U Weekly. Serving The Ohio State University in Columbus Ohio

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By Bram Fulk

The Ohio State University Marching Band is in one of their busiest weeks of the year, and it doesn’t even involve playing a football game. Though it only kicked off a few days ago, the OSUMB concert “season” is preparing to come to a close with the traditional concert for the public this Saturday, Oct.27, at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium downtown.

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“The concept of having a concert with a marching band is somewhat unique [and] was started, I think, here at Ohio State a number of years ago,” says Dr. Jon Woods, Director of The Ohio State University Marching Band. “Most marching bands just march all season long, but we do have a concert season every year, and it’s generally as close to the Michigan game as we can get it so we have all the season’s music ready to play at the concert.”

Oftentimes kicking off Beat M*ch*g*n Week, this year the marching band’s Vets Memorial Concert is falling a bit early in the season, but that’s not to say their concert week’s schedule is any less hectic. Having spent Monday and Tuesday of this week rehearsing and “balancing and refining the band for indoor playing,” the OSUMB heads to Lima on Wednesday to perform two concerts: one for high school students in the afternoon and another for the general public in the evening. Then it’s back to Columbus and Vets Memorial for a recording session on Thursday, a kiddie concert for area school children on Friday, and finally, the big public concert at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

“So you see,” says Woods, “by the time we get to that main concert on Saturday and we have worked all week long, played the concert in Lima, played a youth concert, and done a recording session, the band is at its peak.”

Once they’re inside and not trying to reach the ears of 105,000 people, the band (all members of which audition on not only their marching but their playing ability each and every year) really demonstrates their fine musical abilities.

“We do make an adjustment to the sound of the band when we go indoors,” explains Woods. “You play at a louder volume outdoors, but we attempt to and are successful [at] bringing the band indoors and turning it into a very beautiful concert sound.”

Woods goes on to assure that “some of the best playing of the year occurs at this time when we review all of our music, and we really make sure we’re refining all of our playing, all of our dynamics, [and] having the band play as musically as we possibly can.”

On the playlist this year will be, without a doubt, all of the Ohio State school songs: Buckeye Battle Cry, Fight the Team, Chimes and Carmen, Hang on Sloopy, I Wanna Go Back, and Le Regiment (the music from Script Ohio). Also included will be all of this year’s show music. As always, the OSUMB has presented a series of unforgettable shows this year. They included a Latin Show, Russian Classical Music (featuring the Finale from Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony and the Russian Dance from Nutcracker), and a Southern Rock show consisting of “Sweet Home Alabama,” “The Devil Went Down To Georgia,” and “Freebird.”

The band’s also performing a Superheroes Show with music from Batman, James Bond, Robin Hood, Indiana Jones, and Superman. Now, as cool as that is, nothing ever comes close to outshining the OSUMB’s traditional Patriotic Show for the M*ch*g*n game. Revisiting their roots as an ROTC band, this year the OSUMB will be playing “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again,” “God of our Father” (the Marine Hymn), and “An American Salute” (a medley honoring all branches of service: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and the Coast Guard).

With a song list as varied as that, the OSUMB’s Vets Memorial Concert is really for anyone, not just Ohio State fans. But, as Dr. Woods points out, it’s an extra-special treat for anyone who really enjoys the sound of marching band music.

“For people who really love band music, this is a great opportunity to hear the band at its finest. The subtleties that we work on can sometimes get lost on the field, [but] when you’re indoors, you can hear everything.”

Photo Credit: Christopher Kung

Originally Published: October 24, 2007

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