USC Trojan Marching Band

Biography

Since its beginning in 1880, the University of Southern California Trojan Marching Band has become the largest spirit organization on campus. The Spirit of Troy consists of 275 student musicians and auxiliaries representing 60 fields of undergraduate and graduate degrees. The band received its first exposure to the national limelight when it had the distinct privilege of performing under the baton of John Philip Sousa. The band's real break came when it formed the 10th Olympic Braid for the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Once was not enough, so in 1984, 125 Trojans made up the core of a mass band performing at the opening and closing ceremonies of the 23rd Olympiad in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The contemporary Trojan Band has been under the direction of Arthur C. Bartner since 1970. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Dr. Bartner developed both the "drive-it" style of marching that has become legendary and the "rock-chart" sound copied by collegiate programs across the country.