The Mustang Band Hall opened its doors to band members this fall. The new facility is five times larger than its original, offering more space for rehearsals, performances and expansion.
“The old place had a nostalgic feel, but as an overall rehearsal space, the new Mustang Band Hall is a palace,” senior drum major Nick Morris said. “We love it, and we can’t thank our generous donors enough.”
The 11,000-square foot building is located on the southeast side of campus at the Dedman Center for Lifetime Sports. New features include practice rooms for ensemble and general use, instrument storage areas, staff offices, conference rooms, a break room and an outdoor performance plaza. More than 1,250 band alumni, supporters, friends and students contributed to the $3 million band hall.
“This has been built by many people,” said Associate Director of Development for Student Affairs Arlene Manthey. “It truly took a village to create this building.”
The Mustang Band hopes the new band hall will encourage them to become even more involved in on-campus events and will help increase band membership from 88 members to 150.
“Thankfully, we have a state-of-the-art facility that will help us recruit better players every year, develop that talent and help us become an even bigger part of life at SMU,” Morris said.
Other members agree that the new space will expand “the hub of SMU spirit” to rival other larger schools.
“I think the new band hall was necessary to have the program grow,” junior Jackson McMartin said. “In the old band hall, we could barely squeeze in a 90-person band, which is fairly small compared to other schools around the area.”
The band’s previous rehearsal space was located below Perkins Natatorium, where members could hear people swimming while they were practicing for upcoming events.
“I remember the first time I tried to visit the old place, I got lost, because I’d never seen a band hall that looked like a swimming pool before,” Morris said.
McMartin stated that the old band hell felt more like a janitor’s closet than a rehearsal space. Sixty years ago the space worked for a smaller band; however, now the group needed top-rated facilities where they could hear each other play. Already the band has noticed an improvement in overall band sound, where musical tones are darker and richer.
“The acoustics are fantastic, so we’re able to fix mistakes more quickly and improve the overall ensemble sound,” Morris said.
The closeness of the Mustang Band Hall to Ford Stadium and the Residential Commons Complex is another advantage of the move. The band will still march the parade and eat lunch with the Diamond M Club during home games, but they will no longer waste extra practice time traveling to and from the band hall.
“The location will help so much during football season,” McMartin said. “It’ll make things so much easier when we need to change our uniform before halftime.”
Before, the band would trek from Ford Stadium to what once was Perkins Natatorium to change from their pre-game uniform to their halftime uniform. The proximity of the new band hall eliminates this move and also makes it easier for members to retrieve items they might have left behind.
The new performance plaza, located just outside the Mustang Band Hall, will be used to uplift school spirit after football games.
“Our post-game concerts, which last 20 to 30 minutes, can be heard by everyone as they leave the stadium after a football game,” Morris said.
The Mustang Band will be officially dedicated Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. at “Friday Night Stampede.” The event is both for the new band hall and a to celebrate 100 years of SMU spirit. The Friday Night Stampede includes a special performance by the Mustang Band, food trucks, speeches and a pep rally. According to Manthey, the Friday Night Stampede will help start a new tradition for both the Mustang Band and SMU students and fans.
