In Memoriam... George Truman Welch (1919-2014)
The year 1946 witnessed the beginning of a musical phenomenon which would enrich the lives of hundreds of students at Wetumpka and Elmore County High School (Eclectic), for the next twenty-six years.
George Truman Welch, at the age of twenty-seven, returned to Wetumpka, Alabama, from World War II, where most of his service had been spent as leader of the 13th Air Force Show Band in the Pacific. Mr. Welch was asked by a school board member about the possibility of starting a school band in Elmore County. He accepted the challenge and in April 1946, seven Wetumpka students met to begin their music instruction. Soon they were joined by students from Eclectic and the foundation for future musical greatness was laid. The Elmore County Band had become a reality, under the direction of Mr. Truman Welch.
In the years of Mr. Welch’s directorship, the Elmore County Band consistently received superior ratings at Alabama high school state competitions. Also, the band was selected to perform in events at Chicago, New York City, Virginia Beach, Philadelphia, Jekyll Island and numerous other locations. Perhaps the band’s biggest and brightest moment was in 1965 when it became the first band from Alabama to perform in concert at the Mid-west National Band Clinic in Chicago, Illinois, which is considered by many to be the highest honor for high school bands in the United States. During the concert the band was given three standing ovations, and the students from two small Alabama towns had solidified their position as members of one of the top high school bands in America.
In addition to Mr. Welch’s band directing responsibilities, he played multiple woodwind instruments professionally for many years in symphony orchestras and dance bands. He partnered in originating and organizing the studio lab band movement. Also, Mr. Welch was selected and served as a member of the Montgomery Symphony Board of
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Directors and was the director of the Capitol Sounds Concert Band at Montgomery, Alabama.
In 1972, Mr. Welch retired from Elmore County Band and began a six year tenure as woodwind instructor at Troy State University. In 1980, he was elected to the office of Mayor of his hometown, Wetumpka. Among Mr. Welch’s numerous honors was his selection for membership in the Alabama Bandmasters Hall of Fame and his selection for the inaugural class of the Alabama Music Educators Hall of fame in 2008. Mr. Welch served with distinction as president of the Alabama Bandmasters Association and of the Phi Beta Mu Honorary Band Fraternity. In addition, he served as a Yamaha Instrument Company flute clinician for the Southeastern United States.
and motivational skills of Mr. Truman Welch. He was a remarkable man whose life circumstances and personal qualities uniquely equipped him to achieve the impossible with a group of students from two small Alabama towns.
In March 2014, at the age of ninety-four, George Truman Welch passed away. For the hundreds of members who played in the Elmore County Band, Mr. Welch was a life-changer and the “Wind Beneath My Wings.”
Submitted by Dr. Edd Jones, Professor Emeritus, University of North Alabama Dr. Jones is a former member of the Elmore County Band under the direction of Mr. Welch (1947-1955). He served as his assistant director for seven years (1963-1970).
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Mr. Truman Welch was a taskmaster who believed in maximum effort, strict discipline, no excuses and pride in accomplishment. The high caliber of performance that he demanded was exceeded only by the stringent standards of behavior and attitude that he rigidly enforced. The “Welch philosophy” is still indelibly etched in the hearts and minds of each alumnus of the “Big Blue,” as it was fondly referred to in latter years.
The success and fame that the Elmore County Band obtained during his twenty- six years is a testament to the leadership
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