Texas High is a school built on traditions. From bacon fry to painting the pit, the student body rallies with each other using the traditions that have been around since before almost anyone currently on campus. The student body can also rally against the loss of a tradition.

Such is the case with the affectionately named tuba song, once a staple of every football game and pep rally. The ultimate hype song. The band has began the charge to return this Friday night tune back to the rest of the student section with a simple fundraiser: for every $1,000 raised, the band will play the song twice. 

“It’s a strong tradition to us,” senior Grey Johnson said. “It went away after my freshman year, so I only got to see the little bits that remained, but it was a big thing in the past.”

The timing of the fundraiser wasn’t an accident either. The campaign began at the peak of Texas High school spirit, Texas v. Arkansas week, serving as the perfect way to both raise money for charity and get the school looking forward to Friday night

“I think it’s an encouragement, you know, because it’s a strong tradition to us. I think it’s really interesting at coming back this week being such a Texas [High] thing to do,” Johnson said. “And I think this week, above any other week, is the most Texas High week there is, you know, just a week that really sums up our school. And that song would have to be in that summary.” 

Band members haven’t been the only advocates, students outside the organization and multiple booster clubs have tried to bring it back. So far, this attempt has been the most successful. 

“It’s not even mostly us, there have been several petitions to bring it back just from us and other students, and apparently, some other parents that are involved in other booster clubs and things like that have started petitions too,” senior Noah Addie said. “And so it’s not just some of the seniors in band and things like that, it’s ex band members and everybody else, it’s just a school wide thing that everybody wants to bring back, which, you know, for everybody to actually want the band to do something for once is kind of a big deal.”

The question remains, however, why the tuba song? Texas High has dozens of traditions, so what makes this one worthy of over $3,000, so far, and so much community support? The issue of the highly debated tuba song goes beyond it being just a song or just another tradition, the fundraiser is being held in memory of 2019 graduate Cameron Maynard, who died on August 16. 

“So, Cameron Maynard was a major advocate for bringing the tuba song back.  He was mostly responsible for a few times when we played it when we definitely weren’t supposed to,” Addie said. “So kind of in memory of him, the first charity we’re going to donate to is one that he picked out for Harding University. It’s called the Kerusso program.”

The removal of the song after the 2016 football season was a hard blow to the student body, but an even harder blow to members of the Tiger band, specifically Maynard. 

“It’s something me and Cameron talked about on many occasions, being very upset at its removal from our playlist,” Johnson said. “Gosh, I don’t know how many times we complained about it getting removed and how we’re going to try and get it back and this and that. So, its coming back is, I guess, for me personally, bittersweet.”

The song’s sentimental value has added to what it means to students. The tuba song is no longer just a hype beat for Friday nights, it’s a memory. 

“It’s a good memory, but it’s a reminder,” Johnson said.