Advertisement
Advertisement
2
Add photo
Merel David Boyce 1922 - 2001
Merel David Boyce of Little Rock, Pulaski County, AR was born on November 11, 1922, and died at age 78 years old on March 10, 2001. Merel Boyce was buried at Little Rock National Cemetery
Section 22 Site 980 2523 Confederate Boulevard, in Little Rock.
Merel David Boyce
Merel David Boyce
Little Rock, Pulaski County, AR 72204
November 11, 1922
March 10, 2001
Gender
Looking for someone else
ADVERTISEMENT
BY ANCESTRY.COM
This page exists for YOU
and everyone who remembers Merel.
and everyone who remembers Merel.
Share what you know,
even ask what you wish you knew.
even ask what you wish you knew.
Invite others to do the same,
but don't worry if you can't...
but don't worry if you can't...
Someone, somewhere will find this page,
and we'll notify you when they do.
and we'll notify you when they do.
Merel David Boyce's History: 1922 - 2001
Uncover new discoveries and connections today by sharing about people & moments from yesterday.- Discover how AncientFaces works.
-
As an Arkansas native and product of the Little Rock Public Schools, I came to know Merel Boyce the three years after I entered Hall High School at "H" and McKinley Sts. in Autumn 1960. He was the capable, personable band director of our Warrior Concert and Marching Bands. He presided over our band room, with its tiered seating, and kept very strict discipline over our 60-plus student musicians. To enhance our musicianship, he merged our band rehearsals with our home room periods and study halls, thus doubling our time available for music preparation. (At the time, he also directed an Army Reserve Band that played regional military concerts.) I played trumpet in a section of eight teenaged musicians -- a section then led by talented seniors Phil Orahood and Bob Dayton. Mr. Boyce brought in such guest conductors as Marty Rosen to enrich our band experience. He always built a library of excellent music, both classical and popular; and some of my most memorable times were on spent on band-bus tours we made to Hot Springs, Memphis, Blytheville AFB or such local institutions as the Ark. School for the Blind. I was a mediocre trumpeter, but do recall playing Western medleys and such favorites as "Cherokee" and "Night Flight to Madrid." Mr. Boyce, who loved John Phillip Sousa marches, always included at least one March King number in our concerts. Performances concluded with "Stars and Stripes Forever," during whise finale our trombones and trumpet sections were featured. We competed well at the annual Band Festival, held at Hot Springs High, where a young Trojan Band sax player named Clinton later emerged as a national politician! We boarded band buses to participate in spring at the annual Cotton Carnival parades and celebration held on Main Street, Memphis. We played such pieces as "Burst of Flame," "Night Flight to Madrid," "Oberon Overture" and the music from "West Side Story." On the gridiron, our halftime shows featured "floating-diamond" formations keyed to strains of "Orange Bowl March." We were capably led by drum majors Bill Payne, Danny Timm -- and Bill Woolly who later led the Razorback Band in Fayetteville. To keep uniforms fresh and our instruments functional, Mr. Boyce and band parents led seasonal sales of excellent Texas-baked fruit cakes and holiday wrapping paper. Sales of such item provided revenue the school district could not. My sole regret came the summer Mr. Boyce called me at home to urge me to enhance my trumpet skills by taking private lessons. I had to reply that my work schedule did not permit such, even if my parents could afford the lessons, which they could not. But he complimented me on the daily bugling I did to begin school days, and my skills proved sufficient that I later played in college bands, at basketball pep-band appearances and finally, as an Air Force bugler at our Officer Training School, Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas. Two of my talented Hall High friends -- Bob Palmer and Fred Tackett -- later became professional musicians, thanks to Boyce's training. Palmer wrote textbooks and taught about jazz, rock and rhythm and blues as a music columnist for the New York Times. Tackett, voted Most Talented at Hall, became a guitarist, trumpeter and mandolin player for the popular "Little Feat" cult band based in California. Such success stories were quite a Legacy for Mr. Boyce to have left behind when his life ended at age 78 in 2001. He was buried with military honors for his service, in the Little Rock National Cemetery.
-
11/111922November 11, 1922BirthdateUnknownBirthplaceADVERTISEMENT BY
-
Branch of service: Us Army Air Forces Rank attained: CPL Wars/Conflicts: World War Ii
-
03/102001March 10, 2001Death dateUnknownUnknownCause of deathDeath locationADVERTISEMENT BY
-
mm/dd/yyyyFuneral dateLittle Rock National Cemetery Section 22 Site 980 2523 Confederate Boulevard, in Little Rock, Ar 72206Burial location
Advertisement
Advertisement
Add Memories, Stories & Photos about Merel
Family, friend, or fan...
share memories, stories,
photos, or simply leave
a comment to show
you care.
Remember the past to connect today & preserve for tomorrow.
- See how biographies work.
Be the 1st to share and we'll let you know when others do the same.
ADVERTISEMENT
BY ANCESTRY.COM
Advertisement
Merel Boyce's Family Tree & Friends
Parent
Parent
|
Partner
Child
|
Sibling
|
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
2 Followers & Sources
ADVERTISEMENT
BY ANCESTRY.COM
Advertisement
Other Biographies
Other Boyce Family Biographies
Boyce, Bruce (Born Dec 9)
Boyce, Doris (Feb 10, 1902 - Mar 21, 2003)
Boyce, Gerald (May 25, 1910 - Sep 23, 1995)
Boyce, Helene (Jul 11, 1902 - May 25, 1997)
Boyce, Irene (Jun 6, 1917 - Apr 15, 2007)
Boyce, James (Aug 9, 1876 - Feb 1966)
Boyce, Elbridge (Apr 20, 1903 - Jul 1973)
Boyce, Harold (Feb 1, 1917 - Jul 27, 1990)
Boyce, Arnold (Oct 7, 1914 - Oct 1981)
Boyce, George (Oct 19, 1884 - Dec 1963)
Boyce, Robert (May 7, 1910 - Mar 30, 1991)
Boyce, Kathleen (May 25, 1910 - Nov 1976)
Boyce, Robert (Mar 14, 1889 - Oct 1987)
Boyce, Blanche (Jan 17, 1904 - Aug 1986)
Boyce, Wesley (Nov 3, 1895 - May 1973)
Boyce, Anna (Dec 26, 1915 - Oct 14, 2001)
Boyce, Ethel (Aug 26, 1900 - Mar 1976)
Boyce, Norah (Apr 1, 1899 - Oct 1978)
Boyce, Lanson (Oct 21, 1894 - Oct 1976)
Boyce, John (Nov 24, 1895 - Feb 1972)
Advertisement
Advertisement
About the AncientFaces Community