Records Are Shattered as Harvard Band Amassed Total of 76 Letters on Gridiron This Fall--Bass Drum Had Cadet Escort

The University Band, although last year unofficially breaking all record for Eastern College Bands by forming a total of 74 letters, this year broke its own record by forming 76 letters during the football season. The Band, which is entirely a student organization, included 110 men this year, more than any previous year. It learns its formations for the football games each week immediately before marching onto the field at game time, and has only one other rehearsal for the music each week, usually on the afternoon preceding the game.

This year are attempt was made to get something new; one of the most important innovations in the Band was the addition of two cymbal players to the regular kinds of musicians. Another innovation this season was the addition of another drum-major to the membership, Paul Metcalf, a schoolboy, who wielded a baton for the first time shortly after the Bates game and under the tutelage of the leader of the Band, G. V. Slade '32, learned to manipulate it sufficiently well so that he made his appearance with the Band in the Dartmouth game.

In the Holy Cross game the Band set an unofficial time record by marching onto the field, forming the letters "HC" and "H", and getting off the field again in less than one minute and 50 seconds. In the Yale game the Band formed 27 letters including spelling out "Eit Yale" and "Wood", performances based on two hours practice.

On account of the rain on the days preceding the West Point game, the Band did not get a chance to practice spelling out "Army". so that the formation had to be learned on the top of the Hudson River Boat on the way to West Point, one letter at a time due to the limited space. The large drum, which measures over six feet in diameter, probably had the distinction of being the first instrument from a college band to have an army escort, when it was carried down from the stadium at West Point to the boat by two squads of adepts.