#guuggemusig

Marching Band Day

Meant as a day to build awareness around the ‘marching arts’, Marching Band Day is all about those upbeat, often cheerful bands which also happen to be moving around while playing.

Taking place on March 4th (‘march forth’ – get it?) this day is for all band geeks out there to celebrate one of the most musical of past-times.

Learn about Marching Band Day

I did the marching band all throughout junior high and high school. Music was one of my favorite things in school.

Marching Band Day is a day that has been designed to build awareness around the marching arts. It is all about those cheerful and upbeat bands, which happen to move around while they are playing music. You will often find that marching bands play an important role in a lot of festivals, parades, and outdoor events. Not only this, but they are traditional, having first appeared in the 1800s. Therefore, it is only right that we celebrate this incredible form of music and entertainment with Marching Band Day.

From the Broadway stage to football stadiums, the battlefield, and the training field, you will find marching bands in many different establishments. They delight spectators and performers with their amazing music, as well as keeping military units moving. They perform in grand arenas too, as well as auditoriums and smaller venues. This is one of the most versatile forms of music and entertainment.

Marching bands also play a critical role in terms of keeping the military upbeat. They have long been involved in the roots of the military, and they have evolved as time has gone on. Marching music can thrill the military during times of celebration or moments of upliftment. Marching music also helps to move people during somber memorials as well. They engage with people of all experience levels, abilities, ages, and personalities.

History of Marching Band Day

For a good few years now, there’s been a petition active in the USA to make March the 4th the official National Marching Band Day – but marching bands themselves have been around for donkey’s years. A marching band is always easy to spot even if you don’t hear them first, as they usually have a matching uniform – most commonly of a military-style – and often have members who don’t carry instruments but use flags and other props to add action to the music. These are called a colorguard and accompany most marching bands which you will see.

The first marching bands appeared in the 1800s by all accounts. They originated from groups of traveling musicians who would perform at festivals centuries ago, and as time went on they would become the foundation for military bands. And military bands are where marching bands directly evolved from. Marching bands in the USA are known mostly for performing at sports events – namely, American football matches. The oldest recorded marching band was the Notre Dame Marching Band, which was started up in 1845.

One of the most spectacular things about marching bands is the formation – back when they started up, the band might form the initials of the teams that were to play that day. But in modern times, the huge crowds that events like the Superbowl pulls together, call for something special – video games, film scenes, complex patterns – marching bands make their performance even more special by stepping out in a formation that makes up recognizable shapes when viewed from above.

How to celebrate Marching Band Day

Even if you don’t have a musical bone in your body, you can still enjoy Marching Band Day!

Get back to the roots of the marching band by going along to a sports match, or listening to some of the great, upbeat marching band music out there. There are also plenty of pretty amazing videos on Youtube to see of marching bands doing their thing, including some jaw-dropping formations at some of the big American football matches in the States.

You can be sure that a lot of marching bands will be putting on special performances for this day. It is worth doing a search online to see if any marching bands are performing in your area. There could even be a parade going on in honor of this day. If there is a Facebook group for your local community, you should be able to find information about any events happening here.

Another way to celebrate Marching Band Day is to learn more about marching bands. There are plenty of great information sources online and in libraries too. You will be able to learn more about the history of the marching band and how this musical trend started. You can also find out more about some of the most famous marching bands.

The Ohio State University Marching Band is a good place to start. They perform at events during the semester, including the Ohio State football games. This is one of only a few all-brass and percussion collegiate bands in the United States. There are plenty of other exciting bands as well. This includes Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps, the USC Trojan Marching Band, Mucca Pazza, Environmental Encroachment, and the TriBattery Pops Tom Goodkind Conductor.

You should be able to find lots of information about these bands online, as well as videos of their performances on YouTube. You may even decide to celebrate Marching Band Day by learning one of the songs yourself!

Marching Band Day

Meant as a day to build awareness around the ‘marching arts’, Marching Band Day is all about those upbeat, often cheerful bands which also happen to be moving around while playing.

Taking place on March 4th (‘march forth’ – get it?) this day is for all band geeks out there to celebrate one of the most musical of past-times.

Learn about Marching Band Day

I did the marching band all throughout junior high and high school. Music was one of my favorite things in school.

Marching Band Day is a day that has been designed to build awareness around the marching arts. It is all about those cheerful and upbeat bands, which happen to move around while they are playing music. You will often find that marching bands play an important role in a lot of festivals, parades, and outdoor events. Not only this, but they are traditional, having first appeared in the 1800s. Therefore, it is only right that we celebrate this incredible form of music and entertainment with Marching Band Day.

From the Broadway stage to football stadiums, the battlefield, and the training field, you will find marching bands in many different establishments. They delight spectators and performers with their amazing music, as well as keeping military units moving. They perform in grand arenas too, as well as auditoriums and smaller venues. This is one of the most versatile forms of music and entertainment.

Marching bands also play a critical role in terms of keeping the military upbeat. They have long been involved in the roots of the military, and they have evolved as time has gone on. Marching music can thrill the military during times of celebration or moments of upliftment. Marching music also helps to move people during somber memorials as well. They engage with people of all experience levels, abilities, ages, and personalities.

History of Marching Band Day

For a good few years now, there’s been a petition active in the USA to make March the 4th the official National Marching Band Day – but marching bands themselves have been around for donkey’s years. A marching band is always easy to spot even if you don’t hear them first, as they usually have a matching uniform – most commonly of a military-style – and often have members who don’t carry instruments but use flags and other props to add action to the music. These are called a colorguard and accompany most marching bands which you will see.

The first marching bands appeared in the 1800s by all accounts. They originated from groups of traveling musicians who would perform at festivals centuries ago, and as time went on they would become the foundation for military bands. And military bands are where marching bands directly evolved from. Marching bands in the USA are known mostly for performing at sports events – namely, American football matches. The oldest recorded marching band was the Notre Dame Marching Band, which was started up in 1845.

One of the most spectacular things about marching bands is the formation – back when they started up, the band might form the initials of the teams that were to play that day. But in modern times, the huge crowds that events like the Superbowl pulls together, call for something special – video games, film scenes, complex patterns – marching bands make their performance even more special by stepping out in a formation that makes up recognizable shapes when viewed from above.

How to celebrate Marching Band Day

Even if you don’t have a musical bone in your body, you can still enjoy Marching Band Day!

Get back to the roots of the marching band by going along to a sports match, or listening to some of the great, upbeat marching band music out there. There are also plenty of pretty amazing videos on Youtube to see of marching bands doing their thing, including some jaw-dropping formations at some of the big American football matches in the States.

You can be sure that a lot of marching bands will be putting on special performances for this day. It is worth doing a search online to see if any marching bands are performing in your area. There could even be a parade going on in honor of this day. If there is a Facebook group for your local community, you should be able to find information about any events happening here.

Another way to celebrate Marching Band Day is to learn more about marching bands. There are plenty of great information sources online and in libraries too. You will be able to learn more about the history of the marching band and how this musical trend started. You can also find out more about some of the most famous marching bands.

The Ohio State University Marching Band is a good place to start. They perform at events during the semester, including the Ohio State football games. This is one of only a few all-brass and percussion collegiate bands in the United States. There are plenty of other exciting bands as well. This includes Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps, the USC Trojan Marching Band, Mucca Pazza, Environmental Encroachment, and the TriBattery Pops Tom Goodkind Conductor.

You should be able to find lots of information about these bands online, as well as videos of their performances on YouTube. You may even decide to celebrate Marching Band Day by learning one of the songs yourself!

Shrove Monday/Güdismontag

This year, Shrove Monday will be observed on February 20. The day, also known as “Collop Monday”, “Rose Monday”, “Merry Monday”, or “Hall Monday,” is an annual Christian holiday that is observed on the Monday before Ash Wednesday. The day is celebrated with carnival parades and floats that often satirize a culture’s habits or people, national and international public figures, recent events, and taboo subjects. Marching bands and local associations are also a part of these parades. The parades are visited by spectators and some may even receive media coverage. Spectators at the parade also dress as mythical or political figures, thus adding to the merriment of the day.

History of Shrove Monday

The origins of Shrove Monday are not entirely clear. However, the traditions around the carnival and parades may have begun over two thousand years ago by the Romans. In these carnivals, it wasn’t uncommon to see the servants and slaves playing the role of masters and dressing up like them. Fast forward to today, the tradition continues with people dressing up as local and international public figures while satirizing them.

Shrove Monday also signals the end of the period before ‘Lent’ for many Christians. Until Easter, Christians observe a period called Lent. Some might even choose to fast or spend more time praying during the Shrovetide week. Several Christians give up meat, sugar, eggs, and alcohol during this period. The fast or abstinence is broken by consuming these food products during the carnivals.

The day is sometimes called “Collopy Monday” in the U.K. owing to a traditional meal eaten for breakfast on the day — collops of bacon eaten with an egg. Whereas in east Cornwall, Shrove Monday is known as “Paisen Monday” or “Peasen Monday”, in honor of the pea soup that is eaten on this day. Shrove Monday is a popular holiday in numerous countries. It is part of the Carnival calendar in Greece, and in many Caribbean countries, it is known as “Carnival Monday” — thus starting the Carnival season. In the Americas, Shrove Monday is more popular as “Luni Gras” or “Fat Monday”. In Lucerne it's called "Güdismontag". Güdis is an old word for stomach and Montag is Monday. It's the last Monday to fill your stomach with all the good eats before the Lent starts on Wednesday.

It appears that almost every culture has its version of Shrove Monday!

Shrove Monday timeline

12th Century The Royal Shrovetide Football Match

Henry II starts the trend of an annual traditional football match that is different from modern-day football.

19th Century The Celebrations in the Caribbean

Trinidad and Tobago Carnivals first celebrate Shrove Monday in the Caribbean.

19th Century The Mississippi Gulf Coast Mardi Gras

Carnival celebrations to mark Shrove Monday begins in Mississippi, U.S.

20th Century The New Name

Mississippi Gulf Coast Mardi Gras is renamed Lundi Gras or Fat Monday.

Shrove Monday FAQs

What does Shrove Monday celebrate?

Shrove Monday is celebrated before Ash Wednesday and signals people to start preparing for the season of Lent.

Is Shrove Monday a holiday in Germany?

Shrove Monday is not a public holiday in Germany.

Where is Shrove Monday celebrated?

Shrove Monday is celebrated in Europe, the Americas, and even the Caribbeans.

How to Observe Shrove Monday

Feast on collop and eggs

Attend a carnival

Start preparing for Lent

Start Shrove Monday by feasting on the traditional meal of collop and eggs. A collop of bacon may be eaten with beans and vegetables to add more flavor to the dish. This is the best way to start the celebrations!

Find out if there are any carnivals on Shrove Monday located close to your area. You may even dress up in costumes or participate in the festivities as a spectator. Shrove Monday carnivals are a stunning sight.

After you are done celebrating Shrove Monday, you could start preparing for Lent. Devout Christians prepare for Lent by confessing, fasting, giving up certain food items, and praying more.

5 Intriguing Facts About Shrove Monday

It’s always on a Monday

The name comes from the word ‘shriving’

Carnivals and Shrove Mondays are synonymous

‘Collop’ doesn’t always mean bacon

It also marks the start of spring

More precisely, Shrove Monday is always celebrated 48 days before Easter.

The old word ‘Shriving’ means to listen to someone’s sins and forgive them.

Some of the world’s largest and most famous carnival celebrations take place in New Orleans, Rio de Janeiro, and Venice.

Any fatty piece of meat may be referred to as ‘collop’ and consumed on Shrove Monday.

Shrove Monday marks the beginning of Spring in the Greek Orthodox calendar.

Why Shrove Monday is Important

Celebration of age-old traditions

A time of merry-making

A celebration of rare foods

Shrove Monday is celebrated with The Royal Shrovetide Football Match dating back to the 12th Century. Ancient traditions like these make Shrove Monday an important historical observation while keeping old traditions alive.

Shrove Monday is celebrated with carnivals, parades, and floats. People dress up, indulge in satire, and drink and eat to celebrate. Shrove Monday is a perfect holiday to spend some fun times with your loved ones.

Shrove Monday, in a way, also celebrates foods that are increasingly becoming rare. Also known as Collop Monday and Peasen Monday, this is a good opportunity to celebrate collop bacon and eggs, and pea soup.

Lozärner Fasnacht Recap

The Lucerne Carnival is the largest annual occasion of the city of Lucerne and also of Central Switzerland. In addition to the Basel Carnival, the Rabadan in Bellinzona and the Bärner Fasnacht, it is one of the carnival strongholds of Switzerland. The visitor record in 2025 was 350'000 participants. This makes the Lucerne Carnival the largest carnival in Switzerland.

The carnival event focuses on the old town on both sides of the Reuss and the Neustadt. The Lozärner Fasnachtskomitee (Lucerne Carnival Committee), LFK for short, consisting of the Safranzunft (guild of saffron), the Wey Zunft (Wey guild), Fidelitas Lucernensis and the Maskenliebhabergesellschaft (mask lover society of the city of Lucerne) and die Vereinigte (the United) Guuggenmusigen (umbrella association of Lucerne Guuggenmusige) are responsible for organizing the major events.

Source

Sadly, it's already over. Four days of fun, loud music and rain. I can't remember the last time we had such bad weather during carnival: four days of carnival and four days of rain (and wind). So there were fewer people at the Fasnacht than in the last years.

I'm still tired, I went to bed this morning at 5.30 a.m. As I already told you: it's the best carnival in the world. It's free and for everyone. Just make sure you'll wear some kind of a costume. The most part of the Lozärner Fasnacht takes place outside in the Old Town.

The costumes and grende (big masks of the Guuggemusig - like a marching brass band) and the floats are handmade. Every year the costumes, grende and floats changes. The most Guuggemusig players aren't musicians. They only play their instrument in the band.

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday/

Shrove Tuesday («Güdiszyschtig») belongs to the Guuggenmusigen. In the afternoon, Die Vereinigte performs the «Chendermonschter». Here, the young people and their families appear in a parade through the old town.

At the end of the carnival, the last highlight starts in the evening. The "Monster Corso", a huge parade in which all 80 or so members (drum clubs, Guuggenmusigen, small formations, float and mask groups) of Die Vereinigte take part. This leads from Bahnhofstrasse over the pier along the Schweizerhofquai and then through the old town back to Löwengraben. The order of the various Guuggenmusigen is loosely structured. First those that are celebrating an anniversary, then the Guuggenmusigen march in no specifically order. No or only very small floats are taken along. Larger ones would not have space in the narrow streets of Lucerne's old town. The parade was attended by 40,000 spectators in the record years 2024 and 2025. 

In the evening, there are more celebrations like on Dirty Thursday and Güdis Monday. Carnival ends the next morning around 5 am with the beginning of Lent, Ash Wednesday («Äschermettwoch»).

Shrove Monday/Güdismontag

The third important day is the «Güdismäntig», which corresponds to the German Rose Monday. Güdis comes from Güdel and means stomach bag, belly or paunch; this means that one fills one's stomach again on Güdis Monday and Tuesday before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday . 

This day is supported by the Wey Zunft. The Wey Tagwache takes place at 6 a.m. There will be no Big Bang or "Fötzeliräge" on Monday, but there will be another orange throwing at Kapellplatz. Guuggenmusigen will also be playing (they can start their day at 5 a.m., like on Thursday). The second Tagwache always attracts significantly fewer spectators than on Thursday.

In the afternoon, the second parade takes place, which is designed in the same way as the one on Dirty Thursday, except for the float of the Wey Zunft instead of the Safran Zunft and a few swapped Guuggenmusigen. Traditionally, there are more visitors on Monday than on the Thursday before. The visitor record in 2025 was 70,000 spectators.

The evening is the same as on Dirty Thursday.

The evening belongs to the street and pub carnival. Carnival theaters show their rehearsed pieces. The Guugenmusigen parade through the streets and give free concerts in squares and on temporarily set up stages. Masked and costumed people show their "Grende" and disguises (costumes). In the pubs, restaurants and bars, smaller Guggenmusigen, small groups and DJs play until late into the night.

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday/Güdisdienstag

Shrove Tuesday («Güdiszyschtig») belongs to the Guuggenmusigen. In the afternoon, Die Vereinigte performs the «Chendermonschter». Here, the young people and their families appear in a parade through the old town.

At the end of the carnival, the last highlight starts in the evening. The "Monster Corso", a huge parade in which all 80 or so members (drum clubs, Guuggenmusigen, small formations, float and mask groups) of Die Vereinigte take part. This leads from Bahnhofstrasse over the pier along the Schweizerhofquai and then through the old town back to Löwengraben. The order of the various Guuggenmusigen is loosely structured. First those that are celebrating an anniversary, then the Guuggenmusigen march in no specifically order. No or only very small floats are taken along. Larger ones would not have space in the narrow streets of Lucerne's old town. In the record year of 2024, 40,000 spectators attended the parade. 

In the evening, there are more celebrations like on Dirty Thursday and Güdis Monday. Carnival ends the next morning around 5 am with the beginning of Lent, Ash Wednesday («Äschermettwoch»).

Shrove Monday/Güdismontag

The third important day is the «Güdismäntig», which corresponds to the German Rose Monday. Güdis comes from Güdel and means stomach bag, belly or paunch; this means that one fills one's stomach again on Güdis Monday and Tuesday before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday . 

This day is supported by the Wey Zunft. The Wey Tagwache takes place at 6 a.m. There will be no Big Bang or "Fötzeliräge" on Monday, but there will be another orange throwing at Kapellplatz. Guuggenmusigen will also be playing (they can start their day at 5 a.m., like on Thursday). The second Tagwache always attracts significantly fewer spectators than on Thursday.

In the afternoon, the second parade takes place, which is designed in the same way as the one on Dirty Thursday, except for the float of the Wey Zunft instead of the Safran Zunft and a few swapped Guuggenmusigen. Traditionally, there are more visitors on Monday than on the Thursday before. The record number of visitors (also in 2023) was 60,000 spectators. 

The evening is the same as on Dirty Thursday.

The evening belongs to the street and pub carnival. Carnival theaters show their rehearsed pieces. The Guugenmusigen parade through the streets and give free concerts in squares and on temporarily set up stages. Masked and costumed people show their "Grende" and disguises (costumes). In the pubs, restaurants and bars, smaller Guggenmusigen, small groups and DJs play until late into the night.