As part of the reveal of their 2025 season, the Hollywood Bowl announced that the USC Trojan Marching Band will return to the annual Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks, which will be held on July 18 and 19 this year.
The band will perform the finale of Tchaikovsky’s trademark “1812 Overture” accompanied by the customary fireworks, a task the band has handled annually since 1983.
The tradition is important to many in the band, including Terrell Mesteth, a senior majoring in business administration and a flute player in the Trojan Marching Band. Mesteth participated in the Bowl event in 2023 and 2024.
For Mesteth, the event is more than just a fun experience.
“It’s been an honor,” Mesteth said. “It’s a tradition that the band holds significantly… it’s such an
iconic venue [with] rich history, and I think it’s just great to represent USC on such an iconic stage.”
Band director Jacob Vogel explained to Annenberg Media over email that the event, one of the band’s most ambitious collaborations, is a bit simpler than one might think. It all comes down to personnel.
“The repertoire remains the same,” Vogel said, “but the people in the orchestra and the band members are ever-changing. There are small logistical changes, but all in all it has been a very stable tradition.”
However, this stable tradition still means the world to many USC students. Just ask Xavier Ramirez, a sophomore majoring in public relations and advertising and a trumpet player in the Trojan Marching Band.
“USC was my dream school because of the marching band,” Ramirez said.
Even with the opportunities the band already offers, the Hollywood Bowl is something special. Ramirez explained that the band gets dressing rooms in the Bowl and is “treated like performers” on the same level as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which anchors the Tchaikovsky Spectacular.
Those dressing rooms can be a necessity, as the band’s contribution to the “1812 Overture” is the event’s finale.
“There’s a lot of waiting and anticipation, but the event itself is truly remarkable,” Vogel said.
The Tchaikovsky Spectacular is a tradition that many have taken part in for multiple years, with Ramirez making his Bowl debut as a freshman during last year’s concert. The moment was particularly special for Ramirez, who hadn’t been to the Hollywood Bowl before — or any concert as big as the Tchaikovsky Spectacular.
However, preparing to go on the stage as historic as the Hollywood Bowl doesn’t mean a change in routine for the quartet of flutes usually chosen to join the band at the event each summer, Mesteth said.
“There’s obviously hours of practice,” Mesteth said. “We know we want to be in tune. We want to make sure we’re providing the best we can offer.”
But for the band, being in tune isn’t just about the instruments — it’s about USC’s connection to Los Angeles.
“It’s a huge part… [of] the connection between USC and the wider community,” Ramirez said. “It’s very storied and means a lot being a part of that tradition.”