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U. band is invited to take part in inauguration

What about the 12 million the conference received from the bowl game? come on "U" guys, no budget $ for the band?

Go Utes! They must've heard the Utes Drumline perform on Canal Street on New Year's Day. That was pretty cool! Way to go band!

Been there done that! The U of U band will have to really step it up to maintain the standard set by the AF High School band. Good luck!

The U only gets about 4 Million from the Sugar Bowl.
The rest gets split between all the non-BCS teams, even ones from other non-BCS conferences. Thats before thy pay for everything like flying the team to New Orleans just to participate, plus they have to buy the 2,000 tickets they couldn't sell.

If the weather was better, they could march next saturday through the neighborhoods of the Salt Lake Valley, people could line up along the route and pitch money into a big bucket on a float, or the cheerleaders could run along with smaller buckets to take donations.

I read one estimation that the Utes would barely clear a mil from the BSC game. They're sharing the 17M with, what, 50+ "non-BSC" schools? That's fair.

The AF standard seems to be burning through kids and money so that few to none play beyond the high school level. Out of 250 kids in that band probably fewer than ten a year go on to play in college. The colleges want them, but they don't want band.

The U band is made of kids from bands that teach kids to love music, rather than giving them a momentary competitive hype fest.

My guess is that AF band worked hard to get invited to the Bush inauguration. The U was invited without having to ask.

Re: Dave from Midvale

I like your idea. They could probably raise $50,000.00 just from marching in a procession around Salt Lake, Midvale, Murray, Sandy, West Valley, North Salt Lake, Bountiful, etc.

Heck, take them up to Park City where the Fat Cats live and let them donate as well.

The euphoria is really high right now, if members of the team would agree to ride on a float they could likely raise even more.

I'd like to see the Band carry a banner proclaiming the University of Utah football team the real National Champion - Undefeated, Untied and Undeniable.

I wanted to make an anonymous donation to the band but the online form just asks too many questions. The last thing I want to have happen is to be put on a mailing list.

To the UofU:

Please change the form to a simple anonymous link where people can send funds. I don't care to be acknowledge in any way for my donation. But I also don't want to end up on any mailing lists.

I get too many trash mails (and emails) the way it is.

Make the change and I'll send you $100.00.

If you really want to send a donation, send it to the Ute Marching Band
Gardner Hall
University of Utah
SLC, UT 84112

I predict that the band won't be going.. to raise that kind of money they need a BIG donor. Parading thru town won't do it! Too much "red" tape, not enough time. Oh well.. the Yewt spotlight has faded.

This reads more like a plea than a newspaper article.

This is a great honor for the Band, University and Utah! Sending them should be priority for the Athletic Department and the School. Fact is this: The band is a part of the athletic dept. The band receives scholarship money from the athletic dept and nearly every band member has a scholarship (which pays very little per semester might I add). They recieve a place to practice by the athletic dept and are at their beck and call.

Cont. The band goes on 2 trips minimum every year, one in-state one out-of-state, to accompany the football team. That is basically the extent of the support from the athletic dept. If it weren�t for a wonderful and sweet lady, the late Sally Burbidge, the band wouldn�t have uniforms (two sets mind you!), full tuition and full ride music scholarships and instruments to play (thank you Sally!!). The band shows the greatest school spirit at all athletic events they play (the Muss being their rival!).

Hey,
Call up daddy and mommy and have them send you some money!! or take it out of your savings!!

Hey American Fork band posters...no one cares about your band and where or if you perform. Go post on a BYU football team story.

Ok so now the U is saying that they don't have enough money to send their band to the Pres. Inaugeration? Yet they want recognition for the school or just recognition for the football team? They have it in the budget to get their athletic teams anywhere yet they won't help the band to do something even more important then "play on a field". Makes no sense to me. Seems to me they have a double standard, Football is important, but the band isn't. Shame! Shame!

I will be happy to donate. One of the things that truly separates the boring NFL from college football are the bands. RES is a much better place on Saturdays because of the band.
Good luck in DC! You'll find enough support to get there.

Here we go again. Sports gets all the $, and yet the back up singers get nada.

ie: I sang in a choir at of U at the then "Special Events Center" at a ritzy dinner when it was re-named "The Huntsman Center" The honored benefactor graciously stood and said how inspired he had been by the music, and how because of that he and his wife had decided right then and there to double their donation to the SPORTS department!? I was standing there think, well I'm glad you found the music so inspiring... but maybe next time they should have the football team sing, and see how inspiring that is...!?

Come on U of U, your band, not your football team has been asked to march at a Presidential Inauguration - there's got to be some $ somewhere to have them represent our great school. I'll gladly send some $, but note another example of the stark disparity between funding in sports and the arts - sports it comes down raining, while the musician are begging in the streets (or is that the parade?)

What an honor! GO UTAH!

It does seem that money always goes for athletics at most universities. But since the band is a big part of the game experience, you'd think they could tap into some of the athletic funds.

By the way, when I was at the U during Urban Meyer's short tenure, I thought it interesting that the U paid so much to have him there and yet in the dilapidated OSH building bathrooms on the main floor would flood whenever there was a snowstorm.

Oh, yes. Athletics are more important than academics.