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Solid Gold Sound Club Newsletter The official UCLA support organization for the UCLA Bruin

Summer 2017 Travel

The Band is hoping to send a group to the UCLA at Washington football game in October. The last time the Band visited Washington was in 2002, so we thought it was about time to make another appearance there. The full band will travel to the UCLA at Stanford game on September 23, right in the middle of Band Camp! In 2018, the Band is looking to travel to the Oklahoma game in Norman, as well as a full band trip to Cal. We will need YOUR support to pull off all of this travel over the next two fall seasons. In the past, your donations have helped the Band travel to out-of-state games at Texas (1997), Miami (1998), Ohio State (1999), Washington (2000 and 2002), Alabama (2001), Colorado (2003), Illinois (2004), Notre Dame (2006 — the entire band!), and Tennessee (2009). Since 2009, the Band has received funding from bowl games to travel to the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco (2011), the Holiday Bowl in San Diego (2012), the Sun Bowl in El Paso, TX (2013), the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, TX (2015), and the Foster Farms Bowl in San Francisco (2015). In 2016-17, the full Band traveled to the UCLA at Cal game over the Space Needle – Seattle, Washington Thanksgiving weekend, and a pep band traveled to the Arizona State game in October. During basketball season, the Band accompanied the men’s team to the Pac 12 Tournament in Las Vegas, and NCAA Tournament games in Sacramento and Memphis, TN. The Band also accompanied the women’s team to the Pac 12 Tournament in Seattle and the NCAA Tournament game in Bridgeport, CT.

Oklahoma University Stadium Band Alumni Reunion

A record of 280 band alumni performed at halftime of the Utah vs. UCLA football game at the last October. The Band Alumni marched playing the fight led by Alumni Drum Majors Mike O’Gara and Adam Fletcher. Adam wore a replica 1928 uniform, the Band’s first, provided by the Stanbury Uniform Company. The combined Bruin Marching Band and the Band Alumni performed a medley of the Disney “ “ and “Friend Like Me.” In addition to handing out over 500 Adidas items including shoes, jackets, shirts, shorts and other apparel, a commemorative glass tumbler and sweatshirt were also given to all participants. Seven alumni from the East Coast received the awards for traveling the furthest distance to participate in the Reunion: Les Taylor, Gretchen Buchen, Vangie Tangog Theobald, Bradley Scott, Sabrina McCoy, Rachel Klavir, and Ryan Gochee. The award for the representative of the earliest UCLA class was given to Peter Barrett who joined the Marching Band in 1952. See Peter’s story on the following page four and five.

Drum Major Michael O’Gara leading the Band Alumni across the field

(at left) Drum Major Adam Fletcher wearing the 1928 replica uniform

Band Alumni Reunion Award Winners Peter Barrett, Les Taylor, Gretchen Alumnae Flutist Lauren Labac Buchen, Vangie Tangog Theobald, Bradley Scott, Sabrina McCoy, Rachel Klavir, and Ryan Gochee Instruments

Over the past few years, the Band has used donations phones (27), snare drums (10), tenor drums (6), bass and additional university funding to add to its inventory drums (6), and cymbals (16 pairs). of instruments. We can now supply professional quality With sousaphones costing over $5000, trombones over instruments to almost every band member who needs to $2500, trumpets over $1800, and saxophones over borrow one. Our inventory now includes piccolos (9), $1000, the Band’s full inventory of instruments is valued flutes (8), clarinets (7), alto saxes (22), tenor saxes (11), at over $500,000. We will continue to buy additional trumpets (60), mellophones (16), marching french horns instruments as needed, but the primary expense now will (4), tenor trombones (45), bass trombones (12), sousa- be keeping everything in good repair.

This is what our priceless trombone section looks like with $100,000 worth of instruments!!!

Halftime Shows

At the Colorado game on September 30, the Band a piccolo feature on “Yankee Doodle” and closing with will present music by the band Panic! “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” At the Disco. Songs for this show include “Northern The Band will present a themed show at the Downpour,” “I Write Sins Not Tragedies,” and two Cal game on November 24, opening with “City of Stars,” songs from their latest , “” “” and “Someone in the Crowd” and “Victorious.” from the soundtrack of the movie . Katy For Band Day at the Oregon game on October 21, over Perry’s “California Gurls” will be played next, closing 25 high school bands will join the Band to perform UCLA with “I Love L.A.” by UCLA graduate , fight songs and a medley of “You’re A Grand Old Flag,” who has won two for film composition. Band Alumnus Profile – Peter V. Barrett. MD

Clarence Sawhill is the legendary creator of the UCLA UCLA Band marched proudly down Colorado Avenue Band as we know it today. My personal claim to fame in the Rose Parade in two out of my four years!! is simply that Mr. Sawhill and I arrived at UCLA on the All through my four years at UCLA, Mr. Sawhill worked same day in September 1952. hard to bring the band up to his standards. He reminded I began playing my father’s Holton cornet in the sixth us to keep our marching lines sharp, and worked on grade, mostly because it was in the closet, and because our style: “Lift those feet! Hold your heads high and be my father had used it in the Harvard University Band Proud!” During practice, if a portion of the marching in the 1920’s. After graduating from Glendale High formation was not performing well, he would race down School, I entered UCLA as a Biology major, with plans the steps of the conducting stand and run across the field to become a physician. All men were required to par- to explain what was needed. Because of my personal ticipate in the ROTC in 1952, and the ‘grapevine’ con- pre-med perspective, I worried about him each time he vinced me that life in the Corps was better as a member did this, but he never fell. And though he was puffing a of the band. bit when he returned to the conducting stand, he would get us started again with great enthusiasm. Each of us My classes began on a Tuesday in the first week of felt we needed to work a little harder when we saw how school, and on that afternoon I began playing my cornet important it was to him. in the ROTC band. Within minutes, a short, energetic middle-aged man appeared and watched us perform. Kelly James was a graduate student when I joined the He introduced himself as Clarence Sawhill, the newly band as a freshman, but soon thereafter he became Mr. appointed Director of UCLA Bands. It was his first Sawhill’s right hand. I got to know him well during my day, too. He asked me if I enjoyed playing the cornet years as a band member, and in later years as a specta- or trumpet, and I told him that I was having trouble tor and faculty member when I attended basketball and because of my braces. At that point he told me that football games. he had just taken over the UCLA Band and wanted to During my first years at UCLA, home basketball games enlarge it. Would I like to join? As a pre-med major, I were played in the Men’s Gymnasium that only accom- was serious about my studies, but he was very persua- modated a few hundred people. Kelly led the basketball sive and described plans for an exciting trip to Berkeley. band that consisted of about a dozen students and later He also asked me if I would consider playing the ‘bass,’ became known as the Varsity Band. As such, we made since his trumpet section was large enough, and this several trips to Berkeley and Stanford. Half of the fun instrument would be easier to play with my braces. I had of these trips was “getting there.” No funds were avail- no idea what a ‘bass’ might be, but I learned later in the able for our transportation, but Kelly was very creative. day when I visited the Music Building. There, in a worn- Traveling in several cars, we made our way north with out WWII barracks, Mr. Sawhill showed me the E-flat stops in towns to play short concerts; in return, sponsor- sousaphone he wanted me to play. I had no knowledge ing groups would feed and sometimes house us. of the bass clef, but he assured me that if I simply trans- posed down three half-steps, and pretended that it was During my final one or two years in the band, we moved treble clef music, the correct tones would come out. He out of the WWII wooden barracks on the north side was right, but transposing all my music three half-steps of campus and into Schoenberg Hall. It was a beauti- was not easy. ful place to play, and the concert band thrived under Mr. Sawhill’s direction. One of his favorite pieces was The first marching band practice was on Thursday. I Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. To this day, I had never marched in a band before, and never played have flashbacks and anxiety attacks when I hear that the sousaphone before, but I learned. And then it was piece performed; I listen for the long run of 32nd notes Saturday, and a bus delivered us to the coliseum tunnel played by the tuba in the Great Gate of Kiev section — a on the USC campus. We were playing Tennessee, the run which ends abruptly. Very abruptly. And if you are team that was expected to be the best in the country that one note late, you are hanging out there all alone!! year. The drum-major’s whistle blew, and I found myself leading half of the band through the tunnel and out onto In later years, I have enjoyed participating in the Band the playing field where we were cheered by 20,000 peo- Alumni Reunions at football games and watched ple! Surely, they were all for me. And we won Gordon Henderson in action. Mr. Sawhill would be the game! It was terribly exciting! proud of today’s band and its leadership. And I know he would forgive me if one of the 32nd notes I played in Red Sanders is one of the UCLA coaching legends, and the Great Gate of Kiev was late. he worked his magic during the years that I was at UCLA. During my UCLA years from 1952-1956, the 1954 Rose Parade

January 1956 rehearsal, Peter Barrett on far right

Peter Barrett at the 2012 Band Alumni Reunion Photos from 2016-17

As part of our recruiting efforts for new band members during Summer Orientation sessions, the Band has posted more than sixty banners all along Bruin Walk. The Band’s Recruitment Crew also sends mailings, makes phone calls and meets incoming students throughout the summer.

Sousaphone player Patrick Color Guard member Sidney Gardner Kantano “Imaginary Mary” TV show recording session

The Drumline performing on “Lip Synch Battle”

Feature Twirler Jade McVay Cymbals player Sean Ezenwugo

Trumpeters Brendan James and Jacob Re at the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in Drummer and T.A. Kelly Sacramento Flickinger cheering on T.J. Leaf Trombonist Lily Krol and Alonzo Ball in Sacramento Performance List

From July 2016 through June 2017, the Band performed 107 times! Here’s a complete list:

Football Season Games (8) Other Campus Events (33) • Home Games – 6 • Eight Summer Orientation performances throughout the • Away Games – 2 (Arizona State, Cal) summer of 2016 • Nickelodeon Kids Choice Party 7/14/16 Men’s Basketball Games (23) • UCLA Store Rally 9/20/16 • Home games – 18 • “Champed Up” Rally in 9/20/16 • Pac 12 Tournament games – 2 (Las Vegas, NV) • Delta Airlines Logo Formation 9/21/16 • NCAA Tournament games – 3 (Sacramento, CA, Memphis, TN) • Fall Open House in Pauley Pavilion 10/8/16 • NICU 10/9/16 Women’s Basketball Games (20) • Krieger Child Care Center 10/21/16 • Home Games – 15 • Family Weekend 10/21/16 • Pac 12 Tournament games – 2 (Seattle, WA) • Dribble for the Cure at Drake Stadium 11/6/16 • NCAA Tournament games – 3 (, Bridgeport, CT) • UCLA Lab School Carnival 11/13/16 Olympic Sports (15) • Beat SC Bonfire Rally in Wilson Plaza 11/17/16 • Men’s Soccer 10/2/16 • We Run the City 11/20/16 • Women’s Soccer 10/23/16 • Michigan Pre-Game Rally at Luskin Center 12/10/16 • Men’s Water Polo 10/29/16 • Dance Marathon in Pauley Pavilion 4/9/17 • Women’s Volleyball 10/29/16 • Herb Alpert School of Music Open House 4/14/16 • Swim and Dive 11/4/16 • Bruin Day Welcome in Pauley Pavilion 4/15/17 • Women’s Volleyball (NCAA 2nd Round) 12/3/16 • Bruin Day Rally in Wilson Plaza 4/15/17 • Gymnastics 1/7/17 • Alumni Scholars 4/22/17 • Men’s Volleyball 1/20/17 • Spring Football Showcase at Drake Stadium 4/29/17 • Softball 2/15/17 • Oscar Stafsudd 50th Year Reunion 4/29/17 • Gymnastics 3/5/17 • Healthy Campus Initiative at Sunset Rec 5/4/17 • Women’s Tennis 3/10/17 • Martha Rider Retirement Party 5/8/17 • Track and Field 4/8/16 • Bruin Transfer Day Welcome in Pauley Pavilion 5/13/17 • Men’s Tennis 4/21/17 • LA 2024 Promotion Video 6/6/17 • Women’s Water Polo 4/22/17 • Chancellor’s Society in Pauley Pavilion 6/8/17 • Baseball 4/28/17 Off Campus Events (8) • LAX Delta Terminal march through 9/21/16 • The Ellen DeGeneres Show “Mark Harmon Week” 10/12/16 • Rivals United for a Kure Rally 10/19/16 • Imaginary Mary recording session 10/23/16 • Richland Elementary School 2/10/17 • Fire Station 71 Annual Pancake Breakfast 5/20/17 • 20th Century Fox Reception 5/25/17 • Beverly Hills Hotel 50th Wedding Anniversary 6/18/17

Tenor Drummer Wyatt Watkins Block UCLA formation at pregame

UCLA Band Program Solid Gold Sound Club Gordon Henderson Board of Directors Director of Bands Gary Bittner Ron Logan Director of the Bruin Marching and Varsity Bands Peter Dames Richard and Kathy Martin Travis J. Cross Rebecca Gottlieb Robert Milford Conductor of the Wind Ensemble Michael Hanson Michael O’Gara and Symphonic Band Nancy Ishiki Mary Park Ken Fisher Joe and Heidi Hardman Jeff Pickett Assistant Director of the Chris Holbert Matt Sonefeldt Bruin Marching and Varsity Bands Rob Joyner Brad Sraberg Paul Addleman Brian Kushnir Kim Strutt Administrative Assistant of the Alice Liu Andrew Yonce Bruin Marching and Varsity Bands

Bruin Marching Band Online Website – www.band.ucla.edu Webstore – www.band.ucla.edu/store YouTube Channel – www.youtube.com/user/UCLABandVideoProject Facebook – www.facebook.com/uclabruinband Instagram – www.instagram.com/uclaband