4 minute read
Band by Tim Gunter
Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigmañ Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigmañ Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigmañ Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigmañ Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigmañ Indispensable to the College Band! Indispensable to the College Band! Indispensable to the College Band! Indispensable to the College Band! Indispensable to the College Band!
by Tim Gunter Director of Athletic Bands Director, Razorback Marching Band University of Arkansas
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Is it possible for the modern university band to be the vibrant, energetic, self-starting, dynamic force that it is without the work and leadership of the young men and women of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma? Would university bands be able to service the many needs of its members without the sacrifice of these special people? Would the wonderful, contagious spirit generated by a group of young people who sacrifice so many hours of service in support of their beloved university band families be at such a high level without the bonding opportunities of brotherhood and sisterhood? In my opinion, the answer is an absolute NO!
I have had the good fortune to see the world of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma from the perspective of both student and faculty. As an undergraduate at the University of Arkansas from 1974-1979, I was a proud and loyal member of the Lambda Chapter, working diligently on the equipment crew for four years. As one might expect, I have many fond memories of my days in the Razorback Band and the numerous escapades I was lucky enough to experience and survive, including being asked to scrape two inches of ice off of an Astroturf field one hour before rehearsal. Ouch! I will never forget the spirit of our chapter—always ready and available to help, and eager to please Mr. Eldon Janzen, our director, who we respected and admired and a person for whom we would have done anything.
Today, I am fulfilling a dream job as the Director of Athletic Bands and Director of the 312-member Razorback Marching Band at the University of Arkansas. I am also privileged to serve as the faculty advisor for the Psi Chapter of Tau Beta Sigma. In that capacity, I try to attend every meeting I can. It is important that those of us in leadership positions keep in mind that we shouldn’t ask our students to do anything we wouldn’t be willing to do ourselves. We as leaders are no more special than our young followers and shouldn’t expect to be treated as such. Our students work too hard and long in their efforts to make their university band experience a pinnacle experience to deserve any less. If the attainment of respect is a concern, I believe that “getting your hands dirty” along with the membership in the fulfillment of their goals, which should be the same goals as the leadership, will get you all of the respect you ever wanted and more. I am absolutely convinced that there is no group of students or faculty on our campus at the University of Arkansas more committed to the fulfillment of their goals and more willing to do whatever it takes to achieve them. It is an unquestionable fact that our band would not survive without them. No matter what the obstacle may be, whether it be weather, administrative faux pas, illness, or whatever, these guys can find a satisfactory solution to any problem. The number of activities that Lambda and Psi perform for the good of our band program are too numerous to mention in this space, but everything they do, from the water coolers for every rehearsal and game to the massive amount of equipment moves that are made from band hall to storage shed to the drill field to our pep rally location to the stadium sites in both Fayetteville and Little Rock, to the... well, I think you get the picture. The examples of leadership exhibited by the members in our chapters are unparalleled and greatly appreciated more than they will ever know.
Finally, the life lessons that are learned on almost a daily basis from an association with Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma are significant and numerous. It is fulfilling as a teacher and advisor to watch the maturation process at work. The majority of the young people who arrive on our campus as freshmen are still teenagers in the strictest sense of the word. By the time they graduate, they have transformed into young adults, ready to make significant contributions to society. In my heart, I know that an association with the university band combined with the experiences attained in the fraternity and sorority had an enormous impact on the development of their lives. Long live Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma!
