In any percussion section, the cymbals accent music and add emphasis to certain key points of pieces. They are the color and flair of marching bands and musical ensembles.

Cal Cymbals are some of the flashiest and most exciting performers to watch on the field, since much of the nature of what they do deals with the visual aspect and general effect of the Cal Band's performance. During a Cal Band show, they are the most visible section on the field, rivaled only, perhaps, by the Cal Band Basses (the sousaphones); also, they can easily be the loudest section on the field, rivaled only, perhaps, by the trumpets on a good day (but don't tell them that we said that).

Any Cal Cymbal will readily admit that he or she does not play the most difficult musical parts in the Cal Band. However, every member of our cymbal line marches on with pride that one would be hard-pressed to find in many other cymbal lines. They have distinct and specific roles that they serve in the Band and in Cal Percussion, and they perform them with the utmost excellence and confidence. It is the initial solo crash in Big "C" that marks the Cal Band's first step when the Band forms the Initial Wedge of Pregame. Also, Cal Cymbals' trademark upward flash visuals are often mimicked by members of the Cal student section when they are performed in Cal songs.

Every crash, sizzle, choke, and visual that Cal Cymbals perform is done for the Spirit of California. In some sense, the cymbal line isn't necessary; one would probably be able to recognize any of our fight songs with some representation from the horn line, and maybe a snare drum. However, ask any member of the Cal Band who has gone to the rare performance to which a cymbalist was unable to arrive, and they will tell you that the music certainly did not sound the same. That is because the Spirit of California and the spirit of the Cal Band are, in essence, lively, dynamic, and colorful; the Spirit of California strives for excellence, and the Cal Band reflects that. Without a Cal Cymbal, you would not simply be missing the solo crashes in Big "C" or Fight (although it'd make you wince if you ever heard that extra quarter note of silence that sticks out like a sore thumb), but you would be missing the sound and metal which drive the music that the Band performs.

Cal Cymbals are proud to carry those Golden plates on their hands—more than just superficially, they carry the color of their alma mater with them wherever they are seen and heard.

Equipment:
(The University of California Cymbal Line has signed no endorsements, and does not necessarily recommend nor discourage use of the following equipment.)