BM
Brianna Myre
  • Class of 2012
  • Co Bluffs, IA

Brianna Myre of Council Bluffs picked for Cornhusker Marching Band

2011 Aug 26

Brianna Myre of Council Bluffs will be part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's 290-member Cornhusker Marching Band in 2011. A senior fisheries and wildlife and Spanish major, Myre plays the clarinet. The band will make its debut Sept. 3 at Memorial Stadium with pre-game and halftime performances at Nebraska's football season opener against the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.

This year's band includes representatives from nearly every region of the country, but 80 percent of the students are from Nebraska. Nearly one-fourth (23 percent) of the students are music or music education majors. The rest of the students are studying in more than 70 other degree programs across campus. Each band member passed two auditions to gain admittance to the group.

Anthony M. Falcone, associate director of bands in the UNL School of Music, is the director of the Cornhusker Marching Band. Douglas W. Bush is the assistant director of bands and assistant marching band director. Carolyn Barber, associate professor of music, is director of bands. Other band staff members are graduate teaching assistants Raul Barcenes, Jeremy Cardamone and Eric Chrostoski. Ben Coleman is the band's percussion instructor and Ashlea Jurgens-Woitzel is the color guard instructor. Rose Johnson is the administrative technician for the band program, Jan Deaton is the office associate and Nolan Schmit is the marching band's announcer.

The drum majors for the 2011 marching band are seniors Joanie Halouska of Plattsmouth, Andrew Kroeger of Omaha, and Tommy Krueger of Lincoln. The twirler is junior Rachel Foehlinger of Omaha.

The Cornhusker Marching Band was founded in 1879 as an ROTC unit and is one of the oldest marching bands in the nation. The Marching Red has received many honors throughout its 132-year history, including a Distinguished Recognition Trophy presented by John Philip Sousa in 1927 and the John Philip Sousa Foundation's Sudler Trophy in 1996 for high musical standards and innovative marching routines. The Sudler Trophy is the highest honor given to collegiate bands.

The Marching Red has been seen by millions of viewers on television including in 2005, when the band was featured on the NBC prime-time series, "Tommy Lee Goes to College," and in 2007 on ABC's "Extreme Home Makeover: Home Edition."

The band was the first collegiate ensemble to perform at all the major football bowl games (Rose, Orange, Fiesta, Sugar and Cotton). The full marching band will be traveling to the Nebraska game at Michigan on Nov. 19. Pep bands will travel to the Wyoming, Wisconsin and Minnesota games.