Clear Lake High School Music Memories 1951 to 1956
by Ron Gerdes CLHS 1956
My first experience with the Clear Lake High School Music Program was in the summer of 1951 when I was 13 years old. The Zion Lutheran Church had a reception, welcoming new members to the congregation. One of those members was Ludwig Wangberg and his family. The reception was held at the I.O.O.F. Hall at PM Park. Mr. Wangberg was being introduced to each of the Zion members in attendance. He came to my mother and father and they were introduced and they introduced me. Mr. Wangberg looked at me and said we need you in the high school band. My heart started racing and a huge smile came to my face. I looked at my mother for approval and she said we would love to have Ronnie learn to play a musical instrument. I had taken piano lessons from Mrs. Folkmann for several years and was in the church choir for 8 years. Mr. Wangberg said he thought I would be a good bass horn player. Mr. Wangberg told me to come to the high school the next week for my first bass horn lesson. I had my first lesson and told Mr. Wangberg that my family was going on a vacation trip to the Black Hills the following week and that I would not be in town for my next lesson. He gave me a bass horn mouth piece and told me to learn to control my lips and follow the bass part on the radio. I drove the whole family crazy sitting in the back seat of a 1948 Chevrolet playing the bass part to old time music all the way to the Black Hills and back. When school started in the fall of 1952, I was in the 8th grade and was a member of the CLHS band. I was the worst bass horn player in the entire upper Midwest but I practiced very hard. I am sure I was just a figurehead in the band as they needed to have more than one bass horn for looks. My first memory was getting on a school bus to go someplace with the marching band. I was carrying my tuba down the isle looking for a place to sit when Janice Winterstein asked me to sit beside her. I was really surprised because I was the boy from the north side of Clear Lake by the railroad tracks and Janice was one of the most popular girls in the glass. After that I was invited to the parties of the popular kids and started believing in myself. The "Puppy Love" relationship with Janice lasted until our freshman year when Janice's family moved from Clear Lake. I blamed myself for the family moving because I thought they wanted to keep us apart. After raising a daughter of my own in the 1960's, I realize how dumb I was.
In 1954, the Clear Lake High School band and choir went on tour for three days to three colleges in the upper Midwest. If I remember correctly it was Fargo, ND, Sioux Falls, SD and Luther College in Decorah. We sold birthday calendars for many months before the trip to defer the cost. People could have there name printed on the calendar on the day of their anniversary, birthday or any special occasion. The names were sold for 50 cents. It went over very well. I would guess the Clear Lake Community still supports the endeavors of the CLHS students.
In the summer of 1954 the North Iowa Band Festival was a very good experience. It was in celebration of Mason City's Centennial and the organizers worked very hard to get 100 bands in the big parade. Of course, it was real hard as the maestro himself, Meredith Wilson was going to head the big parade. All 100 bands marched down Federal Avenue in Mason City and gathered that evening in the Mohawk stadium. I can still remember Meredith Wilson climbing on that big box on the football field and directing 5,000 band students in the Stars and Stripes for ever. This was all part of the incentive for Meredith Wilson to write the music for his famous Broadway production of the Music Man. To this day, I like to "kid people" that I played in a band conducted by Meredith Wilson.
I had my customized 1940 Ford convertible in the parking lot and was coming back to my car carrying the tuba in one arm when I say someone prying one of my coveted bar hubcaps from my car. Holding my tuba in one arm, I bent down and picked up a rock and hollered at the person and threw the rock at him. Thank God, I missed but it scared the guy enough that he dropped the hub cap and ran away. I put my tuba in the back seat and left for Clear Lake. That tuba in the back seat of my 1940 Ford convertible was a familiar sight around Clear Lake.
Ludwig Wangberg led us through many Iowa State Music Contests and we always came home with #1 ratings and trophies. I used to go to school at 7:00 AM, go into the band room, pick up my tuba and go to a room above the stage in the auditorium where I could practice my tuba without anyone hearing me and laughing at the bass sounds. It took a lot of hours of practice to learn a Tuba solo for the Iowa State Music Contest that year. I never was a good horn player but got a #1 rating that year because of the encouragement and prodding of Mr. Wangberg. We always got good ratings in the brass quintet numbers we played at state, but it was purely because of Allen Yeager, Dave Traub and Myrna Pusher. I just did my best as I did not want to embarrass the rest of the group.
When I was in boot camp at Great Lakes Naval training station, I auditioned for the Recruit Training Band and made it. The only reasons for making it was because they put a piece of music in front of me and said play this. As luck would have it, the piece of music was the tuba solo I had practiced on for 3 years at Clear Lake High School. The most exciting thing about being in the recruit training band was to get out of boot camp long enough to march in the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Chicago.
When I got out of the Navy and was back home working at Reid's clothing store and going to Junior College in Mason City, I played bass horn in the Clear Lake Municipal Band for one year.
Mr. Wangberg taught us much more than just to play a musical instrument. He taught us to appreciate classical music and interpretation of music. I still think of Ludwig Wangberg every time I attend a symphony orchestra concert. My heart swells with pride that I was part of the best high school music program in the entire country. I still get teary eyed when I hear Stars and Stripes Forever. - - - Ron Gerdes CLHS 1956
