About the Miami University Marching Band

The Miami University Marching Band (MUMB) dates back to the early 1900s when it was part of the Men’s Glee Club. It became an official university ensemble when A.D. Lekvold was appointed to the music faculty as its first director. He was director of bands from 1936 to the 1960s. Nicholas Poccia came to Miami from the Eastman School of Music in 1951 as the new horn professor. He served as a volunteer assistant director starting in 1953. During the 1950s the band numbered around 96 and would take two road trips a year. It was around this time the Shakerettes, the drill team, and majorettes appeared.

Nicholas Poccia became director of the marching band in 1960 and the band’s size steadily increased to 200. In 1968 the Center for Performing Arts opened and became the band’s home. In 1971, the Miami Marching Machine was created as a mascot of the band. The Marching Machine was a tank-like structure placed over a VW bug, and appeared with the band throughout the decade. The Marching Machine remained an integral part of the marching band until 1979.

In 1978, Dr. Jack Liles was appointed director and the band adopted the newer “corps style” marching that continues today. Along with him, Mr. David “Dave” Shaffer joined the staff, first as a graduate assistant and later as the Assistant Director and staff arranger. The color guard and front ensemble were introduced to the band, keeping with current trends in marching bands around the nation. The 1980’s were a huge growth period for the band, not only in quantity, but quality. Dr. Liles expected the best, and he received the best. Gradually, the band reached a status of high demand for contests, festivals, and parades all over the Midwest, including multiple appearances at Cincinnati Bengals and Buffalo Bills’ games.

In the spring of 1999, Dave Shaffer was appointed director of the marching band and he continued the excellent traditions of the MUMB and helped cement the band’s status as one of the finest student organizations on campus. Under Mr. Shaffer’s direction, the MUMB made its first appearance at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2003.

Dr. Stephen Lytle was appointed the fifth director of the Miami Marching Band in May 2009. Dr. Lytle began his teaching career in the public schools of North Carolina and served as Assistant Director of Bands at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He earned degrees from the University of North Carolina, Northwestern University, and University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He is an accomplished arranger with nearly three hundred titles and has written for many high schools and universities. In his tenure as director, the band performed with jazz legend, Benny Golson, and appeared at the 2010 Frozen Four, the 2010 MAC Football Championship, and the 2011 GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, the 2011 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the 57th Presidential Inaugural Parade in 2013, and the 2016 St. Petersburg Bowl. Dr. Lytle also served as conductor of the Miami University Symphony Band and as Associate Conductor of the Fillmore Wind Program of Cincinnati.

Beginning in the fall of 2018, Dr. Brooke Johnson took over as Assistant Professor and Director of Athletic Bands at Miami University. Dr. Johnson oversaw all aspects of the Athletic Band program, taught courses in the music education curriculum and directed the Miami University Marching Band and Symphony Band. Dr. Johnson earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Delaware, her Master’s in Music Education and Conducting from Appalachian State University, and her Doctorate in Wind Conducting from the University of Kansas. She began her teaching career at Patuxent High School, in Lusby, Maryland, and served on the faculties of North Central College in Naperville, Illinois, and Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Under her direction, the Miami University Marching Band performed at the Bands of America Super Regional Championship at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana in October 2019.

Fall 2023 marked a new chapter in the band’s history, as Dr. Ryan Yahl was hired to succeed Dr. Johnson. A native of Ohio, Dr. Yahl grew up in Wapakoneta, and earned his bachelors and masters degrees in music education from Bowling Green State University. He later earned his doctorate in wind conducting from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. Dr. Yahl taught middle school and high school band for nine years in the state of Ohio, and served on the faculties of DePauw University, and East Texas A&M University (formerly Texas A&M University-Commerce), where for five years he worked as Assistant Director of Bands. Under Dr. Yahl’s leadership the MUMB has traveled to the University of Cincinnati and the University of Notre Dame, twice to the MAC Championship in Detroit, the 2023 Avocados from Mexico Cure Bowl in Orlando, Florida, and the Inaugural Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl in Tucson, Arizona, where the MUMB combined on the field at halftime in performance with the Colorado State University Marching Band and Snoop Dogg.