Page 47 - Memories of the Maestro 9.11.21

Tenacious . . .

Some of my greatest memories are of
being part of a band. Being part of the
stage and jazz band at Fort de�nitely

created so many of those great
moments. I remember having so many
good players in the band, but hearing us

play on the CD was mind blowing. I
forgot what we were capable of; how
tight we were. Of course I remember
the trips, jazz festivals and accolades as

a group, but to hear us after so long
was amazing.

I believe that lessons learned from Ray have been with
me all my life. I have not played since high school. The
‘bone’ after many years in my cousins possession, is

tattered and in the attic. I recall that I could play fairly
well at the time and challenged Mark Seltmann for �rst
chair. Ray of course, set it up and the day came for the

challenge. Mark was a good musician and he had done
his homework and was ready. I, on the other hand,
thought I could make it happen—and failed. Ray pointed
out that the effort was not put in and I didn’t deserve

the spot. I don’t believe that I have taken on any
endeavor since then assuming I could just ‘make it
happen’ without being prepared.

To hear how many of you have taken

what we learned and how the passion
Ray gave us to be together is still there,
is inspiring.

Thanks Ray for the lessons, and the
lessons yet to come.

Ron Edwards

Class of ‘77