Music

Check Out This Gear From Blugold Marching Bands Past

Barbara Arnold |

Brittaney McCarthy and the Blugold Marching Band uniform display
Brittaney McCarthy and the Blugold Marching Band uniform display

Imagine you are the Brittaney McCarthy, co-head manager of the Blugold Marching Band at UW-Eau Claire. It’s two or three days before marching band registration day when 350 Blugold Marching Band members descend on campus. You, co-head manager Daniel Vaningan, and a few other helpers are going through the uniform storage room, trying to get organized for the big day. Suddenly, the thought occurs to you: Why not do a display of all these uniforms, shakos (plumed hats), flags, etc., for everyone to enjoy at registration so they can see what the band looked like in past years? And voila, after 24 hours, the research to identify the years of every displayed piece is done, and the display is all set up in glass cases in the hallway of the Haas Fine Arts building across from the Foster Art Gallery. While the display focuses more on the modern era from 2000 to the present, there are some interesting finds from the 1940s, mid-1960s, and the 1980s – not to mention shiny gold buttons, shimmery guard flags, and plumes. Note: Once this display ends in Haas, plans are in the works to move it to the third floor of the Davies Center on campus to celebrate UWEC’s Centennial.