Band leader Erik Hyde throws his hands in the air for a dramatic musical finish.

For the past five years the band  known as Big Tommy and the Huskie Orchestra has delighted Huskie football and basketball fans with musical classics during halftime and timeout breaks.

The band’s attendance has been spotty at times, due to low numbers of musicians. But with a new leader at the helm it seems the group may be close to signing an official contract with Huskie Athletics.

“The band initially started with people from the music department coming out to the [Huskies] games,” said Erik Hyde, who has been leading the group of eclectic musicians since August. “Huskie Athletics gave us an opportunity to make some noise and they really liked it after that first game.”

After that first gig in the fall of 2008, the University of Saskatchewan’s athletics department contacted one of the musicians and the two sides agreed to have the orchestra play at all home football games.

Two years later, the band started getting requests from the athletics department to play at some of the Huskies home basketball games. With the addition of a winter sport to go along with the fall football season, the band could continue playing for the entire school year.

“We love to come out, see the sports and contribute to the atmosphere,” Hyde said.

The group drafted their original name out of irony. Tommy, the name of the band’s leader during its inception, was one of the smallest players in the group.

“When we first started we had about 15 people. We dwindled two years ago when Tommy left and a couple of the members graduated.

“That continued until we eventually became non-existent for the better part of last year. But since I’ve taken it over we average about 16 players a game,” Hyde said.

Hyde was in the U of S music program from 2006-11 before leaving Saskatoon for work. He now leads the Huskie band and plans to return to the U of S campus in the second semester to complete a B.A. in music.

He leads the band with the bass drum, citing it as the most central instrument to lead the group with because of the constant beat it provides. The group also includes sousaphones, trumpets, saxaphones, french horns, clarinets and a snare drum with hi-hats and symbols.

Hyde says the band accepts any and all musicians who want to join the group, but warns the band relies heavily on sight reading since they don’t practice.

The orchestra isn’t currently under any long-term contract with Huskie Athletics, but has maintained a close connection with both them and the Concorde Group Corp — one of the Huskies’ top sponsors — over the past five years. These groups have even provided the band with jackets, shirts and rain gear in previous seasons.

However, with Tommy no longer a part of the band, the group is seeking a name change and has recently been in talks with Huskie Athletics about creating a new U of S recognized name and logo for the band.

“We wanted to work with Huskie Athletics to get a new name and become more school spirited. So we came up with this name: The Howlin’ Huskies Pep Band,” Hyde said.

The athletics department has yet to say whether or not they will agree to a contract with the band, nor whether they will endorse the band’s new name. Nevertheless, Huskie Athletics director Basil Hughton admits the band adds a level of fan excitement to the sports events.

“We like to have the band play as much as we can,” Hughton said.

“We enjoy their presence. It adds to the atmosphere on game day.”

Hughton started as the university’s athletic director in August of 2008 and was instrumental in overseeing the band’s origin into Huskies sports. He says budget constraints are currently the main issue holding back the deal.

This means the new name is not official yet, though Hyde is hopeful that the deal will be finalized by this year’s basketball playoffs or, if delayed, by the start of the 2013 football season.

For now, the group will continue to play as Big Tommy and the Huskie Orchestra.

“Our goal for the rest of this basketball season is to be a Saturday night feature, and play at every Saturday night home game,” Hyde said.

More information on joining the band can be found on their Facebook group, “Howlin’ Huskies Pep Band.”

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Photo: Calvin So