The Hawkeye Marching Band is the marching band for the University of Iowa…..which performs at all home Hawkeye football games at Kinnick Stadium….as it is the largest and most visible musical ensemble at the university….which was awarded the Louis Sudler Intercollegiate Marching Band Trophy in 1990. The band was founded in 1881 as a military band….while giving membership to both music students and members of the military.
In 1973, Morgan Jones became director of the Hawkeye Marching Band….and once again changed the style and look of the band…..while adding a line of flag color guard and six other twirlers to accompany the featured twirler. Jones also changed the style of music played….as the band began to perform different styles of music, easygoing slow music and loud fast-paced music….as well as displaying both abstract formations and recognizable patterns on the field. The Hawkeye Marching Band was widely regarded as one of the few bands that effectively executed all of these things. After the 1990 season, the band was awarded the prestigious John Philip Sousa Foundation Sudler Trophy. The 1990 season and the Sudler Trophy would mark the end of the Morgan Jones era for the HMB. Jones’ 18-year period as director was one of the most successful in the history of the Hawkeye Marching Band.
As seen in this video herewith…..the Hawkeye Marching Band performs at halftime of the 1986 Rose Bowl between the Iowa Hawkeyes verses the UCLA Bruins.
