Mighty Bruins
Encyclopedia
"Mighty Bruins" is a fight song
of University of California, Los Angeles
sports teams. Composed by Academy Award
-winning composer
Bill Conti
(with lyrics from UCLA students Barbara Lamb and Don Holley), the song was commissioned by the UCLA Alumni Association on its fiftieth anniversary. It debuted in 1984 at the football game against Stanford University
, with the school marching band
conducted by Conti himself.
UCLA uses the song as its "victory march;" it is usually played after touchdown
s. As with UCLA's other fight song, Sons of Westwood
, the Mighty Bruins prominently features the UCLA Eight Clap cheer.
, taken from the Cal Big C
tune, as its best known fight song since the All-California football weekends.
Another of the reasons for the commissioning was to replace some other lesser known UCLA fight songs such as Sing U.C.L.A., By the Old Pacific's Rolling Waters, Team, Hear our Song, and Fight on Men of Westwood.
Although the UCLA Band
no longer performs Fight on Men of Westwood, Team, Hear Our Song, or Sing UCLA (By The Old Pacific is still heard occasionally, and is featured on the official band CDs), they are a part of the musical repertoire performed by the UCLA Alumni Band as part of their pre-game concert during every home game.
games the UCLA Band
plays "Mighty Bruins" after touchdowns and uses UCLA's other fight song, "Sons of Westwood
" after first downs.
Fight song
A fight song is primarily an American and Canadian sports term, referring to a song associated with a team. In both professional and amateur sports, fight songs are a popular way for fans to cheer for their team...
of University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
sports teams. Composed by Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
-winning composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Bill Conti
Bill Conti
William "Bill" Conti is an American film music composer who is frequently the conductor at the Academy Awards ceremony.-Early life and career:...
(with lyrics from UCLA students Barbara Lamb and Don Holley), the song was commissioned by the UCLA Alumni Association on its fiftieth anniversary. It debuted in 1984 at the football game against Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, with the school marching band
Marching band
Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
conducted by Conti himself.
UCLA uses the song as its "victory march;" it is usually played after touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
s. As with UCLA's other fight song, Sons of Westwood
Sons of Westwood
Sons of Westwood is the official fight song of the University of California, Los Angeles . The tune comes from "Big C", a school fight song for the University of California, Berkeley and UC Davis....
, the Mighty Bruins prominently features the UCLA Eight Clap cheer.
Other UCLA fight songs
One of the reasons for commissioning the song was to give UCLA its own fight song, separate from the University of California, Berkeley. UCLA has used Sons of WestwoodSons of Westwood
Sons of Westwood is the official fight song of the University of California, Los Angeles . The tune comes from "Big C", a school fight song for the University of California, Berkeley and UC Davis....
, taken from the Cal Big C
Big C (fight song)
"Big C" is a fight song of the University of California, Berkeley. It was composed in 1913 by Harold P. Williams, with lyrics by Norman Loyall McLaren. It was written to commemorate the construction of the large concrete "C" in 1905 on the "rugged Eastern foothills" of the Berkeley campus. The song...
tune, as its best known fight song since the All-California football weekends.
Another of the reasons for the commissioning was to replace some other lesser known UCLA fight songs such as Sing U.C.L.A., By the Old Pacific's Rolling Waters, Team, Hear our Song, and Fight on Men of Westwood.
- Fight on Men of Westwood, simply known as "Fight", uses the tune written by David B. Zoob for Fight on Pennsylvania, a fight song of the University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. Until the 1986 football season, "Fight" was played following a UCLA touchdown. - By the Old Pacific's Rolling Waters, or more simply "By", was written in 1948 specifically for UCLA by Thomas V. Beall.
- Sing UCLA was written by Irving Bibo and appears on a number of recorded college football song compilations.
- Team, Hear Our Song, simply known as "Team" has words by Don Davis, music by Harry Fillmore.
- Strike Up the BandStrike Up the Band (song)"Strike Up the Band" is a 1927 song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was written for the 1927 musical Strike Up the Band, where it formed part of a satire on war and militaristic music...
for UCLA was another leitmotifLeitmotifA leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
of the school teams from the time it was donated to the school by George and Ira Gershwin in 1936.
Although the UCLA Band
UCLA Band
The 270 member UCLA Bruin Marching Band, known as The Solid Gold Sound, represents the University at major athletic and extracurricular events. During the fall marching season, the Band performs at the Rose Bowl for UCLA Bruin home football games...
no longer performs Fight on Men of Westwood, Team, Hear Our Song, or Sing UCLA (By The Old Pacific is still heard occasionally, and is featured on the official band CDs), they are a part of the musical repertoire performed by the UCLA Alumni Band as part of their pre-game concert during every home game.
Mighty Bruins today
Currently, at footballAmerican football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
games the UCLA Band
UCLA Band
The 270 member UCLA Bruin Marching Band, known as The Solid Gold Sound, represents the University at major athletic and extracurricular events. During the fall marching season, the Band performs at the Rose Bowl for UCLA Bruin home football games...
plays "Mighty Bruins" after touchdowns and uses UCLA's other fight song, "Sons of Westwood
Sons of Westwood
Sons of Westwood is the official fight song of the University of California, Los Angeles . The tune comes from "Big C", a school fight song for the University of California, Berkeley and UC Davis....
" after first downs.
Other UCLA School songs
- Hail to the Hills of WestwoodHail to the Hills of WestwoodHail to the Hills of Westwood is the school song or alma mater of the University of California, Los Angeles. It was written by Jeane Emerson, a 1929 graduate of UCLA, and adopted by the school in 1960. The current arrangement performed by the UCLA Marching Band was written by band member Dwayne S...
- UCLA Alma Mater song - Rover (song)Rover (song)"Rover" is a song traditionally sung at the end of athletic contest victories by fans of the University of California Los Angeles. It is a parody of the song I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover. The UCLA Band arrangement opens with There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight. Following the...
- UCLA Victory song - Strike Up The Band (song)Strike Up the Band (song)"Strike Up the Band" is a 1927 song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was written for the 1927 musical Strike Up the Band, where it formed part of a satire on war and militaristic music...
- UCLA official song - Sons of WestwoodSons of WestwoodSons of Westwood is the official fight song of the University of California, Los Angeles . The tune comes from "Big C", a school fight song for the University of California, Berkeley and UC Davis....
External links
- MP3 of The Mighty Bruins from http://www.fightmusic.com
- The Mighty Bruins UCLA History project (with lyrics)