SJSU Musicians on Show Throughout Super Bowl Festivities

While the Super Bowl could also be over, there are some San José State college students nonetheless reliving the joy of the previous week. Members of the San José State marching and pep bands have been invited to carry out in two main occasions within the lead-up to Sunday’s soccer sport: Shaq’s Fun House, a part-circus, part-carnival, part-festival expertise held on Friday, February 6; and Guy Fieri’s Flavortown Tailgate, a foodie extravaganza held on Sunday, February 8. Both occasions have been hosted by Medium Rare Live, LLC, and occurred on the Cow Palace in Daly City.

Keira Lieb, ’27 Music Education, and Vinayak Sharath, ’26 MS Mechanical Engineering, have been among the many 20 Spartan musicians chosen to carry out — Lieb on the Fun House occasion and Sharath on the tailgate. Both Spartans play a number of devices, and although these weren’t their first gigs performed off campus, the power at every occasion was distinct. Former skilled basketball participant Shaquille O’Neal carried out as his deejay persona, DJ Diesel.

Lieb, who performs the clarinet and the mellophone (a big brass horn instrument), describes how the band accompanied circus performers, together with jugglers, stilt walkers and unicyclists.

“The biggest part was performing on stage,” she says. “There was a big crowd of people, and because we were inside the Cow Palace, we sounded a lot louder than we normally do. In that environment, people were hyped up and really receptive to us. We had a good relationship with the circus performers in such a vibrant environment.”

Lieb has performed within the SJSU Marching Band and the SJSU Pep Band for 4 years, and plans to turn into a band instructor at the highschool or collegiate degree. 

“I do a mix of pep band, marching band and concert band because I like playing the different levels and genres of music,” she says. “The differences in music really give me a very diverse learning experience. This will come in handy later on when I’m a teacher.”

As a graduate pupil, Sharath is newer to the SJSU band program, however has spent a few years performing percussion and saxophone. He spent 5 years taking part in within the Mustang Band at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo as an undergraduate, taking a break solely when he moved to San José to start out his grasp’s program. After a semester with no music extracurriculars, he realized how a lot he missed the camaraderie and pleasure of taking part in in bands.

“I am motivated to continue my musical journey, even though it’s not my professional focus, because playing music is how I made all my friends in high school and undergrad,” he says. “These organizations and events connect us all.”

On Super Bowl Sunday, Sharath donned a harness to hold a bass drum and carried two mallets as he and his fellow musicians paraded via the Flavortown Tailgate. A self-described foodie, he was thrilled to carry out in such shut proximity to Food Network star Guy Fieri, and surrounded by so many various sorts of meals.

“We went around to different crowds playing pep tunes like ‘Crazy Train’ by Ozzy Osborne, as well as ‘Blow the Whistle,’ a hyphy song very local to the Bay Area,” Sharath says. “It was so fun. I never thought I’d get an experience like this because I’m almost done with school. I’m really glad I got this collegiate marching experience before I leave [SJSU].”

All in all, Lieb and Sharath agree: their Super Bowl weekend was a smashing success.

Learn more about the SJSU Bands.