MSU Alumni Band 2024-2025 Winter Bands

• Pay annual membership dues (available until March 1st at 8:00pm)
• Purchase an Alumni Band T-shirt (available until November 30th at 11:30am)
• Pay the rental fee to borrow an MSU-owned instrument (available until February 26th at 8:00am)
• Make a donation to the Whitwell, Bloomquist, Falcone, Thoma, and MSU Band scholarships (available until March 2nd at 7:00pm)

Please review the Alumni Band Code of Conduct at this link:

Note that before you check-out you will be required to verify that you've read and will comply with the Code of Conduct.

You MUST be an Active Member of the MSU Alumni Band to register for Winter Bands during the month of November. If you have not paid dues, you can do so by purchasing the Annual Alumni Dues ticket. If you attended Fall Reunion in September 2024, you are all set! If you aren't sure, please email [email protected]. You will not be placed on the roster for any events (besides the Jan. 1st Women's Basketball game) until your dues payment has been received. Registration will open to non-members and current students on December 1st.

*Recent Grads - The Alumni Band waives dues for the first year after you graduate, so if you have graduated since December 2023, please select the Annual Alumni Dues - New Grads ONLY ticket. If you attended Fall Reunion, you have already done this process and no further action is needed.

**Note - Paying your annual membership does does not guarantee you a place on any of the Winter Band event rosters. Dues are non-refundable.

This site is used as a payment platform for annual dues, T-shirts, and instrument rental ONLY. Paying dues is a prerequisite for enrolling in any Winter Band events (except for the Jan. 1st Women's basketball game) until registration opens to current students and other members on December 1st. This form in itself is NOT registering for Winter Bands. You can register for Winter Bands using the Google Form linked below.

Winter Bands Registration Form: link will be available November 1st at 8am

The Department of Athletics and the College of Music have asked us to maintain the uniformity of our dress for all performances (games, parades, etc.). THIS WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED! Please wear your Michigan State Alumni Band Shirt (pictured below) for each event. If you do not already own one, we have several t-shirt options available to purchase during check-out in the add-ons section. If you purchase one or more t-shirts, they will be provided to you at the first game you participate in.

The 100% cotton style and the Sport-Tek polyester style in short sleeve and long sleeve varieties are all acceptable for our uniform. You are welcome to wear other clothes under the Alumni Band t-shirt as long as they follow MSU's color scheme (i.e. blacks, whites, greens, greys, etc.). At hockey games only, you may wear a Spartan green outer layer (i.e. hoodie, band jacket, etc.). Everyone must also wear dark pants or jeans for all events.

Please make arrangements to borrow an instrument if you do not have one or cannot travel with your instrument. Only a select quantity of instruments are available through the Spartan Marching Band, and there is a nominal rental fee for the use of it. You can reserve an instrument by selecting the Borrow an MSU-Owned Instrument ticket during the check-out process - up to the quantity that are available! If no instruments are available when you register, then all of those available have already been reserved. This fee will only need to be paid once for the Winter Band season. Instruments available include Eb trumpets, baritones, mellophones, and tubas. This ticket must be purchased at least 72 hours in advance of the first event you intend to play at.

We will be partnering with Integrity One Payments, MSUFCU's recommended vendor for secure credit card processing, to place $50 holds on credit cards during the pickup process. The credit card hold will be placed when you arrive to pick up an instrument for the first time of the Winter Band season. Unless damage necessitates an immediate charge, this initial hold will drop off 3-7 business days later; however, the information will be saved by Integrity One Payments for the remainder of the Winter Bands season. See Instrument Rental Agreement for more information.

Instrument Rental Agreement: [link pending]

The Alumni Band encourages your support of scholarships and projects. Please consider donating to one or more of the following (use the tickets while registering):

• The John Whitwell Band Scholarship Fund - awarded annually each spring to a student in honor of director emeritus John Whitwell.
• The Ken Bloomquist Scholarship Fund - awarded annually each spring to a student in honor of director emeritus Ken Bloomquist.
• The Leonard Falcone Endowed Music Scholarship - provides a scholarship for full time undergraduate and graduate music majors. Awardees are selected by the Director of Bands.
• The Augie Thoma Scholarship Fund - NEW - awarded annually each spring to a student in honor of August (Augie) Thoma.
• MSU Bands - Donations to this fund help secure guest artists, conductors, and composers; travel for the Wind Ensemble to peer-reviewed regional and national conferences; funds to commission new works and to subsidize recording opportunities for the Wind Ensemble; and special scholarships for students to participate in University Bands.
• The SMB Jackets Sponsorship Fund - in support of all freshman in the Spartan Marching Band - to award the coveted jacket to each freshman at minimal cost to them. This scholarship is not available at this time as it is extremely well funded. Please consider donating to one of the other funds/scholarships in its place!

To contribute to the scholarships and projects listed above, you may use the tickets at the beginning of the page. All of the contributions are tax-deductible! Your printed ticket can serve as your receipt for tax purposes. If you would like a receipt directly from the MSU Alumni Band, or if your gift is over $250.00 (the IRS requires a receipt), please contact us and we'll send it to you.

You may also make a donation directly through University Advancement (on-line donation). To do that, visit the following link: https://www.givingto.msu.edu/gift/, and on that page, under "Search for Fund", type in:

• AE06072 for the Whitwell Scholarship
• AE069 for the Bloomquist Scholarship
• AE0603 for the Falcone Endowed Music Scholarship
• AE06056 for the Augie Thoma Scholarship
• AE0601 for the MSU Bands fund
• AE060706 for the SMB band jackets (Knas Family Band Jacket Endowment)

Thank you!

Annual Alumni Dues - Paying your annual membership does does not guarantee you a place on any of the Winter Band event rosters. Dues are non-refundable.

T-Shirts - Non-refundable after November 30th at 11:30am. If you are unable to attend any of your scheduled events, we can mail your shirt(s) to you at your cost.

Instrument Rental Fee - Must notify us prior to your first scheduled Winter Bands event. Non-refundable if you have used an instrument at least once during the season.

If you have any questions, please contact Aryka Thomson at [email protected] or Sarah Metcalf at [email protected].

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Demonstration Hall, 229 Dem Hall Road, East Lansing, United States