The End of an Era

A few days back, the University of Wisconsin-Madison announced that their long-time marching band director, Mike Leckrone, would be retiring at the end of this year.  His 50th year at the UW.



It is absolutely "The End of an Era."



I had the honor and pleasure of marching for Mike from 1991-1995. I was also a member of the office staff for the last three years of my time with the band. I don't know if I can even fully express all the valuable lessons I learned while in the UW Band.



But. . . . I'm going to try.

Lesson #1: Don't give up. Failure is not an end.  The first year I tried out for the Band, in 1990, I was cut.  I didn't make it and I was crushed.  The tryouts, known as "Reg. Week," are not for the feint of heart.  In fact, if memory serves, they are brutal.  After being cut, I went to see Mike to ask him what I needed to do to make the Band the following year. He suggested I do these things: Go down to the instrument shop and get a loaner trumpet, sign up for the University Band (a non-audition band like what one does in high school), LEARN HOW TO PLAY THE TRUMPET WHILE IN SAID BAND, and try again the following year.



I went back to my dorm and considered my options. . . . then I did exactly what he suggested. I didn't know how to play the trumpet but I knew people who did and so. . . I signed up, learned how to play and tried out again the next year.



Lesson #2: If you don't like it, do something about it.  The second year I tried out, I DID make the Band. . . . as an un-uniformed alternate (a "Sweater" alternate).  When the list came out, my name and a couple others were listed as a "go talk to Mike" at the end of the final cut.  So. . . back I went and this time Mike told me that he valued my hard work but didn't think I was ready yet to march in the block. I *might* have started to cry.  And. . . I remember this clearly. . . he leaned back in his chair, looked me dead in the eye and said, "I'm giving you a chance to show me you belong here."



I worked my ass off that year.  I never got a marching spot--despite learning the entirety of most of the half-time shows.  At this point, I had dug in my heels.  By God, I WAS going to prove it and no one was going to stop me. I may have only been on the field during rehearsals but there was no way I was going to quit now.



Lesson #3: If it was easy, anyone could do it.  After my 3rd Reg Week, I finally earned a 1/2 spot on the block.  I was marching pregame shows. I was thrilled but it wasn't good enough.  I wanted a full-spot. Both pregame and half time shows. It wasn't easy to watch my friends "saddle up" for the half time show but it was a whole hell of a lot easier than watching the game from the student section. At this point, I had come to realize that what seemed pretty easy for about 200 other people was just going to take more from me.



Lesson #4: The harder you work, the sweeter the victory. I finally earned a full spot on the block during my 3rd year in the UW Marching Band. While I don't, empirically, know if this is true, I believe that I relished my time on the field more than a lot of band kids. . . . it was a long, hard road and I valued each time I put on my uniform, taped on my spats, and lined up for run ons and half time shows. I was also filled with a sense of pride because I'd had to work so hard.





Other, smaller lessons I learned from my association with Mike both as a band member and a band staff member:



*A broken copy machine is NO excuse (very helpful in my current job).



*Sometimes you don't mean to hurt something (like the band) but you do. Then you need to fix it.



*Quadruple check all your photocopies.  Hell hath no fury like 200+ band kids with bad charts.



*Own up to your screw-ups and endeavor to NOT repeat them. . . EVER.



*Perfection is a perfectly reasonable goal.



*Hard work does pay off.



*Even when you do a good job, sometimes you have to, "do it again."



*Frost bite is no excuse for crappy playing or crappy marching.



*Be tougher than the person next to you--or try to be.



*When you expect a lot from yourself and those around you, amazing things can be achieved.



*Big Band music is a thing of wonder.



*Bix Beiderbecke is an unsung hero.



*"EAT A ROCK" (Which--as far as I was ever able to understand--means you take something difficult and crush it with your will and determination while being stridently amazing in the process.)





So. . . today. . . when asked to reflect on an educator that impacted me and had a lasting effect on my life, I instantly thought of Mike Leckrone.  I am, sincerely, a better person for having been a part of the UW Marching Band.