Current Issues with Dr. Phillips

March 13, 2007

Dear Clemson:

Below please find a news release regarding the Tiger Marching Band. Under the direction of Dr. Mark Spede, we have a tremendous band and we’re very, very proud of them. So, please join me in saying thank you to Dr. Spede and our Tiger Band members—

“Thanks for all you do, and we are so very proud of you and your accomplishments!”

In Solid Orange, Terry Don Phillips Athletic Director

Tiger Band Recognized by National Organization, Innovative “Rent” Show Earns Prestigious Honor

The Clemson University Marching Band was recently recognized by the most prominent professional college band organization in the United States. A committee of college band directors selected Tiger Band’s 2006 half-time show “Selections from the musical `RENT’ to be presented, via video, at the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) conference later this month in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Tiger Band joins four other college bands selected for this first-time honor by the CBDNA. The band association has historically selected the nation’s top college concert bands to perform at its conferences. This year, however, was the first time the CBDNA created an opportunity for marching bands to submit a video for “performance” at the conference.

Mark Spede, Director of Bands at Clemson University, said, “We submitted our “RENT” show because it was more than just an excellent performance – it served as a showcase of how a marching band can raise awareness for a community organization that needs support.”

Performing custom arrangements of songs from “RENT”, written by Spede, Tiger Band dedicated its “RENT” performance to showing football fans how the Clemson chapter of Habitat for Humanity is working to end homelessness and substandard housing. Creative use of the stadium’s video board included showing band members as they exchanged their instruments for hammers, saws, and other tools to help build a Habitat house. Two local families, who now live in Habitat-built homes, were introduced on the field during the half-time performance.

“It’s an honor to have Tiger Band – and Clemson University – receive this prestigious national recognition,” said Spede. “It serves as a testament to the students’ hard work and dedication and I am very proud of the students and this achievement.”