When EA SPORTS College Football 27 launches July 9, millions of gamers will hear the sounds of college marching bands performed by an ensemble that included 18 Blair School of Music students, faculty and alumni.
The recording sessions marked the third consecutive year that Blair musicians have played a major role in the blockbuster franchise, underscoring one of the advantages of studying music in Nashville. More than 100 musicians came together to record dozens of fight songs, stand tunes and other music featured throughout the game.
When an ice storm swept through Middle Tennessee and prevented some musicians from traveling to the sessions at Belmont University’s Fisher Center, even more Blair performers were able to step in, creating additional opportunities for students to contribute to one of the year’s biggest entertainment releases.
For Bethany Wiese, associate professor of tuba, the unexpected circumstances led to one of her favorite teaching moments.
“It was especially cool for me,” Wiese said. “It’s the first time I’ve played a sousaphone gig alongside one of my students.”
After receiving a last-minute text from Wiese, Vanderbilt student Ally Hansen, BS ’26, arrived less than an hour into the first session and played throughout the remaining recordings. During the lunch break that same day, Hansen learned she had been named a Yamaha Young Performing Artist, making an already unforgettable day even more memorable.
While the recordings offered an extraordinary professional opportunity, they also demanded remarkable endurance. Musicians spent three days recording as many as 40 to 50 songs, often moving from one chart to the next after only a few takes.
“It goes by in 10 minutes. You do two or three takes, and you’re moving on to the next track. Everyone wants to be ready because no one wants to slow down the session,” said recent Blair graduate A.J. Abbey, who performed on the soundtracks for EA SPORTS College Football 26 and 27.
Blair alumna Liv Achcet, B.Mus.’23, who also performed on the soundtrack for EA SPORTS College Football 26, found this year’s recording sessions especially satisfying.
“My high school was small and didn’t have a band, so it was fun to be playing in what was essentially a full marching band and a live drumline,” she said. “For the College Football 26 edition, the drumline was recorded separately and piped into our headphones, so this was a much more fun experience.”
Achcet said the biggest challenge was maintaining the volume required during the seven-hour recording sessions.
“I’m used to recording in front of a microphone or playing softer parts in an orchestral setting, so playing all out the entire time was different.”
Those fast-paced sessions mirror the realities of Nashville’s recording industry, where musicians are expected to perform at the highest level with little rehearsal and adapt quickly to a producer’s vision. For Blair students, experiences like these provide a rare opportunity to learn that craft while still in school.
Achcet said that versatility is exactly what drew her to Nashville, and what continues to shape her career.
“I just want to play everything,” Achcet said. “I’ll go from playing works like Messiah on piccolo trumpet, to big band shows, to a project like the College Football soundtrack, and that’s what makes Nashville unique.”
Abbey noted that being a part of these sorts of projects was not something he envisioned when he chose to attend Vanderbilt.
“I could have never imagined the opportunities that are in Nashville and at Vanderbilt,” he said. “You could be doing anything, any day.”
That combination of world-class musical training and immediate access to one of the country’s busiest recording communities gives Blair students experiences few conservatories can match. Whether performing alongside faculty mentors, collaborating with top session musicians or contributing to one of the world’s most successful video game franchises, students are building professional résumés long before graduation.
The EA SPORTS College Football franchise returned in 2024 after an 11-year hiatus and quickly became one of the biggest launches in sports gaming history. As College Football 27 reaches millions of players this summer, Blair musicians will know their performances are part of the soundtrack to one of gaming’s biggest stages, a testament to the professional opportunities available to students studying in the heart of Music City.