When the members of the Golden Band from Tiger Land symbolically march down Victory Hill on game days in the fall, trumpets roaring and drums booming, a familiar face will not be marching with them.

Linda Moorhouse, the face behind the music that accompanies fans’ favorite Death Valley cheers, will officially resign from the University on July 30.

Moorhouse announced her resignation earlier this month. She accepted a teaching position at the University of Illinois, which she will begin Aug. 16.

The Tiger Band leader’s decision comes after 25 years of service to the band programs.
“It’s going to be exciting,” she said. “I’ll have more opportunities for artistic growth.”

Moorhouse — who was born in Minneapolis, Minn., and grew up in Florida — came to the University in 1985, when she was hired as interim assistant director of bands. In 1986, she was named assistant director of bands and in 1999 promoted to
associate director of bands.

Moorhouse’s name has been synonymous with Tiger Band since then, having served as the primary instructor since 1995.

MOVING ON

Moorhouse’s decision to accept the Illinois offer arrives slightly more than two months after the University announced her appointment as director of Tiger Band.

Moorhouse said she received a comparatively better offer from Illinois.

“When you compare the salaries of the two jobs, they’re very similar,” she said. “But the jobs are very different.”

The Illinois position will find Moorhouse continuing to conduct a wind ensemble, as well as teach conducting, but she will no longer have the duty of running a marching band, which includes teaching the music, choreographing drill formations and overseeing the Golden Girls and Colorguard.

“The artistic side of what I do here is what I’ll be doing up in Illinois,” she said. “I’m not sure I could go and put everything I’ve put in Tiger Band and do that again. That’s 25 years of my life here.”

The promotion to associate professor and director of Tiger Band came in addition to tenure, a 4-percent raise and a fixed $3,200 fiscal year-based increase, according to Dawn Arevalo, business manager for the College of Music and Dramatic Arts.

Moorhouse said the opportunities for professional growth and enrichment at Illinois outweigh the tenure offered to her by the University.

“I will go there with an opportunity to be able to give insight into the future of the band program, and I wasn’t necessarily afforded those same opportunities here,” she said.

The offer from Illinois presents Moorhouse with a two-year visiting associate professor of music position and the opportunity to serve as assistant director of bands, according to UI’s website.

“She was aware that the administration here wanted to go in a different direction with the band leadership,” said Frank Wickes, retiring director of bands, in an email to The Daily Reveille. “What she was offered [by LSU] barely eclipsed the offer from Illinois.”

Roy King, assistant director of bands, will assume the role of interim director of Tiger Band, according to Jane Cassidy, associate dean of the College of Music and Dramatic Arts.

LOOKING BACK

While Moorhouse’s resignation may signal the end of her march down Victory Hill, her legacy will not be quickly forgotten.

“Through watching her teach, she’s very driven and very goal-oriented,” said Patrick Mongrue, psychology sophomore and Tiger Band trumpet player. “She knows what she wants, and she knows what she expects out of us, and she wants us to know what to expect from her.”

Moorhouse said part of her love for the band program comes from the “undying love” students and fans have for the University’s signature music.

“Not all college students think that their band is special,” Moorhouse said. “Here, students join the band after saying they’ve wanted to join since they were four years old. When you have a number of people interested in the program that way, you’re going to continue to be successful.”

Moorhouse — who said she still gets chills during the band’s march down Victory Hill — said some of her favorite moments while leading Tiger Band have stemmed from the band’s interaction with the students.

Moorhouse brought about the student section’s second and third down cheers during her time at the University and led the band during the BCS national championship games in 2003 and 2007.

“After 9/11, when the band played ‘Amazing Grace,’ you could hear a pin drop in the stadium,” she said. “I’ll never forget that evening. It’s the only time Tiger Band has removed their hats during a performance.”

REFLECTIONS

As Moorhouse makes the final steps to close the chapter on her career at the University, her colleagues have expressed disappointment in seeing her go.

“Dr. Moorhouse’s signature is all over Tiger Band,” said Cassidy — who has worked with her for 22 years — in an email to The Daily Reveille. “There is no one at LSU who works any harder or longer hours than she does to [ensure] the students are successful as performers, conductors and teachers.”

Cassidy said Moorhouse’s legacy will not falter in her absence from the University.

“The group operates like a well-oiled machine that, to a large degree, transcends any individual part,” she said. “The School of Music is committed to making sure Mr. King … has all the support necessary to continue the fine traditions for which Tiger Band is known.”
Wickes praised Moorhouse for the positive transformation she bestowed upon the marching band.

“Her work ethic is the best I have seen in my 51 years of teaching,“ Wickes said. “She changed the band … to an organization in which the students took ownership of the program. The program then increased in size and in spirit, which in turn infused even more pride in the organization.”

Moorhouse said the students and staff involved with the band will continue to inflict that sense of pride she worked to developed throughout her career with Tiger Band.

“The students in the program are so very proud of their association with Tiger Band and will do their utmost to continue the traditions of excellence,” she said. “Next year’s staff will be first-rate, too.”