Hi everyone! My name is Erik Headley and I’m a third year economics major and public policy minor. As you can see, music is none of these things; but I’m still able to do music here and that’s one of my favorite things about Cal! I’m in The University of California Marching Band (Cal Band) and the UC Jazz Big Band (Big Band) and I’ve had some of my most important memories at Cal through these organizations—both groups run through the department of Student Musical Activities. Whether it’s on trips to away football games or playing at Jazz In The Loft in Eshleman, music at Cal has been one of the most formative experiences for me and the breadth of organizations students can be a part of leaves a lot of room to be explored.
“55% of the Band is comprised of ‘hard science/engineering’ majors” (Information on the Cal Band Student Body). One of the misconceptions about music in college many prospective/incoming students have is that music in college is FOR music majors. But it’s really for everyone! While music majors fill out a portion of the constitution of our campus ensembles, there are a great many non-music majors in these ensembles who also comprise the leadership structures and excel in their positions. While other schools’ ensembles are mostly made of music majors, Cal maintains a balance of non-music and music majors in campus music groups. You have the opportunity to be part of groups in the department of Student Musical Activities and part of the Berkeley Musical Department; each ensemble having their own structure and organization.
Many of these musical opportunities have non-musical ways to engage in leadership as well. This last year I had the pleasure of serving as the Cal Band’s fundraising coordinator. Through this experience I was able to engage in professional development through networking, learning new skills, and honing my teamwork and leadership skills. This is an experience I likely wouldn’t have gotten if I didn’t join this group. So, while band, orchestra, choir, etc. can seem like just performance opportunities to engage in music, they are also opportunities to engage in personal and professional growth. While I can confidently say that I’ve grown significantly as a musician in UC Jazz and Cal Band, I can also confidently say that I’ve learned a lot of valuable lessons in the way of teamwork, organization, work ethic and other such skills that can be applied to life beyond university.
Some of my greatest joy has been in my performances. I’m in two groups on campus that play wildly different styles of music and with very different audiences! In much more intimate settings like Eshleman’s loft and Cesar Chavez Student Center’s Choir Rehearsal Hall I get to share my love of jazz with the community and share the collective talent of UCB’s jazz program. Conversely, in the bowl of California Memorial Stadium and the bleachers of Haas Pavilion I get to spread the California Spirit and bring cheer to Cal Fans. While these two settings couldn’t be more antonymous, they’re both avenues where I can share my passion for music and engage in creative spaces.
More on performances, one of the greatest joys I have had as a Berkeley student is seeing performances! UC Jazz Big Band shows are free and many of our combo performances are too. In addition, Cal Band/Cal Straw Hat Band performances are an added plus to your athletics ticket and you can frequently see us performing for campus rallies and performances. Other campus groups like our a capella groups perform out on Sproul Plaza showcasing their talents while also having more formal, ticketed performances. A great pleasure of Cal performances is the student discount. For example, the UCB Symphony Orchestra sells tickets for $30 general admission but $5 for UCB students. Your CalID is extremely powerful in getting you discounts to some high quality musical performances! I particularly enjoyed UCB Symphony Orchestra’s December 2024 concert where they played selections from American in Paris and Spirited Away. If you’re a Cal student with some free time on a weekend, I can’t recommend enough seeing a show here especially with how cheap and accessible they are.
One of the pits college students can fall into is finding tunnel vision with their major/studies and neglecting to nurture their creative side. Having music as a core extracurricular helps me maintain this balance. My daily Cal Band rehearsals during football season and my weekly Big Band rehearsals through both semesters give me a much needed break from the non-stop grind of my schoolwork that leaves me refreshed and ready to hit my homework again and also fulfilled in my expression of new musical ideas and reception of my peers’ ideas. Giving the more mathematical side of my brain a break and giving time to workout my creative side ends up benefiting my schoolwork as I can come back to my homework with fresh eyes and a fresh mind. Overall, I would say with certainty that I’ve become a better economics student with music in my schedule.
To wrap up, while you may be here for an engineering or math or biology or english, whatever it may be, music can be an integral part of your career at Cal and can form some of your most important growth points. I’ve made some of my closest friends in music at Cal, friends that I’ve enjoyed doing music and doing non-musical activities with! I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my musicianship at Cal and I can’t recommend being a musician/consuming music at Berkeley enough.