MARCHING BAND | 1 2 3
For years, the University of Cincinnati marching band remained under the engineering college. But by the time director Bob Hornyak arrived in '54, it was a required course for music education majors and fell under the College-Conservatory of Music. In 1994, when Terren Frenz took the reins, it had migrated to the athletic department. It now stands as an independent department under Division of Student Affairs, although students still get one CCM credit hour per quarter for participating.
"It's a high-demand activity," Frenz says. "We do more than 100 performances a year. There's a constant demand."
When Frenz took over, the band had dwindled to 95 students. Today, it's up to 230 musicians, making it the largest student organization on campus.
Band members can perform in a variety of settings: the marching band, which plays for football games; several pep bands, broken into various sizes to accommodate 40 basketball games; two concert bands; two jazz bands; a winter percussion ensemble; and a competition winter color guard. Frenz also oversees the Alumni Band and a Summer Community Band, started by band alumni two years ago.
It's an ambitious schedule, but Frenz expects a lot from his students. "We get the smartest kids out of the high schools," he says. "The band kids are the ones who are going to achieve, the ones who are going to be successful."
That attitude is evident in the band's high retention rate at UC. "We keep 'em in school," Frenz says. "Band has about a 90 percent grad rate, compared to the national average of less than 40."
Contributing to that envious statistic is the support system that band students have fostered, coaching each other in choosing majors, selecting classes and learning the ropes. "They study together," the director says. "They mentor each other. They take care of each other. It's a giant family."
One large enough these days to spell all the letters in the word "family," too.
LINKS:
Hear the band play UC fight songs.
Visit the Bearcat Band Web site.
