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Blast from the Past

By Jim Richards

    Just once a year, usually on a crisp fall morning, a very unique group of individuals of all ages and genders gathers on a practice football field in Austin, Texas to take part an organization that is the largest of its kind in the world. These men and women come from all walks of life, some from great distances to play music together. They are called the Longhorn Alumni Band and count membership in the thousands and many are from seven different countries. These individuals are not normally musicians in their day job but are young and old professionals, some of which have been attending over a period of many decades. To most outsiders, very little is known of this group, and how they came to be. Being often asked about he history of this group, this is an attempt to explain from one prospective, the flavor of a unique organization that has entertained many thousands of applauding football fans during football halftimes at the University of Texas’ Memorial Stadium.

 Background

                                                           Longhorn Band in 1900

    To explain the background, one has to include a brief history of the Texas Longhorn Band itself. The Longhorn Band was founded in 1900 by a distinguished professor of chemistry, Dr.E.P. Schoch. Envisioning marching bands as an inspiring addition to the turn of the century football season, Dr. Schoch, along with Dr. H.E. Baxter, the first director, recruited sixteen students and spent $150.00 at Jackson's Pawn Shop in downtown Austin for instruments, In early years the band was not a part of the music department at UT, but received partial funds from the athletic department and generous donors. The first Longhorn Band Hall was a little shack on campus known as the chemistry lab. Later, in 1947 the band moved to an old wooden World War II barracks building that was to serve as a temporary band hall……a temporary hall that was to last for 22 years. The early uniforms were very ornate embroidered cowboy outfits with the cowboy hats that were to later give way to military style uniforms with crushed style hats. The students got minimal credit for participation but membership consisted of just about anyone that could hold an instrument. There were no auditions. On road trips the band slept at the Salvation Army.  Competing with the Texas Aggie Band became a joke for many years, but in the latter fifties, a small group of bandsmen went to a University of Texas Dean to air out the grievances about the quality of the Longhorn Band, and the very next year Vincint R. DiNino came onboard to upgrade the band and since then the rest is history. A major change that took place in the history of the Longhorn Band during the DiNino era was the admission of women. Until 1956, the only women in the marching band were the majorettes. Ten girls were admitted in the fall of 1956 and the first to march with the Longhorn Band was Leah Raye Sexton, in January 1957 during the Governor's Inaugural Parade. In the fall of 1957, an Asian flu epidemic swept through campus. So many bandsmen were ill the weekend of the Oklahoma game that women were called to the rescue and have been marching ever since.

    The band soon became part of the music department, auditions were held, and the cowboy hats returned. In 1986 the Longhorn Band was officially recognized as the nation's top collegiate marching band by being awarded the John Philip Sousa Foundation Sudler Trophy. These days only a select group of the many new applicants are chosen for the freshman class, and most were the top musicians in their respective high schools.

                                                The Beginnings

The Longhorn Alumni Band began in 1964 with 67 members. Then Director Vince DiNino apparently came up with the idea and it was 4 couples that organized the first meeting. Married band students ,Patsy & Jimmy Heijl, Pat & Max Laughmiller, Betty Ruth & Dickie Dove and Becky & Malcolm Fox were the first to put the group together. The first halftime performance in 1964 was caught on film and later put on one of the archive Alumni Band DVDs. The organization grew and grew through the years to now have about 2600 members from all over the United States and as many as seven countries

    On Friday nights before a scheduled performance those who can attend early now gather in the current Longhorn Band Hall, which is the only building on the University of Texas at Austin campus named after an organization.

Checking Out the Music on Friday

    The sheet music is checked out, donated instruments are acquired, and the rehearsal begins. In between numbers, announcements are made about the Saturday performance, a business meeting is held, new officers are appointed and scholarship checks are given out to present Longhorn Band Students in person. A big annual goal of the organization is to provide thousands of dollars to worthy students, which are given by the former band members and other generous donors. The meeting ends with the playing of the “Eyes of Texas” Although they are retired, former directors like Moten Crockett and Vincint DiNino regularly still attend and often conduct musical selections.

Friday Night Rehearsal

    Saturday morning often starts as early as 5 or 6 AM depending on the time of the Longhorn game. The alumni marching band meets for coffee and donuts on the outdoor football practice facility prior to entering the adjacent big bubble covering a second football field. Approximately 850 to 1000 have to enter the bubble through a revolving door one at a time, so it takes some time to assemble the group. Inside, the halftime show is charted and the section leaders meet to form the show. Each participant is assigned a space on the field and the practice starts with a walk through without music. Once the formations are established, the rehearsal is done with instruments playing. Marching down the field, the band takes 6 steps to the five-yard markers to insure everyone arrives at the respective markers at the same time, keeping the lines straight. The rehearsal is done in a remarkable 2 hours or so.

Lining Up in The Bubble

    Next, the alumni band takes to the outside field to form up with the Longhorn Band to assemble the combined part of the halftime show. After about 2 runs in another hour or so, the show is complete and all return to the band hall for a large barbecue and to check out orange vests that are to be the part of the uniform. All members are instructed to wear white shirts and black pants to complete the total uniform for halftime.

                                                  Outside On the Practice Field

    The next event is the march in to Memorial Stadium approximately 30 to 45 minutes prior to game time. A 6 person across makes the line to look at least an eighth of a mile long as it makes its way into the chute of the stadium playing Texas Fight and Grandioso, traditional Texas fight songs. In the stadium the band is normally seated near the end zone and takes up at least 850 seats, which would normally sell for about $64,000 to paying customers, but the seats are free for the alum group.

    At halftime, the band curls on to the field and begins the show after the Longhorn Band performs, and then the two groups perform together. The whole field is covered at one time with over 1000 musicians playing in unison. After the performance, the group returns to its seats and is served soft drinks, apples and water, and at the end of the game it’s all over for another year. Smaller groups gather for pep bands at school events througout the year in all the major cities of Texas, but the big bash is always in the fall.

Wall-to-Wall Longhorn Alumni Band - Photo by Kent Kostka

A Final Result and Tribute to Vince DiNino with the LHB Photo by Kent Kostka

    I have been playing in this group for longer than I can remember. What is truly amazing is that these musicians are lawyers, doctors, dentists, accountants, engineers, scientists and from many other professions willing to give up their time to perform on the field, but also donate money for scholarships. They range from the twenties to the eighties in age. In fact years ago, Carl Widane, who was over 100 years old never failed to attend the Longhorn Alumni Band meeting until his death. And what is remarkable ……Carl was one of the original 16 who formed the very first Texas Longhorn Band in 1900.

 As mentioned before, I am always asked how the group got started and what they are all about. This summary is an attempt to explain much of the background of a group that was truly unique in its origination. Although there are now many similar alumni bands now on college campuses, the Longhorn Alumni Band of the University of Texas at Austin was the first and largest organization of its kind in the entire world and will probably survive many more years after us older grads are gone.

Jim Richards

LHB 1952-55, 60