PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — As Brown University senior Joshua Lobsenz prepared to earn his degree in neuroscience this spring, he achieved another life goal during his final semester: setting a world record.

Following months of designing and planning, Lobsenz constructed a 19-foot 4-inch conductor’s baton, which he engineered with a telescoping design made from fiberglass, paper and cork.

As the trumpet section leader for the Brown Band, Lobsenz enlisted the help of his bandmates, including head conductor Kanayo Duru, who conducted 16 members of the band in a live performance on Brown’s College Green in May, where together they made history and set a new Guinness World Record.

“I really enjoyed conducting with the baton,” said Duru, a member of the Class of 2025 who is concentrating in computational biology. “It was almost like waving a very long tree branch. It was definitely a new experience for me, and it was very fun to know I was contributing to a world record.”

Lobsenz said that the record-setting performance was inspired by a similar attempt by his Brown Band predecessors more than a decade ago.

“It seemed like a worthwhile goal to get the official world record — and to best the Harvard Band, which previously held the official Guinness World Record,” Lobsenz quipped.

Lobsenz submitted an application to Guinness World Records in February 2022 that was approved within three months. “After getting application approval, I got my own portal and a list of guidelines we were required to follow for the record, including the types of evidence they require,” Lobsenz recalled.