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Fall 2023 Edition
Alumni & Friends Magazine

Milestones & Directors Through the Years

A timeline of Marching 110 major events and leaders

Jessie Balmert, BSJ ’09 | October 2, 2023

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1923-1925: Raymond Connett, BSED ’31

1923: Student Homer Thomas Baird, GEN ’26, holds the first meeting to create an OHIO marching band.

1923: Homer Baird is elected the first band president.

1926-1928: John Hollingsworth Gill

1926: The band makes its first appearance in the Homecoming parade.

1929-1945: Curtis William Janssen

1931: Kappa Kappa Psi, a national honorary band fraternity, starts at OHIO.

1939: The band plays in Columbus at the inauguration ceremony of Gov. John W. Bricker

1943: Ohio University halts football—and therefore, the marching band—during World War II.

1945: Football returns to Peden Stadium. A 110-member marching band—including female members—performs.

1946-1947: Daniel Martino

1948-1950: Charles Everett Gilbert

1949: The band produces its first album, The Songs of Ohio University. Members sign the first copy for Homer Baird.

1951-1966: Charles Minelli

1951: Director Charles Minelli establishes the first Varsity Show and Band Day.

1951: Homer Baird is elected Honorary President of the Ohio University Bands for life.

1951: Tau Beta Sigma, the national honorary band sorority, starts at OHIO.

1956: Phillip Eugene Saunders, BFA ’59, is the first Black drum major.

Archival image of the Marching 110 members forming "OU" on the football field

The marching band on the field circa the 1950s. Photo courtesy of the Mahn Center for Archives & Special Collections

1967-1970: Gene Thrailkill, MED ’62

1967: Gene Thrailkill makes the band male-only. He also arranges the University’s fight song and institutes the uniforms, sound and high-energy style that students know today. He names the band the “100 Marching Men of Ohio.”

1968: The band becomes the “110 Marching Men of Ohio.” 

1968: A John Higgins arrangement of blues song “Ain’t Been Good” becomes one of the band’s first dance numbers. It is still performed after football games today. The band also adds a fanfare to “Stand Up and Cheer” and a new introduction to “Alma Mater, Ohio.”

1971-1972: Thomas Lee

1973-1989: Ronald P. Socciarelli

1973: “Long Train Runnin’,” featuring the tuba section, and “Cheer,” featuring the trombone and trumpet sections, are ad ded to the band’s dance numbers.

1974: The marching band begins an annual tradition of performing at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus.

1975: Women return to the band again under director Ronald P. Socciarelli, and the band becomes the Marching 110.

1976: The Marching 110 becomes the first marching band in history to perform at Carnegie Hall.

1980: A Geoffrey Horn arrangement of the Styx song “Light Up” is added, featuring the cymbals section.

Archival image of Marching 110 sousaphone players high stepping during practice

Members of the 110 practice their high step before a home game in the late 1980s. Photo courtesy of the Mahn Center for Archives & Special Collections

1990-1995: Sylvester Young

1993: The Marching 110 represents the state in President Bill Clinton’s inaugural parade and plays a concert for the presidential inaugural ball.

1996-present: Dr. Richard Suk

2000: Director Richard Suk institutes the student arrangers’ contest; the band performs the winner’s song.

2000: The Marching 110 is the only Ohio band selected to perform at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

2001: The marching band participates in an emotional performance for the New York Giants’ first game after the Sept. 11 tragedy.

2005: The Marching 110 performs in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as the lead band.

2006: 15 band members perform as surprise guests on NBC’s Deal or No Deal.

2010: The Marching 110 participates in the 121st Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California.

2013: The marching band performs in Dublin, Ireland, and at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City, Italy.

2019: Sophia Medvid becomes the first female field commander of the Marching 110.

2023: The Ohio University marching band celebrates its 100-year history.

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Featured image caption: Scenes from the OHIO marching band's 100-year history. Photo courtesy of the Mahn Center for Archives & Special Collections