Home » January/February 2011 » Publisher's Letter » "Rah-Rah" to College Bands

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"Rah-Rah" to College Bands

Photo courtesy of the University of Hawaii Rainbow Marching Band
Posted January 2011

Happy New Year! Hope you had a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. Having just moved from California to Ohio, we are experiencing winter for the first time in 12 years. Our kids have built snow forts and a snowman, gone sledding and even enjoyed the wonder of a white Christmas.

For me, however, visions of Pasadena danced in my head. I missed the excitement in the air, the colorful street banners and the thousands of tourists donned in their favorite collegiate sweatshirts during the week leading up to the Tournament of Roses Parade and Rose Bowl Game.

Although I personally missed being in the Rose Parade grandstands this year, Halftime Magazine was there to cover it all—from the new high school participants to the lucky college bands. To relive the magic, check out “The Granddaddy of Them All,” our 4th annual Tournament of Roses photo coverage.

Halftime Magazine also had the chance to catch up with all of the other eight BCS Bowl bands. The lineup presented some surprises and some old favorites. “Bowl-A-Rama” covers all the highlights, from Stanford’s controversial lack of controversy to the University of Connecticut’s debut to Ohio State’s typical high-class performance.

Finally, as this issue commemorates college bands, we wanted to take a moment to acknowledge a non-BCS band that made the headlines last month in, of all places, The Huffington Post, an Internet newspaper usually known for its political commentary. On Dec. 17, The Huffington Post linked to a video of the University of Hawaii Rainbow Marching Band’s season opener performance, which featured a stick figure kicking a football into the end zone for a field goal.

The clip was taken from the University of Hawaii halftime performance on Sept. 2, 2010. The show, “Rah-Rah,” also included “Hawaii 5-0” and “This is the Moment” from “Jekyll & Hyde.” “Being the season opener, we wanted to energize the excitement and spirit of the football game and thought that this animation would be a great way to represent that idea,” says Keith Higaki, Hawaii’s director of marching bands.

And so I say, “Rah-Rah” to you, University of Hawaii, and to all the collegiate bands. Watching your spirit and enthusiasm this season leaves a warm place in my heart. Until next year …

Musically Yours,
Christine Ngeo Katzman
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

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