University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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LONGHORN BAND During football season, the Long- horn Band performed for only eight minutes during the weekly half-time shows. Yet for each of those eight minutes in front of the audience, band members worked one hour off the field the week before the show. Even before classes began, both former and hopeful band members spent a week learning the music and preparing for tryouts. The 1988-89 marching band began rehearsals two weeks before their first performance at the New Mexico game. After the initial week of intensive marching known as Hell Week, band members attended two-hour rehearsals three times a week, fre- quent sectionals in which groups re- hearse according to their instru- ments and a pre-game rehearsal lasting at least an hour. With almost 350 members, the weekly night rehearsals had the po- tential to be chaotic. There are times when we don ' t run into each other solely due to personal survival, Marc Grace, ad- vertising freshman, said. To avoid confusion and to facil- itate learning new shows quickly, a group of 38 section leaders assisted the directors and drum major. Each pair of leaders was responsible for conducting sectional rehearsals, teaching marching drills and guiding its 16-member section through each show. The section leaders taught the marching formations based on charts. During rehearsals, the lead- ers showed the members of their section to their positions and ex- plained the movement to the next formation. Most of the time it ' s a case of go that way, and look like this when you ' re doing it, Grace said. Despite the large number of mem- bers, the band developed a sense of unity. There ' s a cohesiveness in the band. It ' s a group that functions well together, Drum Major Chris Car- ter, pharmacy senior, said. Much of the feeling of unity stemmed from the group ' s basic, common desire to perform well. We want to be good, Section Leader Bill Franklin, graduate student in electrical engineering, said. There ' s a general feeling of everyone on the field to be the best. There ' s a motivation in working with other people who are very good to keep you at your best, Franklin said. According to Director Glenn Rich- ter, the band ' s morale during the week was often a reflection of the previous Saturday ' s half-time show. I know that when they perform well, they know it, and it ' s much eas- ier to motivate them the next week, Richter said. For many members, the band ' s reputation as the Showband of the Southwest was the only necessary inspiration for performing at their best. It ' s a tradition of excellence, Carter said. I challenge their own pride and remind them of their goals, Richter said. Internal motivation is much bet- ter than a Patton oratory. We ' ve worked harder this year than any group before, Band President Kent Kostka, government senior, said. You have to have a positive attitude all the time. Each week, the rehearsals and sec- tionals ended, work on a new show be- gan, and once again the Showband of the Southwest marched onto the field to the applause of thousands of fans. It ' s a really intense feeling of pride, Grace said. Alone we look pretty dumb in our orange polyester uniforms, but when you ' re standing there as a group, and the show goes well, and you see people standing up and applauding, it ' s an exhilarating feeling. Monica Noordam WATCHING THE CLOCK: Michael Parker, music education senior, and other band members await their turn during halftime at the Houston game. photo by George Bridges 332 Longhorn Band

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ockin ' the Crowd LONGHORN BASKETBALL BAND There ' s Blanks for the layup, Shepard for the dunk, Mays for the three-pointer and Mullen for the steal. They play the game, but the Longhorn Basketball Band plays the music the funk, the jazz, the rock, the roll that keeps the crowd dancing in the aisles and on top of their toes. The Basketball Band increased its selection of music during the 1989 season to go along with Coach Tom Fenders ' upbeat style of play. We play more rock, funk and any other sort of music that gets the crowd up and out of their seats, Megan Randolph, journalism senior, said. In the past the audience almost always sat on their hands and enjoyed the game, but that doesn ' t happen anymore. John Comerford, advertising jun- ior, added, Coach Penders came by twice to express interest in involving the band in his program. The change of coaches not only brought a more up-tempo style to the basketball team but also to the band. His excitement in the Longhorn Basketball program has everybody hyped. The band ' s excitement over the last four years not only increased en- thusiasm in basketball and crowd participation but also in its own pro- gram. This year the band has 110 mem- bers and enrollment has steadily in- creased during my three-year par- ticipation in the band. The number of members has gone up and so has the amount of fun we have, but that increase has not been at the expense of quality, Ray Pitts, economics se- nior, said. The band ' s new attitude was re- flected in its performances and the crowd showed its appreciation. People actually come up to us and congratulate us on a job well done, Comerford said. The new style of play calls for a much faster game, he added. The up-tempo material gathers more crowd interest than before and that greatly increases student participa- tion. Tanisajeffers RUN HORNS RUN: Kathy Thompson, Lau- ra Faulk, Ruth Riding and Megan Randolph cheer on the basketball team against A M. photo by George Bridges FRONT ROW: Kathy R. Thompson, Laura Elizabeth Faulk, Ruth Riding, Megan L. Randolph, Angela Lea Gardner, Stacy Leanne Marcus, Hope Thielen, Melanie Kay Plemons, Susanne A. Mailloux, Lauri Ann Marburger, Duffy Doyle Crane. SECOND ROW: Suzanne M. Guzik, Robert James Lovelace, Christine E. Deans, Marianna Mae Anderson, Chris M. Wang, Elaine Daigle Kelly, Stephanie Elaine Roberts, Heidi Ann Seizinger, Shelly May Knapp, Maureen E. Cantara, Eleanor Claire Price, Jennifer Jo Lee. THIRD ROW: William O. Haehnel, Dawn Denise Mulkay, Virginia Anne Herry, Elena O. Garza, Amber M. Hawkins, Kristen M. Kayga, Holly Janelle Sommers, Kallen Ann Kalkbrenner, Jennifer Diane Brannan, Michelle Lee Town, Laura Louise Bost. FOURTH ROW: Martin Robert McShea, Andrew Paul Jones, Judson O. Morrison, Bruce Dryden Fyfe, Jeremy Seth Byrn, Mark Greg- ory McKenzie, Gaylon Paul Gautier, Dara Elizabeth Smith, John Walter Comerford, Camille Lorraine Rabel, Susan Jeanne Pritchett, Annemarie Pfluger, David Gonzales. FIFTH ROW: David Leon Wheeler, Michelle A. DeGruccio, James Gail Hadley, Melissa Gay Zimmerhanzel, William Wes- ley Thogerson, David Michael Walsh, Pamela Debra Plaskoff, Melanie Wells Pace, Deirdre Elizabeth Feehan, Christine Lau- ra Burgess, Cheri Lea Bueche, Christine M. London, Ronald Scott Fries. SIXTH ROW: Rolando Humberto Briones, Bry- an Joseph Girouard, Stephan Riha, Alfredo Vera, Anthony Scott Tracy, Roy Vincent Alanis, Gregory B. Scholl, Jimmy Glenn Russell, Baronda Ellen Wilson, David Lewis Schnitzer, James Edward Jochetz, Lerone A. Williams, Richard Lee Morrison. SEVENTH ROW: Anthony Keith Wright, John Paul Nieto, Carol Louise Lyle, Michael T. Lively, Gregory Boyd Dreyer, Rodolfo Flores Jr., Richard A. Mitchell, Ray Francis Pitts, Robert Paul Bacon, Lynndale Luedecke, Conan Rhea Burnes, Jeffrey Allan Junek. EIGHTH ROW: Patrick William Fogarty, Britt James Baker, April Diane Menn, Pa- tricia Grace Barnes, Carl Fahlund, Christopher M. Wilkowski, Thomas W. Hetherington, William R. Ferguson, Robert L. Nemir Jr., Jason Robert Lynum. BACK ROW: Michael Bryan Parker, Amanda Rae Porter, John Michael Narvarte, James Bruce True, John Corbett Chapman, John Elliott Bailey, Michael R. Madison. photo by George Bridges Longhorn Basketball Band 331

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01 1 . -; i polvesier standing m a ' ' J ' -U :,-: PERFORMING WITH PRIDE: Laura Ki- olbassa, pre-business freshman, performs with her flag at the Houston game, Nov. 5. photo by Ken White Longhorn Band 333