March Madness at the Palace is the Battle of the Brass Bands

During NCAA tournament play at the Palace of Auburn Hills last weekend, the bands weren't playing second fiddle to the basketball teams.

Excerpt:

"What you do not always see during the N.C.A.A. men’s basketball tournament on television is this: a bass trombone player who hops around on stilts before the game, a band director who rips off his dress shirt and conducts in a tank top, and a tuba player who shimmies out of his pants at halftime, revealing American-flag boxers and tights...

Before the game is, perhaps, the only time the players listening.

Josh Bartelstein, a team captain for Michigan, said that he had memorized the order of his band’s pregame songs and began warm-ups on the same tune every game. He had his favorites, even if he could not name them.

V.C.U. has a repertory of about 60 songs. Kopacsi is usually open to suggestions from his students, which fits his personality as much as the baseball jerseys. He indicated a band’s wardrobe said something about the band.
Michigan State, for instance, wore simple shirts with Spartans logos and sneakers. In Salt Lake City, the Harvard band’s official uniform included a white shirt, a dark tie and a Crimson jacket with gold buttons and an emblem on the left breast..."

More here.