|
35th Anniversary Logo of the LGB&D
The band was formed in 1971 by Dr. James Hammerle, then
of N.C. State University. (Jim went on to form the Cary Town Band in
1987.) The story goes that Jim was sitting in the bar of the NCSU
Faculty Club one day and told his friend Henry Bowen that someday he'd
like to run a German band. Soon after, Jim left for six months in
India. When he returned, Henry handed him a list of interested
musicians. Jim chuckled and was about to file the list away in a drawer
somewhere when Henry said "and you'd better start scheduling practices,
because you're booked to play at the Faculty Club in a month!"
The dance
group was formed
four years later, in 1975, to
give the spouses of band members something to do. At that time, nearly
all the men in the
dance group were also in the band. Today, only a few people are active
in both groups, and
the dance group has become an integral part of our overall performance.
The dance group
has two main jobs: first, to perform dance shows while the band is on
break, and second,
to "work the crowd" and get the audience involved in the performance.
The LGB&D has done a lot in its 35-year history. A
partial list would include six
trips to Europe and performances in Germany, Austria, Switzerland,
Spain, Belgium,
Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New
Hampshire, South Carolina,
Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington DC, and all over North
Carolina; eight
albums, including four on vinyl, one on cassette, and three on both cassette
and CD; exchange visits by three bands from Germany; and more.
In 1996 we celebrated our 25th anniversary with a
performance at the Oktoberfest in
Munich. Highlights of our 30th anniversary year included producing our
eighth recording,
and a trip to Europe which included performances in Belgium and three
locations in
Germany. During our 35th year, we produced our nineth recording on a CD
which includes several selections we learned of during our 2001 trip to
Belgium and Germany.
We
honor our Deceased Members who
contributed to the
history and tradition of the
LGB&D.
|