Help put the "Pride" back in "Pride of the Southland"

#1
volkayaker

volkayaker

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#1
An open letter from concerned alumni and friends of the Pride of the Southland Marching Band to The University of Tennessee, U.T. alumni, and Big Orange fans everywhere to help SAVE THE PRIDE OF THE SOUTHLAND

This letter, along with active links to video can be found at: Log into Facebook | Facebook

All of us in the Vol Nation come from different walks of life, but we all share an enduring love for the Pride of the Southland Marching Band and the sights and sounds of Neyland Stadium on crisp fall Saturdays. In defiance of the Volunteer Creed: “One that beareth a torch shadoweth oneself to give light to others,” the torch of the once-mighty Pride of the Southland has grown dim, and it no longer leads the way for others to follow. Rather, the Pride has declined to the point that it poorly imitates its peers [view links 1A and 1B, below]. Today it holds little resemblance to the band that became world famous because of the life’s work of legendary director Dr. WJ Julian – and now, many of us fear for the continued existence of our once-renowned band.

One student remembers when Gary Sousa, former director of the Pride of the Southland, expressed his disdain for “meddlesome alumni” when an alumnus pointed out a glaring error in a circle drill back in 1997. This was about the same time that the Pride of the Southland began to fall from its position as one of the premier band programs in the country to what it has become now – a shadow of what it was during the tenure of WJ Julian. The U.T. Band now relies upon electronic amplification because it can no longer generate adequate volume; it performs mostly recycled or visually unappealing shows lacking in complexity; and, it plays insipid, simplified music which lacks challenge or educational opportunities for its performers, while virtually neglecting a massive library of catchy, exciting music written especially for the U.T. Band to appeal to Tennesseans. Though this decline is chiefly due to directorial apathy and perhaps even gross incompetence, it also happened in part because the band’s Alumni Council directly contradicts its own bylaws - instead of representing alumni concerns, the Council effectively insulates the directors from these concerns. The “cheerleader” culture of the Alumni Council persists because it elects its own members.

The Pride of the Southland Marching Band was once the envy of big-time and aspiring collegiate programs across the nation; it was perhaps even able to alter the course of football games (the 1991 Sugar Bowl is one instance) [view link 2, below]. The band performed vast numbers of innovative and entertaining shows, including several different circle drills in any given year; it filled Neyland Stadium with the Big Orange Sound both on the field and from the stands; and, it had a rabid following among the U.T. fan base [links 3A, 3B, 3C,3D, 3E and 3F]. Sadly, this is not true anymore. The U.T. Band today must employ microphones and electronic amplification to be heard. While the current band's infamous non-musical staccato style (“Choppy Top” is a common moniker for “Rocky Top” these days) is intended to help to counter reverb bounce caused by amplification, it totally destroyed what was left of the traditional Big Orange Sound. New circle drills, which literally defined the Pride of the Southland throughout the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, have not been seen in Neyland Stadium for well over a decade. The selection and performance of music is so uninspired that there is almost never any fan response when the band plays any tunes other than “Rocky Top.” Furthermore, video evidence suggests that many members of the band today aren’t even playing their instruments much of the time. While these are just a few examples among myriad deficiencies, they’re enough for alumni and fans to begin to raise serious questions about why it must remain like this, and what can be done to fix it. Many of us remember exactly how good this band can actually be, and we’re demanding change – a return to the excellence and energy present during WJ Julian’s era, instead of merely paying lip service to it.

Had Gary Sousa and Don Ryder tackled their jobs and driven the U.T. Band with the same intensity and unreachable level of expectation as their predecessors, then there would have been no need for microphones and amplifiers, and there would have been no need to cover up the band's increasingly poor performance with prerecorded commercial music through the PA system. Watching the band today, it seems like the directors have replaced Julian’s attitude of “never good enough” with “that’ll do, let’s call it a day.” Don Ryder was lauded as having had one of the best high school bands in the nation, and that's exactly what he has created at U.T. today - a high school-quality band posing as the Pride of the Southland and coasting on the remnants of WJ Julian's legacy and vision. Here are just a few examples.
  • Woodwinds were marching out of step in the parade at this year’s Alabama game, many marchers were not even playing, and lines were disgustingly crooked [link 4].
  • Alabama's unamplified band was much louder than Tennessee’s amplified one.
  • The Ohio University “Marching 110” received more applause than the U.T. Band on our own home field, despite our show having honored the memory of our late Coach Pat Summitt.
  • A “Wizard of Oz” themed-show ridiculed some of the most gracious fans in the SEC, and carries the unfortunate distinction of being lambasted as one of the worst college marching band halftime shows of all time [link 5].
  • "Rocky Top" was misspelled as “Rocky TQD” on the field at Homecoming 2012, and continued to remain so for over two minutes [link 6].
  • The signature "T" through which the team runs collapsed at the Bowling Green game last year as half the band began to march off the field while the other half did not [link 7].
  • A consistent lack of musical quality when playing signature tunes like The Tennessee Waltz and our Alma Mater. Today, each is marred by the habitual playing of incorrect notes, playing out of tune, and playing with the same musical sensibilities as when they play Rocky Top - sensibilities that do not lend themselves to slower tempo ballads, especially when many players are over-blowing directly into a microphone [link 8, contrast with link 10].
These examples are completely inconsistent with top-tier university marching bands. Have we buried our heads in the sand so firmly that we think any continuation of the regime that allowed this to happen is OK? Do we pretend to think that WJ Julian would have thought this was acceptable in any way? We are not “meddlesome alumni” with nothing better to do. We are simply trying to do whatever we can do to reverse the decline of our band, restore it to relevance, and reestablish the almost-electric atmosphere that the Pride of the Southland long ago brought with it every single time it marched into Neyland Stadium [link 9]. Things must change, and they must change now!

After Gary Sousa was terminated from his position as Director of Bands, Chancellor Jimmy Cheek promised, in writing, to do a national search for the best-qualified director for the U.T. Band. This search did not happen. We haven't been given a reason why it didn’t happen, and we probably never will. Regardless, the U.T. Band continues to deteriorate, and the game day atmosphere in Neyland Stadium continues to suffer. We want to reverse this. The band's biggest critics should be its directors, not its alumni and fans. The Pride of the Southland once was and should again be the living, breathing soundtrack of Tennessee football, not background noise deserving of indifference or ridicule. We urge the University and the Chancellor to honor their promise to find the very best band director to lead the Pride of the Southland back to prominence. We urge the University to provide for a democratically elected Band Alumni Council to replace the current Alumni Council that appoints its own members. And we want to see and hear Neyland Stadium rock once again to the beat of a fully functional and full-power Pride of the Southland Band. We demand better. We deserve better. And so do our students, who are all Torchbearers toward the future!

We URGE YOU to demand excellence, and please accept nothing less! [links 2, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 3E, 3F, 9 and 10]

WRITE OR EMAIL TO:

Dr. Jeff Pappas
Director of the UTK School of Music
117K Natalie L. Haslam Music Center
Knoxville, TN 37996-4040
email: jappas3@utk.edu

Dr. Jimmy Cheek
Chancellor, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
500 Andy Holt Tower
Knoxville, TN 37996
email: chancellor@utk.edu

Dr. Lee Patouillet
Associate Vice Chancellor for Alumni Affairs
University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Tyson Alumni House
1609 Melrose Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37996
email: lee@utfi.org

Dave Hart
U.T. Athletics Director
P.O. Box 15016
Knoxville, TN 37901-5016
email: athleticdirector@utk.edu

VIDEO LINKS:
1A. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcOSgzEddmk
1B. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxhWyaD_SUQ
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myJxZo35BdY&t=15s
3A. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7fPCdKlDxM
3B. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fsSZZaFnAo
3C. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hq47NF4hRc&t=184s
3D. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gcqf-53bnEs
3E. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id41FcGVOGQ
3F. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts6MI-1xuZw
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT7KkkFdvI0
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idWnlcxjf4I
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x7ilIXJq-s
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Erl9dc6AdA0
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4u8D-bgdu4
9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9At5o_IF_t0
10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21N2Lwq5RCE

Never miss Chart Two.
 
Last edited:
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#2
#2
Needs to be more like Stanford band to connect more with today's youth. /blue font
 
#3
#3
Among many, many things in this post, I find at least one glaring double standard. Whoever wrote this mentions, as an example, that the Ohio band received more applause for their dancing on the field and whatnot. Yet when the Pride also does its little stupid dances to drum up applause from the same fans that enjoy it from Ohio's band, this post calls them imitators. Damned if you don't, damned if you do.

Side note, I guarantee that I hate Ryder more than anyone on this board or any other.
 
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#4
#4
I have to agree with you. I'm one of several co-authors of this letter, and I'm most definitely not a fan of the Ohio University band's style, but musically that band was good, they received substantially more applause than our own, and they did their wiggling well. I don't think the Pride should be wiggling at all, including the wiggling drum circle. The one time I saw us do it at halftime, I was angry, nauseated and tempted to get up and leave the stadium. I was worried about potential confusion by our including two bands from Ohio. The "imitator" reference was targeting the Pride's repetitive attempts to duplicate the Ohio State University band's animatronic shows. Sorry for any ambiguity.
 
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#5
#5
Not to concerned about the band. Y'all got a big head and now realize there's one thing that brings the people to games. I'd suggest y'all fall in line and hope things shake out for the best. GO VOLS
 
#7
#7
I think so too, but we didn't know who else to put! One hope is that when those two are gone, U.T. might get someone who might care more about game day atmosphere and U.T. traditions.
 
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Reactions: 2 people
#8
#8
volkayaker said:
I have to agree with you. I'm one of several co-authors of this letter, and I'm most definitely not a fan of the Ohio University band's style, but musically that band was good, they received substantially more applause than our own, and they did their wiggling well. I don't think the Pride should be wiggling at all, including the wiggling drum circle. The one time I saw us do it at halftime, I was angry, nauseated and tempted to get up and leave the stadium. I was worried about potential confusion by our including two bands from Ohio. The "imitator" reference was targeting the Pride's repetitive attempts to duplicate the Ohio State University band's animatronic shows. Sorry for any ambiguity.
Click to expand...

Again, damned if you don't, damned if you do. Ohio State has gotten major publicity for that type of show and the members of the Pride understand that that's what people online like and share. On top of that, we have a former Ohio State man making decisions. And honestly, I think he can do a much better job and should definitely have the head position.

This reads like the same old song and dance that comes around every two years after alumni see how rough it's gotten. The way collegiate bands perform these days has changed. That needs to be accepted by the former generation, myself included.
 
#9
#9
Forgetting all the extra stuff, the Pride used to be about precision and now they are not. The lines are not as straight, the circles are not as round. No need to really watch. Might as well be Pride of the Southland Concert Band.
 
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#10
#10
Anybody know what the song is called that they were playing close to the end of the third qtr, the fans were all singing? Kind of seemed like a Neil Diamond type song.
 
#11
#11
Yikes.

I'm still mad I didn't get a free CD of the music I helped record in 2003.

I also don't like that the band has NO digital media profile on the internet. No YouTube channel, no iTunes , nothing.

In my 4 years, 2002-2005, we had a LOT of recycled drill.
 
#12
#12
PotS said:
Yikes.

I'm still mad I didn't get a free CD of the music I helped record in 2003.

I also don't like that the band has NO digital media profile on the internet. No YouTube channel, no iTunes , nothing.

In my 4 years, 2002-2005, we had a LOT of recycled drill.
Click to expand...

100% agree. They take video of every game and just shove it up their asses. Why not make it available? Don't want the competition to be able to scout us for the next season?
 
#17
#17
OP,

I agree with you. The band quality is on the decline. It seems like they have the mindset of "let's just play Rocky Top 300 times and everyone will be happy."

Attachment #2 is the type of half-time show I remember. Thanks for posting.

It would probably have been wise to bring in someone like Ric Best but I doubt he'd be interested at this point. Still may be worth a call.
 
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Reactions: 1 person
#18
#18
Boca Vol said:
OP,

I agree with you. The band quality is on the decline. It seems like they have the mindset of "let's just play Rocky Top 300 times and everyone will be happy."

Attachment #2 is the type of half-time show I remember. Thanks for posting.

It would probably have been wise to bring in someone like Ric Best but I doubt he'd be interested at this point. Still may be worth a call.
Click to expand...

That show is fantastic. How many times was it performed? In Neyland, then travelling, then the bowl game?
 
#19
#19
Does it also upset y'all old guys that we do heel-to-toe marching now?
 
#20
#20
Also, I find it unfair that you're comparing a concert-style recording of the Tennessee Waltz to one played at the end of the first football game of the season, after 4 hours of playing, recorded from the side of the band on a phone. It's basically complaining by saying "WHY IS THIS CONCERT RECORDING BETTER THAN THE RECORDING ON A PHONE OF DRUMS, 2ND AND 3RD TRUMPETS, AND LOW BRASS"
 
#21
#21
The complaining about the T coming off the field. Again, it's the first game of the year doing pregame on a field you've never done pregame on. From the looks of it, that side of the T never heard the call for last time from the drum major. He finished strutting back too early and never made sure that the entire side of the stem heard the last call. Could have been because of acoustics or any number of things. Mostly, it's because it was the first time in a stadium where pregame is never marched.
 
#22
#22
Complaining about the march to the stadium based on video directly coming out of a 180°? Come on, man. First, a lot of the not playing happened at times where your job is to guide your line and come out of a ridiculous turn in as straight a line as possible. Second, there was a lot of not playing during rests. HOW DARE THEY DON'T PLAY WHEN THE MUSIC SAYS DON'T PLAY
 
#23
#23
Don't get me wrong. There are many issues. The director needs to be removed.

Just saying that logic is not being used. This is comparing first game stuff and a parade video shot from the location of a 180° turn to bowl game footage. Sure, there are mistakes. And there should be no mistakes. But come on, man.
 
#24
#24
if they would treating the alumni as assets instead of liabilities it would be a start in decreasing some of the criticism. Its the Dooley regime of music
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#25
#25
volkayaker said:
An open letter from concerned alumni and friends of the Pride of the Southland Marching Band to The University of Tennessee, U.T. alumni, and Big Orange fans everywhere to help SAVE THE PRIDE OF THE SOUTHLAND

This letter, along with active links to video can be found at: Log into Facebook | Facebook

All of us in the Vol Nation come from different walks of life, but we all share an enduring love for the Pride of the Southland Marching Band and the sights and sounds of Neyland Stadium on crisp fall Saturdays. In defiance of the Volunteer Creed: “One that beareth a torch shadoweth oneself to give light to others,” the torch of the once-mighty Pride of the Southland has grown dim, and it no longer leads the way for others to follow. Rather, the Pride has declined to the point that it poorly imitates its peers [view links 1A and 1B, below]. Today it holds little resemblance to the band that became world famous because of the life’s work of legendary director Dr. WJ Julian – and now, many of us fear for the continued existence of our once-renowned band.

One student remembers when Gary Sousa, former director of the Pride of the Southland, expressed his disdain for “meddlesome alumni” when an alumnus pointed out a glaring error in a circle drill back in 1997. This was about the same time that the Pride of the Southland began to fall from its position as one of the premier band programs in the country to what it has become now – a shadow of what it was during the tenure of WJ Julian. The U.T. Band now relies upon electronic amplification because it can no longer generate adequate volume; it performs mostly recycled or visually unappealing shows lacking in complexity; and, it plays insipid, simplified music which lacks challenge or educational opportunities for its performers, while virtually neglecting a massive library of catchy, exciting music written especially for the U.T. Band to appeal to Tennesseans. Though this decline is chiefly due to directorial apathy and perhaps even gross incompetence, it also happened in part because the band’s Alumni Council directly contradicts its own bylaws - instead of representing alumni concerns, the Council effectively insulates the directors from these concerns. The “cheerleader” culture of the Alumni Council persists because it elects its own members.

The Pride of the Southland Marching Band was once the envy of big-time and aspiring collegiate programs across the nation; it was perhaps even able to alter the course of football games (the 1991 Sugar Bowl is one instance) [view link 2, below]. The band performed vast numbers of innovative and entertaining shows, including several different circle drills in any given year; it filled Neyland Stadium with the Big Orange Sound both on the field and from the stands; and, it had a rabid following among the U.T. fan base [links 3A, 3B, 3C,3D, 3E and 3F]. Sadly, this is not true anymore. The U.T. Band today must employ microphones and electronic amplification to be heard. While the current band's infamous non-musical staccato style (“Choppy Top” is a common moniker for “Rocky Top” these days) is intended to help to counter reverb bounce caused by amplification, it totally destroyed what was left of the traditional Big Orange Sound. New circle drills, which literally defined the Pride of the Southland throughout the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, have not been seen in Neyland Stadium for well over a decade. The selection and performance of music is so uninspired that there is almost never any fan response when the band plays any tunes other than “Rocky Top.” Furthermore, video evidence suggests that many members of the band today aren’t even playing their instruments much of the time. While these are just a few examples among myriad deficiencies, they’re enough for alumni and fans to begin to raise serious questions about why it must remain like this, and what can be done to fix it. Many of us remember exactly how good this band can actually be, and we’re demanding change – a return to the excellence and energy present during WJ Julian’s era, instead of merely paying lip service to it.

Had Gary Sousa and Don Ryder tackled their jobs and driven the U.T. Band with the same intensity and unreachable level of expectation as their predecessors, then there would have been no need for microphones and amplifiers, and there would have been no need to cover up the band's increasingly poor performance with prerecorded commercial music through the PA system. Watching the band today, it seems like the directors have replaced Julian’s attitude of “never good enough” with “that’ll do, let’s call it a day.” Don Ryder was lauded as having had one of the best high school bands in the nation, and that's exactly what he has created at U.T. today - a high school-quality band posing as the Pride of the Southland and coasting on the remnants of WJ Julian's legacy and vision. Here are just a few examples.
  • Woodwinds were marching out of step in the parade at this year’s Alabama game, many marchers were not even playing, and lines were disgustingly crooked [link 4].
  • Alabama's unamplified band was much louder than Tennessee’s amplified one.
  • The Ohio University “Marching 110” received more applause than the U.T. Band on our own home field, despite our show having honored the memory of our late Coach Pat Summitt.
  • A “Wizard of Oz” themed-show ridiculed some of the most gracious fans in the SEC, and carries the unfortunate distinction of being lambasted as one of the worst college marching band halftime shows of all time [link 5].
  • "Rocky Top" was misspelled as “Rocky TQD” on the field at Homecoming 2012, and continued to remain so for over two minutes [link 6].
  • The signature "T" through which the team runs collapsed at the Bowling Green game last year as half the band began to march off the field while the other half did not [link 7].
  • A consistent lack of musical quality when playing signature tunes like The Tennessee Waltz and our Alma Mater. Today, each is marred by the habitual playing of incorrect notes, playing out of tune, and playing with the same musical sensibilities as when they play Rocky Top - sensibilities that do not lend themselves to slower tempo ballads, especially when many players are over-blowing directly into a microphone [link 8, contrast with link 10].
These examples are completely inconsistent with top-tier university marching bands. Have we buried our heads in the sand so firmly that we think any continuation of the regime that allowed this to happen is OK? Do we pretend to think that WJ Julian would have thought this was acceptable in any way? We are not “meddlesome alumni” with nothing better to do. We are simply trying to do whatever we can do to reverse the decline of our band, restore it to relevance, and reestablish the almost-electric atmosphere that the Pride of the Southland long ago brought with it every single time it marched into Neyland Stadium [link 9]. Things must change, and they must change now!

After Gary Sousa was terminated from his position as Director of Bands, Chancellor Jimmy Cheek promised, in writing, to do a national search for the best-qualified director for the U.T. Band. This search did not happen. We haven't been given a reason why it didn’t happen, and we probably never will. Regardless, the U.T. Band continues to deteriorate, and the game day atmosphere in Neyland Stadium continues to suffer. We want to reverse this. The band's biggest critics should be its directors, not its alumni and fans. The Pride of the Southland once was and should again be the living, breathing soundtrack of Tennessee football, not background noise deserving of indifference or ridicule. We urge the University and the Chancellor to honor their promise to find the very best band director to lead the Pride of the Southland back to prominence. We urge the University to provide for a democratically elected Band Alumni Council to replace the current Alumni Council that appoints its own members. And we want to see and hear Neyland Stadium rock once again to the beat of a fully functional and full-power Pride of the Southland Band. We demand better. We deserve better. And so do our students, who are all Torchbearers toward the future!

We URGE YOU to demand excellence, and please accept nothing less! [links 2, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 3E, 3F, 9 and 10]

WRITE OR EMAIL TO:

Dr. Jeff Pappas
Director of the UTK School of Music
117K Natalie L. Haslam Music Center
Knoxville, TN 37996-4040
email: jappas3@utk.edu

Dr. Jimmy Cheek
Chancellor, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
500 Andy Holt Tower
Knoxville, TN 37996
email: chancellor@utk.edu

Dr. Lee Patouillet
Associate Vice Chancellor for Alumni Affairs
University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Tyson Alumni House
1609 Melrose Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37996
email: lee@utfi.org

Dave Hart
U.T. Athletics Director
P.O. Box 15016
Knoxville, TN 37901-5016
email: athleticdirector@utk.edu

VIDEO LINKS:
1A. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcOSgzEddmk
1B. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxhWyaD_SUQ
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myJxZo35BdY&t=15s
3A. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7fPCdKlDxM
3B. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fsSZZaFnAo
3C. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hq47NF4hRc&t=184s
3D. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gcqf-53bnEs
3E. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id41FcGVOGQ
3F. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts6MI-1xuZw
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT7KkkFdvI0
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idWnlcxjf4I
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x7ilIXJq-s
7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Erl9dc6AdA0
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4u8D-bgdu4
9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9At5o_IF_t0
10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21N2Lwq5RCE

Never miss Chart Two.
Click to expand...

My heart is aching...
 
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