As we progressed through the season, our sections have done an incredible job in maintaining the spirit of the band and welcoming so many new members into the organization. Our wonderful section leaders have put together blurbs to update you all on the status of the band!
Hey alumni! The Flutes had a flamazing year! We continued Flalentine’s, this year going back to the brilliant venue of Willard Straight helping to raise money for local charities. We ended the spring semester with a flovely flute formal at the one and only Ithaca Applebees, and we took a bunch of flotos in our most flancy attire. Auditions and first night were super flenergetic with all of our new members! Performing again at CU Downtown for the first time since fall of 2019 was flectacular and it was great to play for the Ithaca community. During the marching season, we were able to flute-up so many people since the football team scored so much! The Flutes also got a new Section Crest courtesy of the flovely drumline’s brilliant artistic skills. We ended our season in NYC marching the Sy Katz parade and playing at the Cornell Club!
The Clarinets had an awesome semester marching and hanging out with all of our members (new and old)!! We welcomed many new members in the first few weeks of the semester and watche
d Rank Z Fails, Flaminoes, and random high school projects. We kept our winning streak for the scavenger hunt up and got cookies for the home game against Harvard as our prize. On the field, we continued our traditions of breaking our pelvises, squatting when the team scores, and making pie for the last home game. We had an incredible season going on all three away trips this season (first time since 2019!) and parading through New York City for Sy Katz where we saw many of you cheering us on. Back home, we renewed our vows with the flutes, watched a lot of Taylor Swift music videos, and painted along to a Bob Ross video. We look forward to playing with you again at Homecoming and seeing you on away trips next fall!
Hot damn! What a semester it has been for the Saxes, aka the GREATEST section in the ivy-league (I mean come on, the drum major is a sax after all)! We had the privilege of welcoming a truly incredi
ble batch of new members this year during auditions, including a record-breaking number of people who had never played the sax before (and I must say, they’ve been sounding awesome since day 1!). The semester continued on strong with first night and special rehearsal, letting new and old members alike bust out some killer dance moves in true sax fashion (parade for the barbz!!). At the Stewart Park picnic, we created our usual sax pyramid, and this marked the 20th year of this tradition; not only that, but we were able to do it again with so many alums at our first REAL homecoming since 2019 
Outside of our minty-cocoa filled rehearsals, we’ve also been as quirky and tight-knit as ever, enjoying some not-so-productive Work Wednesdays, good eats, and also a whole lot of Glee (oof, now I’ve lost the glame). We’ve been a fan favorite at games as well, playing a lot of new student-written cheers (we’ve even got a bit with the drumline now!) and also giving Ryan Lombardi a sax hat at long last. Beyond this, we had three sax-tastic away trips to Brown, Princeton, and most recently Columbia for our first Sy Katz parade since 2018, CRAZY! As good as the section has sounded this semester though, I’m most happy that our silly goofy sax family has grown bigger, it truly warms my heart <3 It’s been really touching both to see that the seniors have stayed so close after 4 years, and to see the new members start to form that same bond with each other. Every time I hang out with this rag-tag group of saxophonists, I am reminded of just how lucky I am to be surrounded by the best section in the world
This year the Horns continued to recover after having after a couple of hard covid year
s. We introduced four new members into our section after having 1-2 freshmen per year, and for the first time since 2019 everyone in the section got to meet all our alumni at homecoming as well as at away events like the Sy Katz parade. Additionally we made sure to preserve traditions like pranking each other with chicken wings in our bells, our love for Waluigi, and chanting at the end of rehearsal in addition to new rehearsal traditions like duck duck goose. We have also started to play bone cheers after we enjoy our third quarter snacks at football games. We are excited to keep up the spirit and have another great year!
From First Night and Homecoming to Sy Katz, the Big Red Trumpets had an incredible
year. We added an outstanding cohort of freshmen to our ranks, and continued to represent as the best section in the Ivy League. We added a new rank to keep up with our rapidly growing section, and had each rank filled to the brim with members and spirit throughout the entire season. Bus 7 carried us to Brown, Princeton, and Columbia, and with us, we brought energy, laughter, and some pretty sweet melodies. In addition to the marching band, our presence frequently dominates the pep band, where the Trumpets collectively have the most points by a long shot. Outside of our regularly scheduled band events, the section is closer than ever. We study, cook, stargaze, and make marvelous memories along the way. Catch us at Homecoming next year, on any of our away trips, or at home in Ithaca anytime! You’ll be sure to feel our infectious energy.
Thanks to our dedication to taking calcium supplements, we were 
able to strengthen our section this year with a fat, healthy class of new Bones! This year we celebrated our most normal year yet, which included an absolutely bone-ful GRAND BONECOMING. We played some new cheers, including Wellerman and CBat (featuring the horns), and generally had moderate to great attendance at all rehearsals and games. (Music rehearsal doesn’t count as rehearsal, of course). For the second year in a row we will be losing a large senior class, but da bones are in good hands and are ready for a great spring semester!
To our many adoring fans, you’ll be happy to know that ninja Pe
rcussion has been killing it this year! Everyone pitched in to make this year something truly special. None of it would have been possible without the hard work and fearless leadership of our subsection leaders, as well as hard work of many others! Together we did a whole heck of a lot! We took the opportunity to go bowling, apple picking, pumpkin picking, paintballing, and of course watched many movies and shows! Each of the new members are wonderful and it was a joy bringing them into the fold of the section this semester! Now, on the field, we brought the hype with some fun parts, sick visuals, and a kick-butt drum break! Those weren’t the only fun things we added as we also brought in some new cheers! (You know it’s a hype cheer when the saxes want in on it too!)
Fall came and went too quickly, but that’s part of what makes it so special. Once again, we’ve been killing it this year, and we’re excited to see where the future takes us.
Until next time,
Respectfully, the Drumline.
The Guard had a fantastic season! In addition 
to performing four super fun shows, we ate many snacks, including but not limited to, brownies, cookies, summer rolls, bean dip, and even a whole cake! We were thrilled to visit Brown, Princeton, and Columbia and most excitingly, for the Colorguard, this year was everyone’s first Sy Katz parade! I think it’s safe to say we had a blast parading through and performing in New York City! We even welcomed a new guard move to our repertoire, the Heather’s 3. We hope everyone is doing well and we cannot wait to see you all next season for Homecoming and at our away trips!
Much glove,
The Colorguard <3
The Tubas had a fantastic marching season! We welcomed a
n awesome group of new tubae who will surely carry on the spirit of the section. At rehearsal, we enjoyed throwing around frisbees, plastic balls, field hockey balls, or whatever other aerodynamic distractions we could find while the rest of the band learned drill. We certainly startled some people at Tuba Halloween after climbing 161 steps to the top of the clocktower, where we chimed 13 times and played such classics as Alma Minor and Minor Moose. By the end of the season, our left shoulders were as strong as our spirits marching at the front of the Sy Katz ’31 Parade. Until Homecoming 2023!
It was so wonderful to see you at the Sy Katz Parade yesterday! Though we’re approaching the end of the year, there’s more to look forward to - get excited for Phonathon 11/29-12/2 from 7:00-9:00pm (current band members will be calling from their phones, so the area code may not be 607) and band notes! The Class of 2023 danced to senior song “I Lived for the Music”, stepped out to sing Alma as olds, and had an amazing senior concert!
We are overjoyed to have had so many alumni on the field with us on Saturday! We hope to see you again soon. The historians will be uploading photos to Cornell Big Red Marching Band (smugmug.com).
8/20 First Night
9/23 @8:00pm Homecoming Fireworks & Laser Light Show (Homecoming – Alumni, parents, and friends | Cornell University)
Big Red Bands Alumni Block Quality Inn at 356 Elmira Rd in Ithaca $129 +tax. If you would like to book, please call 607-272-0100 before Sept 16th.
9/24 @11:00am (tentative time) Band Alumni Luncheon RSVP at https://forms.gle/SRu5e88xdEN2EM4L6
9/24 @2:00pm Yale University *Homecoming Game
10/7 @7:00pm Harvard University
10/15 @1:00pm Lehigh University
10/22 @12:30pm Brown University (away)
10/29 @1:00pm Princeton University (away)
11/5 @1:00pm University of Pennsylvania
11/12 @1:00pm Dartmouth College
11/19 @1:00pm Columbia University/Sy Katz Parade (away)
We’re so glad you could join us back on the hill for Reunion! We really enjoyed meeting and parading with you.
We are so excited to be welcoming you back for Reunion! The Big Red Bands Luncheon will be Saturday June 11th from 11:30am-1:00pm at the Fischell Band Center. If you’re joining us, please fill out this google form. Performance itineraries are as follows
Thank you for your continued support and a wonderful Giving Day!
Giving Day is tomorrow Wednesday 3/16/2022! Join us for some of our favorite songs from 7:30-8:30pm at our livestream https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUQdB8rdHpk! #RememberTheBand
Hey All!
My name is Skyler Krouse and I am the current President of the Cornell University Indoor Drumline. For those of you who don’t know, the CUID is a competitive percussion ensemble that performs a marching floor show featuring both a front ensemble and a battery in the New York State Percussion Circuit. This year, we are delighted to be competing Through the Ages, a musical traversal of time that takes its audience from the Ice Age to the Modern Age in a dynamic and engaging composition that is sure to delight all. Each act features a different musical style that matches the age it is representing with exciting visuals to match.
Last weekend, we competed in our first competition at Hilton High School in Hilton, NY and took home First Place with a score of 59.9! We are eagerly practicing for our next competition on March 19th at ESM High School in East Syracuse, NY. Wish us luck!
Much glove,
Skyler Krouse ‘23
Hi All!
This is Aiden and Zakir, the 2022 Pep Band Managers. We had an early January election, despite that setback, everything is running fairly well. The semester started slowly while arrival tests and virtual classes kept us to limited numbers at limited events, but after those first two weeks, we are up and (almost) fully running! We have had amazing attendance at all of our events and have been sounding pretty good, in our, potentially biased, opinion.
While Cornell’s restrictions have lifted slightly, allowing us to perform at our standard 51 members for men’s hockey and at a variety of other events, some other universities have not eased in the same way. We were able to add a day trip to Colgate to our planned two overnight trips, the first to Union and RPI, the second to Quinnipiac and Princeton. Unfortunately, both of these trips had to be canceled since Union, RPI, and Quinnipiac all still have restrictions in place. We were fortunate to fit in a day trip to Princeton which was super fun!
So far we have cheered on men’s and women’s hockey and basketball, and we finally got to a wrestling match! We’re getting ready for playoff season as the Men’s Basketball team has reached the Ivy Tournament and will be playing Princeton in the semi-final, and the Men’s hockey team is looking to dash Colgate’s hopes in their quarterfinal series. While hockey has home ice and the backing of a Lynah that is back to full force, the basketball team, as well as half of the band, will be shipping up to Boston. We’re getting ready to pep the heck out of both events, Let’s Go Red!
As the weather gradually improves we’re getting excited about playing at other spring events. We look forward to playing at lacrosse and baseball games and taking opportunities to cheer on some more unique sports as well. The semester so far has been fun and the rest of the season is brimming with potential! That’s all from us for now!
Humbly yours,
Aiden Thomas and Zakir Ahmad ‘23
Hey Alumni!
My name is Bella Burgess and I’m the 2022 Head Manager for the Big Red Marching Band. I am a junior majoring in Global and Public Health Sciences in the College of Human Ecology and minoring in Healthcare Policy and French from Purcellville, VA. I am a member of the clarinet section and a former clarinet section leader. I am so excited to be leading the band this year alongside our 2022 Drum Major, Zack Kozma.
We have big plans for this year! This spring, we will perform during Cornell Days, and host a Spring Concert in the commons for the first time since 2019! This fall we will travel to Brown, Princeton, and Columbia for the first time in four years! It will be the entire band’s first marching band trip to these schools and first Sy Katz Parade. After hearing so many of your stories about the Sky Katz parade I couldn’t be more excited for the band to attend and celebrate the 50th anniversary of the parade.
Our fundraiser involving the previous uniforms is finally coming to fruition after much hard work and dedication from many previous Head Managers and Uniform Chairs. I am so excited to give these uniforms a new life and share the special memories they hold with bandies past and present. Stay tuned for more updates!
Additionally, we recently split the Philanthropy Coordinator and Diversity Chair position into two separate positions: Philanthropy Coordinator and Diversity Chair. Zack and I are excited to continue promoting diversity and inclusivity within the band and making the band a welcoming and comfortable environment for all Cornellians. We have continued to receive inquiries about joining band all year and have welcomed a handful of new members already this semester.
I hope to see many of you this June at reunion and this fall at Homecoming and on our away trips. Fingers crossed we will be able to play together once again! If you haven’t already follow the BRMB instagram page, and facebook page to stay up to date with what’s going on in the BRMB!
Go Big Red!
Bella Burgess ‘23
Hey Alumni!
My name is Zack Kozma and I am your 2022 Drum Major! I am a junior in CALS studying Ecological and Evolutionary Biology with a minor in Plant Biology. Before taking the podium, I spent time on the field and in the stands playing saxophone alongside the best section in the Ivy League. Prior to that, I was the drum major for my high school marching band in Randolph NJ. Outside of band, I am an undergraduate researcher in the Gandolfo lab focusing on paleobotany. I hope to continue research after my time at Cornell by pursuing a Ph.D. in wildlife conservation.
Bouncing back from 2021, a year still recovering from the impacts of COVID, we have had high energy and great experiences. We started off strong with a parade around the Arts Quad in celebration of Mardi Gras and our mascot Touchdown’s new Mardi Gras outfit. We played some jazzy tunes including the “Saints go Marching” cheer and “Friend Like Me”. In Cornell spirit, we also played MYOC and NCFS, to celebrate Big Red. In preparation for events in the near and distant future, we have rehearsals planned to review not only our favorite songs in the folder but also songs that might need a little more attention. These will be kicked off with a rehearsal the day before Giving day to get our members and you all excited for our highly anticipated Livestream! After Giving Day we are set to perform for Cornell Days and Spring Concert. If you are in Ithaca or around during those events definitely stop on by, say hi, and join us in celebrating Cornell and our band!
Looking towards the fall, September 23-24 is Homecoming! This will hopefully be our first full Homecoming since 2019 so I hope to see you all there, celebrating our school and coming back home! In the fall we will be traveling to Brown, Princeton, and Columbia. This will be the full band’s first time attending these away trips and we could not be more excited. While I am excited to get the chance to see family back in Jersey when we visit for the Princeton game, I am personally very excited about the Colombia trip. Parading down 5th avenue has always been a dream, especially with it being the 50th year of the Sy Katz parade. We have a lot of exciting events coming up and I hope to see as many of you as possible whether that be away or in Ithaca.
Go Red (Dammit)!!!
Zack Kozma ‘23
Hey Alumni!
My name is Justin and I’m a junior studying Nutritional Sciences in the College of Human Ecology. I’m a member of the clarinet section and a former section leader and fundraising chair. My name is Megan and I’m a junior studying the ethics of silence and Information Science in the College of Arts & Sciences. I’m a member of the flute section and a former secretary, fundraising chair, and uniform chair. We’re so excited to be your 2022 Alumni Relations Chairs!
Giving Day is March 16th and we’re happy to be bringing back the livestream concert! We have had an incredible year getting back on the field and sharing our Big Red spirit! Help us #InvestInTheFuture at Give to Big Red Band | Cornell Giving Day 2022. Your support keeps the music alive #RememberTheBand!
Please feel free to reach out to us at jyh33@cornell.edu and mec326@cornell.edu – we want to hear your stories! We look forward to meeting you and your return to the hill! Go Big Red Go!
Flove,
Megan Chang & Justin Han ‘23
…and now, presenting the only REAL Band Notes in the Ivy League!
