As a member of the Marching Illini, I have been able to be very active in Illinois athletics. This season, that included a trip to Pasadena to perform in the Rose Bowl Game. The members of the band put a lot of time and effort into creating an exciting environment at the games this season and deserved the trip just as much as the players did.
We only needed to polish our halftime show “Stairway to Heaven” because we had already learned it for a previous Illinois football game. The band met in Champaign on Thursday, December 27 for rehearsals and meetings. The purpose on these rehearsals was not only to perfect our halftime show, but to build up stamina for the five mile Rose Bowl parade.
Given the short scheduling time-frame, the trip arranged for the Marching Illini was planned very well. Our schedule always had us going somewhere and always had us doing something; this wasn’t a bad thing though. The band spent four nights in California, and during this time we had two rehearsals, marched in three parades, made appearances at three pep rallies, performed our pregame and halftime show in the Bowl, and spent a half day in both Disneyland and Universal Studios.
On New Years Day the band woke up at to 4:00 am to eat breakfast and leave for the beginning of the parade route. Marching in the parade was an amazing experience. I have never marched a route as long or as well attended as the Rose Bowl parade. I was amazed to see and hear so many Illinois fans cheer us on while we marched past them.
When the parade was over, lunch was waiting for us. We all went to an open park and had a picnic with some of the other bands that had performed in the parade. During this time floods of text messages came to the other band members and me and from friends saying they had seen us in the parade. After lunch, buses took us to the stadium.
Outside of the stadium there was a pep rally for Illinois fans that we stopped at and played a few songs. After that, we finally headed into the stadium. Pregame went off without a hitch (as far I could tell from the field), and our halftime show seemed to be very well received by the crowd.
Just like all the other fans at the game and at home, the Marching Illini experienced that game with a multitude of emotions. Hopes stood high even in the fourth quarter as the band and the Illinois fans chanted, “we believe.” Even with the Illinois loss I was very happy to see the game in person and watch our amazing team compete in the first Rose Bowl of my lifetime.
As we left the stadium that night some University of Southern California fans said “good game” and told us that our show sounded great. Even the next day when we visited Santa Monica pier, a couple overheard us talking about the game and complemented our performance of “Stairway to Heaven.”
I would like to thank not only the team for a great season, but also The University of Illinois Athletics Department. They accommodated the band’s requests all season, especially for the Rose Bowl. They recognize Marching Illini as a huge factor in creating an exciting environment for the team and their fans. This atmosphere helped produce the success we had this season. The athletics department made this trip happen for the Marching Illini.
Guest author Thomas Carley is an Electrical Engineering major at the University of Illinois and has played mellophone in the Marching Illini for three years. He can be reached at prime38@gmail.com.
Photo by Kelly O’Boyle. Used with permission.
Tags: rose bowl
