The University of Minnesota Marching Band (also known as UMMB, Minnesota Marching Band, and The Pride of Minnesota) is the marching band of the University of Minnesota and the flagship university band for the state of Minnesota. The Pride of Minnesota serves as an ambassador for the university, representing the school at major events both on and off campus. The band performs before, during, and after all home Golden Gopher football games and bowl games, occasional away games, local parades, numerous pepfests, exhibition performances, as well as a series of indoor concerts toward the end of the regular football season. Members of the band, along with non-member students, also participate in smaller athletic pep bands that perform at other major sporting events, including men's hockey, men's basketball, women's hockey, women's basketball, and women's volleyball.
History The University of Minnesota Marching Band was formed with 29 members as the University Cadet Band in 1892, functioning as part of the university cadet corps and stationed in the University of Minnesota Armory after its construction in 1896.Bencriscutto, Frank; Mike Gaffron (1992). Minnesota Hats Off to Thee. Taylor Publishing Company. p. 12. . The band performed its first halftime field show during the 1910 football season at Northrop Field. Among the formations included was the "Block M" that now serves as the University's logo. The "Block M" formation remains present in the band's pregame show.
Near the end of World War I in 1918, the University Cadet Band was merged with the local Army band in order to form First Regiment of Minnesota Band, in addition to a second, more briefly existing Second Regiment of Minnesota Band. However, both bands were decommissioned along with the Regiment at the conclusion of the war. Following the war, university students who were members of the band were offered a position in a separate University Band, with the word "cadet" having been dropped from its name.
After the 1923 football season, Memorial Stadium was constructed, and the band began to perform on the field, which was the home of football games and marching band shows for 57 years, the longest of any of the university's stadiums. The band "brought spectacle and song to game days," and halftime shows included moving renditions of rivalry trophies such as Floyd of Rosedale and the Little Brown Jug, as well as greetings to university figures such as football coach Bernie Bierman.
In January 1965, the Minnesota Marching Band was featured in the Inaugural Parade in Washington, DC for the second inauguration of U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1982, the band's performances moved once again after the opening of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome and the subsequent relocation of Golden Gopher football from Memorial Stadium.
The Minnesota Marching Band performed during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXVI on January 26, 1992, along with former Olympic champions Brian Boitano and Dorothy Hamill, and singer Gloria Estefan.
In the fall of 2009, with the opening of TCF Bank Stadium (now Huntington Bank Stadium) on the university's campus, the band's game-day performances moved back to campus and to an outdoor field for the first time since leaving Memorial Stadium in 1981.
On February 4, 2018, the Minnesota Marching Band performed alongside Justin Timberlake in the halftime show of Super Bowl LII. The band was featured in Timberlake’s R&B hit “Suit & Tie”, and performed additional choreography and drill during “Mirrors" and the show’s finale, "Can't Stop the Feeling!".
Members of the band and the University of Minnesota Dance Team performed with the Jonas Brothers in concert at the Minneapolis Armory during the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Final Four on April 6, 2019. The band joined the pop-rock group onstage for the finale of their newly-released single "Cool".
In March 2022, 30 members of the band traveled to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates for the World Expo 2020. The purpose of the trip was to perform as representatives on behalf of the University and the United States to generate excitement for Minnesota's bid to host Expo 2027 in Bloomington, MN. On the trip, the band played at numerous events, including a parade around the Expo for USA National Day, in front of the USA Pavilion, as well as for the United States ceremony. High-level audience members included Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, as well as other dignitaries of the U.S. and UAE. The group also reached citizens from over 190 countries across the world.
In May 2022, members of the band played the Minnesota Rouser and Battle Hymn of the Republic at a memorial for Former Vice President Walter Mondale at Northrop Auditorium. At the memorial, the band performed following speeches from supporters of the program, including Governor Tim Walz and Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith. In addition to the hundreds of high-level attendees, the band joined President Joe Biden in concluding the memorial service.
On December 5, 2024, the band participated in a promotional event featuring Timothée Chalamet for the film A Complete Unknown, performing two of Bob Dylan's works.
Women in the Band When it was originally formed, the band consisted of exclusively men. Women were first allowed to perform with the band in 1943-1945, when they were allowed to "fill in" for male members of the band that were serving in World War II.Chaduvula, Raju - For University of Minnesota Marching Band Director, a historic ‘surprise’. Minnesota Daily, September 15, 2016 In 1950, a "Women's division" of the band was created, which lasted for several years. Women were allowed to be full members of the band in 1972 following the passage of Title IX.Yuen, Laura - Yuen: 50 years ago, women were admitted into University of Minnesota marching band, but not without a fight. Star Tribune, October 25, 2022 Molly Watters was selected in 2006 as the first female Drum Major in the history of the band. In July 2016, Betsy McCann was named the director of the band, becoming the first female director in the history of the band, and of all marching bands in the Big Ten Conference.
Marching Style
The University of Minnesota Marching Band primarily uses both the chair stepThe Music Sound. N.p.: Nicolae Sfetcu, 2014. and glide step for performances, similar to other bands of the Big Ten Conference.Fuller, John Allen. A Descriptive Analysis of the Eleven Big Ten Conference Marching Band Programs. United States: Ohio State University, 1995. The band's pregame show is performed almost entirely with chair step, which consists of bringing the leg up so that the thigh is parallel to the ground, the shin is completely vertical, and toes are pointed at the ground. Halftime shows are performed using corps-style glide step that allows for more musicality and forms that do not necessarily conform to a grid. "Run-Cadence" is the band's method of getting on and off the field for shows. It consists of a double-time chair step, although the quicker pace of it necessitates that at times neither foot is in contact with the ground, as is the case with the regular chair step.
Facilities Throughout much of its history, the University of Minnesota Marching Band's facilities were located in the University of Minnesota's Northrop Auditorium, where it shared space with several other campus organizations. However, in 2009, the band moved to specialized rehearsal facilities within the newly constructed TCF Bank Stadium. Following the 2021 merger of TCF Bank and Michigan-based Huntington Bank, the stadium rebranded to Huntington Bank Stadium, where the band now has daily access. Located on the northern side of Huntington Bank Stadium, the 20,000 square foot band facilities include a rotunda entrance, a rehearsal hall, ensemble practice rooms, a music and drill library, recording technology, archives, instrument and equipment storage, uniform storage, locker rooms, and showers. The facilities also serve as the band’s administrative offices, conference space, and study space for members, as well as a location to display photos, artifacts, and other elements of the band's history. During performances at football games, the marching band is located in a partitioned section of the stadium seating at the base of the student section and level with the eastern end of the stadium field. This section of the stadium, known as the "Pride Pit", is framed by a backdrop labeled Pride of Minnesota and is connected directly to the indoor facilities via the stadium tunnels and indoor hallways.
Organization
Director The University of Minnesota Marching Band has had 19 directors, some of whom held the position at multiple points throughout the band's history. The director of the band at its inception was Neville Staughton, at the time the director of the Winona community band and a Lieutenant in the Cadet Corps. However, Gerald R. Prescott, who was granted a professorship at the university music department in 1932, was the first full-time faculty director of the marching band. The sixth director, Michael Jalma, is credited with writing the lyrics to accompany John Philip Sousa's Minnesota March, one of the university's popular school songs. One of the most influential directors in the history of the band is Dr. Frank Bencriscutto, who was responsible for initiating many of the band's current traditions, such as the annual indoor concerts, as well as arranging many of the works currently used by the marching band, including the current arrangement of the Minnesota Rouser.
O'Neill Sanford was the first African-American band director in the Big Ten or in any Predominantly White Institution when he joined in 1976.Grant, Richard - March to the Joyous, Raucous Beat of the Sonic Boom of the South. Smithsonian Magazine January 2017 He was the only historical African-American Big Ten director until Corey Pompey became director of the University of Wisconsin Marching Band in 2019.Johnson, Martenzie - Wisconsin’s Corey Pompey is the rare Black band director at a Power 5 school. Andscape, September 2, 2022
The current director of the University of Minnesota Marching Band is Dr. Betsy McCann, who graduated from the University of Minnesota and holds graduate degrees from the University of Minnesota and Northwestern University. She was named director of the band in 2016 after the previous director, Timothy Diem, stepped down following sixteen years with the band. Dr. McCann, having formerly acted as the Assistant Director of the marching band, currently serves as both the Director of Marching and Athletic Bands as well as the Assistant Director of Bands at the University of Minnesota. Dr. McCann is the first female band director in the Big Ten.Cox, Peter - U of M Marching Band director makes history, quietly. MPR News, August 29, 2016
Former director Jerry Luckhardt, who had previously served as the director of the Michigan Marching Band, now acts as the Associate Director of Bands at the University of Minnesota, and remains as an important faculty member in the marching band.
Following are those who have held the position of director of the band: Betsy McCann (2016–Present) Timothy Diem (2005–2016) Jerry Luckhardt (1997–2004) Eric A. Becher (1991–1996) Barry E. Kopetz (1986–1990) O'Neill Sanford (1976–1985) Frank Bencriscutto (1960-1976, 1985 - 1986) Gale Sperry (1957-1960) Ernest Villas (1950-1951) Merton Utgaard (1945-1946) Daniel Martino (1943-1945) Gerald R. Prescott (1932-1943, 1946-1950, 1951-1957) William A. Abbott (1931-1932) Michael Jalma (1920-1931) Karl Scheurer (1919-1920) J. Arthur Lampe (1918-1919) B. A. Rose (1898-1918) Charles W. Graves (1894-1898) Neville Staughton (1892-1894)
Assistant Director