Solve the marching bands as normal. Band F indicates that 15 clues have band names in them. Find the 15 band names hidden in the clues and read the first letters of their answer in clue order to spell the answer, JOHN PHILIP SOUSA.
| ROWS | BANDS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Comedy that's made up on the spot | IMPROV | A | Make better; work the kinks out of | IMPROVE |
| Radiate (from) | EMANATE | Marine mammals with a shade of grey named for them | MANATEES | ||
| 2 | Operators | SURGEONS | Rips | TEARS | |
| With mouth open | AGAPE | Heavy machinery used to fill a dump truck or train car | LOADER | ||
| 3 | Group that plays fight songs at basketball games (2 wds) | PEPBAND | Prefix meaning height" | ACRO | |
| Pokes fun. | JOSHES | Held by a third party as a tool in financial transactions (2 wds) | IN ESCROW | ||
| 4 | Ready to rush to the stage after the current act (2 wds) | ON NEXT | Shirts worn while experiencing R.E.M. (2 wds) | PAJAMA TOPS | |
| Competitor | ENTRANT | B | Goad forward (2 wds) | URGE ON | |
| 5 | "Bummer, dude" (2 wds) | TOO BAD | Epic story, like in the Book of Genesis or The Odyssey | SAGA | |
| Buffy Summers, for "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", e.g. | HEROINE | Pasta that's totally tubular | PENNE | ||
| 6 | "Open sesame" utterer (2 wds) | ALI BABA | Words at the end of a threat (2 wds) | OR ELSE | |
| Brand that's SENATE in a new order | NESTEA | Running late to class | TARDY | ||
| 7 | NBA star Karl, nicknamed ""the Mailman"" | MALONE | Palindromic comedian Gadsby | HANNAH | |
| With ""the"", time-traveling alien on the BBC | DOCTOR | Throng of people | MOB | ||
| 8 | Beaded counting devices | ABACI | All by oneself | ALONE | |
| Gendered units of work (hyph.) | MAN-HOURS | C | Classic American sandwich, for short (4 wds) | PB AND J | |
| 9 | Punk rocker who founded an eponymous group (2 wds) | JOEY RAMONE | Org. that requires hardhats for men at work | OSHA | |
| Norse goddess of the underworld, or a homophone of the underworld | HEL | Hirsute Addams cousin | ITT | ||
| 10 | Dutch beer brand named for a river | AMSTEL | Rental for a moving journey? (hyph.) | U-HAUL | |
| Bison/cattle hybrid with a portmanteau name | BEEFALO | Clownfish's home | ANEMONE | ||
| 11 | Fantastic, marvelous, the cream of the crop | PHENOMENAL | Marine mammal with an outdoor exhibit at the aquarium in Boston (2 wds) | SEA LION | |
| It's south of Can. (abbr.) | USA | D | To an ___ (somewhat) | EXTENT | |
| 12 | "I ___ Be Sedated" | WANNA | 1920's slang for a gun | ROSCOE | |
| Full of aqua and no longer thirsty | HYDRATED | Weak, like a poor attempt | FEEBLE | ||
| 13 | Brutish creature of Middle Earth | ORC | Baseball legend who did not lend his name to a salad (2 wds) | TY COBB | |
| Service provided at assisted living homes (2 wds) | SENIOR CARE | E | Stick (to), as a faith or creed | ADHERE | |
| Cry of dismay (2 wds) | OH NO | ||||
| Harbor | MARINA | ||||
| F | It's often written on the front of a bass drum, or a component of fifteen notable clues (2 wds) | BAND NAME | |||