, and University of North Texas brings their enormous band down; it's worth goin just to watch that half time show dichotomy

yes, because tcu plays University of North Texas so frequently
 

Eight

Member
Follow along would ya!

We are talking now about the undeniable pathetic-ness of the SMU band, which is prolly half the size even of TCU's band; and University of North Texas played there yesterday and a couple years ago, so one could witness the embarrassing disparity

you really are hitting on all cylinders aren't you? mark of the beast is 66? that anyone on this board would give a [ Finebaum ] about University of North Texas and smu playing or comparing the size of their bands

tell the truth, you got hit with another restraining order and can't set foot on the smu campus didn't you
 
Top