Tag Archives: Trojan Marching Band

“Happy Game Day” Helmet Bump

Context:

The informant is a member of the Trojan Marching Band at USC. At the same time, the informant is a strong supporter of USC school spirit and marching band traditions, and is very knowledgeable about band “lore” and internal practices.

Text:

Before the marching band marches into the field to perform their pregame show, the band typically waits in the tunnel for around 20 minutes with little to do. During this break, members began a practice known as the “helmet bump.” This involves two members holding hands, congratulating each other with “happy game day,” and then gently bumping their helmets together. Over time, this developed into a game day tradition. During the 20-minute wait, members try to repeat the ritual with as many people in their section as possible, and it is said to help calm nerves before going onto the field to perform. As the tradition evolved, some sections also began giving short section speeches. This waiting period has come to mark the official start of game day for the marching band.

Analysis:

The “helmet bump” tradition illustrates how informal practices can emerge within structured performance environments as a way of managing emotions. Through repeated physical gestures and verbal affirmation, members reinforce interpersonal bonds while also reaffirming their shared identity as a section and as part of the larger marching band. As the practice evolves to include section speeches and wider participation, it also shows how folk rituals can gradually become institutionalized within a group, marking the transition from preparation time to the formal beginning of game day.

Trojan Marching Band Rights of Passage

CL: I was in the marching band [Trojan Marching Band], and it’s this big, big thing, especially being a first year, to have two sort of rights of passage or hazing or other traditions to kind of make your way fully into whatever section or whatever instrument you’re a part of. So the first one would be for trumpets, as I am a trumpet. Um, it would be a night called Carne, in which there would be this big feast, and then afterwards, um, all of the first years would go in, answer a couple of trivia questions, and then come out one by one, and effectively answer a few of those questions, and get water balloons thrown at them, completely drenched. And I remember at some point, there was like a slip and slide, a handful of other things, but it’s also, this is a place where you would either get, like, your name for the band, or you would get it at a later. This would be like the first time where you would actually get your name for the band or your band name in that sense.

Interviewer: What is a band name?

CL: It’s just kind of like a nickname for each of the other band members that you get your first year, either in that section or as part of the band, that then it’s like a thing that for your next year, the first year is try to guess everyone’s band names or try to figure out whose band name is whose, because in all the group chats, no one uses their actual name for like the first half of the semester. They just use their band name. But then, in addition to that, there is the every year there is the USCxUCLA game, and then the entire week, that’s called Fuck The Week. Um, every section sort of has this tradition where they go to Tommy’s chili cheeseburgers, the original Tommies, at least for us, it has to be the original Tommy’s. Every single time. And concoct a very vile brew. Um, then the first years would have to drink. And of course, there’s like a little bit more leniency now, but when you did do this, it was like, now you’re part of the section. Like, before it was like the first step that, like, welcome to the band, but then now you’re part of, like, this intersection family.

Interviewer: And it’s just a drink mixed with a bunch of different things?

CL: It’s root beer and chili…It’s not great.

Interviewer: So, do you have to drink the whole glass or just a sip?

CL: Uh, the whole glass. Um, but it’s bad because it gathers on the bottom…It’s not great. But it has been done for as long as I’ve known it, as well as my brother, who was in the band before me, and then everyone before him, like almost everyone’s done it.

Context: Discussing rights of passage in class, CL was able to describe to me their time in the Trojan Marching Band as a trumpet player. Then, going on to describe how one acquires a “band name,” as well as different initiation/hazing rituals that truly make one a part of the TMB family. These are generational traditions – and while they are less harsh and strict now, they are rooted in traditions that have been happening for years and years prior. AN experience shared through many past and current members.

Analysis: This interview shows how group tradition ( in this case, the USC Trojan Marching Band) is used to create a strong sense of belonging, even if they involve a bit of discomfort or embarrassment. Events like “Carne,” getting a band name, and drinking the chili/root beer mix at the original Tommy’s chili cheeseburgers act as rites of passage that separate first years from returning members and mark the moment someone fully becomes part of the group. Despite some of these traditions seeming closer to hazing, they’re framed more as bonding experiences, where everyone has gone through the same thing and can relate to each other because of it. The idea of band names is especially important because it creates a shared identity within the group. Overall, these traditions show how organizations build tight communities through repeated rituals.

Marching Band Shot Taking

Tweeeeeeeet, tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet, down, don’t die preformed

“Tweeee^eet tweet tweet tweet tweet down, don’t die”

I’m in band, I am a college student of legal age, who occasionally recreationally takes alcohol, in a safe, consensual manner (laughter) [consensual between you and the alcohol?] Yes. (laughter) [So where will you use this?] Often times I’ll use this right before parties. [So you’d use it at parties, do you think you would use it (this method of taking shots) at a non-band party?] Probably not because I think I’d look like a weirdo. [Who taught you this? Who did you originally learn it from?] The people who were in band before me, so like when I was a freshman they were seniors and it just gets passed down. [Would that be your section or just general band? (both the taking of the shot and the teaching of the shot] General band, but I learned it from my section. [Why do people in the band say this?] We say this before we run down on the field, we say “tweeeeet, tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet, down, don’t die” and then we would start going “aaaaaaa” and then running on the field, and then because another huge part of the band other than marching band and music is alcohol (laughs) we will also do that before we drink. [So what does the tweet stand for? How does that become a thing?} the tweet mimics the sounds of the whistle that Jake uses to cue us off (to go running onto the field).

-Interview with the Informant

The USC Marching Band became as well known and impressive as it is today thanks to its previous director, Arthur Bartner. His tenure at USC is marked by the current band for having an incredibly football team, manly mentality as well as a band that was rowdy and alcoholic. The identity of the band has shifted since Dr. Jacob Vogel, the current director, took the reigns, however the importance of alcohol for band members has not been completely erased. Band members spend much of their time together, especially during the fall football season and as a result they have created a folk group that transcends just being a marching band and is also a social group outside of band itself. They have band exclusive parties, drinking traditions, particular mixed drinks made special by each different section, all of these different social aspects that are considered a part of band despite not being practice or music related. Using the folklore of their band activities, such as being tweeted off before running onto the field, they extend the group’s activities to drinking, partying, and socializing outside of just the marching band practice and game hours.

In the Stone Signal

The informant is a third year in the USC Trojans Marching Band.

The gesture is, using my left hand to make kind of a fist, you’re holding it upright. And then you take the other hand, you point your pointer finger (laughs) and then you stick that finger in the hole that your fist makes. But it’s important that it’s standing up.

-Informant Describing the Gesture

[How do you use this gesture?] I’m in the band. The Trojan Marching band of USC, Fight On. [Fight on] And this (hand gesture) is what the director would make when he is trying to call this song. Often times you can’t really hear Jake (the director) over the crowd noise, so he’ll make the gesture so we can know what we’re playing even if we can’t hear him. And it’s passed down. I can turn around and make the gesture at someone behind me and they’ll get it and pass down the gesture (to people behind them). [For the studio audience here, what song does it signifying you’re playing?] It signifies that we are playing in the stone. [Do you know how it came to be?] I assume that the fist is meant to be the stone (laughs) and the finger is meant to be the sword in the stone, so that brings it together to the name-sword in the stone (laughs). [Finger in stone, got it]

-Interview with the Informant

The gesture is one of many that the USC Marching Band uses during games. Someone who is not in band would not know any of the hand gestures as they would have no use for them. The band has an incredible strong bond as a group, which is reflected in the oodles of folklore it contains. Even in the interview with this informant, there was a demonstration of the band’s unique atmosphere. The informant referred to Dr. Jacob Vogel as Jake, something that only band members second year or up are allowed to do. People outside of band probably don’t know its director by name (Dr. Jacob Vogel), and certainly wouldn’t know him by the name Jake.

Additionally, this gesture demonstrates how some folklore is spawned as a solution to a problem. In this instance, the problem that the band faces with communication. Because of how hectic the games, both football and other sports, are, they are unable to hear what the director calls next. They have to rely on each other to pass back the song called both verbally with hand signals and this reliance strengthens their bond as a folk group. The informant’s understanding of why the gesture is the way it is draws upon a well known legend of King Arthur. The informant says that the finger signifies a sword in the stone, the stone being made up of the other fist, a clear reference to the sword in the stone which is a central part of the King Arthur legend. The song’s title, In the Stone, does not reference a sword in the stone, but instead that the love described in the song was written in stone, a reference to the Biblical story in which Moses receives the ten commandments written on stone tablets. Whether or not the gesture is a reference to the sword in the stone or just a demonstration of something being in a stone, the reference to a different very widespread piece of folklore in a much more exclusive piece of folklore was worthy of note.

Trojan Marching Band: Old Navy, A Drumline Tradition

Nationality: N/A
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 30 April 2021
Primary Language: English

Background: The Trojan Marching Band is known as Hollywood’s Band for its many, many appearances in tv, movies, and advertisements. They have appeared in shows like Glee and Scrubs, movies like Forrest Gump, and programs like the Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards. Through these connections, the band has also taken part in various events for companies around the world. In 2014, Gap Inc. hired the TMB drumline to perform for the grand opening of their largest Old Navy store in Shanghai, China. The informant, CN, relays this story how he was told it.

Main Piece: Because the Trojan Marching Band has a particular brand and logo, most companies won’t want to pay for the rights for those or have the band’s uniform tied to their advertisements. CN tells me that most companies have them simply cover up their TMB logos with tape, wear their harnesses, or wear something entirely different. For the Old Navy performance, Gap Inc. supplied the drumline with specially made covers meant to go over both the uniform and harness that would blend in and bear the Old Navy logo instead of the TMB one (Pictures can be found Here). 

Drumline members in Shanghai playing for the Old Navy gig in 2014. Note that the Old Navy covers are over the drum harnesses, and seem to blend into the uniform.

After the gig, CN said that the drumline got to keep some of those covers, but that they didn’t have anything to do with them. That is until a member of the drumline had the idea to use one of the remaining Old Navy vests as a form of punishment for freshmen. At the start of Saturday morning rehearsals, which is at 7:34am, whoever is the last freshman cymbal player to arrive has to wear Old Navy for the entire Saturday morning practice. As time went on, Old Navy got dirtier and dirtier, but no one ever washed it. Now, CN says that the drumline still uses the Old Navy tradition to give incentive for freshman cymbal players to show up as early as possible. The cymbals often receive the most freshmen out of any subsection of the drumline, so it’s important to the upperclassmen to make sure the freshmen have a reason to show up on time. Certainly, wearing a dirty, smelly vest over your clothes early in on a Saturday morning can’t be enjoyable, so freshmen have to learn to plan ahead to avoid it.

Context: Old Navy is a piece of the TMB’s history in that it marked a drumline trip to China for a big advertisement gig, but it also appears regularly through the Old Navy tradition. Every Saturday from 7:34am to 10:00am the TMB practices, even on game days, and punctuality is paramount for these early morning rehearsals.

Thoughts: I believe that Old Navy is used primarily for humiliation to teach freshmen “to be early is to be on time.” By CN’s account, the smell isn’t really that bad and the thick cover can help to prevent a new cymbal player from accidentally pinching their skin and clothes between the cymbals. Humiliation as a driving force can push freshmen to wake up earlier than their peers and spark a sort of competition of punctuality. 

Annotation: Band Bangs the Drums in Shanghai https://studentaffairs.usc.edu/usc-band-bangs-the-drums-in-shanghai/