Spirit in plaid blazers and Italian boaters

A few weeks ago before Princeton defeated Harvard in football, the Tigers' eventual victory could have been predicted by comparing the bands. The Harvard band provided a flashback to the early 1990s with one-size-fits-all blazers that probably still had shoulder pads. Before the game, the musicians from Cambridge stood as a disorganized, lifeless mass of crimson, clearly unprepared for the upcoming contest.

The Princeton band, on the other hand, clad in fantastic jackets and Italian boater hats, crowded in the lobby of Jadwin Gym after campaigning across campus all morning to prepare students for the game. The spirited students spilled out onto the field in their characteristic 'scramble' style for a stirring pre-game performance before giving the field to the team.

Unique, storied and vibrant, the Princeton University Band — the PUB, to those in the know — is a reliable fixture in the stands not just at every football game, but at basketball, hockey and lacrosse games year round. With a style all its own and a corps of enthusiastic members and the alumni, the PUB is a creative and entertaining force in Princeton athletics.

"Despite our appearance we actually work a lot. A great deal of work goes into producing a different show each week," senior drum major Charlie Bergen said.

The PUB actually owns the rights to the particular plaid pattern found on its custom-made jackets. Most band members adorn their blazers with Office Space–style pieces of flair. The boater hats complete the classy look and are considered even more impressive because they are imported from Italy.

"We definitely have the most stylish uniforms in the league," senior head manager Stuart Lange said. "One of the things that's cool about the uniforms is that we've been wearing that exact uniform since 1953, down to all the details."

The PUB is a completely student-run organization and even has its own constitution, a copy of which is available on their website. Lacking any University liaison, the PUB takes care of musical, travel and financial arrangements on its own.

The band boasts a membership of about 75 students. Most show up to every game, even though attendance is not mandatory. Previous musical experience is not necessary to join the PUB, as many members of the band play Trash Percussion and are given the task of playing such instruments as the flamingo, stop sign and muffler.

The success of the PUB, members said, can be attributed primarily to its appreciation for sport and tradition.

"We pride ourselves on being big sports fans. We're big on Princeton spirit," Lange said.

Despite this spirit, the members admit that they don't contribute much to the family-friendly environment the University has attempted to create at sporting events.

"[Our cheering] usually involves some oblique comment about a sexual reference or curse words: something that 14-year-olds would like," Bergen explained. "We just do whatever is funny, or whatever we think is funny, at least."

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Supporting Tiger athletics is an important tradition of the PUB, but the band has some traditions of its own. One of the most famous traditions is playing in the Woody Woo fountain after a football victory, which has been in existence since the mid-1970s. No one is required to jump in the fountain, though it's strongly encouraged despite what the temperature or wind-chill factor may be.

A tradition that is approaching its 20th year is the annual White Castle Meat Product Tolerance Marathon, held during the week between the end of exams and reunions.

"We bombard White Castle and eat as many of [the burgers] as we deem reasonable, and then we eat more," Bergen said, describing the method that led him to become last year's champ by eating 29 burgers. He fell just three short of the record of 32 burgers, which is held by two alums.

In total, the band estimates that it consumes about 500 burgers during each competition.

Lange, a veteran of the marathon, said, "The first two or three are okay, then it just gets disgusting."

Behind its fearless leaders, the PUB sometimes finds itself in precarious situations. NYU Public Safety once apprehended Lange for leading the charge to play in the University's library.

Bergen's basic philosophy on this, however, is that "anyone who is in the library at 10 o'clock on a Saturday morning really needs to hear some band music."