In addition to hundreds of new students, The University of Tulsa welcomed another fresh face to campus this fall: Matthew Schepers, the new director of athletic bands.
Schepers has a master’s degree from Oklahoma State University, where he ran the basketball bands and programmed music for games. Prior to TU, he was head band director at Catoosa High School. “I fell in love with just teaching kids,” Schepers said. “You hand that kid a clarinet on their very first day of band, and then you watch them grow for the next six or seven years. It’s a really cool thing.”
Schepers has big plans for TU’s athletic bands. This year, the School of Music has one of the biggest first-year classes in university history, with over half of the Sound of the Golden Hurricane marching band being composed of new students. And it is not just music majors; every college at TU is represented in the band program. Schepers hopes to add another 30 to 40 students next year and even more the following year.
“Band is a great place to find community if you’re coming from somewhere else and you don’t know people. You will automatically have a connection to the university and a connection to a student group,” he said.
Schepers is especially proud of the variety in music the marching band performs, from a Motown show to a Nintendo show and even one dedicated to Barbie.
“I honestly feel like no matter what your level of musical talent is or what your major is, if the students are willing to put in the work, there’s a place for them in the Sound of the Golden Hurricane. There’s a place for them in TU’s School of Music,” he said.