The MIT What?!? by Kim D. '09

<impressively deep=”” announcer’s=”” voice=””> </impressively></p> <p>AND Now, Ladies And Gentlemen, For Your Viewing Pleasure–</p> <p>The World-Famous, Nationally Renowned, Often Copied But Never Cloned, Unforgettable (No Matter How Hard You Try), Super Phat, Super Fly –</p> <p>It’s the One, the Only, MIT MARCHING BAND!”</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/crrazy_640x475.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/crrazy_640x475.jpg” width=”520″ alt=”I<3MITMB”></p> <p></p> <p>For some reason, people are often surprised to learn that MIT has not only <a href=”http://web.mit.edu/varf-ball/www/index.html” _cke_saved_href=”http://web.mit.edu/varf-ball/www/index.html”>a football team</a>, but also a <a href=”http://web.mit.edu/marching-band/www/” _cke_saved_href=”http://web.mit.edu/marching-band/www/”>marching band</a>. With a <a href=”http://www.youtube.com/user/MITmarchingband” _cke_saved_href=”http://www.youtube.com/user/MITmarchingband”>YouTube Channel</a>.</p> <p>This is, in fact, the 30th anniversary of both the marching band and the modern football team. Looking through this <a href=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/newspaperarticle.pdf” _cke_saved_href=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/newspaperarticle.pdf”>fascinating piece of history</a> from 1978, we see on page 12 that “the band enthusiastically played rousing tunes.” It also mentions the “infamous ‘Gimme an M, gimme an A, gimme an S…’ cheer,” which is a personal favorite of mine. Spelling out “Massachusetts Institute of Technology” takes a while. Nowadays, we often just pull out our ID cards and read off of them to avoid spelling mistakes like the one they mentioned in the article.</p> <p>One of the band members out there was Doug Pape ’81, also the trumpet player on the left in this photo:</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/ombponcho_640x440.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/ombponcho_640x440.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>He tells me that the MIT Marching Band grew out of a group from 2nd East. The guy in the shorts was also on the new football team as well, and gave up his halftime break to play in the band.</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/o2ndEastMarBand_637x480.JPG” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/o2ndEastMarBand_637x480.JPG” width=”520″></p> <p>They advertised around campus, and the MIT Marching Band was born!</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/oApproachingSteinbrenner_637x480.JPG” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/oApproachingSteinbrenner_637x480.JPG” width=”520″></p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/oMarBandInStands_640x477.JPG” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/oMarBandInStands_640x477.JPG” width=”520″></p> <p>Ed Kinney, the first band director, wrote to the current officers recently to tell us that this was a time when they had bake sales and sub sandwich sales to make money. They had to take the train back and forth to NYC to rent sousaphones. Mostly they played Sousa marches, which were easy to acquire, but they went all out on an arrangement of The Imperial March for $300. They eventually got red t-shirts.</p> <p>If I were to tell you about the next 17 years, I would basically be pulling things from <a href=”http://web.mit.edu/marching-band/www/oldmb/history.html” _cke_saved_href=”http://web.mit.edu/marching-band/www/oldmb/history.html”>here</a> and rearranging the words in an attempt to avoid blatant plagiarism. I totally recommend reading it though. It covers The Rise and Fall of the Smith Administration, The Triumphant Year 1 AB, The Year of Fascism, The Communist Revolution, and The end of the reign of James.</p> <p>Sometime after 1995, the band fizzled out, as far as I know. It doesn’t seem to have been for lack of creative advertising::</p><blockquote><br> Join the MIT Marching Band! Sign up NOW to join this prestigious, unforgettable MIT tradition that is our marching band. No experience necessary or assumed, satisfies HASS-D requirements, Institite LAB, (register for 21M666, Riots, Stikes, and Contemporary Marching Bands in Polynesian Society Today, (0-12-0), and you’ll be eligible to win 10 MILLION DOLLARS or a position as MIT MARCHING BAND AMBASSADOR TO THE ALIEN NATIONS! So sign up NOW, you may already be a winner! (NOTE: We’re not all as weird as Dennis; if you want to join a cool marching band but don’t care about being ambassador to alien nations, read on – we’d love to have you! – JS)</blockquote><p></p> <p>The next time The Band surfaced, it was due to the efforts of the amazing Bill ’07. He’s on the left in this picture. I’m next on the right, followed by <a href=”http://www.mitadmissions.org/Sam.shtml” _cke_saved_href=”http://www.mitadmissions.org/Sam.shtml”>Sam</a>. Also pictured are Caroline ’08, Ken ‘G, Michael ’09 (Current President), Diana ’08, and Matt ’09.</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/waterpolo_640x480.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/waterpolo_640x480.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>Bill rewrote the constitution, got us cool shirts, and drummed up (I guess trumpeted up, since he was a trumpeter, not a percussionist…) a bunch of members. The band’s been approximately doubling in size each year since Fall ’04. It’s not exactly your traditional marching band; the picture above is from a water polo match, at which we featured music from “Jaws”.</p> <p>Other awesome things in recent history include performing on ice,</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/on-ice_640x480.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/on-ice_640x480.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>Making our own incredible capes,</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/capesT_640x480.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/capesT_640x480.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>Buying Engineer’s caps,</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/tstop_640x338.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/tstop_640x338.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>Getting Out, as well as About,</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/statehouse1_640x480.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/statehouse1_640x480.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>And obtaining some Snazzy New Uniforms,</p> <p><img src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/andcrowd_640x480.jpg” _cke_saved_src=”http://web.mit.edu/kimfad/Public/rightsize/MarchingBand/andcrowd_640x480.jpg” width=”520″></p> <p>There’s even a colorguard
now!</p> <p>At least, so I hear. I, unfortunately, have become too hosed to partake of the band’s awesomeness these days. Although I do show up once every blue moon or two.</p> <p>For those of you interested in admiring the World-Famous, Nationally Renowned, Often Copied But Never Cloned, Unforgettable (No Matter How Hard You Try), Super-Phat, Super-Fly MIT Marching Band, there’s a Basketball game versus Emmanuel this Saturday. If you’d like to <i>play</i>, or get more info, give an email to the officers at marching_at_mit_dot_edu, or show up at a Wednesday rehearsal. And if you’re a prospective freshman, I’m guessing (but can’t promise) that the Marching Band will be leading it’s Amazing Tour of Campus during Campus Preview weekend again.</p> <p>Happy 30th, MITMB!</p><p></p>