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Stuck in Vermont: UVM Pep Band Episode
The University of Vermont Pep Band is the official band of Vermont Athletics. This ensemble of 60-80 student members performs regularly on and around campus, supporting UVM men's and women's varsity sports teams at home games and events (primarily basketball and hockey programs). They are a campus-wide ensemble that is open to all University of Vermont student musicians. Participating in the band is an excellent opportunity to be involved in some of the most exciting moments at the university during the school year!
When opportunities arise to support Vermont Athletics programs at post-season tournament games, the pep band travels to perform at away games with the teams. In recent years, the band has made appearances at NCAA "March Madness" Tournament basketball games in Storrs, CT, Columbus, OH, Buffalo, NY, Harford, CT, Milwaukee, WI, Greensboro, NC and South Bend, IN. In past years they've also performed at Hockey East and NCAA Hockey Tournament games in Bridgeport, CT, Boston, MA, and Washington DC.
Our Mission...
- To foster school pride and support UVM athletics teams through our musical performances at events.
- To inspire community pride in our performances, words, and actions.
- To provide high quality musical entertainment for the public and student body.
- To create an atmosphere where friendships, musical expression and education can flourish.
- To improve our members' musicianship, confidence, and proficiency on their instrument(s) through performance of many styles/genres of music.
Want to Join Our Band?
Are you an undergraduate or graduate student who plays a band instrument? Are you looking for a fun opportunity to continue to play? Do you ever get strong urges to hit a cowbell? If you answered "yes" to any of the previous questions we have a place for you in our band!
Reasons to Join:
- A terrific opportunity to continue playing your band instrument with other people in a fun, low pressure, and very supportive ensemble.
- Meet other students and make new friends with a common passion for playing music, UVM sports, and free pizza/swag.
- The pep band plays an important role in fostering school spirit at Vermont athletics and campus events. Be a part of it!
- Academic credit is available to interested members that register for the course (one credit per semester).
You may be thinking...
- I don't have enough time
- I'm not that good
- I don't own an instrument
- all of the above
NO PROBLEM!
- We ask for a commitment to a certain number of games, but we don't expect you to be able to attend every single one.
- Band members vary in their ability: some are music majors; some haven't played since high school. If you can read music and are reasonably competent on your instrument, you will be a valued member of the band! Auditions are only required if the number of new interested students on a particular instrument vastly exceeds what we can support in each section.
- The band owns a variety of the larger and most common band instruments, so they are ready to loan out to members. We can also help you arrange rental of an instrument if need.
Schedule and Rehearsals:
Rehearsals are held weekly on Wednesday evenings in the Gutterson rink from 7 p.m. - 8:45 p.m. while classes are in session during both fall and spring semesters. The schedule for band performance dates at games and events is provided to members each fall.
Contact information:
Email us at
pepband@uvm.edu, contact the directors Neil Wacek (
nwacek@uvm.edu) and Jack Curtis (
jdcurtis@uvm.edu) directly, or stop by the band area during a game or rehearsal.
