Question 1

Do I have to be a music major to play in a Green Machine Ensemble?

Accepted Answer

No! We have over 40 different majors in our ensembles. We welcome students of all majors and degree levels (graduate/undergraduate). In fact, non-majors can have the Pep Band, Spirit Drumline, or Fife and Drum Corps count as their fine arts requirement for the general education studies in their degrees if they participate and register for the 1 credit course associated with each ensemble.

Question 2

What types of events do Green Machine Ensembles perform at?

Accepted Answer

The Green Machine Pep Band plays academic events, admissions events, men and women’s home basketball games, Washington Capitals, Wizards, Nationals, and Redskins games, as well as other various sporting, charity, and community events. We travel with the basketball teams to their post-season tournaments and also travel in support of additional tournaments as funding becomes available.   Our competative ensembles – GMUID & Mason World Winterguard – typically perform February-April across the country at AIA and WGI performances.   Dirty Gold Brass Band, 8th GM Regiment Band, Green Machine Spirit Drumline, Funk Band, and Patriots Fife & Drum Corps perform at various University & community events throughout the year.   Throughout our organization's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, our ensembles look forward to connecting with you via our digital content library, available at https://greenmachine.tv    All Green Machine Ensembles are available to book via requests, which will be fulfilled as time and instrumentation allows. You can request a Green Machine ensemble using the Request Form found under the Contact tab.

Question 3

How do I register for the Green Machine Pep Band course?

Accepted Answer

Pep Band (MUSI 280) is a 1 credit course and counts as a chamber ensemble credit for music majors and an elective credit or fine arts general education requirement for non-music majors. The class meets on Tuesday nights from 7:20-10:00 p.m. Although PatriotWeb lists the class space as deLaski 3001, most class meetings are in the EagleBank Arena, as schedule allows; however, the meeting space may change. When this changes, communication to this effect will be sent out in advance. Please visit PatriotWeb to add Pep Band (MUSI 280) as a class.   Additionally, Patriots Fife & Drum Corps and Green Machine Spirit Drumline offer course credit through other sections of MUSI 280.

Question 4

Do I have to register for the Green Machine Pep Band as a class?

Accepted Answer

Scholarship recipients and students seeking credit for the course are required to register. If neither of these apply to you, but you are passionate about coming to rehearsals and games, we ask you to register if you have the 1 credit hour space in your schedule. Exceptions can and will be made for students who want to play but have a full schedule. Please email greenmachine@gmu.edu if you cannot register for the 1 credit course.

Question 5

What are Green Machine Pep Band scholarship requirements?

Accepted Answer

In order to receive a scholarship you must be a registered Mason student, taking the Pep Band course for credit, and fill out the Scholarship Interest Form sent out each Fall and Spring. Instrumentation, service to the band and seniority are all taken into consideration when reviewing applications.   A scholarship contract will be sent to applicants who the Green Machine Admin team feels meet the these requirements. Scholarship contracts outline the specific commitments to events, dates, and times that will be requirements to satisfy the contract.

Question 6

I have another question! Who should I contact?

Accepted Answer

General questions/not sure where to go? All questions can be sent to greenmachine@gmu.edu or, you can contact one of our staff members below:   Jeremy Freer, Associate Director - jfreer@gmu.edu Green Machine Pep Band attendance including sickness/conflicts/absences Combos Conflict resolution/issues within Green Machine Pep Band Green Machine practice room (de Laski PAB A221) scheduling Instrument requests Chart suggestions Julie Trkula, Associate Director of Operations - jtrkula@gmu.edu Marketing & social media Advancement & fundraising Administration of office & program Internship opportunities (arts management/office, etc) Ryan Carter, Operations Manager - rcarte12@gmu.edu Ensemble requests Events, logistics & travel information Scheduling for Doc Nix (meetings, lessons, etc.) Personnel & rosters Risk Forms Josh Cruse, Senior Media Producer - jcruse@gmu.edu Media Requests Video Content Joan Fernandez, Development Officer - jferna19@gmu.edu Advancement & fundraising Payments GMU Indoor Drumline: Travis Peterman, Program Director - drumline@gmu.edu   Green Machine Spirit Drumline: Shane Nickels, Program Director - mnickels@gmu.edu   Patriots Fife & Drum Corps:  Shane Nickels, Program Director- mnickels@gmu.edu Emily Barone, Fife Instructor- greenmachine@gmu.edu Mason World Winterguard: Lindell Palmer, Program Director - greenmachine@gmu.edu   8th GM Regiment Band: Chris Troiano, Program Director - ctroiano@gmu.edu   Emerald Desire: Ashley Thomas Henderson, Program Director - athoma57@gmu.edu   Dirty Gold Brass Band: Joe Antonucci, Graduate Fellow- jantonu2@gmu.edu

Question 7

What is the audition process for the Pep Band?

Accepted Answer

**Please note – the informaiton in this section may not apply during our organization's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Contact us at greenmachine@gmu.edu for the latest updates.**   There’s no formal audition for most instruments in the Green Machine Pep Band, all you have to do is register for the 1 credit course (MUSI 280) that is offered through the University. We ask all participants to register for the 1 credit course. If you have reached your credit limit for the semester, or have questions about registering for the class, please email greenmachine@gmu.edu. All rhythm section instruments, however, do have informal, song-by-song auditions during rehearsals to help place members on songs that best fit their skill level.

Question 8

What is the audition process for the Indoor Drumline?

Accepted Answer

**Please note – the informaiton in this section may not apply during our organization's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Contact us at greenmachine@gmu.edu for the latest updates.**  To audition for the GMU Indoor Drumline, you must attend one of three audition camps held during the Fall. Anyone between the ages of 18-24 is welcome to audition, we just ask that you bring your own sticks/mallets, practice pads, and pay your audition fee. More information available at: https://drumline.gmu.edu/auditions

Question 9

What is the audition process for the Mason World Winterguard?

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Question 10

What is the audition process for the Dirty Gold Brass Band?

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Question 11

What is the audition process for the 8th Green Machine Regiment Band?

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Question 12

What is the audition process for the Funk Band?

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Question 13

What is the audition process for Emerald Desire?

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Question 14

What is the audition process for the Patriot's Fife and Drum Corps?

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Question 15

What is the audition process for the Green Machine Spirit Drumline?

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