Stanford Band at it again...

[BRASSO]

A fun thing, perhaps. But the whole we're-smarter-and-hipper-than-you-and-everybody-knows-it-so-it's-OK-for-us-to-act-like-snarky-a**holes act is tiring - puerile and low budget. Seth Macfarlane, anyone? Ugh, none for me, thanks.

Peace,

Fred O.

The thing to remember is that these types of people( and those in the Ivy bands ) will be running the country soon enough, and most of us will be working for these types of " we're smarter and hipper than you and everybody knows it, so its ok to act like snarky a ### holes". I agree with you and others that too many of these students in these fancy pants Universities can be insufferable. But we might as well have fun with their college days unserious campy antics now in Band, as down the road, their serious schtick they'll try and pull off in the real world might not be as funny to most by then.

Edited January 3, 2016 by BRASSO

[BRASSO]

And what do you mean by "national admirers" and "lots of people seem to like and enjoy their campy style"? What people? Ex-Stanford band members?

Well in my observation, more people stand up and cheer for their shows at the conclusions of their exhibitions on football fields in the course of a year, than any Drum Corps shows on a football field anywhere. So I 'd say thats a pretty good gauge and barometer that they have " lots of admirers " of their campy style. Again, its not my personal taste, but I don't see their shows as in " poor taste ", and we are just kidding ourselves if we can't see that the Stanford Band has its many admirers with this particular , unserious, unconventional, campy style of marching band.

[HockeyDad]

Well in my observation, more people stand up and cheer for their shows at the conclusions of their exhibitions on football fields in the course of a year, than any Drum Corps shows on a football field anywhere. So I 'd say thats a pretty good gauge and barometer that they have " lots of admirers " of their campy style. Again, its not my personal taste, but I don't see their shows as in " poor taste ", and we are just kidding ourselves if we can't see that the Stanford Band has its many admirers with this particular , unserious, unconventional, campy style of marching band.

Oh really? Have you seen them perform, in person, at a game? I have. I assure you, at the Rose Bowl (not the one a couple days ago but a few years back), which I consider a fairly neutral site, more people booed their performance than stood up and cheered. It wasn't close either.

[TroopAlum12]

And what do you mean by "national admirers" and "lots of people seem to like and enjoy their campy style"? What people? Ex-Stanford band members?

Look, if you're a student at Stanford, you've already won the lottery. You're the cream of the crop, the elite. So why the university allows this infantile behavior to continue is beyond me. It's not campy, it's not satire. Those things would require some creativity. No, a performance like this is something a middle schooler would come up with. There's not creativity to it, it's gutter immaturity on a national stage, by a bunch of elite little children who know they are better than you, and will be your boss someday. They are arrogant fools. And ESPN saw it coming and cut them off. That was the best part.

You've answered your own question here. The administration doesn't stop it because they approve of it. If the admin truly disapproved of it, they would have put an end to it a long time ago. The only discipline that the band receives comes from violations to alcohol and hazing regulations (which they DO have problems with, in fact they just got banned from going to road games next season because of some hazing issues).

As has already been stated here, the best thing to do for the Stanford Band is to ignore them, and they'll go away. They lose their fun if people don't react. In fact, here is a story that has been shared on social media by Brian Britt, the director of the OU Pride of Oklahoma band, in the wake of said Stanford performance:

[The Stanford Band students] enjoy what they do and, more than anything, seem to the relish reaction and attention they generate. They insult their opponents on a scale ranging from clever satire to topics that are truly offensive to many. Their group is not concerned with the feelings or sensibilities of others and seem to regard good manners and sportsmanship as something far too bourgeois for the intellectually elite to embrace. Their halftime topics have been met with "discipline" and "suspensions " multiple times over the years, and nothing has changed. Furthermore, nothing will change because the Stanford administration and community approves of this behavior, or it would have been stopped years ago. To that, I say, to each their own. I wish they would offer others that same respect, but I don't expect that to ever occur, because they enjoy taunting their opponents.

Rewarding them with an off the charts media presence by reacting to their performances is EXACTLY what they want. If you want to continue to see and hear this type of show all over social media, by all means, continue to react this way.

If you would prefer that this type of performance go away, or at least prefer that not so much media attention be focused upon it, I have a plan to suggest. The next time this group performs, either sit in silence or go to the concession stand, because when you react, they win. That's the game they are playing and they're playing it well.

I know this to be true because I've experienced it first hand. At the 2009 Sun Bowl, we shared a concert with Stanford. At the appointed start time, we were there ready to perform, predictably they were not. We began to perform and, just as predictably, half way into our first tune, their band came running enthusiastically into the performance area drawing attention to them and interfering with our performance by running through our set-up while we were performing. We didn't react (our students had been briefed and were awesome) and continued performing.

Later in the performance, the Stanford group played a rendition of "Beginnings" by Chicago, which includes a four-measure vamp and drum fill. When they got to this vamp portion they kept repeating it over and over while running through our band. Additionally, about 20 of the students encircled me and the drum major and blasted us with as much volume as they could muster. We didn't react at all. At. All. Instead, we just stared at them, expressionless. Their own expressions of disbelief were hilarious. After over five minutes of this ear-shattering, soul-crushing nonsense, a Stanford student holding a trumpet said "F#%€ this man, they're not going to react!" Sure enough, the tune ended and they left our area. Final score: Sooners-1, Stanford-0.

If you don't enjoy their antics, just don't play their game. Play your own. Don't expect them to embrace your social mores, play with a characteristic sound, or learn to march in a line. Let them do their thing and just deprive them of the reaction they desire and the massive media attention that accompanies it, because the Stanford administration doesn't care that you're outraged or offended. Who knows, maybe that will free up a few TV cameras to capture some of the great playing and marching being performed by other bands? Probably not, but it can't hurt. At the very least, you can enjoy knowing you deprived this group of the reaction they seek.

Edited January 3, 2016 by TroopAlum12

[BRASSO]

more people booed their performance than stood up and cheered.

I'm not sure if thats more of a commentary on the booing football fans or on the marching band on the football field however. I thought we had established on here that booing marching band members in performance is a bad thing and that booing 18-22 year olders in performance on football fields says more about the incivility of the booer, than the marching band on the football field. Stanford's style is meant to be controversial, and in your face, in a campy way. Some get real, REAL angry with this campy schtick and unserious like style. Thats what makes it even more appealing and funnier to most others, imo.

Also, you are just kidding yourself if you think that that many people don't have fun with their campy shows.... especially in parades. I never pay much attention to booers of marching bands, no matter how many uncivil ones there might be, nor how loud they might be. If a marching band has had this style of performance for decades, ( as Stanford MB has ) I conclude that the style has its large share of chuckling admirers. We also know for certain that the various members of Rose Bowl Parade Committee that have come and gone over these many decades thinks so too.

Edited January 3, 2016 by BRASSO

[BRASSO]

If the Stanford Marching Band is taunting an opponent's Marching Band( as Oklahoma 's Band Director says above ) thats not acceptable. And it needs to stop. Otherwise, it might filter out to the stands some day, and fans might begin to taunt opposing fans. And should that happen ( Oklahoma Sooners included ), we might begin to see the players drawing their cues from these marching bands like Stanford's and begin to taunt and say nasty things on the football field to opponent players. And who wants THAT ?

By the way, anybody here want to know how the Univ. of Oklahoma selected their name... " The Sooners " ?

For the history buffs here, the name " Sooners " came from the US Government deciding to settle the West in the late 1800's by giving free land to those whites who rode out there by horse and wagons on a date and time certain. The day arrived. The Time to start the race out there commenced too. But lo and behold, some took the rude and uncivil ( and illegal ) behaviors to leave BEFORE the time to start the race out there to stake hold of their free land claims. They knowingly broke the land rush rules and left early.. before dawn in some cases. Those that engaged in this rude and uncivil behaviors were called " The Sooners ", as in.. " time to go... sooner rather than later", or as their many critics complained.. " they left too SOON! ". So these rude and uncivil " Sooners " rushed out there first and staked their free land claims there that was seen as prime ( near precious and few river streams ) for themselves. The Feds could not determine who played by the rules and who didn't, so they just allowed the land claims to be as staked out by all who took off for that mad rush for the free land. So the " Sooners " won their first REAL game in this fashion,.... and it worked like a charm for these original " Sooners ". And the Oklahoma" Sooners" Marching Band in a bit of funny irony traces its name " Sooners " from a very, very funny and creative endeavor itself, undeniable rudeness and incivility of their chosen name's real originators that they trace it too notwithstanding, of course . Oklahoma " Sooners " Marching Band. Funny name.. with funny origins, that brings a chuckle too when people start talking in MB about other others past history of " rude behaviors ", imo. Oh the funny irony of it all. ( haha!)

Edited January 3, 2016 by BRASSO

[drumno5]

... things such as trash talking, posturing, taunting, and other forms of "unsportsmanlike" behavior on the parts of the athlete have not only become somewhat the norm, but socially accepted as well...

But the extent to which low budget antics have gone mainstream still doesn't make the Stanford Band, or Nicky Minaj giving the finger to the Super Bowl audience, or Seth MacFarlane singing "we saw your t*ts" on some tv award show any less tasteless, imo.

[drumno5]

The thing to remember is that these types of people( and those in the Ivy bands ) will be running the country soon enough, and most of us will be working for these types of " we're smarter and hipper than you and everybody knows it, so its ok to act like snarky a ### holes". I agree with you and others that too many of these students in these fancy pants Universities can be insufferable. But we might as well have fun with their college days unserious campy antics now in Band, as down the road, their serious schtick they'll try and pull off in the real world might not be as funny to most by then.

As I said in an earlier post, if you find it entertaining, then who am I to argue? But no thanks, I'll pass.

Regards as always, thanks for the dialogue.

Fred O.

[HockeyDad]

I'm not sure if thats more of a commentary on the booing football fans or on the marching band on the football field however. I thought we had established on here that booing marching band members in performance is a bad thing and that booing 18-22 year olders in performance on football fields says more about the incivility of the booer, than the marching band on the football field. Stanford's style is meant to be controversial, and in your face, in a campy way. Some get real, REAL angry with this campy schtick and unserious like style. Thats what makes it even more appealing and funnier to most others, imo.

Also, you are just kidding yourself if you think that that many people don't have fun with their campy shows.... especially in parades. I never pay much attention to booers of marching bands, no matter how many uncivil ones there might be, nor how loud they might be. If a marching band has had this style of performance for decades, ( as Stanford MB has ) I conclude that the style has its large share of chuckling admirers. We also know for certain that the various members of Rose Bowl Parade Committee that have come and gone over these many decades thinks so too.

Ok, so after a couple back and forth exchanges with you, it's now clear you have no basis for your claim they have a large base of admirers. Moving on. Edited January 3, 2016 by HockeyDad

[HornTeacher]

But the extent to which low budget antics have gone mainstream still doesn't make the Stanford Band, or Nicky Minaj giving the finger to the Super Bowl audience, or Seth MacFarlane singing "we saw your t*ts" on some tv award show any less tasteless, imo.

I never said it was or wasn't (tasteless). My primary points were:

1) For one to either say or infer that all those of the "farmer" community were offended is not correct, if I am to judge the reactions of my own "farmer" friends. (And though they most certainly don't speak for every agriculturally-based citizen in this country, I would find it very odd that they are also exclusively alone in their views on the matter).

2) I find it rather hypocritical for a sports-related division of a national media outlet to point out the message/behavior of a particular marching band, given the antics that we all see on a daily basis coming from those in the athletic world. Physician, heal thyself.

(Edited because I apparently can't spell for crap. Obviously I, for one, am certainly not "Stanford material." )

Edited January 3, 2016 by HornTeacher