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Aylsworth
awarded Most Outstanding Musician of 2007
By: Jermaine Williams
info@blackhawkbrigade.com
SV Brigade Webmaster/Instructor
John Aylsworth has already been awarded
several honors for his many years of teaching in the field
of music education. On Saturday, John received yet another
honor for his years of outstanding service. The Indiana
Music Education Association (IMEA) awarded John the 2007
Outstanding Hoosier Musician Award.
This award is one of the highest awards given to music educators
in the state of Indiana. John was nominated for the Outstanding
Hoosier Musician Award by his former students, colleagues,
and friends two years ago. He received word in November
that he was selected as the 2007 recipient. Award winners
must show outstanding service to local, state, and national
music organizations, exemplify outstanding achievement in
the field of music education, and show a life-long commitment
to music education in Indiana. John is the twenty-seventh
person to receive the award.
IMEA is a state-wide music education organization who draws
its membership from past and present music educators. It
is the Indiana chapter of the Music Educators National Conference.
John received his award at the keynote address during the
2007 IMEA Conference in Indianapolis.
"I am very humbled by this award,” Aylsworth
stated, “but the real recipients are the communities
of French Lick and West Baden. This honors the talented,
intelligent, dedicated young people of the last seventy
years whose music performances have made us all proud. It
recognizes the school boards, school administrators, parents,
and patrons that selflessly contributed their time and monies
for the success of music programs in our local schools.
This award also celebrates the contributions of an entire
family over eight decades. The Aylsworth family: Gilbert,
Helen, Mary Kay, Patti, Heidi, Luke, Lacy and Laura have
all earned a significant segment of this prestigious accolade.”
Receiving honors and awards is not something new for Aylsworth.
He has been inducted as an Honorable Kentucky Colonel and
he was awarded the Indiana Sagamore of the Wabash award
in 2002, the highest civilian award given by the governor.
Aylsworth was also allowed to speak to the 109th Indiana
General Assembly and was awarded with House Resolution number
twenty-four, which was written in his honor. John has also
won a state marching band championship as the director of
bands at Springs Valley Schools. At Springs Valley, his
bands competed at the ISSMA State Finals competition sixteen
times and his band program became the fourth most successful
band program in ISSMA class D.
Aylsworth remarked, “My only regret is that my father,
whose vision for a band program in 1938 initiated this journey
of music education in the Valley, didn't live to see his
grandson, Luke, resurrect and upgrade a proud tradition
of excellence. ‘Pops’ would have been so proud
of three generations of band directors and this Hoosier
Musician Award.”
Currently, John coaches the Springs Valley fine arts team,
which has won a state championship under his tutelage. He
also works on staff with the Springs Valley Blackhawk Brigade,
where his son Luke is now the director. John celebrated
his seventeenth trip to state marching band finals this
year as the Brigade made their return to state competition.
NOTE: Article published in the Springs Valley Herald and
Bedford Times-Mail.
Contest Results can be found at:
Indiana
Marching.com and/or
Simply
Instrumental.com
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