The ISU Sycamore Basketball Band is comprised of brass, woodwind, bass guitar, and percussion students from across campus. Members are chosen through an audition in the Fall semester and perform at Men’s and Women’s home basketball games at the Hulman Center, and other special events.

To be eligible to participate in the Sycamore Basketball Band, you must:

• Be a full-time ISU student in good standing with the university.
• Enroll in the Basketball Band course upon successful audition.
• Have a flexible evening schedule to attend athletic events.
• Enthusiastic spirit and pride for the Blue & White!

Each member of the Sycamore Basketball Band receives an exclusive uniform jacket from ISU Athletics and financial compensation for performing with the group over the entire season. The group rehearses in preparation for performances at the beginning of fall and spring semesters only, with mid-season rehearsals scheduled as needed. The group also travels with the teams to Missouri Valley Conference Tournaments in St. Louis, MO and Moline, IL. These are typically in early- to mid-March. If either team qualifies for the NCAA or NIT tournaments, the Sycamore Basketball Band performs for those games as well. These trips are “all-expenses paid”.

2023-2024 Auditions Process

The Sycamore Basketball Band wind and bass guitar player auditions are due at 6:00 pm on Friday, October 13, 2023 via the online form submission at the link below. Audition videos should contain an uncut video of you playing March On! (X to the end) and the Sir Duke excerpt. Upload your uncut video to YouTube and make sure the file is marked 'Unlisted". Marking your video as unlisted is extremely important to preserve the privacy of your audition. Make sure to include the link in the registration form. Please do not face directly into the camera when recording your video.

Drum auditions will be held in person in Landini CFPA RM 159 starting at 5:45 pm on Friday, October 13, 2023. Students interested in playing the drum set should fill out the registration form below, skipping the “Video Link” option. Auditions will consist of students performing on drum set with recordings of pop-tunes from a variety of genres and eras. Please contact Prof. Rodriguez to receive more information and drum set playing requirements if you are interested.

Audition Registration Form and Music

• Audition Registration Form
• Audition Music

Repertoire Book

Prof. Rodriguez has BIG PLANS related to arrangements that the ensemble will undertake in addition to our ISU school song classics. At each rehearsal, the group will add 3-4 new tunes to the “book”. This will afford the group with lots of options to entertain the crowd in a major way! These musical arrangements span a variety of genres and eras, all specially designed for MAXIMUM entertainment value! Due to the professional nature of this ensemble, members will be expected to be at all rehearsals and arrive prepared to rehearse the new tunes. Below is a preview of some confirmed selections:

• Brooklyn by Youngblood Brass Band
• Take On Me by a-ha
• Final Countdown by Europe
• 24K Magic by Bruno Mars
• September by EWF
• Hey! Baby by Bruce Channel
• & many more!

Rehearsal Schedule

Official members of the Sycamore Brass Band will have three mandatory practices in the fall semester (see dates below). The group will only rehearse four times in the Spring semester, all during the scheduled class time. These dates are strategically placed at the beginning and middle of the schedule. Outside of those four dates, the group will not meet during the course meeting time.

Fall Practice Dates

Thurs. Oct 26 | 6:00 - 7:30
Fri. Nov 17 | 3:30 - 5:00
Mon. Nov 27 | 3:30 - 5:00

Spring Practice Dates

Wed. Jan 17 | 4:00 - 4:50
Mon. Jan 19 | 4:00 - 4:50
Mon. Feb 19 | 4:00 - 4:50
Wed. Feb 21 | 4:00 - 4:50

Financial Compensation & Expectations

Sycamore Basketball Band members receive $500 for participation throughout the entire season, an exclusive jacket, and the opportunity to travel to postseason tournaments. Successful completion of the season entails performing at least 20 events, leaving very allotable minimal absences. Students are expected to find substitute musicians in the event that they are going to be absent. Failure to attend at least 20 events will result in forfeiture of financial compensation. Members with the best attendance will have first priority for travel to postseason tournaments. If you have any questions, email Prof. Rodriguez.

Course Registration

Accepted members must enroll in MUS169B (Freshman/Sophomore) or MUS369B (Junior/Senior) during each semester they wish to participate. Students that fail to register for the course will forfeit their payment.

Instrumentation & Instrument Rental

The instrumentation of the Sycamore Basketball Band will consist of: piccolo, clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone sax, trumpet, mellophone, trombone, baritone, sousaphone, bass guitar, and drum set. There is a limited inventory of available instruments that can be used for this band. If you need to rent an instrument in order to audition, please email our School of Music Instrument Technician, Ms. Kelly Fallon (Kelly.Fallon@indstate.edu), and CC Prof. Rodriguez (Emmanuel.Rodriguez@indstate.edu).

Results

Audition results for this ensemble will be sent out on Saturday, Oct 15 at noon. Members that auditioned but were not selected for the band will be placed on the “Preferred Call List”, which will grant them first priority when subs are needed. These students would receive payment for their participation based on a game-by-game rate.

Questions?

Feel free to reach out to Prof. Rodriguez (Emmanuel.Rodriguez@indstate.edu) if you have any questions!