Energy dipped during the third quarter of Saturday’s football game, but the Hillsdale College Pep Band’s new leader sophomore Matt Clark kept up momentum all the way into the stunning fourth-quarter victory, heralding the upset with a triumphant reprisal of “White and Blue.”
Last weekend, Clark went through trial by fire: He coordinated a performance for an exhibition game Friday with the Best Buddies Education Day, then teamed up with the Hillsdale High School’s marching band Saturday for performances during play and half-time, all the while keeping the athletes, cheerleaders, and student section peppy.
“He’s turning out to be a good choice,” said Professor of Music James Holleman. “It’s the spirit we want: When [spirit] comes from another student, students get on board with it.”
Historically, students have led pep band, taking charge of recruitment, organizing music, and setting up on game days. In return, they receive an annual scholarship designed for students with leadership positions over their peers.
The football events Friday and Saturday tested qualities pep band adviser Robert Henthorne said are necessary for a student director: solving problems, demonstrating leadership skills, and promoting camaraderie in the group.
“Matt came out as leading candidate for his leadership skills, experience with conducting in high school, and because he played in the pep band as a trombone player last year,” Henthorne said. ‘He’s a really dedicated and faithful member of the group.”
The Longmont, Colorado native participated in marching band for four years during high school and was the drum major for two of those years.
In fact, being a drum major runs in the family: Clark’s two older brothers led marching band in high school and led sections of their college marching bands at Purdue University and Michigan State University. His younger sister, a senior at Niwot High School high school, is currently a drum major, too.
“Our family is incredibly musical,” Clark said. “It’s unheard of.”
Clark’s conducting experience, rare at his age, gave him an edge in the selection process, Holleman said.
But it’s Clark’s energy and love for pep band — and his strong musicianship — that make him the perfect candidate, according to former pep band student leader Hank Prim ’17, who now works in the Student Affairs Office.
“You need someone who loves pep band and what it is,” Prim said. “There’s nothing more important than someone with energy and love for pep band. Rehearsal technique follows with practice.”
Prim became the student leader of Hillsdale’s pep band in 2014, a “weird, mix-match ensemble” with a grand total of five members left. By 2017, 30 students, none of whom were music majors, played consistently.
Having one student leader at the helm for three years encourages camaraderie and consistent membership — and the results are starting to show.
“The pep band traditionally was a sloppy ensemble,” Henthorne said. “Now, we keep getting requests to play at different functions.”
It’s not just fun and games for members of the group, who have a lot riding on their shoulders, despite practicing only once a week and receiving just one credit a semester.
“Pep band is sometimes the only representation of music department for visitors, which is why it’s important for students to be engaged in the music, the game, and ready to go,” Holleman said. “Pep band represents the college.”
Not only does the group represent the department, but it can function as the student section and is fondly called the 12th man on the football team.
“The band is the soundtrack to the game. [The musicians] set the mood,” said senior Zoe Harness, Hillsdale College Cheerleading co-captain. “Pep band is invested in the game, the atmosphere, it contributes to the experience. On really cold days, it absorbs the role of the student section.”
Harness said the weekend’s transition was easy. In fact, Clark has already coordinated with the cheerleaders, Harness said. He even asked what songs they like so the band could learn those.
Clark has also been asking men in the Simpson Dormitory where he’s an resident advisor for music suggestions, and is open to suggestions.
“There’s a cohesion we want to create between the student section, the athletes, and the cheerleaders,” Clark said. “That’s my priority this year.”
For the new leader, cohesion goes beyond these three groups and extends to everyone on the field and in the stands.
“Even opposing teams get something out of it — it’s good music,” Clark said. “It’s something donors and parents recognize as part of the game. I take pride in that.”
