University of San Francisco
Dons Marching Band
New Member Welcome 2023
7/31/23
Join the Band!
Attending USF this fall? Interested in joining the band, or just like to play music?
We hope you'll join us! Here's how:
Step 1) Register for course credit via MyUSF:
Dons Marching Band - MUS 111-02
CRN: 40851
Step 2) Sign up for New Member Welcome:
Sunday, August 27th @ 1:00 pm
USF Main Campus - Education Bldg Rm. 043
Step 3) Join us for our first Monday Night Rehearsal:
Monday, August 28th @ 6:45 pm (Education Bldg Rm. 043)
Learn more and register for New Member Welcome here:
Join the Band this Fall
8/29/2022
Classes have begun, and that means it's time to jam! Monday Night Rehearsal (aka MNR) is our weekly rehearsal that brings the full band together to rehearse new music, play some old favorites, and catch up with friends. If you plan to join the band this fall, MNR is the time to do it. Our first rehearsal will be Monday, 8/29.
Monday Night Rehearsals
Time: 7:00 - 9:00 PM, every Monday during the school year (Please plan to arrive at 6:45 pm)
Location: Meet at the the School of Education Building, Room 043 (map).
Please contact us with any questions!
Meet The Officers
8/16/22
Officers of 2023-2024
Before retreat, you should get to know a little bit more of the officers that will help out this years Dons Band. Get to know the coolest people you'll ever meet! Hang out with them, make great music, and most importantly, become friends.
The Band Stays-at-Home
5/13/20
Like most bands in the country, our rehearsals and performances were cut short this semester due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Weekly meetings on Zoom helped us stay connected, but the limitations of video conferencing made joint rehearsals nearly impossible. To make matters worse, many band members had left USF mid-semester and didn't have access to their instruments.
That didn't stop us from making music!
Using a click track to keep tempo, band members recorded themselves offline so we could edit a video together to share with our USF and San Francisco community. Several members who didn't have access to their instrument got creative and used unconventional instruments like spoons, kitchen utensils, toy drums, and otamatone. Others chose to learn their part on a new instrument so they could perform in the video. Some even sang!
The results are imperfect but VERY charming. We hope this video inspires you to look forward to that day we can perform together again!
12/17/2018
Thanks and Fall Band Stats
Hey Band,
I just wanted to take a moment to publicly thank you again for a wonderful semester. The band accomplished everything it set out to do and more, and it's thanks to you that we've continued to develop and improve as an organization.
This semester wasn't without its challenges: a new space to move into and setup (Shak 3.0), incredible membership growth (40+ members on the roster), and the cancelation of classes and several gigs due to the Camp Fire. It wasn't always easy, but I've been so impressed with how each of you have rallied and stepped up to the challenges we've faced (and you've done it together).
Each and every one of you is an important part of our organization, and it's YOU and your involvement that makes the band a special place. This is your band, so we literally couldn't do it without you. Thank you all for being the wonderfully spirited, commitment, incredible people that you are. You are - without a doubt - the reason I look forward to Monday nights!
I hope finals went well for all of you. The happiest of holidays to you and your family.
*clap* Ayyyyyy!
Joe
Fall Band Stats
# of Gigs Performed: 16
Weddings Played: 1
Active Band Members: 41
Additional Stats
Moving boxes unpacked: 543,691
Fastest tempo Reina took Victory Song: 500 bps
# of flute players in band: 1 million
# of drum sectionals: 57
# of times the saxes were all there at once: 1.5
# of times Alvin forgot his uniform or wore the wrong thing: 15
8/17/2018
Band Retreat 2018 Reflection
This past week was our annual band retreat, and it's quite a shocker to see it fly by so fast! We had an awesome time with our new freshies who are about to dive into a new college life and experience here at USF! Yesterday's activities culminated in an awesome photo shoot through the colorful streets of Haight Ashbury, which ended at the savory pits of Off the Grid! Thank you to everyone who made band retreat a success, and prepare yourselves for another musically charged year of Band!
5/28/2018
A New Year-in-Review & Band Promotion Video!
Excited to see what the band has to offer? Say no more! Robert Macaibay has provided us a quick sneak peek into what being a Dons Band member means. Click on the right to watch a special promotional video that serves not only as a year-in-review but also as a source to hear what we got! Enjoy.
5/15/2018
New Member Registration is now open!
Attending USF this fall? Interested in joining the band, or just like music? Join the band!
5/10/2018
New Updates to the Website!
Greetings, fellow musicians! This is your USF Dons Band Social Media Chair/Photographer here, speech-ing! I am tasked with providing the public with new information regarding the Dons band! On this page, check the Calendar tab to refer to keep up with all upcoming events and whereabouts of the USF Dons Band. I'll help promote HUGE events the band will be at, while keeping things nice and simple. Don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram, as I will also be utilizing those sites for up-to-date trackings!!! Stay tuned, and happy tracking!
-Alexander Yee, Social Media Chair '18-'19
4/4/2018
Photo Updates
If you navigate to the Media tab and then click on the "Collaborative Google Photos Collection," you can see a a giant album of the photos of the band throughout the 17-18 year. I'll also like it: here. I've allowed it to be collaborative, so if you have any photos of the USF Dons Band, feel free to post them there (you're required to have a Google account).
-Robert Macaibay, Social Media Chair/Photographer '17-'18
12/9/2017
Fall 2017 Slideshow
Thanks to ya boi, Robert Macaibay, he produced a slideshow for the Fall 2017 semester, just in time for Winter Bandquet!
4/24/2017
Picnic Day Recap
Another year, another Picnic Day. And what a day it was. We marched the parade in the morning, followed by the Battle of the Bands in the afternoon. This year, the battle included college pep and marching bands from Cal, UC Davis, UC Irvine, Humboldt State, Stanford, and us! The battle went from 2 PM to 10 PM, and we made it to around 8:30 this year.
Here are two videos from the Battle. The first one of the more challenging songs we did, "Classical Gas". The second is clips from the battle, including Stanford Band's group song/musical chaos known as "Beginnings".
Looking forward to next year's Picnic Day & Battle!
3/8/2017
WCC Las Vegas Tournament Recap
This year's annual trip to Las Vegas for the West Coast Conference Basketball tournament was one to remember.
While neither the men's nor women's team made it to the final, we got to experience some very exciting matchups this year, and we had a blast on our trip to Las Vegas. The women made it to the semi-final round on Monday, while the men were eliminated in the quarter final on Saturday. So while our Basketball season may have come to an end, the band is very excited to see what Dons Basketball has in store for next season :)
A very special thanks to the Athletics Dept. for getting us to Las Vegas and helping us root our Dons "on to victory"!
Here's a clip from our Friday performance at Kids Day, an annual event that brings hundreds of local kids to the tournament for an afternoon of dancing, fitness, and fun. Thanks to the WCC for including is in the event!
#GoDons