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THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI
Pride of Mississippi Marching Band Preview set for August 28 at Centennial Green
The University of Southern Mississippi’s Pride of Mississippi Marching Band and the Dixie Darlings will kick off the 2015-16 season with Pride Preview. This free concert will be held Friday, August 28 at 7 p.m. at Centennial Green on the Southern Miss Hattiesburg campus, and all are invited to bring lawn chairs and picnic dinners to enjoy an evening of music and entertainment.
Since the band’s founding in 1920 as a 20-piece brass ensemble, The Pride of Mississippi has evolved into an impressive and highly respected marching band of more than 300 members. Having marched for such events as one of President Franklin Roosevelt’s inaugural parades, the Chicago World’s Fair, Senior Bowl Classic football games, Blue-Gray football games and professional football games, The Pride was one of the most televised marching bands in the South during the 1970s and 1980s.
Unlike most bands of previous days, The Pride was not limited to a common instrumentation of brasses and woodwinds. In the 1950s, the band was accompanied by a bagpipe ensemble along with the Southern Belles dance/drill team, then later the Dixie Darlings. Regarded as one of the nation’s finest university marching bands, The Pride has performed in Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Green Bay, Wis. and throughout Mississippi for competitive band contests, festivals and professional football games, and an international performance in Ireland for the Saint Patrick’s Day celebration.
In 2010, with more than 3.5 million television viewers worldwide, The Pride, along with the Dixie Darlings made their debut appearance in New York City at the 84th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Though many years have passed since its first performance in 1923, the same excitement and tradition of musical excellence continues.
For more information, contact University Bands at 601.266.4990; e-mail USMBands@usm.edu or visit http://www.usm.edu/music/bands.
