Former Borger Band Director inducted into the Texas Bandmasters’ Hall of Fame
Roger Edwards was inducted into the Texas Bandmasters’ Hall of Fame on June 24, 2021. This is an incredible honor for this lifelong panhandle resident.
Roger Franklin Edwards was born in the middle of three children on June 19, 1950. Raised by Emmet and Dixie on a farm outside of Kress, Texas, He was a stellar student and aspired to be a star athlete.
When the time came to choose his elective in middle school, believe it or not, Roger had no desire to join the band or play an instrument. He knew that with his muscular build and four-foot-three frame that he was meant to be a football star. He went to the mandatory physical for athletics, and the doctor failed him! He had had four concussions in the previous two years; thus, his dreams of football stardom were crushed.
He joined the band by default and chose cornet as his instrument. Even though Kress’s band was “less than respectable,” regularly making threes and fours at contest, Roger grew to love and respect his director, Clyde Rowe, who invested time in Roger’s music education and instilled a love of music in him. Roger graduated from Kress High School as the salutatorian in 1968 and obtained a full scholarship to Wayland Baptist University. His director at Wayland was Robert “Chief” Davidson. He was the first to graduate Wayland with an instrumental music degree, which was established his junior year. He graduated magna cum laude in 1973.
Roger’s first teaching job began during his junior of college. The superintendent of Hart ISD met Roger and thought, “This college Junior is who I want to build my band proIt’s
gram from scratch.” Roger took on the task and built the program from zero to seventy students in his three years there. The students in Hart were outstanding!
Roger then moved onto Plainview High School to work under the great OT Ryan. OT was like a second father to Roger. Roger holds him and Pat in the highest regard and even named one of his sons after OT. Plainview is where Roger learned to teach. He credits OT, Willis Giddens, and Larry Burks with teaching him how to teach. After five years as OT’s assistant, Roger knew he was ready to lead a program as the head director. The students in Plainview were outstanding!
Roger accepted the position of head director at Tulia High School. He immediately felt at home leading this program with a rich musical history. It was in Tulia that Roger met Cody Meyers. Cody, fresh out of college, was Roger’s assistant. Roger recalls planning rehearsals at Pizza hut before their Monday night rehearsals. They would write their plans on napkins and placemats and take them straight to rehearsal.
This high-tech method served them well. Cody and Roger developed a deep bond and respect for one another and are like brothers to this day. The students in Tulia were outstanding!
In 1981, Borger ISD contacted Roger. Roger did not want to go to Borger. Their program’s attendance was down, and their facilities were awful. He said, “no.” But they were persistent and convinced him to take the job. At the first football game, Roger could not believe what he had gotten himself into. Although the students had made great strides in the previous week’s rehearsal, the performance was bad. To Roger’s astonishment, the crowd gave them a standing ovation! This crowd’s enthusiastic reception was the catalyst for the program. Roger’s leadership was supported by the community, the administration, and the students. Borger became one of the most accomplished bands in the Texas Panhandle. The students in Borger were outstanding!
In 1994, Roger accepted the head director position at Amarillo High School. He felt so blessed to lead this school with such rich traditions and history. Amarillo was the pinnacle of Roger’s career. In addition to their numerous sweepstakes, his Amarillo ensembles earned not only state marching trips but also invitations to the Midwest Clinic in Chicago and the Texas Music Educations Clinic and Convention. While at Amarillo High, Roger was also elected to serve on the Board of Texas Bandmasters Association.
This was a highlight of his career. The students in Amarillo were outstanding.
After his retirement in 2009, Roger continued to clinic, adjudicate, and teach as an assistant director in Bushland, Texas. In 2010, heart problems and a stroke caused him to take a step back from clinics and adjudicating. Despite the complications of recovery, he continued to teach. The students and directors at Bushland were incredibly encouraging and supportive even though he had lost his speech in the stroke. They were outstanding!
Roger is currently serving as the UIL Music Executive Secretary for Region I. He remains an invaluable mentor in the Texas Panhandle and beyond, and with ten years of speech therapy under his belt, he has started to work with ensembles again. For Roger, music is not only a career; it permeates every area of his life. He was awarded the Lifetime Meritorious Achievement Award in 2013 for his outstanding performance in music education. Roger has a strong desire to encourage and mentor other teachers.
He taught at West Texas A&M Band Camp for twenty years, where he achieved perhaps his most prized awards to date: he was named winner in the “best legs” contest multiple times. Even with all his outstanding accomplishments, Roger never takes credit for his numerous successes. Rather, he credits mentors like Gary Garner, Chief Davidson, OT Ryan, Clyde Rowe, Al Sturchio, Cody Meyers, Phil Larocque, and Charles Johnson for influencing his ability to teach and lead students.
And of course, his students were all outstanding!
He has been married to his wife, Bennie, for 52 years, and they have four grown children, who are all active as professional performing musicians and teachers.
He has six amazing grandchildren who are continuing his musical legacy and following in Pop’s footsteps. They all think that he is beyond outstanding!