Pregame show; Do you do them?

[animal]

Right now all the High School Marchers should be at or almost at mid-marching season and I hope all is going well. As for those in college, I hope all your half time shows have been “spot on”.

A little feedback please: How many of you do a pregame show? Now I am not taking about a few tunes in the stands I am talking about on the field doing a formation or two while playing. Think like Alabama, Mississippi State, or Ohio State.

If you do not do a pregame show, do you wish your band did or are you glad they do not?

THANKS>>>>>

[Greenepony]

Baylor's Golden Wave Band (BUGWB) has a series of events we do:

~1.5 hours before kick off we march of the bears, where we play fight songs for the team as they walk in off the buses (they practice on campus as our stadium is a couple miles off campus)
~45mn before kick off we do a lot show, where we play some spirit tunes and stand tunes for people tailgating
~20 mn before kickoff we do a pregame field show
This is followed by the Baylor Line (freshmen and our president) running across the field to welcome the team on the field

Our Pregame up till this year:
Entrance (the last year or two we did this we only went along the back line to save time, I didn't like it aesthetically but did work better logistically): www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rcfA1R9qwg&feature=related
Part 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyeNvXRJXrM
Part 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lil8YVqO5BI

Our Current Pregame:
(filmed by almun so you can hear them singing their parts in the background)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QANtPqqskSc
(the rest is the same as previous years)



Pregame is rough for me. It's very hard on my knees because of the run-on's (High knees) and the in direction marches. But it is a good way to get the crowd settled for the game and a reminder of our Motto (Pro exclesia. Pro Texana) so we pray, play national anthem, state song and then school song with a lot of spirit tunes in there.
I think all Big 12 schools do a pregame.

(my high school did not have a designated pregame if I remember)

[animal]

Greenepony, Thanks for the feedback.

In the early 70’s, when I went to high school, we did a pregame show for all the home games. Sometimes we would march out, other times we would do a scatter drill, get in “concert” formation and play a song or two from the previous home halftime show. Then, normally, we would face the opposing side, form their high school’s initials while playing their fight song, then we would turn, form our BHS on the field and play our fight song, While still in formation, we would do the National Anthem. That was the norm for almost all the schools.

University, well yes, we had a pregame complete with a sprit row or alley, horns on one side, everyone else on the other, playing the fight song as the football team ran out.

What I am trying to get is a feel as to how many High Schools are doing some sort of on field pregame and what the band members think about it. I personally liked it but I am certified band nerd before the term band nerd was even thought of.

So, I am trying to convince the powers that be that it is OK to have a pregame show before a high school game, other than Home Coming. Only one of the ten high schools, our high school football team plays against, has bands that do a pregame show. Most of the other bd’s thinks it is just more work.

Again, thanks

[claribeth]

My high school does a pre-game. We line up and step off every 4 beats while marching to a drum cadence. I can't really explain it, but every line moves a certain amount of steps and in the end we are in diagonals. We then play the "Cougar Rag" (from University of North Alabama's "Lion Rag"), the National Anthem, and the fight song as the team runs out. The danceline and colorguard march out with us and dance to the songs with pom-poms.

We are one of the only bands I've seen this year that have a pre-game show. I actually like it better that way. We don't have anything too elaborate, so it doesn't take that long to learn.

[altoclarinets]

In highschool, we didn't. I don't think UIL allows on- field pre-games. We did have a pretty ritualized in- stands pregame though:
1. Arrive in the stands. If during the playoffs, we marched in playing the fight song, Macarena March (like Texas Tech, not the 90s dance craze) and March Grandioso. During regular season, we marched in to a drum cadence.
2. Dance to 69 Diner (drum cadence).
3. As the team leaves the field at the end of warmups, play the fight song.
4. Occasionally we would play a stand tune or two here.
5. Play the Alma Mater. If the visiting team didn't bring it's band, play the other school's alma mater as well. We played a few out of state schools, so this sometimes happened.
6. Play the "Awesome Song" as the team lines up for run- through.
7. Run-through, to the fight song. No inflatable tunnels, just a different hand-painted banner every week. The football players would form a huddle, and a player would get a running start and jump up into the top.
8. The players line up, and we play the national anthem.
9. coin toss- as soon as the winner is announced, begin Shake Shake Shake (kickoff cadence)
10. If we receive, play first down cheer at the end of the kickoff play. Thusly began the game.

Here at Alabama, we do an on field pregame, of course- it begins by marching out to e.s. posthumus's Unstoppable. Then we form a block and countermarch to Yea Alabama and Eat 'em Up. The band then does the "Big BAMA Spellout" to the tune of Bammy Bound (medley of Goin' to Alabama with a Banjo On my Knee and I'm Alabama Bound), and plays the "Yea Alabama Cheer", which is similar to the introduction to the fight song. After this, we play the "Roll Tide Roll" cheer as we move to our spots in the giant UA for the National Anthem. We play the tag ending of the fight song, then drop to the ready for the flag presentation. Once it is over, we play the National Anthem standing still, then we have drill to Fleetwood Mac's Tusk. After an eternity of announcements and presentations, GNR's Thunderstruck is played over the loudspeakers and we move 16 counts to the team tunnels. The team comes out onto the field to the tune of Yea Alabama. Then we beat it back to the stands to try and get a good spot.

Edit: Important note- in some schools, the band will come in and place their personal effects (hatboxes, etc.) in the stands before marching in. Not so with either of the bands I have been in. My HS band warmed up outside of the stadium, and had large (20-hat) hatboxes and a plume case that we would go grab our hats from before halftime. Anything else you needed, you were expected to find a way to carry on your person. Most people held their flip folders in a lyre or put it over their shoulder on a shoestring, and kept extra reeds, chapstick, etc, in the uniform pockets. Here at UA, we march in wearing our hats, don't use music, and keep anything else we need or want in our pockets or on a lanyard under our jackets.