- Mighty Sound of the South
-
The Mighty Sound of the South is the school band that belongs to the University of Memphis in Memphis, TN.
The band performs at Memphis Tigers football games as a marching band and at Tigers basketball games as a pep band.
History
At the end of the 1962-1963 basketball season, the Tiger team had the distinction of being the only southern team to be invited to play in the National Invitational Tournament in Madison Square Garden. Thomas C. Ferguson, in only his second year as band director, was a big basketball fan, and furnished a pep band for every home game, which was not a given as it is today. He decided that his pep band should go to New York City, and he called the tournament committee for permission. They had to check into it, because a pep band had never before played for a basketball game in the Garden. They were given the green light to become the first.
Nineteen pep band members boarded a bus for New York City. They were determined to make a name for themselves - literally. Using markers and an old bed sheet, they fashioned a makeshift sign with the words "The Mighty Sound of the South" to humorously describe their modestly sized band. The basketball team went on to an impressive showing, and the name "The Mighty Sound of the South" is still used, in a more literal sense, for the 200+ member marching band.
A history of previous-thru-current directors / assistant directors of The Mighty Sound of The South is as follows:
1940 - ? Lawrence "Pat" Cooney
1950 - 1952 Gaston Taylor
1953 - 1956 Ralph Hale
1957 - 1959 Olin Blickensderfer
1962 - 1974 Dr. Tom Ferguson
1968 - 1970 James Richens
1972 - 1986 Art Theil
1975 - 2002 Dr. Sidney McKay
1987 - 1998 Dr. James "Marty" Courtney
1999 - 1999 Geoff Carlton
2000 - 2011 Dr. Nicholas Holland
2002 - 2011 Dr. Kraig Williams
2008 - present Dr. Albert Nguyen
2011 - present Mr. Quintus F. Wrighten, Jr.
The Mighty Sound of the South is officially charged with preserving the traditions of the Memphis Tigers and for performing “Go! Tigers! Go!” the University of Memphis Tigers’ fight song.[1] The fight song was written by Tom Ferguson, former Director of Bands at Memphis State University during the 1960-1970s.
References
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLKs3V2XL6Q Go! Tigers! Go! Lyrics and Performance
External links
Athletics Memphis Tigers • Men's Basketball • Women's Basketball • Football • Women's Volleyball • University of Memphis Stadium • List of Memphis athletes • FedEx Park Baseball Field, University of Memphis • Billy J. Murphy Athletic Complex • Larry O. Finch Center • Mike Rose Soccer Complex • University of Memphis Tennis Complex • Memphis Rifle Range • Elma Roane FieldhouseJournals Southern Journal of Philosophy • University of Memphis Law Review • Mental Health Law and Policy JournalLife The Daily Helmsman • Mighty Sound of the South • FedEx Forum • Art Museum at the University of Memphis • WUMR • TOM II • TOM III • Highland Hundred • University of Memphis Foundation • Fogelman Executive Conference Center
Marching bands of Conference USA East Division Marching Pirates (East Carolina) • Marching Thunder (Marshall) • Mighty Sound of the South (Memphis) • The Pride of Mississippi (Southern Miss) • UAB Marching Blazers (UAB) • Marching Knights (UCF)
West Division Spirit of Houston (Houston) • Marching Owl Band (Rice) • Mustang Band (SMU) • Tulane University Marching Band (Tulane) • The Sound of the Golden Hurricane (Tulsa) • Marching Miners (UTEP)
Categories:- Marching band stubs
- College marching bands in the United States
- University of Memphis
- Conference USA marching bands
- Musical groups established in 1940
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
