Table of Contents:
| General Band Information: | Marching Band Information: | |
| Getting on the Mailing List | Audition for the Marching Band | |
| Getting Registered for Band | Playing Audition Details for Marching Band | |
| Getting Acquainted | Marching Audition Details | |
| BGR Confliction | ||
| AUDITIONS | Aspects of Band Camp Week | |
| The Marching Band Experience |
Here is a form to fill out to express interest in Purdue
Bands or Orchestra. The other thing you will want to be sure
to do is when you are filling out your application
to Purdue, check the
box to express interest in band & orchestra. This will put you on the mailing list.
Besides registering with the band department, you will also need to register for band officially on MyPurdue. This may require instructor approval and for you to get a form signed. When registering for classes it is important to look up the rehearsal times so that you do not schedule another class at the same time.
Here are a few tips if you are a freshmen and worried about adjusting to college life the first year and having time for band:
♠ You may find your freshmen year challenging depending on your major and whether your high school classes adequately prepared you for Purdue level classes. However, this is not a reasonable excuse for not doing band your first year - your freshmen year will probably be your easiest year, especially if you are in engineering. We have many engineers and people with other difficult majors in band that have been able to succeed in their classes while still doing band.
♣ Even if marching band is not for you or you are worried about the time commitment, there is ALWAYS time to do one of the many other ensembles available through Purdue Bands.
♦ Marching band is time consuming but you will likely find that band here is the same time demand as high school, and if you come from a very competitive band, it may even be less time consuming. To summarize our schedule here at Purdue, we have one week of band camp. This is held the week before classes begin and runs on a schedule of about 8:30 am to 9:30 pm, Sunday to Saturday (Tuesday to Saturday for returning marchers). We then have band Monday through Friday from 3:30 to 5:30 during fall classes. You will never be bored on weekends since most Saturdays you will be busy with the exciting game day activities or other fun trumpet events.
♥ Band and the people you meet in band will help you adjust to college life and establish a network of friends to help you through much faster than if you hadn't gotten involved.
♠ For those in marching band, it is a very active organization and can be a good form of exercise that will help to keep off the infamous "freshmen fifteen" and maybe even help you lose weight!
♣ Tickets to the games can be expensive. Being in the marching band, Boiler Brass, GABS, or Boiler Box Band, you don't have to pay for tickets to the games you perform at. (Note: Be prepared that Purdue will charge an activity fee for being in band which is rather ridiculous since we're doing them a great service.... Purdue administration can be a B_____ most of the time)
♦ By being in any
band or orchestra (except Boiler Brass, GABS or Boiler Box Band) you can
earn two credits of easy A (provided you don't have any attendance issues) which
can be a big help to the GPA.
Instrumental auditions will consist of prepared selections (the music will be sent to you during the summer after we receive your registration form), sight-reading, two scales of your choice (at least two octaves), and improvisation (two choruses of F or Bb blues accompanied by an Aebersold CD provided by Dr. Trout , or two choruses of a tune of your choice for which you provide the play-a-long recording).Those who have instrumental talents as well as singing abilities are encouraged to audition on both.
All trumpets interested in the Symphonic Band or Fall Concert Band will audition during the first week of classes. Sign up for your audition slot outside Room 134B in Elliott Hall or in the band office when you arrive on campus. Please have 3 minutes of prepared music (band excerpts, solo literature, or an etude) and 2 major scales played ascending and descending in multiple octaves. There is no membership in any concert organization without an audition. Please note this includes all upperclassmen.
Auditions for both Gold & Black Sound (women's basketball) and Boiler Brass (men's basketball) are held during the last week of September and first week of October. Audition information will be posted in early-October on the departmental bulletin board. Additional information may be obtained by contacting the main office, Elliott 136. Auditions will consist of two major scales performed one or two octaves ascending and descending, along with several sight-reading excerpts. A list of regular members and alternates will be selected. Members must participate in both a fall and spring ensemble in addition to the athletic band.
Trumpets interested in auditioning for Boiler Box Band should inquire about audition sign-ups the first week of classes in the band office in Elliot Hall of Music. Auditions are similar to the other bands.Some of this information was obtained from the Purdue Band website and can be found in its original form at https://www.purdue.edu/bands/auditionInfo.htm.
Joining the Purdue “All American” Marching Band is the beginning of an experience that you will never forget. We encourage you to browse our website as you will probably find the answers to many of your questions on here as well as other interesting things you may not have known about us. ALL marchers must audition every year - not just rookie marchers. Veteran members are not guaranteed a spot and should take their audition seriously. The student leaders make their decisions based on the results from the playing auditions and marching/playing performance throughout the week of band camp. Keep in mind that a bad playing audition will not guarantee failure to make the band if satisfactory performance both in playing and marching is witnessed the rest of the week. However, the faculty is looking for strong players and a good playing audition will increase your chances of making the band significantly. All student leader selections are then reviewed and must be approved by the band faculty. The final selections for the band are announced individually or in small groups on Friday morning by the student leaders.
Playing auditions for freshman are now held during “Purdue is for Me” events and “STAR” (Student Access, Transition and Success) dates.
Brass auditions are usually done by Professor Ishbah Cox at the Elliot Hall of
Music. To schedule an audition, contact Pat Newton in the band office. The
audition usually consists of four essential components: A chromatic scale, two
technical etudes, “Hail Purdue,” and a short sight reading etude. The sheet
music for all but the sight reading piece is available on the Purdue University
bands audition website. http://purdue.edu/bands/audition User name and
password can be obtained by contacting the band department at (765) 494-0770 or
by emailing the webmaster jhwilkin@purdue.edu. Overall the playing audition
process is extremely relaxed and the directors try their best to put you at
ease. Try your best and don't let a cracked note or two discourage you as you
continue through the audition -- you will often find you do much better as the
audition progresses. Most importantly, have fun!
Downloadable sheet music for all fight songs and parts can be found on the Members Only page as well as downloadable audio tracks so you can hear what they sound like. Potential members, active members or alumni can email Dan Jemison at webmaster@purduetrumpets.com, for the username and password to access the Members Only page. The password for the audition music will be displayed on the Members Only page as well.
Potential members and veterans will be
evaluated on their marching ability throughout band camp week.
There is typically a
marching demonstration on Thursday evening of band camp week that serves as a final evaluation period before
student leaders and faculty make their final selections for the band. This
marching demonstration is subject to change but typically consists of a series
of basic marching routines that demonstrate the core aspects of the various
marching styles and techniques that are used by the Purdue Band during the
season. The demonstration is typically performed by each section as a
group while the rest of the band watches. Potential members and veterans
will receive prior preparation for this demonstration from their student leaders
and the faculty during the week.
One important thing to be aware of is there is a freshman orientation program on campus held the same week as band camp known as “Boiler Gold Rush” or “BGR.” This program obviously conflicts with band camp, and participating in both is not possible. IF YOU PLAN TO TRY OUT FOR THE MARCHING BAND, YOU WILL NOT MISS ANYTHING BY "MISSING OUT" ON BGR. BGR is very much along the lines of what we do in band camp. While it is a great program for students not involved in anything else, you will get more out of being in the band. BGR members are divided into 15-20 member groups with their fellow incoming students and have one team leader that is an upperclassman student. The group activities that occur outside of the information sessions are usually awkward “Getting-to-know-you” activities. So-what if you live in Cary Quad, or Windsor, or Earhart Hall... it's really nothing to get THAT excited about like BGR seems to encourage. Contrast this to being a member of the trumpet section of the AAMB, where you will instantly be in a group of 20-30 of your fellow incoming students with a common interest, along with another 30-50 upperclassmen trumpets, plus the roughly 250 people that make up the other sections of the band. In addition, we have 6 or 7 student leaders who will help you out and really want to make sure you succeed at Purdue and be a valuable member of the Purdue Band Department. We are a very close section and we have plenty of better things to get fired up about. We usually have a few section parties, plus fun activities like roadtrips, paintball and other friendly athletic or social outings throughout the year. Unfortunately for the BGR kids, BGR ends before classes even start and most people stop going by the fourth day or so once it gets too boring. Also, most of the people you meet in BGR you will probably not remain friends with, and may not even see again. By being in band you will be setting yourself up to make plenty of lasting friendships. Being a member of the “All-American” Marching Band will turn out to be a much greater benefit to you than BGR could ever be!!!
Now,
you’re probably asking yourself, what is this band camp week going to be like?
It is quite a bit of hard work and focus in often very hot conditions, but I can assure you that it isn’t all marching and music rehearsal.
We do our best to mix in some fun things too, like a pizza party, fountain hail
and a celebration party at the end. Also during
the week, many of the important people from the University come visit and speak to us. This includes President France Cordova and head football coach Joe Tiller. One of the highlights of band camp 2001 was when Coach Tiller came to talk to us. Our associate director of bands, “Coach”
Bill Kisinger, told the band that a couple of years ago he had told Coach
Tiller that he wanted to go to a Rose Bowl in the next couple years before
he retired. Well, we all know
what happened in 2000. Bill went
on to say that his stocks had gone down, so he would not be retiring for a
few more years. He then said “How ‘bout a National
Championship.” Coach Tiller’s response was, “Ask and you
shall receive.”
Being a member of the “All American” band is much more than anything you can imagine until you have actually experienced it. The sense of pride that each member of the band feels from simply wearing the uniform speaks for itself. You feel respected for doing something that represents this great university. Simply stepping out on the field to perform in front of 62,500 Purdue fans is an experience that only people who have done it will understand. Try getting that feeling from a high school band. We even get little kids that come up to us and ask for our signatures which gives you an idea of just what an impression we make on people. The feeling in the stadium as band announcer Roy Johnson read the script to “I Am An American” on September 22nd 2001, 11 days after the September 11th, was one of the most incredible events any of us have ever experienced. We all had the same feeling two years later during a special pre-game ceremony to mark the two year anniversary of the events of September 11th. Then at El Paso in 2004, it was amazing to receive a standing ovation from a large crowd of people whom many had never heard us play before after playing our traditional version of America the Beautiful with the "I Am An American" speech. The best quote about being in band at Purdue is probably: “When you are in the band, you not only go to Purdue, you are Purdue”
“We grow up hearing that trumpeters blew down the walls of Jericho, that Gabriel's trumpet announces the will of God, and that the largest, and hippest, of all animals, the elephant, has a trunk mostly for trumpeting. These grandiose images shape the classic trumpet persona: brash, impetuous, cocky, cool, in command. Anyone who has ever played in a band knows that if the conductor stops rehearsal because a fight breaks out, if somebody takes your girlfriend, if a tasteless practical joke is pulled, if someone challenges every executive decision no matter how trivial, it's got to be a trumpet player. That's just how we are.” - Wynton Marsalis
© Copyright 2005-2009 Dan Jemison, All Rights Reserved
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