Questions about?
JOINING A GREEN MACHINE ENSEMBLE
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 Historical Ensembles (constituting of the Patriot’s Fife and Drum Corps and the 8th GM Regiment Band) 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.
The Green Machine Pep Band plays academic events, admissions events, men and women’s home basketball games, DC Sports games, as well as other various sporting, charity, and community events. We travel with the Mason basketball teams to their post-season tournaments and also travel in support of additional tournaments as funding becomes available.
Our competitive ensembles – George Mason University Indoor Drumline and George Mason University Winter Guard – typically perform February-April across the country at AIA and WGI performances.
The 8th GM Regiment Band, Green Machine Spirit Drumline, Green & Gold Soul, and Patriots Fife and Drum Corps perform at various university & community events throughout the year. The Emeralds perform primarily alongside the Pep Band at Mason basketball games, but also perform in many other university and community events.
You can also connect with our ensembles via our digital content library on Youtube.
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.
Please visit PatriotWeb to add Pep Band, Spirit Drumline, or Historical Ensembles as a class. All of our classes are offered as different sections of the 1-credit course MUSI 280. These courses count as a chamber ensemble credit for music majors or an elective credit/fine arts credit for the general education requirement for non-music majors.
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 the Green Machine at [email protected] if you cannot register for the 1 credit course.
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.
Scholarship requirements vary from semester to semester, but include a required amount of Mason basketball games to be attended, attending all rehearsals, and attending a set amount of additional events per semester. The scholarship specifics will be outlined in the scholarship contract that the Green Machine Ensembles Admin team will send out each semester.
General questions/not sure where to go? All questions can be sent to the Green Machine at [email protected].
AUDITIONS
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 student 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 the Green Machine at [email protected]. All rhythm section instruments and vocalists, however, do have informal, song-by-song auditions during rehearsals to help place members on songs that best fit their skill level.
The Emeralds hold auditions at the beginning of each semester for anyone interested in participating in the group. Dates will be released on their social media pages. You can follow @gmuemeralddesire on Instagram and X to stay up to date with all of their information, or visit their page on our website!
There’s no formal audition for the Spirit Drumline, and players of all skill level are welcome. All you have to do is register for the Spirit Drumline section of the 1-credit course (MUSI 280) that is offered through the university. We ask all participants to register for the 1-credit course, however we allow participation in the ensemble even if you cannot register for the class. If you have reached your credit limit for the semester, or have questions about registering for the class, please email the Green Machine at [email protected].
Auditions for Green & Gold Soul are done through direct meeting and a private audition for the Program Director, Bobby Lacy II. Please email Green and Gold Soul at [email protected] to set up a meeting with Professor Lacy.
If you’re interested in joining The 8th GM Regiment Band please email the Program Director, Dr. Chris Troiano at [email protected].
If you are interested in joining the Patriot’s Fife and Drum Corps, please reach out to our Historical Ensembles Program Director, Dr. Chris Troiano at [email protected].
To audition for the GMU Indoor Drumline, you must attend one of three audition camps held during the Fall. We welcome musicians of all ages to attend the audition clinics, however only those who are between the ages of 18-23 will be considered for performer spots to be compliant with Mason age restrictions and WGI age restrictions. We ask that you bring your own sticks/mallets, practice pads.
More information is available at: https://drumline.gmu.edu/auditions
To audition for the George Mason University Winter Guard, you must attend the audition clinic held during the fall. We welcome performers of all ages to attend the audition clinic, however only those who are between the ages of 18-23 will be considered for performer spots to be compliant with Mason age restrictions and WGI age restrictions.
For more information, please visit: https://www.winterguard.gmu.edu/auditions
ENSEMBLE BOOKING
All of them! That said, the competitive ensembles have stringent schedules and are not typically available. Discover more about the ensembles on the ensembles page. Please see below for information we’d ask you to be prepared to provide.
Yes. Cost varies by group, length of performance, and distance from GMU Fairfax.
Our ensembles have performed everywhere from Jiffy Lube Live and the Anthem to senior living communities and everything in between! We have performed at corporate events, university events, graduations, pep rallies, festivals, historical sites, and more!
Yes, many of our ensembles can participate in parades: Pep Band, the Emeralds, Fife and Drum Corps, Regiment Band, and Spirit Drumline.
To book a Green Machine Ensemble, or to request more information, please email [email protected].
Booking Information
Please be prepared to answer the following questions when making an ensemble booking request.
What is the name of the event, what is the purpose/mission of the event, who is hosting the event?
Do you have a particular Green Machine Ensemble in mind for your event, or would you like us to make a suggestion? Again, please keep in mind that the competitive ensembles are time-constrained and are rarely available.
Where is the performance going to be? Distance from Mason can affect cost.
In the case of events at public spaces such as parks, town centers, city streets, restaurants, government buildings, etc., have you attained permission (and any required permits) to have live music performed during the event?
Is there a budget to pay performers?
Depending on the event, can the venue provide chairs? Can the venue provide electrical power?
Depending on the event, can the venue provide water and/or lunch/dinner/etc.?
What is the timeframe of the entire event? Within that timeframe, how long would you like the performance to be? Please keep in mind that typically, performers play for 50 minutes and take 10 minute breaks per hour of performance time.
Is the music incidental/background music, a featured performance, a parade, etc.?
Do you have any specific requests for type of music?
Please email [email protected] to start the booking process.
