from the desk of the executive director
Wisconsin Rapids. Perhaps my all-time favorite memory comes from our two-week trip to Europe during the Summer of 2014 with the Wisconsin Ambassadors of Music. In addition to playing concerts together in several dif- ferent countries, performing with the brass quintet in some of the oldest churches in Europe, and dining in some of the finest res- taurants, I had the opportunity to hear my dad tell the story of how he brought one of his first high school groups to Austria a few years before I was born. Walking down the very same streets of Seefeld almost forty years later with my father and hearing him reminisce about the music and students that made a difference in his life is something that I will cherish forever.
What do you see as the biggest lesson we can all learn from the life of Thomas Heninger?
innumerable accomplishments, he was most proud of bringing a greater jazz presence to the Watertown Unified School District and being recognized as a Sousa Foundation Legion of Honor award recipi- ent at the 2003 Midwest Band and Orches- tra Clinic in Chicago (where he was born). Although truly rare in this day and age, he often spoke about how music teachers and faculty in Watertown (where he taught for 35½ years) were a part of our own family. This was something incredibly special that my brother Riley and I never took for granted while growing up. Oh… the stories that were shared around my parents’ dining room table!
What is a particular time or event where your father found great humor in teaching?
It was no secret that my dad had an amaz- ing sense of humor. His ability to have fun making music with “kids of all ages” is one of the characteristics that I will remember most fondly. His tendency to banter from the podium with the members of the Water- town Municipal Band (which included too many former students and lifelong friends
Wisconsin School Musician
to count) reminded me of just how thor- oughly he loved making and sharing music with others. Even in “retirement,” my father still enjoyed teaching instrumental music at St. John the Baptist school in Jefferson one day a week, performing with the Madison Brass Band, etc. etc. etc.
What is a favorite memory of your father in and through music?
So much of my own life is intertwined with shared experiences that it is difficult to pinpoint only one “favorite memory” of my dad. However, three occasions stand out in my mind. The first was in the Spring of 2000 when he was conducting the Wa- tertown High School Wind Ensemble dur- ing my senior year. He often spoke about how this group was that ‘special one’ a music teacher always dreams of working with. He led the band while I performed Curnow’s “Concertpiece for Cornet” on solo trumpet. It was an absolutely magical concert and I remember it like yesterday. The second memory involves when he was selected to be the National Band As- sociation-Wisconsin Chapter junior honors band conductor at the state convention in
My dad epitomized the notion of never missing a chance to do something that pushed you outside of your comfort zone, even if it resulted in temporary embarrass- ment. 99.9% of the time, I learned that tak- ing this type of risk was undeniably worth the reward. Quite honestly, I fully credit both parents (who have since passed on) with my own trajectory in life, recogniz- ing that the formative years of growing up in a house full of love and music provided enrichment on a level that very few children enjoy. My Dad was all about promoting and celebrating the accomplishments of others. He NEVER missed an opportunity to be there for the big moments in friends’ and family members’ lives. Most impor- tantly, the biggest lesson that we can learn from the life of Thomas Heninger is that no birthday celebration is truly complete without the opportunity to get some cake!
Laurie N. Fellenz is executive director of WSMA – WMEA – WFSM at the Wisconsin Center for Music Education.
Email:
lfellenz@wsmamusic.org 9
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54
