UAPB band raises roof at Stuttgart
Fresh off the road performing the Star-Spangled Banner at the Memphis Grizzlies HBCU night NBA basketball game, delivering an unforgettable halftime show and receiving a standing ovation from spectators, the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South gave a sample of that musical magic on Tuesday morning to a gymnasium full of Stuttgart Junior High and High School students, faculty and staff.
Recognizing the month of February as Black History Month, the M4 Band of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff joined the Ricebirds in their celebration of HBCU week. It seemed as if the mesmerizing and magnificent sounds of the Mid-South had the ducks of the Grand Prairie flying over the school campuses to the beat of the drums during the band’s 30-minute performance inside the Stuttgart Junior High School gym.
Under the direction of assistant band directors Darryl Evans and Harold Fooster, in the absence of the legendary band director John Graham, the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South pep band wowed the crowd with their M4 theme song, performances by the UAPB 24 Karat Golden Silks and the UAPB M4 Golden Girls and a plethora of different musical experiences in honor of Black History Month.
Graham assumed the directorship in July 1994. Under his leadership, the UAPB Band is one of the largest and most successful collegiate band programs in the nation. Under his guidance, the band has grown to nearly 300 members and has appeared throughout the nation.
Stuttgart High School Principal Pam Dean was grateful to have the UAPB Band as part of the Stuttgart School District’s Black History initiatives. Students have worked hard over
the past month to bring a cultural experience in recognition of Black History Month with historically black colleges and universities as one of their highlights.
Students expressed their excitement for the exposure with some even asking if the band could come back again.
“Stuttgart is having a Black History Month celebration and we are here to participate,” said Fooster. “We brought part of our pep band to show the kids here what the university offers, give them a performance and then talk about our program and the history that it has.”
UAPB is an 1890 Land Grant Institution. According to the university, it embraces its land grant mission by providing cutting-edge research, teaching, outreach, and service programs that respond to the social and economic needs of the state and region.
Its mission is to promote and sustain excellent academic programs that integrate quality instruction, research, and student learning experiences responsive to the needs of a racially, culturally and economically diverse student population.
“We are celebrating 150 years of higher education in Arkansas and the United States,” said Evans.
With over 40 degree programs and institutional scholarships based on the availability of funds and academic performance, students were encouraged to seek UAPB as their next step in higher education. Students in the 11th and 12th grades were invited to Lion Fever Day on April 1st as part of UAPB’s recruitment events.
“We want to introduce high school students to the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff and have them experience college life for a day and see what UAPB is all about,” Evans said.
Until then, the students got a taste of UAPB’s musical flavor and a history lesson about the UAPB Marching Band.
Notable performances by the UAPB Marching Band include National Football League performances for the Kansas City Chiefs (1979), New Orleans Saints (1990), and the St. Louis Rams (2000). The band also performed at Gov. Bill Clinton’s inaugurations (1989 and 1991) and President Clinton’s election celebration (1992). The band has performed in numerous parades including the Southern Christian Leadership Conference “Drum Major for Justice” MLK Parade in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1990 and 1991, and the “Krewe of Rex” Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans.
The UAPB Marching Band has performed in nearly every major stadium in the country, including The Cotton Bowl, Texas Stadium, Soldier Field, Legion Field, Houston Astrodome, Louisiana Superdome, The Liberty Bowl, Independence Stadium, War Memorial Stadium, Arrowhead Stadium, the Edward Jones Dome, and the Georgia Dome.
In 2004, the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South (M4) was featured on the nationally syndicated television sports program “It’s In the Game” and has performed on the national television broadcast of Operation PUSH (2004, 2005, 2006). The band performed at the SWAC Championship Game in 2007. M4 also performed at the sixth Honda Invitational Battle of the Bands and at the opening of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center (broadcast worldwide on X.M. satellite radio) in 2008.
More recently the band marched in the 56th Presidential Inaugural Parade for the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama and performed a halftime show for the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks.
Now they can add Stuttgart, Ark., to their performance list, a small agricultural town on the prairie known for ducks and rice whose students may never forget the experience the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South gave them.