Welcome!
WSU has two concert bands available to students: the Wind Ensemble and the Symphonic Band. These ensembles include more than 100 undergraduate and graduate music and non-music
majors. While the bands require a placement audition for seating, our goal is one
of inclusion – we want to accommodate all non-music majors who desire to continue
their instrumental music experience in a university setting. To this end, we will
accommodate non-music major students with scheduling issues on a limited basis.
The bands perform both standard and contemporary repertoire. We have performed everywhere,
from national and regional conferences to New York's prestigious Carnegie Hall.
The Wichita State University Bands
A Tradition of Excellence
At the turn of the 19th century, Wichita was a growing city with the arts at its core.
During this time, several music conservatories, local colleges and professional bands,
choirs and orchestras flourished in Kansas. While many colleges and conservatories
close their doors after just a few years, several colleges continued to grow and thrive,
most notably Fairmount College in Wichita. Fairmount College became the Municipal
University of Wichita (WU) in 1962 and Wichita State University (WSU) in 1964.
From its start in 1895, Fairmount College was arts-minded, offering classes in music
theory and history along with lessons in voice, piano and orchestral instruments.
In 1902 the college established the Music Department. Associated with the Music Department
were ensembles, some sponsored by the department, others loosely formed by students
and often augmented with community members. It was these fledgling 1902 ad hoc student-community
groups that provided the birthright for the infant WSU band. By 1909 the Fairmount
College Band was adorned in traditional band uniforms of the day and boasted a membership
of twenty students, including three violinists!
In 1924 there was a very active Reserved Officer Training Corps (ROTC) on campus that
established an ROTC band. Student musicians directed the ROTC band until 1929 when
Otto Culvert was brought to campus to lead the group. This band was organized mainly
for the purpose of supplying musical enjoyment to its members and for ROTC functions.
In 1930, a Women's Drum and Bugle Corp was established on campus and performed at
sporting events and parades. The Women's Drum and Bugle Corp was short-lived, flourishing
for approximately four years. The ROTC band continued to grow with the coming years
and became known for its fine musical ability. In 1932, Walter Duerksen, after whom
the present fine arts center is named, assumed directorship of the ROTC band. He was
the first band conductor to be full time in the Music Department. The ROTC band’s
main purpose at that time was to supply musical enjoyment, prepare formal concerts
and to perform at football games. Duerksen established a second band, not associated
with ROTC, in 1939. By 1941, Duerksen was in charge of three WU bands: a ROTC Marching
Band, a ROTC Concert Band, and a University Concert Band.
The WU bands were flourishing organizations prior to World War II. With the onset
of the war, many colleges and universities experienced declining enrollments as men
were shipped over seas. In 1941, the WU bands, in order to bolster enrollments, formally
admitted women to the University Band and suspended the ROTC bands. In 1946, James
Kerr, who had been a highly successful high school band conductor in Norton, Kansas,
became the Director of WU Bands. At the same time, Duerksen became the director of
the WU School of Music. Kerr held the post of Director of Bands, with distinction,
until 1970.
Under Kerr's legendary leadership, the university bands experienced unprecedented
growth in numbers and quality, becoming nationally recognized for excellence both
in the concert hall and on the football field. During his tenure, Kerr led the concert
bands in regional and national convention performances of the Music Educators National
Conference, numerous Kansas state conventions, and was invited to perform at the College
Band Directors National Association National Convention. The Marching Band received
national recognition for its creative pre-game and half time shows. Kerr, as a result
of his work with the WU bands, was inducted into the prestigious American Bandmasters
Association, Kansas Music Educators Association Hall of Fame, and was named Outstanding
Kansas Band Director by the Kansas Bandmasters Association.
The twenty years following Kerr’s tenure found the Wichita State University Bands
under the leadership of several band directors. These included:
- Don Wilcox (1970 – 1971)
- John Boyd (1971 – 1974)
- Dave Catron (1974 – 1979)
- Dale Kennedy (1980 – 1982)
- Myles Mazur (1983 – 1989)
- William Mack (1989 – 1990)
- Victor Markovich (1990 - 2016)
- Timothy Shade (2016 - Present)
During these transitional periods of WSU Bands leadership, Dr. Donald Corbett, Professor
of Music Education, provided stability for the bands. Dr. Corbett, a WSU Bands alumnus
and a student of Kerr, served twice as Interim Director of Bands (1979 - 1980 and
1982 - 1983). Corbett retired in 1994 as Associate Director of Bands Emeritus. In
2002 the WSU Bands celebrated their Centennial of 100 years of Excellence.
