The Athletic Bands are ensembles that perform at athletic events for the University of Minnesota - Duluth. This includes the Marching Band that performs at UMD Football games, and the Pep Band that performs at UMD Volleyball, Men & Women's Basketball, and Men & Women's Hockey games. The Athletic Bands also perform at parades, masterclasses, and community events not only in Duluth, but all across the Northland, and are always open to invitations for new events and experiences. 

The Athletic Bands are a student-run Campus Life Program, and does not count towards your semester's academic credit load.

Not at all! You could have been playing your instrument since 5th grade, or just picked it up a week ago! We accept anyone and everyone into Athletic Bands, regardless of past experience. 

No! As a matter of fact, a majority of our ensembles are non music majors. We have members representing every college within UMD.

For Marching Band: There is no fee to participate, but there are some fees for early move-in and performances. There is a $200 early move-in fee if you are living on campus. This allows you to move in during band camp, which starts one week before classes start. Additionally, if you rent an instrument, it will be $75 for the semester, and you will receive a $25 refund after returning it. You will need to buy an Athletic Bands t-shirt, which will be available to order for ~$16 at the start of band camp. Finally, you will need to provide your own marching shoes. We have suggestions for these on the "Band Camp" webpage. Gloves are provided to you for free. You will need to purchase your own breakfast during band camp.

For Pep Band: There is no fee to participate. If you need to rent an instrument, the same pricing as the marching band rentals listed above applies. Required uniform is an Athletic Bands t-shirt, with additional apparel options available to order at the start of the season. A refundable $5 cash fee is collected when a music folder is checked out; this deposit will be returned when the folder is turned in.

If you do not own your own instrument, or play a large instrument (looking at you sousaphones). Athletic Bands does have access to instruments that are available for members to rent. If you are in need of an instrument for the upcoming school year, more information on the process of renting an instrument will become available during the summer, before the beginning of the school year.

UMD Athletic Bands are a student-led organization rather than an enrolled class, so it does not have access to the funds typically used for paying students.

In scenarios where the band travels, such as playoff games in other cities, travel expenses are generally covered by the University.