UW Varisty Band

UW Varisty Band OnStage Resource Guide 2018 19 overture.org /onstage Overture Center for the Arts fills a city block in downtown Madison with ABOUT world-class venues for the performing and visual arts. Made possible by an OVERTURE CENTER extraordinary gift from Madison businessman W. Jerome Frautschi, the center presents the highest-quality arts and entertainment programming in FOR THE ARTS a wide variety of disciplines for diverse audiences. Offerings include performances by acclaimed classical, jazz, pop, and folk performers; touring Broadway musicals; quality children’s entertainment; and world-class ballet, modern and jazz dance. Overture Center’s extensive outreach and educational programs serve thousands of Madison-area residents annually, including youth, older adults, people with limited financial resources and people with disabilities. The center is also home to ten independent resident organizations. Internationally renowned architect Cesar Pelli designed the center to RESIDENT provide the best possible environment for artists and audiences, as well as ORGANIZATIONS to complement Madison’s urban environment. Performance spaces range Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society from the spectacular 2,250-seat Overture Hall to the casual and intimate Children's Theater of Madison Rotunda Stage. The renovated Capitol Theater seats approximately 1,110, Forward Theater Company and The Playhouse seats 350. In addition, three multi-purpose spaces Kanopy Dance Company provide flexible performance, meeting and rehearsal facilities. Overture Li Chiao-Ping Dance Company Center also features several art exhibit spaces. Overture Galleries I, II and Madison Ballet III display works by Dane County artists. The Playhouse Gallery features Madison Opera regional artists with an emphasis on collaborations with local organizations. Madison Symphony Orchestra The Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters’ Watrous Gallery Wisconsin Academy’s James Watrous Gallery displays works by Wisconsin artists, and the Madison Museum of Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra Contemporary Art offers works by national and international artists. RESOURCE GUIDE CREDITS Executive Editor Meri Rose Ekberg Writer/Designer Alanna Reeves UW Varsity Band Overture Center – OnStage 1 Dear Teachers, In this resource guide you will find valuable information to help you apply academic goals to your students’ performance experience. We have included suggestions for activities which can help you prepare students to see this performance, ideas for follow-up activities, and additional resources you can access on the web. Along with these activities and resources, we’ve also included the applicable Wisconsin Academic Standards in order to help you align the experience with your curriculum requirements. This Educator’s Resource Guide is designed to: • Extend the scholastic impact of the performance by providing discussion ideas, activities and reading to promote learning across the curriculum; • Promote arts literacy by expanding students’ knowledge of music, science, storytelling and theatre; • Illustrate that the arts are a legacy reflecting the values, customs, beliefs, expressions and reflections of a culture; Michael Leckrone, UW Varsity Band Director 1969-2019 • Use the arts to teach about the cultures of other people and to celebrate students’ own heritage through self-reflection; Table of Contents • Maximize students’ enjoyment and appreciation of the About UW Varsity Band ........................... 1 performance. History of UW Varsity Band ...................2-3 We hope the performance and this resource guide will provide you and your students with opportunities to integrate art learning in The Instruments and Arrangements ...........4 your curricula, expanding it in new and enriching ways. UW Varisty Band Seating Chart ................5 Enjoy the Show! Music History Timeline..........................6-7 Education Categories Lyrics and Types of Music PLayed .............8 Arts Social Emotional Social Studies Things to Watch and Listen For .................9 Language Arts Science Math Activity: History, Music and Movement 10-11 Additional Ideas and Resources ............... 12 Academic Standards .............................. 13 About Liver Performance ....................... 14 We want your feedback! OnStage performances can be evaluated online! Evaluations are vital to the funding of this program. Your feedback educates us about the ways the program is utilized and we often implement your suggestions. Survey: https://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/4318898/OnStage-Post-Show-Survey UW Varsity SG 12/29/05 3:39 PM Page 5 About the Varsity Band The Varsity Band he Varsity Band consists of members of the TMarching Band who wish to perform at hockey and basketball games. It rehearses once a week after the conclusion of the football season. The Varsity Band has around 250 members. You will see fewer than this at the Overture Center concert for two reasons: First, some of them may have classes that conflict with the concert time. Also, the Overture Hall stage, although it is very large, will not accommodate that many players. Michael Leckrone Director of Bands, Director of the Marching Band native of Indiana, Mr. Leckrone received his Bachelor and Master A of Music degrees from Butler University in Indianapolis and has continued his studies at the doctoral level at Indiana University. Before coming to Wisconsin he taught at his alma mater, where he developed one of the finest marching bands in the Midwest. He is in constant demand as a clinician, guest conductor and adjudicator throughout the United States and Canada, and his experience also includes considerable professional work as an arranger, composer and performer. Michael Leckrone conducting the band The Musicians here are about 250 University of TWisconsin students between the ages of 18 and 22 in the Varsity Band every year. They each play for a certain number of events each season. An interesting fact: Only about three percent of the Varsity Band members are music majors! Varsity Band is a great way for non-music majors who enjoy music to be a part of the program and keep playing. 1 UW Varsity SG 12/29/05 3:38 PM Page 2 History of the University of Wisconsin Marching and Varsity Bands The first band was created: The Wisconsin Regimental Band. It was formed as a fife and drum corps to play for 1885 Battalion drills. The band roster held 11 names. The band journeyed to San Francisco for their first trip. 1915 The band roster held about 100 names by this time. First known photo of the UW Band 1885-86 Edson Morphy divided the band into two groups – a Concert Band and a Marching Band. Membership numbers rose because 1928 of a regulation that stated “male students must choose physical training, military training, or Band.” Ray Dvorak was hired as Director of Bands – his reign would last for over thirty years! Dvorak founded the tradition of playing “Varsity” at games, 1934 along with many innovations in marching band techniques. Ray Dvorak Dvorak lost his right arm, damaged his left leg and was severely burned in a train/auto accident. Dvorak took a two-year leave, and after much 1948 rehabilitation returned to the podium in 1950. 1953, Wisconsin won appearances in the Rose Bowl 1960, three times in ten years. 1963 Mike Leckrone was hired as Director of the Marching Band (100 members at the time). The Varsity Band was Rosebowl 1960 or 1963 1969 also created to play for basketball and hockey games in the winter (27 members in the first Varsity Band). Mike Leckrone 2 1974 The first women were accepted into the Marching Band. The first Varsity Band concert was performed at Mills Hall – 450 people attended. Marching Band members numbered 1975 204 this year. Leckrone was also appointed Director of Bands. The Fifth Quarter became a tradition at Wisconsin football 1978 games. The Varsity Band Concert at the Fieldhouse sold 1979 out for the very first time. The Wisconsin Band was crowned the #1 band 1993 in the nation. The band program continues to expand. The Varsity Band concerts at the Kohl Center sell out every year. Over 450 students audition for the Wisconsin Marching Band annually – Present only 300 are chosen. The Marching Band and Varsity Band regularly perform at Camp Randall, the Kohl Center and Lambeau Field, and have recently been showcased at the Rose Bowl and the Final Four Basketball Tournament. 3 UW Varsity SG 12/29/05 3:39 PM Page 6 The Instruments f you study the seating chart on the frumpet Ithe next page, you can see is a French where the different sections of horn that has been specially instruments are located and what adapted for marching bands. they look like. Since the Varsity Band is made up of musicians from the Marching Band, it has a few rather unusual instruments in it. Three in particular include: the flugelhorn is also a member of the trumpet family, but it is larger than a standard trumpet. the euphonium is a member of the tuba family that plays in a higher range. The other tubas in the band are shaped so that they can be carried by a player who is marching. Notice that the band is missing some The Arrangements instruments from the woodwind family ecause of the band’s unusual instruments, (oboes, bassoons, baritone saxophones B it is necessary to write special arrange- and flutes). Most of the instruments ments for it. What is arranging? Let’s say you are brasses, which give the band its wanted to have the band play your favorite powerful, “brilliant” sound. rock song. You would need to decide which instruments could play what parts of the You will also notice no color guard music. For example, you could start by giving or flags in the performance. The UW the melody to the trumpets, the accompanying Marching Band is strictly horns and harmony to the trombones and a strong rock drums. The focus is on the music. The rhythm to the drums. In different parts of the cymbals provide the visual “sparkle.” music, you would want to arrange things dif- ferently, so that the overall sound of the band would stay interesting from the beginning of the song to the end.

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