The DeKalb Music Boosters’ Hall of Fame Committee announced today the names of four nominees who will be inducted to the DeKalb School District 428 Music Hall of Fame. Nancy and Larry Apperson, Melissa Dye, and the late Arthur D. Montzka will be honored for their work in music as volunteers, performers and educators.
The honorees will be recognized at the Hats, Horses, and Harmony fundraiser for DeKalb Music Boosters on Friday, May 1, at the River Heights Golf Course clubhouse; the doors will open at 6:30 p.m. The event will feature simulated horse races, musical performances, derby-themed hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, a silent auction and prizes.
Nancy and Larry Apperson will be receiving the Muse Award, which honors outstanding music advocates who have made a significant impact in developing and fostering the growth of DeKalb School District music programs.
The Appersons helped found the DeKalb Music Boosters and were instrumental in advocating for improved middle and high school music curriculum and spearheaded many fundraising efforts for uniforms, equipment and music trips.
Melissa Dye will be the first recipient of the Virtuoso Award. This award recognizes a former DeKalb High School musician who has gone on to have a distinguished career.
Dye, a 1984 graduate of DeKalb High School, graduated from Northern Illinois University with a degree in vocal performance. She went on to perform on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning revival of “Into the Woods” and as Sandy in the revival of “Grease.” She has also spent years performing in Toronto, and Chicago where she was nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award, which is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area.
The DeKalb Music Boosters will honor Arthur Dale Montzka posthumously with the Maestro Award. The award is presented to a retired music educator who has made a significant impact and helped to develop and foster the growth of music programs within DeKalb’s middle or high school music community.
Montzka was a graduate of George Washington University, Oberlin Conservatory, and the Eastman School of Music. He taught orchestra for 35 years and was the founder and conductor of the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra for 23 years. As a teacher, he traveled to schools throughout the the DeKalb school district to teach students string instruments. Montzka was one of this country’s early pioneers of the Suzuki Method approach to learning music. Montzka was a board member as well as a lifetime member of the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA) and the American String Teachers Association (ASTA).
Tickets to Hats, Horses, and Harmony are $35.00 per person. To purchase tickets online, please visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dekalb-music-boosters-4th-annual-hats-horses-and-harmony-derby-night-tickets-95996621479.
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