What it’s like to be a tuba player in the Rutgers Marching Band

At High Point Stadium, they’re on the field bringing their all, celebrating the wins and grieving the losses. But we’re not talking about the football team. We’re talking about the marching band.

We hear them, we see them and we watch them perform on the football field. But how much do we really know about the inner workings?

The Tab spoke with freshman William McDuffie who plays the tuba in the band.

What is auditioning for the marching band like?

Ever since Rutgers has joined the Big Ten, the marching band has started auditioning members. Each section varies based on competitiveness. For instance, the drumline is known to have much more intense auditions and many more competitors in comparison to the tuba and trumpet sections.

What is the typical practice schedule and routine?

Most of the students in marching band are enrolled in the Mason Gross School of the Arts and they practice daily. I, on the other hand, am not in Mason Gross, so I can only practice when the marching band schedules practices, which are for two hours every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and all day Saturday.

Since we’re now in the Big Ten conference, we as the marching band have a lot more pressure to deliver the highest quality performances. Our director teaches us a new show every week, so during practice we first learn the choreography and our designated spots on the field, then run through the song multiple times and then finally combine the two.

But once game day arrives, we have to be at the stadium five hours before kickoff. And once the game ends, we have an after-show. If we win, we play the alma mater, and whether we win or lose, we go onto the field to play ‘Loyal Sons.'”

With all of this strenuous work, what are the perks of being in marching band?

Well, we get to move in a day early and go to all of the football games for free. As a freshman, I’ve gotten to meet a lot of people that I normally wouldn’t have met. I’m blessed to be able to perform with them in a massive stadium in front of such a large audience.

It also doesn’t hurt that we get paid. If you’re enrolled in Mason Gross as a freshman and also participate in marching band, you get paid. If you’re not in the Mason Gross School, then you get paid starting your sophomore year, which then continues throughout your marching band career at Rutgers.

What is the hardest and most frustrating part about being in marching band?

With new material to learn weekly, it can be very easy to lose focus, commitment and motivation. It’s definitely exhausting to learn a new show and material every week, and it’s nerve-wracking to perform in front of thousands of people with such fresh material.

Back in high school, we had a setlist with the same recurring musical numbers and choreography for every single game and never had to constantly re-teach ourselves performances. It’s also frustrating how we don’t yet measure up to the other Big Ten schools’ marching bands, like Ohio State or Michigan. The marching band here is definitely improving each year, but I think we’re overlooked by the student body and the Big Ten Conference as a whole.

William said despite the strenuous schedule and all of the hard work that goes into marching band, if given the chance to do it al over again, he wouldn’t hesitate to sign up.

“Rutgers marching band is an experience of a lifetime.”