Dr. Bryan Proksch lecture Music and Oil in Beaumont, the Magnolia Petroleum Band and John Philip Souza

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NOVEMBER 12 • 6:30 PM

LIVE OAK BALLROOM, SETZER STUDENT CENTER

Harry James learned to play trumpet while wearing a Magnolia uniform. Come hear about a time when a blue-collar band from Beaumont captivated audiences across all of North America.The Magnolia Band performance was the first thing ever transmitted on KFDM radio. Its director created the first highschool band in Beaumont and led the symphony.

Proksch hosts a music history show, "Behind the Music," on 91.3 KVLU Public Radio, with the goal of making the history of music fun, relevant and accessible to all. Bryan Proksch is associate professor of music history at Lamar. He has published two books, including one on Sousa, as well as numerous essays in leading musicological journals on both the history of bands and classical music.

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bryan-proksch.jpgDr. Bryan Proksch

"On January 22, 1924, across the street from where LU was still in its first academic year, bandmaster John Philip Sousa, the first celebrity of American popular music, conducted the Magnolia Petroleum Band at noontime concert on the grounds of the Magnolia Refinery in Beaumont."

- Dr. Bryan Proksch

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