By George Megaw
I’m reminded of two former students that brought meaning to my teaching career. Beth was an outstanding clarinet player and contributed to the high school band program above and beyond. She pursued music as her passion and career; she eventually earned her doctorate and is now teaching at the university level. It’s always gratifying to see a former student of this caliber share our passion and succeed, or even surpass their teacher.
Conversely, Ron was a good trumpet player who had lost his father at a young age and was brought up as the only child of a single mother. One weekend, I chose to take him flying with me to give his mom a break from being both parents. The afternoon had nothing to do with music or band. Fast forward about 20 years to when I was reading the newspaper while waiting for an early commercial business flight, when I became aware of a uniformed flight crew member looking at me from across the waiting area. As he approached me, I was sure I was going to end up on a no-fly list or something . . . but it was Ron . . . the Captain on my flight. That Saturday flight in a little airplane so long ago inspired his career choice as a commercial airline pilot.
I can’t tell you which former student I’m most proud of, and there are many more. (The first-class upgrade was certainly a nice treat though!) Every teaching day we have a critical impact on our students’ lives. Sometimes it just takes years to learn about them.
Active in all aspects of music education, since 1999 George Megaw has served as editor for Belwin concert band publications. Prior to that Mr. Megaw was a college band director in both Virginia and Tennessee for 12 years. He has taught music education at all levels, elementary through college, and remains active as an adjudicator, clinician, and guest conductor throughout the United States and Canada.
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