Pride of Acadiana Includes More Than UL Students

[NewsCopy]

  About a dozen SLCC students also participate in the marching band

The Pride of Acadiana Marching Band is an ecclectic mix of students. The 237-member band includes UL Lafayette students from each of the eight academic colleges and the Graduate School.

It also includes about a dozen students from South Louisiana Community College. According to Director Brian Taylor, the Pride has included SLCC students since 2008.

“ This is a great cooperative learning experience for these students because they can earn their associate’s degree or get enough credits to transfer to UL and participate in the band at the same time,” said Taylor. “It keeps them in school. It lets them continue with a great musical activity and it keeps them involved with the university.”

The program also allows the band to grow. Taylor said this year’s band is the second largest in the past 20 years.

The Pride of Acadiana performs at all home games, adding music and pageantry to the Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns football. It also performs during select away games, high school contest exhibitions, and special events, such as the 2004 Louisiana governor’s inauguration and New Orleans Saints half-time show in 2008 and 2009.

The band gained an international reputation by performing in the 2005 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and on NBC’s Today’s Show prior to the parade. An estimated 60 million people watch the Macy’s parade worldwide each year and the band was one of only two college marching bands chosen.

In April 2009, the Pride traveled to Great Britain for performance in Edinburgh, Scotland and London, England.

Over the New Year's Holiday 2010, the Pride traveled to Madrid, Spain to perform in the Madrid King's Parade. This parade is viewed by more than one million people live and is broadcast to more than 100 million people throughout the hispanic world.

Membership in the band is open to all majors by audition or high school band director’s recommendation. Rehearsals take place on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 12:15 - 2:15 p.m. in the fall semester only.

UL PRess

[HoustonCajun]

_ _

Hmm. It's the UL press, but they have to remind everyone that UL is in Lafayette. And our band is the Pride of Acadiana rather than Pride of Louisiana. So, we are UL Lafayette, Louisiana's Ragin Cajuns, Acadiana and UL all in one article released by the university. No wonder people can't figure out who we are or what to call us.

[Turbine]

_ Hmm. It's the UL press, but they have to remind everyone that UL is in Lafayette. And our band is the Pride of Acadiana rather than Pride of Louisiana. So, we are UL Lafayette, Louisiana's Ragin Cajuns, Acadiana and UL all in one article released by the university. No wonder people can't figure out who we are or what to call us. _

Slam dunk.

Case Closed.

Bad Marketing.

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Back to the topic: The very first UL Marching band of 1901 used members of the town as well.


Back to a side note: UL made better use of "Louisiana" in the very first PRess release concerning the band.

"Florent Sontag has the honor of being a Louisiana boy, and now Louisiana has the honor of claiming him as one of her own." LINK

Back to the topic: The very first UL baseball team was made up of members of the band and a few from town so this is tradition of sorts. LINK

Back to a side note: So when are we going to get the band to play at baseball games so "Louisiana" can claim them a one of her own?

[Lafitte the Pirate]

_ Hmm. It's the UL press, but they have to remind everyone that UL is in Lafayette. And our band is the Pride of Acadiana rather than Pride of Louisiana. So, we are UL Lafayette, Louisiana's Ragin Cajuns, Acadiana and UL all in one article released by the university. No wonder people can't figure out who we are or what to call us. _

I agree 100% with you on this one!!