If it happened to Kay Hatlestad at Illinois, it’s a good bet it happened at the Harding Band Building.
“I started playing in the Champaign-Urbana high school clarinet choir in ninth grade, and the U of I concert band in 11th. Despite my engineering major, I was in the band building at least four days a week,” said the Urbana High grad and Minneapolis noise control engineer, who earned her bachelor’s degree in engineering mechanics in 1983.
“I took private lessons from Harvey Hermann in his office. I played in the UI clarinet choir. I played in the second and then the first symphonic bands. I was in a clarinet quartet with Harvey and two music education students. I think I wore a path from north of Green to the band building.
“I remember one semester where I started my week with a 7 a.m. private lesson, an 8 a.m. physics class, 9 a.m. quartet practice, 10 a.m. dynamics class and then symphonic band at 12:30 p.m. So, by 2 p.m., I’d made five trips from the band building to north of Green — or the reverse.
“I’d end my day by riding my bike to the band building to pick up my bass clarinet so I could practice at home.”
