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Dear Razorback Band alumni and friends,

As we wrap up the 2021-2022 academic year, we are reflecting on so many exciting experiences for the University of Arkansas Bands. A great football season with significant wins over Texas and Texas A&M was capped off with a win against Penn State at the Outback Bowl in Tampa, FL. The Hogwild Pep Band members enjoyed a thrilling season with extensive post-season travel and a second consecutive Elite Eight appearance in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Our concert bands returned to full ensemble rehearsals after a challenging time through the Covid-19 pandemic, and all five concert bands had strong performances through the year. Our guest artist series, “Music of Our Time,” including residencies with composers Jennifer Jolley and Viet Cuong and four-time GRAMMY Award winning ensemble, Eighth Blackbird. As we look ahead to the 2022-2023 year we are anticipating record enrollment at the University of Arkansas and in the Razorback Marching Band this Fall!

Dr. Benjamin Lorenzo, Associate Director of Bands, has accepted the position as Director of Bands at Kent State University in Ohio. Dr. Lorenzo has spent seven years with us on the Hill and although we are sorry to see him leave Fayetteville, we are excited about this fantastic professional opportunity for him.  Dr. Jeffrey Summers has been appointed Interim Associate Director of Bands and Director of Athletic Bands for the 2022-2023 academic year. As a member of the Department of Music and our band faculty since 2020, Dr. Summers is familiar with the traditions and standards of our program and is committed to providing great musical experiences for everyone in the band program. In his role he will serve as Director of the Razorback Marching Band, conduct the Wind Symphony, and teach Department of Music courses.

We hope you will join us for our annual Razorback Band Pig-Nic on Friday, August 19. This annual event has become wildly popular with band alumni and family members with a chance to come back and watch the first run-throughs of our traditional pregame and our first halftime show of the season. It is a fun, casual evening and a chance to reconnect with many friends.  

We hope to see you again this Fall. As always, GO HOGS! 

Chris Knighten

Director of Bands

Fall 2022 Preview

The 2022 edition of the Razorback Marching Band is shaping up yet again to boast a membership of over 350 performers, including brass, woodwind, percussion, color guard, and twirlers. With a strong incoming class and solid group of returning members, the band will be among the largest in the ensemble’s history.

All hands will be on deck for a busy fall. New members will check-in for Early Week on Friday, August 12th and will run through a day of music and marching rehearsals before returning members join the next day. Rehearsals will continue throughout the next week, capping off with the fan and family favorite “Pignic” on Friday, August 19th. Concert Band auditions and the Freshmen Pep Rally in Razorback Stadium will then take place right before university classes begin on Monday the 22nd.

The RMB will see five halftime performances during the first five games of the season!

Pep bands will travel with the team to Starkville, MS on October 8th and Provo, UT on October 15th before enjoying a much-needed bye week break on the 22nd. After one more road trip to Auburn, AL on the 29th, the full band will return to Razorback Stadium in November, kicking off the month with a Homecoming celebration against Liberty.

A pep band will head to Columbia, MO for the regular season finale against Missouri before the staff and leadership begin preparations for postseason games!

Dates Set for Pignic, Band Day, and Twirler Day

This year’s Pignic will be held on Friday, August 19th at the band’s rehearsal lot directly across the street from Baum Stadium on Razorback Road in Fayetteville, AR. Alumni, friends, and family are all invited to bring a chair and watch the last rehearsal of Early Week and enjoy a boxed lunch. Food will be served at 4:00pm with rehearsal following shortly after at 5:30pm. The Pig-nic is free but registration is required.

Hogwild Recap

The Hogwild Band wrapped up an amazing year with a deep run in the NCAA tournament. In total, Hogwild performed at 47 games between Volleyball, Women’s, and Men’s Basketball and saw the Hogs win 36 times, including an amazing 17-1 record in Bud Walton by the men’s basketball program. Hogwild Band members were in the center of epic games against then #1 Auburn, #13 Tennessee, and #6 Kentucky. The music and energy our students brought each night is a big reason Bud Walton is known for its intense atmosphere.

Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was great to once again be able to travel in support of our basketball teams. The Hogwild Band travelled to Kansas City, Tulsa, and Little Rock for non-conference matchups and then traveled to Nashville, Tampa, Austin, Buffalo, and San Francisco for the SEC and NCAA tournaments. In all, the group racked up nearly 10,000 miles of travel in coast-to-coast trips.

Energy and excitement around the basketball programs continues to build. This is especially true for the men’s team, who after coming off back-to-back Elite 8 appearances landed the #1 recruiting class in the nation. We are very proud of our Razorbacks and for the unwavering support given by our Hogwild members.

Q&A With Alumni Raising Funds for Robert M. Bright Endowed Brass Scholarship

creating scholarships for future students in honor of the man who brought the group together years ago, and still has a major positive impact on their lives today.

In this conversation, the quartet talk about their favorite memories of Bright, how he encouraged them to follow their passion for music, his spritely sense of humor and unending enthusiasm, and the life-long lessons he taught each of them.

They also discuss how the Robert M. Bright committee is working to raise $50,000 to endow a scholarship in perpetuity to honor Bright and “his great work that laid the foundation for the monumental success of the wind and percussion area and the university bands back in the 1970s and beyond,” said Young, the committee’s chair.

The scholarship, which will be awarded annually, will go to a sophomore, junior, or senior student who is studying a brass instrument, shows exemplary leadership qualities, and who is maintaining at least a 2.50 grade point average.

“It is our hope that having this scholarship appear on the resumé of future select Fulbright College and Department of Music graduates will enhance their professional pursuits, as well as ease their financial burden while they are working to complete their degree,” Young said. “Of course, having Mr. Bright’s name associated with the award also cements his legacy in the annals of the institution.”

To read the full Q&A in the Fulbright Review.

University of Arkansas Bands

103 Lewis E. Epley, Jr. Band Building | Fayetteville, AR 72701

(888) ARK-ALUM

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