Frequently Asked Questions – Pep Band

Welcome! Simply complete the Join Form, and you will then be directed to register for Pep Band on My BU Student. Course registration numbers can be found below. if you have any questions at all, contact us at bands@bu.edu. We’ll see you in Pep Band!

Pep Band is the house band for Boston University. We perform mostly at Hockey & Basketball games (Men’s & Women’s), and we rotate our students through performances to keep the commitment achievable. We also perform at University events, community events, and more. With a song list of over 100 classic and current tunes, the BU Pep Band is a high-energy, powerful music ensemble beloved by the BU community.

The Pep Band is also an integral part of the “Dog Pound” student fan section. Since our teams are perennial contenders for postseason play, we have opportunities for paid travel to conference and NCAA tournaments around the country. Pep Band is a vibrant, energetic, fun music ensemble!

“Pep Band Day” occurs on the first weekend of the fall semester and is a half-day of music, traditions, getting to know your sections, and more. After that, rehearsals occur on Friday afternoons for 90 minutes in September and October, and also in the first few weeks of classes in January. Around that, it’s mostly performing.

Students are rotated through performances to keep the overall commitment balanced and achievable. Performances include home Hockey & Basketball games (Men’s & Women’s), University events, community events, and more. We’ve performed for the Boston Red Sox, in downtown Boston at Faneuil Hall, at events for the New England Patriots, alongside the Boston Pops at Symphony Hall, on stage with the Dropkick Murphys, and more. Wherever we perform, we bring the volume and energy!!

We split the Pep Band into the Red Band & White Band and rotate those two bands through performances, so as long as you get someone in your section from the opposite color band to fill your spot, you’re allowed to miss that event. However, all members must attend the handful of “Full Band” events each semester: these include rehearsals [see “When does Pep Band rehearse?” above] and a few large-scale University performances. Each member also gets two free unexcused absences to use each semester for Red/White Band events.

Yes. You can opt to receive a Hub unit in the area of “Intellectual Toolkit: Teamwork/Collaboration” by enrolling in Pep Band for both semesters within an academic year, using the Hub numbers 186 and 189. See “Can I get credit for Pep Band?” directly below for pertinent info.

Yes. There are three different sections you can choose from:

• 1-credit: CFA MU 193 A1
• Hub credit (Intellectual Toolkit: Teamwork/Collaboration), must take for both sem.:
  • Fall: CFA MU 186 A1
  • Spring: CFA MU 189 A1
• 0-credit (only available to students at/above their credit limit): CFA MU 093 A1

No. However, we will hear you play so that we can put you on the right part. This also helps us balance the two bands (Red & White Band) by ability.

Yes. Many students in Pep Band also participate in Marching Band, Concert Band, Winter Drumline, Winter Guard, or Jazz Ensembles, all of which occur on days separate from Pep Band. You can read about our other ensembles on this website and use the Join Form to join.

Yes. You can sign-out an instrument, as well as a locker for it, in the Band Room (300 Babcock St.) upon joining Pep Band. Instruments and lockers are loaned on a first come, first serve basis, so be sure to complete the Join Form ASAP.

First-time members will need to purchase a red BU Bands polo shirt, which – along with black pants (provided by you) – serves as our uniform. This counts as a one-time purchase and can serve as your uniform for your entire college career. It also gets you into games for free. The polo shirt is $40. Members also need to purchase a license for our digital music app, which goes for $10/year. The app and shirt are also used in Marching Band, so students in both ensembles only need to purchase them once. Financial assistance is available to those in need – contact Aaron Goldberg, director (agold@bu.edu) or our Bands Office (bands@bu.edu). The Pep Band fee page can be found here.

Unfortunately not. However, members can opt to perform at games that fall over Thanksgiving, Winter, and/or Spring breaks and be paid $25/game in Terrier Convenience Points for use around campus. Additionally, per diem money is provided on most trips to playoffs in the spring and for the biannual “Red Hot Hockey” game at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY.

Our book includes 100+ tunes from almost every genre of music, designed to entertain, get the crowd moving, and excite! We even have space for approved student arrangements.

Yes, as long as your school does not have a Pep Band. Simply register as a “non-degree student,” and you’ll receive a BU ID card for access to the Band Room, etc. See this page for more info. Contact bands@bu.edu with questions.

Though most performances are at home, we do travel to spring playoffs for sports, and the better our teams do, the further we travel. Hotels and per diem $$ are provided for overnight trips. We also travel to “Red Hot Hockey” at Madison Square Garden in New York every-other November. And of course there’s the annual Beanpot Hockey Tournament at the TD Garden in downtown Boston each February!

No. Even though we do have music majors in Pep Band, we are open to students of every major and every ability. Our students come from every college at BU and we even have grad students and students from local universities that do not have Pep Band at their school.

No, but membership for both semesters is recommended when possible. Most of the songs, horn moves, and traditions are learned and implemented in the Fall semester, but we do have members each year who join in the Spring, and as long as they’re willing to catch up a little bit, it’s definitely doable.

We are here and ready to answer any questions you may have!
Director of Athletic Bands: Aaron Goldberg (agold@bu.edu)
Assistant Director of Athletic Bands: Sharif Mamoun (smamoun@bu.edu)

A full list of Section Leaders can be found here.

For general questions, you can also contact the Bands Office (bands@bu.edu)

Welcome! Simply complete the Join Form, and you will then be directed to register for Pep Band on StudentLink. Course registration numbers can be found here. We’ll see you at Pep Band Day!