What's the big intrigue?
We're the best in the Ivy League!

-New Cornell Fight Song

About Us — Join Band!

The Big Red Pep Band provides musical entertainment at all Men's home Hockey games and at other sporting events including Men's and Women's Basketball, Women's Hockey, Sprint Football and Men's and Women's Lacrosse. The Pep Band also travels to Men's Hockey regular season away games and to Hockey, Basketball and Lacrosse playoffs in the Spring.

Want to see us play? Want to join the band? Check out our Schedule to see when and where we will be performing! If you would like to join, just come to any rehearsal in the Fischell Band Center on Mondays from 4:45pm - 6:00pm. To join our email list for weekly schedules and other announcements, email our secretary, Erik "Grapefruit" Bermudez. For more details about the inner workings of the pep band, check out our constitution.

The Pep Band uses a points system based on attendance at games, practice, and other events to determine which members can attend men's hockey games, as only a certain number of tickets are allocated to the band.

Find us at the Fischell Band Center!

OUR TRADITIONS

Who we play for

Cornell's Pep Band mostly plays at Men's and Women's Hockey, Basketball and Lacrosse but also has been seen at Wrestling, Track and Field, Sprint Football, Field Hockey and other events. The Pep Band normally attends two to five events each weekend plus a weekly rehearsal. At times, the Pep Band will follow the teams on road trips to other schools for regular season and playoff events.



Davy

"Give My Regards to Davy" is the official Cornell fight song. The Pep Band plays it when the team comes out and, for many sports, after the team scores.
During lacrosse games, when Big Red scores ten points the Pep Band plays Give My Regards to Davy, the fight song, in three-four time rather than four-four. At fifteen points and above, they continue to improvise Davy in other ways.



The Alma Mater

The BRPB plays two verses of the Cornell Alma Mater at every sporting event. This usually occurs at half time or during the second period break in hockey. When the Pep Band plays at te Men's Hockey senior night, all six verses of the Alma Mater are played, each with a slightly different instrumentation.



The "Hey!" Song

One of the Pep Band's most popular songs, it is usually played right before the last segment of the game. It is also, on occasion, used during time outs or before overtime periods. During the song, band members and other spectators do a dance shown below. At the end of playing the "Hey!" song, the band (and often times the crowd as well) yells at the other team "We're gonna beat the hell outta you! Rough 'em up! Rough 'em up! Go CU!"



Over There

Another tradition at hockey games is Over There: The tuba section stands behind the opposing team's bench and plays ‘Over there’ at them. Between each of the lines of the song, the Pep Band (and the crowd) yells "Hey [school]!", "Die!", "Drop Dead!", and "Go Home!"



Victory Songs

Whenever Cornell wins, the Pep Band stays after and plays a song in celebration. In honor of the Men's Hockey coach, Mike Schafer, the Pep Band plays a version of Schaefer Beer's theme song (singing different words) when the Men's Hockey team wins. Additionally, the BRPB plays Birdland when the Women's Hockey team wins and Paradise City for Men's Lacrosse.
After Cornell victories, as the Pep Band walks back to the band room or the bus, many members play a set of 'walking songs'.



Management

The Pep Band is entirely student run. Everything from conducting to repairing instruments to deciding where the band will play is run by elected undergraduates. The many of the cheersheets and songs in the band's folder are also arranged by its members.

Our Board

The Big Red Pep Band Board plans and oversees the activities of the band. While they meet formally only a few times per semester, the members of the board work year-round to ensure smooth operations. They show extreme dedication to the band, and their efforts are greatly appreciated. Elections are held in December, and, with the exception of Conductors, the positions are held for the following calendar year. Conductors' terms last only one semester, and their elections are held in May and December.

Conductor

Conductor:
Max "Slice" Scialabba '25

The Pep Band Conductors conduct the band at events and run weekly rehearsals. They also can choose to add and remove songs to the band's repertoire.
For a list of past conductors, see here.

Manager

Manager:
David "Dubs" Kaprielian '25

The Pep Band Manager runs the band administratively. The manager organizes the schedule for each semester, plans road trips, keeps track of points, and enforces all rules.
For a list of past managers, see here.

Conductor

Conductor:
Catherine Frank '26

The Pep Band Conductors conduct the band at events and run weekly rehearsals. They also can choose to add and remove songs to the band's repertoire.
For a list of past conductors, see here.

Secretary

Secretary:
Erik "Grapefruit" Bermudez '27

The Pep Band Secretary takes minutes at all Pep Band Board meetings and sends out reminders with memes before events.

Librarian Librarian Librarian Librarian

Librarians:
Bobby "Duck" Haig '25,
Morgan Wilcox '25,
Jonathan Miller '26,
Kit West '27

The Pep Band Librarians are responsible distributing and making complete folders at the beginning of the year, replacing lost music, and distributing new music.

Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian Historian

Historians:
Morgan Wilcox '25,
Ludia Cho '25,
Carol Montejo '25,
Octavia "Chestnut" Stoner '26,
Macey Bone '26,
Ben Kerstetter '27,
Dina Nabavian '27,
Allison Weiher '27,
Frank Capuano '27,
Hanna Lighthall '27

The Pep Band Historians are responsible for photographing the band during events and putting them up for public display. The historians maintain our Facebook page for this purpose, as well our Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Equipment Chairs

Equipment Chairs:
TBD

The Pep Band Equipment Chairs ensure that all instruments are in playable condition. The equipment chairs fix instruments when possible, and send them out to be fixed when a problem needs to be professionally addressed.

Fundraising Chair Fundraising Chair

Fundraising Chairs:
Dina Nabavian '27,
Allison Weiher '27

The Pep Band Fundraising Chair is responsible for acquiring funds for the band to cover trip and instrument expenses.

Social Chair Social Chair

Social Chairs:
Morgan Wilcox '25,
Jonathan Miller '26,

The Pep Band Social Chairs organize events so that band members have the opportunity to interact outside of usual performances and rehearsals. The social chairs encourage members get to know each other and build friendships while participating in activities such as ice skating and bowling.

Webmasters Historian Historian

Webmasters:
Tommy McFarland '26,
Sterling "Limbo" Chargois '26,
Nolan "Frog" Lizmi '27

The Pep Band Webmaster is tasked with updating and maintaining the pep band website. The webmaster is also free to make improvements to the website as deemed necessary.

Donate to the BRPB

Please donate to the Big Red Pep Band! We need money for travel expenses, instrument repairs, and other things to keep us performing at events.

How to Donate:
Click the "make your selection" button and select "Other - Athletics"
In the Text box just below, type "Pep Band Gift Fund (Fund #622808)"

Donate Here!

Hire the BRPB For a Performance

We love playing at sporting events, university programs, banquets, and even weddings! Please let us know what occasion you would like us to perform for and we would be happy to accommodate you. We can offer anywhere between one to over 60 players at your event. Email the manager for rates and more information. Feel free to check out our pictures and videos to see what we look like while performing!

Contact our Manager!

Schedule and Social Media