A Historically Black College and University marching band (also known as a HBCU band) is the marching band sponsored by a historically black college or university. A distinctive "HBCU-style" of marching band originated in the American South in the 1940s through the blending of earlier traditions of military music and minstrel shows with a performance repertoire based on popular song.
HBCU bands have traditionally played a major role in fostering school pride and camaraderie. Different studies have linked HBCU band membership with both higher and lower rates of academic achievement versus the at-large student population. Among the predominantly male, African-American membership of the ensembles, they have been theorized to support positive identity formation.
History
Origins
Early American military music recruited large numbers of black musicians. A 1738 statute enacted by the Virginia House of Burgesses required military service for “free mulattos, blacks, and Native Americans". Due to government concerns of a domestic rebellion, they were prohibited from carrying arms and were, therefore, exclusively used as "drummers, fifers, trumpeters, or pioneers”. As many as 5,000 African-Americans provided military service during the American War of Independence, including notable musicians such as Barzillai Lew. The tendency to recruit African-Americans into military bands continued after independence; following the War of 1812, a large number of civilian, all-black brass bands formed among veteran military musicians across the United States, but particularly in New Orleans where they often adopted the theatrical styles of minstrel shows.
Early history
Drawing on these traditions, the first HBCU band was established in 1890 at Tuskegee Normal School (later Tuskegee University) under student direction. In 1907 its first professional director, retired U.S. Army Major Nathaniel Clark Smith, was appointed. Ensembles at additional historically black colleges and universities followed. Under the early direction of W.C. Hardy - a former minstrel show musician - Alabama A&M University began performing popular songs of the day in addition to marches, an approach to music selection later popularized among other HBCU and Primarily White Institution (PWI) bands.
The earliest incarnation of the modern HBCU style of marching band, in which the distinctive high-stepping style coalesced with popular music and elaborate dance routines by both bandsmen and auxiliaries, has been traced to Florida A&M University in the 1940s. Beginning in 1952, under director Conrad Hutchinson, the Grambling State University band cultivated a reputation for extravagant performances that was soon emulated by bands at most other HBCUs.
In 1955, the marching band of Tennessee State University became the first HBCU band to appear on national television during their performance at a Chicago Bears NFL game. Six years later, in 1961, the band became the first HBCU band to perform for an inauguration of the President of the United States when it was assigned to the inaugural parade of John F. Kennedy. The Grambling State University marching band provided halftime entertainment at Super Bowl I in 1967, with its performance later named "One of the Top 10 Super Bowl Halftime Shows” by Sports Illustrated.
21st century
As of the 2010s, HBCU bands included those of Alabama State University, Grambling State University, Tennessee State University, Norfolk State University, Texas Southern University, South Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, Jackson State University, Florida A&M University, Bethune Cookman University, Winston-Salem State University, Fayetteville State University, Shaw University, Virginia State University, Southern University and Hampton University. Some high schools, principally in the American South, have adopted the HBCU style, including Jefferson Davis High School of Montgomery, Alabama and Southwest DeKalb High School in Decatur, Georgia.
Characteristics
Drum majors
Drum majors in HBCU bands fill a different role than those of other marching bands which use the position to control tempo and impart field direction. The role of HBCU drum majors evolved from that of leaders of bands in black minstrel parades who were performers themselves. In the black minstrel theatrics of the 19th century, according to Lee Evans citing DeVeaux and Giddins, "'black people realized that they could perform their ‘blackness’ for money,' so they began dancing and singing and doing comedy skits in the streets'.