Clarke Egerton - on his busy schedule as an educator and active community member (clip)
Interviewed by Bob Gilgor on April 10, 2001
CE: And there again, even with the band that I was working with, again I had the safety patrol, and I had a homeroom, and then they had the Maydays, which you are responsible for. And I was also the junior class advisor, which means that I had to be responsible for getting the junior prom together. So I really enjoyed that experience. I have a schedule somewhere, but I wasn't able to locate it. It was a tight schedule. In addition to the commute from Durham to Chapel Hill, which at that time I think we called it nine miles. Now I don't know what it is. And it was only 11 miles and it didn't take you long to get there. Now it takes you almost 45 minutes [laughs] to go just that distance.
RG: What time did you get to work in the morning?
CE: I was always early. I'm an early bird now. I was there about 7:30.
RG: And home at what time?
CE: 5:30-6:00.
RG: Let's go back to the band. I'm interested in what you know about the history of the band. When it started, who started it, how the children learned the music.
CE: I'm not sure about the history of the Lincoln band. I can't back any further than I can remember, than Jasper Bell, J.Y. Bell. I know that they were a small group, not that large. I also know that he believed in the same thing that I believed in. Marching is great, but concert band is just better. And we did a lot of our work in the concert band, as well as the marching band. Marching band you'd get the public, more of the public involved in the marching band. And for your satisfaction, you'd have those kids in there, when marching season is over, you'd say we're going to play something nice, some Bach, Tchaikowsky, some things like that. Which they really enjoyed. Once they get into it, they may shuffle their feet a little bit at the start, and then as we make a little progress, they say "this is great."
RG: Who taught the children how to play their instruments?
CE: I would. During the time I was there, you had your beginner program, which fell to the band director. So you actually get to start the kids on their instrument, and then bring them along through to the high school, which I was able to do for four years, five years.
RG: So did you go back to Northside Elementary, and teach there?
CE: I don't know whether it was called Northside at that - maybe it was. Yes. Yes I did. That was what I did three times a week. I'm not sure how that schedule worked. But yes, I did that.
