Thomas Evans, Weimer K. Hicks Award
It’s the dream of many a middle schooler: “Let’s start a band!”
A dream that conjures visions of electric guitars, drum sets and ear-piercing garage-or-basement practices that drive parents nuts.
Band building is more than a dream for Tom Evans. It’s his life’s work and love. And we’re not talking band, singular. He’s started, taught, played in, and conducted countless bands—29 years’ worth at K alone (concert, jazz and otherwise). And while many of those bands have included guitars and drums, Tom’s favorite instrument and tool of choice will always be the trombone and the baton, respectively.
“I never set out to have my legacy at the College be the Beginning Band class (aka Woodwind, Brass and Percussion Methods),” says Tom. And yet that course yielded the largest class sizes in the history of Kalamazoo College, a measure not only of popularity but also of joy, the sounds of which percolated from the lawn of the Fine Arts Building when the class performed its end-of-term concerts outdoors. And the College’s class size record is still held by Beginning Band—137 students, which means Tom taught 10 percent of the student body in one class.
Tom’s music degrees include a bachelor’s (State University of New York at Fredonia), master’s (Boston University) and Doctor of Musical Arts (University of Michigan). He taught six years in public schools and seven years at Alfred University (Alfred, New York) prior to his 29 years at K. He also taught in Italy and New Zealand for the University of Maryland study abroad program.
Speaking of distant places and travel, that hypothetical middle school dream band would know it had made the big time once it started getting road gigs, or, even better, a world tour. Say…to Japan!
Well, Tom’s K jazz bands have played there…twice(!), and they have performed many more concerts closer to campus. As for home cooking? His jazz bands played the Quad every year at the Burgers and Blues Concert, an event that Tom created.
What connects these jazz band concerts, wherever they happen to be performed, is that most folks who attend can’t help but dance. And that dancing constitutes one of Tom’s favorite K memories.
The greater Kalamazoo community appreciates Tom as much as the College community does. For the past 24 years (and counting), Tom has directed the Kalamazoo Concert Band, which was formed in 1961. For this and other community work, Tom received the Community Medal of Arts Award in 2020. “The thing I enjoyed most at K,” he says, “was doing what I love: conducting and teaching.” That, as well as watching people dance to the music his bands make.