The first time I walked the halls of the high school was as a grade school student. My dad had been appointed by Mobil to be their new bulk petroleum agent. Somehow I heard that the band had a morning practice so that's where I headed my first day of school. George A. Beggs was the band instructor and I was happy to find such a personable man to be in charge. The practice was held on the stage of the auditorium and was attended by a rather large group especially for a school the size of Cedar Vale. After the practice Mr. Beggs gave me a ride to my new grade school.
During my time in Cedar Vale it was my good fortune to enjoy the company of some good musicians and instrumentalists. Probably I should note that being a good musician is quite different that being (for instance) a good trombone player. Many of us who could "play good" weren't really good "musicians". Cedar Vale produced both! Here are a few of them but it would be appropriate to the lapse of time that "some of the best" most likely have been neglected to my immediate memory.
Trombones: Verne Sweaney and Nada Marlene Hess. (Nada later played with the KU band if I remember correctly.)
Trumpets: Don Shaffer, Tom Gordon, Reece Bohannon, and Gary White. Don was quite good and later played with the KU band and was a music instructor and director of the "Hallmark" band in Kansas City. Tom is perhaps still playing in a dance band and Gary played with the KU band and had an outstanding career as a professor of music at Iowa State University. Especially remembered was Don's performances of "The Flight of the Bumblebee". The trumpet trio of Don, Tom, and Reece performed often and was always well received by the audience.
Others would include Rosemary Snyder, Pat Williams, and Jeanette Rice who were all good saxophonists, Donna and Norma Champlin were good flutists, Dorothy Alice Cox was among a number of good clarinet players, and Don Cox and Verne Sweaney were not only good bandsmen but from my understanding (still are) good singers.
George Beggs was a young man who I believe had just returned from the Marines. He was a good musician and a good trumpet player. His home was in the Columbus, Kansas area and he was married to a fine lady named Madge. G.A. was a very patient man and he had a likable personality. He was an avid fisherman but his best known and unusual ability was in being able to produce a good band from a group of kids not necessarily nurtured in the nuances of "ooom pa pa".
Not only was he the master of local music but if you had a problem it was convenient and it just seemed natural to visit Mr. Beggs. One incident of which I remember was when Don Schaffer was going to teach me how to back a car out of a garage. The vehicle chosen was the nice and shiny Fleetwood of his dad. The Shaffer garage was narrow and Don was standing with the driver's side door open giving the neophyte driver detailed instructions. Don's step by step proceedings failed to mention the clutch and the car lurched (without injury to Don) but with a resulting dent in the door. We were quite concerned and were afraid of both Clyde and Jesse for their possible reaction to the accident. Our first thought was to seek the advice of George Beggs. I don't remember what advice he gave but I do remember that we went to the Williams Chevrolet Agency to see if we could get some quite emergency repairs. That wasn't possible but we found ourselves fortunate in that our dads were much more understanding of the unpleasant situation than our allowed imaginations.
The band performed many well attended concerts as the community was proud of their band. Beautiful uniforms were purchased for the "Sound of the Bronchos". We marched for the Cedar Vale Labor Day celebration, along with similar occasions at Neewollah at Independence, Veterans Day at Grenola, Arkalala at Arkansas City, and Winfield's 75th Anniversary Parade. Also, we were at the Chautauqua County Fair and performed during and at half time of the football games and even further enlivened the release of the live turkey event atop L.C. Adams Mercantile Company. George organized a dance band for school events and a German band ("The Hungry Five") which was an instant hit. Most likely a number of additional events and groups have allowed time to forget. One of the crowd pleasers was a waltz step innovated by George. My marching band position was next to Mr. Beggs and when he ordered the waltz step I am sad to relate that I almost always (to no avail) protested.
At one event I can remember that fellow trombonist Janice Sartin and I were to play a duet. Janice was a fun loving girl and something happened prior to our performance that allowed us to be still a bit amused. We were introduced and entered the stage but one of us must have retained the humor of the moment and we began and could not stop laughing. We made fools of ourselves for a bit and finally left the stage without a note. Mr. Beggs did not rebuke us but instead said not a word. Perhaps he found that the result of our brief entertainment encounter was better than if we would have performed as planned.
That recalls another incident with Janice when a group of us were going to individually perform at "Cedar Vale Night" at the old basketball barn at the Sedan fair. Backstage I was awaiting my blackface performance of "Lassus Trombone". Janice was a good singer and I presume she was also backstage awaiting her turn. She motioned me to a back area where she shared her dilemma. Part of her attire was a pair of pants and somehow she had caught her shirt or something in the zipper. She needed help with her zipper. To show you how perhaps times have changed I was so proud that she chose me to be of assistance but at the same time so careful to not offend by not seeming overly adventuresome in said pursuit.
Mr. Begg's stern side most always just involved "a look". During a summer practice I knew that one of the marches practiced would be "Lights Out". At about the appropriate time I managed to slip into the back area and when George said, "Lights Out" ... I turned out the lights. He was not amused. He was not amused when I put tacks in his seat in science class. He was not amused when (in order to demonstrate something or other) I engulfed myself in the stage curtain. Through all of my ridiculous and inane antics for about four years I remember not once when he gave me even a slight verbal assault. Instead, he would give me "the look" and I would dutifully and quickly return to (almost) normalcy.
The bus trips with the band were always fun for me and the band members were a wonderful group of young people. So many memories evolve as I think of that band and hopefully you will join me in reliving some of those special days.
4 comments:
What an adventuresome youth you were Phil. Thanks for this entertaining and amusing trip in the corridors of the past. DFCox
Thanks, Phil, for your piece on the band. I have shared many of my memories in the piece I posted last month on Mr. Beggs and the one on Leonard Theater.
One thing that I've been thinking about is the brass quartet that played for Bill Leonard's funeral. I don't remember who the other members were. I can't even find Bill's death date on ancestry.com. (You CV residents may have that information in your files, which I would appreciate.) Anyway, any other members of that quartet or people who were there, I'd like to recall who you are.
Another Band related memory was smoldering in my brain just before sleep last night-----
I was never the dedicated instrumentalist that you, Gary, Don Shaffer, and others were. I signed on because it was convenient and sounded fun (and it was). My Uncle Harold had a valve trombone from his band days at KU and he said I could play it if I wished. He taught me the basic valve positions to make notes and Mr. Beggs took me on. Mr Beggs had a horn, a mellowphone or alto horn, and he asked me if I would play it as the band needed that dimension. As you know, it is quite often a part of the OOOM PA PA beat. That instrument should have a smooth, mellow tone, but I was trying to be sure everyone would hear the countertones and was wringing all the decibels I could muster from it. I think it was squawking like the AFLAC duck rather than issuing mellow tones.
At a Music Festival as the judge was critiqueing the bands he noted "Lively, playing well, but the horn is too loud" That kept us from a top rating. I saw the half smile on Mr. Begg's face when he heard the verdict--he knew, but he never told me. I wonder why?
Great remembrance, Don. Beggs may have thought that he preferred a bit too much emphasis from your horn as too little? Or, perhaps it does give insight to a better understanding of this good man of Cedar Vale history.
For all his many strengths it seems to me that Mr. Beggs was reluctant to criticize or to give vent to his personal feelings. Though on surface a strength, it can at the same time (at the very least) lead to not properly addressing a negative situation. More crucial it can allow ONLY misunderstandings to become permanent hinderances to reality.
Mr. Beggs had few faults (as viewed by me) and certainly I'm not positive in the observations noted above. They are only brought out to underline the belief that even a possible minor blemish of the man was somewhat self-directed as to any negative result.
It's been said that "a good man is hard to find". It is to Cedar Vale's positive legacy that it found G. A. Beggs!
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