Foghorns Pep Band
The Foghorns Pep Band is a student organization that works with the Music Department and Athletics to put on a variety of performances around campus. We are an enthusiastic, passionate group of musicians who perform pop hits, classic rock favorites, and other modern songs to pump up our teams and energize GW fans. As the university's pep band, the Foghorns are the soundtrack to all men's and women's home basketball games. We can also be seen performing at various events and spots on campus such as U-Yard, Potomac Square, and Kogan Plaza. Foghorns also perform at the A-10 conference and other national tournaments during March Madness.
Foghorn membership is open to all GW students, but members must also participate in at least one of the University Band ensembles. As an added bonus, Foghorn members receive a financial award for their participation. This scholarship increases with each year you participate in Foghorns.
The Foghorns rehearse on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7:10 PM to 8:15 PM ET.
Pep Band History
The Foghorns Pep Band has been the soundtrack to the GW men’s and women’s basketball teams for over 30 years! Originally functioning as a marching band for George Washington University’s football team, the group roared loud and proud from the early 1930’s until the disbandment of the university’s football program in 1966. The group underwent a hiatus for 23 years until 1989, when Patrick M. Jones reinstated the group as a pep band under the name “Colonial Brass.” The name of the group was officially changed from “Colonial Brass” to “C-Brass” in August of 2020. Finally, in May 2023 George Washington University announced its departure from the moniker “Colonials” to the “Revolutionaries.” Thus, in August 2023, the Pep Band was renamed to “Foghorns” in reference to the historic Foggy Bottom location. From donning “buff and blue” rugby shirts, to authentic basketball jerseys, to Adidas t-shirts, the Foghorns have evolved every step of the way with the university. When then Colonial Brass was first reinstated during the 1989-1990 GW basketball season, the group only had a few dozen tunes they performed, the majority of which were student and director arranged. Today, the Foghorns have over 100 different popular charts and original pieces in their repertoire and can be seen rocking out to all of them in the upper deck of the Charles E. Smith Center.
Foghorn members in the stands of the Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Delware during the 2023 Women's A10 Tournament
Foghorn members in the stands of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York during the 2023 Men's A-10 Tournament
Foghorn members and decades worth of alumni gathered in Kogan Plaza to celebrate Alumni Day in 2023