From the President...
Pat Stegall, AMEA President SOS
In December of 2007, Lloyd Jones from the University of North Alabama asked me to speak at the “Pride of Dixie” band banquet. It was a great honor and a wonderful experience to be able to share some of my thoughts on what membership in the “POD” and becoming a music educator has meant to me. Standards
My focus for the speech was on three letters; SOS. It was not by design that I chose these three letters, but three words that came to mind when I started thinking about what the POD had done for me: SOS - Standards, Opportunities, and Service. I learned from Dr. Edd Jones, Art Thomas, and Dr. Jimmy Simpson about setting high musical standards.
Art Thomas was the Theory and Brass Instructor back then and I just about grew up in his home. His son John was one of my best friends and I spent a lot of time during junior high and high school listening as Mr. Thomas taught private lessons in his living room. Mr. Thomas was very slow and very
methodical. I remember taking class brass with him and we free buzzed for several weeks before ever playing on the horn. He believed that you must get the fundamental tone production right before moving on to other more complex things. Even though it took forever to get there, he taught us to make quality our number one responsibility as players and as teachers.
Dr. Simpson was totally different
in his teaching style. He was the band director my freshman and sophomore years and was my clarinet teacher.
He
was the one who set my standards for playing. I tried hard to emulate his sound and envied his ability to tongue faster than any human being I had ever heard on clarinet. His technical ability was phenomenal. He was my mentor as a clarinetist and later when I became a band director.
Doc always looked at the big
picture. He was demanding, funny, and always asked probing questions to make us stretch our thinking. He guided us to set high standards for ourselves. Dr. Jones was definitely the most
influential person for me when it comes to musical standards. He set the bar at perfection. There was nothing else that was acceptable. I remember his first rehearsal. We had never heard of “broad staccato” so he spent two hours explaining the concept. By the end of the rehearsal, we could play one scale in that style. I think that was all we did during that rehearsal, except for looking at the cement blocks on the bandroom wall a hundred times while he tried to make the connection for us. I think people are always impressed by how cleanly the POD plays and it goes all the way back to that two hour rehearsal on broad staccato. We knew then that his high standards were going to take us places. Opportunities
life offered many opportunities.
The Pride of Dixie taught me that I think
back and many opportunities come to mind…the opportunity to build friendships, perform, teach, develop a career, travel, make non-fatal mistakes, achieve goals, personal growth, open discussions…etc.
I had the opportunity to make so many friends through the Pride of Dixie. Even before I was old enough to be a member the POD was influencing my life. My best friends have come to me through the band. I was friends with Mike Theil when we were in junior high school band, who was the son of Art Theil, the UNA band director. I was also best friends with John Thomas, whose father, Art Thomas, was assistant director and brass and theory professor. Jamey Irby was another best friend. His father, Elwyn Irby, was the band director at Central High School and was best friends with Dr. Frank McArthur, another UNA director. I grew up in their homes and they had a tremendous impact on my life.
My friendship circle grew once I became a member of the POD. Through traveling together, playing in musicals, dating, senior recital parties, collegiate singers, and internships, I came to know a great group of people who influenced my life and career to this very day. I even met my wife, Mary Ann, who was a majorette for the POD.
I was in the band with some
wonderful people. There was Regina King from Phil Campbell HS who always
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