Monday, August 29, 1983The Daily Tar Heel9B
LWC bands play for 'Major
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By KIMBERLY L. MARION
Special to the DTH
For 16 years, he led the U.S. Air Force Band
before royalty and heads of state. He served all the
presidents from Roosevelt through Nixon and
played before Queen Elizabeth, King Saud of
Arabia, Premier Nikita Kruschev, secretaries of
state and various other dignitaries.
But for the last J 8 years, Major John F. Yesulaitis
has been the creative force behind the UNC bands.
"The Major has seen everything and done every
thing in life and still has a great capacity for living,"
said Allen Reep, assistant director for the UNC
bands.
The 66-year-old "Major Y," as he is called on
campus, agreed that he has had a varied career that
has taught him many lessons the most important,
how to live each day with enthusiasm, excitement
and laughter.
"You have to learn how to laugh," Yesulaitis
said. "Sometimes people are too serious. They take
life too seriously, and if you don't know how to
laugh, life can be very, very drab."
Yesulaitis began his military career in 1936 as a
French hornist with the U.S. Army Band in
Washington.
In 1947, he became the associate conductor of the
U.S. Air Force Band and the Symphony Orchestra
in Washington, entertaining White House families
and their guests.
Although he was accustomed to seeing royalty
and dignitaries, he said he once embarrassed himself
while playing for the Queen (now the Queen Mother)
and King George. When he shook the Queen's
hand, he removed his hat, which is part of the
military uniform that is not to be removed.
During his reign as associate conductor of the Air
Force Band, he also had the opportunity to travel to
Europe, Africa, Iceland, Scandinava, China, Haiti,
Bermuda, Mexico, Canada and the Philippines. He
lived in Japan and Korea for a year each.
He said his musical highlight was during one of
these many trips when he conducted a band in Berlin
Olympic Stadium before an audience of 125,000
his largest ever.
Shortly before his military career ended, Yesulaitis
was married. In 1964, he and his wife, Patricia,
moved to North Carolina, where he took a sta
tionary job as the band director at UNC.
Before Yesulaitis came to UNC, the band was
called the "Meandering Tar Heels," Reep said.
Band membership has almost tripled since Yesulaitis'
arrival.
One reason for the increase is Yesulaitis' ability to
stay calm in stressful situations. He said that con
ductors, like actors, must develop a "who cares?"
attitude so they can keep from being embarrassed or
frustrated much of the time.
"The Major never gets uptight about perfor
mances, said band member Alyson Reid.
Eleni Bacas added, "He's not like a real major,
'hupt-two'. He is extremely patient and under
standing." When asked about his patience, Yesulaitis re
sponded, "I am sure there are times when I portray
that image. I try to stay calm, but there are times
when I get excited. However, if I show stress, it
creates a big problem (with the band), so I have to
keep my wits about me."
Yet to many people, including Reep, Yesulaitis is
an "ultimate father figure."
"He really cares about people. He is forever
calling us (the band) his family," Reep added.
Yesulaitis agreed that he has a big family. "All of
my people in the band know that any time they have
a problem, they can come to see me and I'll listen to
them. I don't know if I can help, but I'll listen."
The family feeling contributes pride to the band
organization, creating a little extra effort by the
members because they are working as one unit,
Yesulaitis said.
In addition to being a "father figure" for the
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Major John F. Yesulaitis, "Major Y," directs the Marching Tar Heels. Before his 18
years leading UNC bands, he conducted before world leaders.
band, he is also supportive of the University and its
athletic teams. On his office bulletin board, he has
posted the schedules for almost every UNC athletic
event.
"He's the teams' best cheerleader," Reep said.
"You can't find anyone in the University com
munity who hasn't been touched by the Major.
Everybody knows him. He's our own best ambas
sador." During the marching band season, Yesulaitis is in
charge of choosing the music for and designing and
charting the halftime shows, which take about eight
hours a week to prepare.
Yesulaitis also conducts the playing rehearsals,
which take another 12 hours a week.
After football season, he conducts two pep bands
and a concert band.
Although Yesulaitis does delegate some respon
sibilities to the band officers and Reep, he usually
operates the band himself.
And during his years at UNC, he has done more
than just create a name for the band he has made
history himself.
In 1975, Yesulaitis was named one of the top 10
most outstanding musical directors in the United
States and Canada by The School Musician Direc
tors and Teacher magazine.
In 1976, Yesulaitis became president of the
American Bandmasters Association, which in
Reep's opinion is the most prestigious group in the
world. After a four-year term, he became a member
of the board of directors.
When conducting doesn't occupy Yesulaitis
time, he enjoys relaxing at his mountain home and
visiting people.
"Relationships are important to me and the
band. If I can do something for someone, I will go
out of my way to do it as a matter of friendship
more than anything else," he said.
While Yesulaitis said he has accomplished and
seen almost everything he cares to see, he does not
plan to retire any time soon.
"My goal is to be happy in what I am doing, as
long as I can do something," he said. "I don't care
to burn up the world or anything like that."
.... .',..;,-... . . :'.;..
First band camp offers more than sounding the trumpets
By JO ELLEN Ml
Staff Writer
EEKL
What causes a person to move to
school a week early in order to march in
105-degree weather?
I seriously wondered myself as I trudged
up the dorm steps on Aug. 17 juggling
cardboard boxes and one small black
clarinet case. The next day, more than
100 freshmen would arrive on campus to
become members of the "Band of Cham
pions." Their initiation: the first annual
Marching Tar Heel Band Camp. Their in
itiators: returning Tar Heel band mem
bers like me.
On the eve of the freshmen's arrival,
band staff and officers held a cookout at
the home of the assistant band director,
Allen Reep, to discuss the goals of the
camp. The group proposed the idea of
band camp last May during the Band
Cheerleader Planning Retreat at Ocean
Isle Beach.
"Every other major college band has
band camp," Band President David
Bagnal said. "It gives us a head start and
some concentrated rehearsal time."
After we moved freshmen into their
dorms on Thursday morning, it was off
to Hill Hall for a music rehearsal. Allen
Reep introduced Major John F. Yesulaitis,
the band director, as well as the large
group of staff and officers who make the
band run smoothly. Afterward, band
librarians Liz Kelly and Dana Steed passed
out music folders, and official rehearsal
began.
"The week after graduation last May,
we began sorting music for the fall,"
Steed said. "We've been working all sum
mer, and about a month ago we began
putting all the music for marching season
into 270 new band folders."
After only a couple of hours of rehear
sal, freshmen quickly became familiar
with UNC favorites such as "Here Comes
Carolina" and the "Tag," our nickname
for the ending of "Hark the Sound."
Although our schedule was very busy,
it left plenty of time for work and play.
"When we work, we work hard, and
when we play, we play hard," Reep said.
"Both are important, but they need to be
separate." Our social activities for the
day began with "get to know" exercises
as 200 of us poured onto the lawn in front
of Hill Hall.
"Band camp at the University of Illinois
was during new-student week, (one week
before classes started)," said Cliff
Massie, junior transfer and alto sax
player. "We practiced eight to 10 hours a
day for five days in a row. There were no
water breaks, little time for meeting peo
ple or socializing, but no shortage of time
when it came to marching.
"UNC provided a welcome relief to all
this. Here, band camp offered me the op
portunity to meet people and get involved
through organized social events, as well
as during band."
After acquainting ourselves with each
other through such games as "Skin the
Snake" and "Lap Sits," we crossed the
campus en masse to the Pine Room,
where we were treated to dinner by Uni
versity Dining Services. The last of the
day's activities was "Band Movie Night"
at the Ram Triple Theater, with band
members receiving a special discount.
For the remainder of the weekend, we
practiced potential halftime show music
in the morning at Hill Hall, and we prac
ticed marching on Ehringhaus and Navy
fields in the hot afternoons. As my room
mate and I left our room to head for
Navy Field oh Saturday, the radio an
nounced, "Currently, we have 99 degrees
in the Triangle with an expected high of
102." I thought I saw steam rising off the
Astroturf.
"Band! Attention!"
"GO HEELS!"
"Mark-time-march . . . Forward
march and left . . . left ..."
With the help of Gatorade, we man
aged to survive the intense heat. Once
again I wondered why we all were willing
to "grin and bear it," but I knew that
soon all the hard work would really pay
off.
At 6 p.m. Saturday we all gathered at
Ehringhaus Field for the band pig-pickin'.
Also in attendance were Chancellor
Christopher C. Fordh-am III and his
family; Dean Donald Boulton and his
wife, Marilyn; Assistant Dean of Student
Affairs Sharon Mitchell; and several
members of the varsity cheerleading
squad.
Our leisure time was made even better
with the knowledge that we had accom
plished our goal to have fun while learning
and working hard. "Everything went
very well," Bagnal said. "It was hard
work, but we were all out there
together."
"My ultimate goal was to be in the
Carolina Band," said Chris Allman, a
freshman tuba player. "It's hard because
everything was different in high school,
and you have to learn everything all over
again. But you know that to get things
done you have to show up and do your
job."
"It's work, but it's enjoyable," said
Allison Smoak, a percussionist and the
band's secretary. "We've been working
since June writing percussion solos. We
write most of our own cadences. But we
have a good time most of my friends
are in the band. When you work hard at
something and you know you've done it
well, you have a real sense of accomplishment."
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v
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A n
Members of the UNC Marching Band prac
tice routines in preparation for the fall foot
ball season. Band members returned early
to Chapel Hill and braved temperatures
over 100 degrees.
Staff photos by Jeff Neuville
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