About the Band: Tipp City Herald News Article

On Jan. 29, 1980, seven people brought their instruments to the first rehearsal of what was to become the Tippecanoe Community Band. They were Susan Buchanan, flute/piccolo; Lavonne Fleming, alto sax; Evelyn Hauser, baritone sax; Bob Keppel Sr., trumpet; Christine Kirchner, flute; Norb Kreusch, trumpet and Bonnie Underwood, trombone, under the direction of Gail Ahmed, then band director at Tippecanoe High School.

From its inception, the band has been under the auspices of Tipp Monroe Community Services. Mary Lou Wilson was director of TMCS at that time and was instrumental in the founding of the band. Sandy Whitaker, Cultural Committee representative, was the band's business manager, a position she held for 11 years.

According to Whitaker, Evie (Evelyn Hauser) had to borrow an old baritone sax from the high school. It was in such poor condition she had to stuff Kleenex in the keys just to get a sound. One month later her husband Joe bought her a new bari sax.

In the beginning the community band was treated as any other class or activity sponsored by community services. Members paid a fee to participate, enabling the band to purchase music. The first arrangement the band played was the "Washington Post March" which is still included in their repertoire.

By the end of February the band had 10 members, and on May 20 an even larger group performed their first concert at Tipp City's Liberty Commons. On June 14, 1980, they presented their first Saturday night concert at Second and Main streets, the site of band concerts in the 1920s and '30s.

By September the band had over 30 members, and at the end of their first year the roster listed 39 members. The community band performed at the Downtown Hoedown in June, 1981, despite Tipp City's being the most heavily rained upon city in the Miami Valley that weekend, receiving 5.53 inches. Later that same year, they played a concert in the historic Arcade in downtown Dayton.

The hometown band has played at the Mum Festival- both in the parade and in the park- for all of its 20 years and has provided music for the queen's pageant for most of those years. They have also been a regular feature of community Christmas celebrations.

Other concert sites have included the Troy Strawberry Festival Parade, Miamisburg Senior Center, Huber Heights Senior Center, Miami County Library Park, Vandalia Park, Miamisburg Library Park, Versailles Poultry Days and various area nursing and retirement homes.

Historically, the current Tippecanoe Community Band is not the first to call Tipp City its home. Several unsuccessful attempts had been made to revive the band that had disbanded some 40 years earlier.

Throughout the life of the current band, director Gail Ahmed has been its stabilizing influence. Others, however, have stepped in from time to time to assist with conducting. Among them are Tom Rogers, Steve Faulkner, Phylis Yunker, Alan Schmidlapp, Michele Grogean and Mark George. George was principle conductor for the 1999 season during Ahmed's leave of absence.

Today the band boasts approximately 50 members from Tipp City and many surrounding communities with a broad range of ages and occupations. They have two main seasons - summer and Christmas - and then take a break until rehearsals start in the spring. Many members have also volunteered their time to play for the Tippecanoe High School musicals.

Community band members no longer pay to play. Although the band does not charge for performances, many organizations do make generous donations for concerts and parade appearances. That money is then used for music, some equipment and other miscellaneous expenses. One major purchase made with those funds was a trailer for use in parades. They no longer must borrow the trailer owned by the Piqua Civic Band as they did for many years.

After 20 years of growth the Tippecanoe Community Band has no intentions of slowing down. They are planning two big events this year to celebrate their anniversary. The first is a dinner in the spring for all current members and former members. The second is a special concert in the park for the community that has supported them for so many years. Former members will be invited to join the current band for a portion of this summer event.

The band always welcomes new members. No auditions are required, just a love of music. For more information about the band, contact Tipp Monroe Community Services at 667-8631.

Article by Carol Lytle from the Tipp City Herald, January 26, 2000. Courtesy of Suburban Newspapers of Dayton.