Marching band graduates first class of seniors

Gameday is more than a game.

It's an event. It's a competition. It's a carefully choreographed performance where football team, faithful fans, and facility intermingle to the chorus of ovation and pageantry.

And every piece plays its part.

For every pad-popping hit, there is an edge-of-their-seat fan cheering. For every crisp fall day, there is the snap of popping kernels and steam of tasty beverages. And for every break in the game, there is the Spirit of Lenoir-Rhyne Marching Band.

"When the audience is really into it, those are my favorite moments," LR band director Neil Underwood said. "When you can tell the audience got what you were doing and the students on the field felt it. That's my favorite. It's electric, it really is."

In the late 1980s, the Spirit of LR faced diminishing numbers, and after the 1991 season the decision was ultimately made for it to be discontinued.

No more halftime programs. No more pumping up the crowd Between the Bricks, and no more participation in parades or community events.

As the years went by, the absence lingered and those within the music program began to look into what it would take to bring the band back.

"We floated the idea by the administration for 10 years or more," said Dan Kiser, D.M.A, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and director of bands. A committee created a plan that was reviewed from time to time, waiting for the right set of circumstances.

Eventually, the time was right.

"I had no interest in starting a program to put out a quality level beneath (LR)," Kiser said. "When we did it, we wanted to do it right. We looked at the feasibility of starting up a viable marching band, and by viable, we mean excellent."

To do this, they turned to a man with 32 years of experience directing marching bands -- Neil Underwood.

"I have known Neil for over a decade as a first-rate high school band director, both in marching and in the concert hall," Kiser said. "His philosophy of music education and mine very much coincide.

"I remember a high school contest at Fred T. Ford [high school in Hickory] where he brought the North Lincoln band, and it was a well-run contest. It was rolling, and I remember saying, 'Wow, this fella is a showman.'"

Just like that, LR had its guy.

"I was hired and given a year to put the marching band together," Underwood said. "That was a year to basically order all the instruments, uniforms, and get them organized."

While he was getting the marching band started, he put together a pep band to get the program's feet wet performing at athletic events. Underwood spent countless hours researching what LR would need for the band to be complete, and he even contacted a friend who runs the marching band for the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill to see how the Tar Heels do things.

Then in the fall of 2016, it was time.

At 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 3 2016, when the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears kicked off their football season against Virginia State, the Spirit of LR was on hand to entertain the fans.

"That first time we performed four years back, you could see people were excited," senior music major and four-year marching band veteran Emily Huffman said. "It's just grown, gained momentum and spread throughout campus."

In 2016 – the first year – the band recorded 58 people on the roster, but that number jumped up to 78 in 2017 and 86 last year before hitting 100 members exactly this season.

"I can't tell you how many comments we get from fans, donors and students saying they provide such a great piece of our gameday atmosphere," said LR Senior Associate Athletic Director and Bear Club director Aaron Bessey. "The last two years, we've been up a lot and early, but people stick around to watch the band perform. They're awesome."

At the heart of it has been a 16-person group that has formed the nucleus of the Spirit of LR. And as the current senior class, it's the first group of students to perform in four consecutive years of marching band at LR in almost 30 years.

"I think one of the really cool parts for them, at least in my eyes, is the part they've played in all the new traditions we've established," Underwood said. "We're still establishing traditions and coming up with new ideas, but they've been an integral part of that."

They've also been the largest constant for the group. That group of 16 has been there from the beginning as the band came together at the inaugural retreat when rehearsals began.

They were there at the first home game during that 3-8 season in 2016 and every home game since as LR has turned into a national Division II football power. They've been at parades and community events without skipping a beat.

"In the beginning, none of us had any idea what the LR band was supposed to look like," said senior color guard co-captain Tiffany Frye. "We were just concerned with getting on the field and getting off on time. ... But I think as the program continues to grow, it's something I'm going to be able to look back on and be very proud of."

They'll be at one more event before turning over the baton, and that takes place Saturday, April 4 when the band marches down Constitution Avenue as a part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival parade in Washington, D.C.

"It's going to be a real honor represent North Carolina in [Washington, D.C.]," Huffman said. "Coming from a smaller school, it'll be a good way to get our name out there and promote the Spirit of LR Marching Band."

Underwood said it will be a complete experience for the marching band. Not only do they perform on a national stage, but they also have the opportunity to visit monuments and tour the capital.

Participating in the parade has a deeper significance than many know, and it will benefit future generations of marching band members for years to come.

"My eventual goal is to be able to see (LR's) band in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade," Underwood said. "In order to be invited to a place like Macy's, you need to have national parade experience under your belt. I started looking at national parades that were options for us, and the this was one."

The Spirit of LR actually applied for and was invited to participate in both the National Cherry Blossom Festival parade and the North Carolina Music Educators Association Conference.

"At first, I didn't know how we were going to do both, but now I'm excited," Underwood said. "We're going to try and represent LR and the state of North Carolina well."

* Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Cherry Blossom Festival parade was canceled.