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Great
Falls Municipal Band
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Capital Campaign For the Upkeep of the Band For the Purchase of Percussion Equipment For the Purchase of Music Stands |
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| Established 1894 | ||||
| Contact Number (406) 899-9982 |
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| 525 Central Avenue Suite L9 | Great Falls, Montana | 59401 | ||||
Personnel
Conductors | Solo Performing Members | Guest Performers
Board of Directors | Alumnae | Emeritus | In Memory
Conductors |
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| Ron Coons | Ron Coons was born in Polson, Montana. He studied Music Education on at the University of Montana, earning a Bachelor’s degree with honors. He received a Masters of Music Education on from Vander Cook College of Music. He taught music at Lolo Schools, Powder River Co. HS & Broadus Elementary, Cut Bank Schools, Havre HS, Geraldine Schools, Vaughn Elementary & Ulm Elementary. Ron retired in 2020 and performs with the Great Falls Community Band & Municipal Band, Great Falls Clarinet Fusion, and the 4SAKEN4 Saxophone Quartet. |
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| John Gemberling | Currently, John is Director of the Community Jazz Band. He plays trumpet and recalls his mother encouraging him to begin lessons on the cornet. |
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| Fred Gnojek | Gnojek earned a bachelor’s degree in music education at the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 1980. He has played in the Great Falls Municipal Band for 40 years and in the Great Falls Symphony for 32 years. He was also a member of the Harold Nicholls Big Band and performs with an ensemble called Impromptu. He also conducts the Great Falls Community Band during the school year, and this past 4th of July he conducted the Choteau Community Band. Born and raised in Great Falls, Gnojek attended St. Gerard’s Catholic elementary school and graduated from Great Falls High School. His whole family, including his parents and his five siblings are all musical. “We had a heck of a family band,” he said, adding that most of his siblings, as he did, majored in music in college. Gnojek earned a bachelor’s degree in music education at the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 1980. He has played in the Great Falls Municipal Band for 40 years and in the Great Falls Symphony for 32 years. He was also a member of the Harold Nicholls Big Band and performs with an ensemble called Impromptu. He also conducts the Great Falls Community Band during the school year, and this past 4th of July he conducted the Choteau Community Band. |
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| Dennis Granlie | Granlie worked for GFPS for 26 years and retired in 2005. However, he has remained a major force in the GFPS music department. |
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| Grant Harville | Winner of the London Conducting Masterclass Competition and the Agatha C. Church Conducting Award, Grant Harville is Music Director and Conductor of the Great Falls Symphony and Civic Orchestra of Victoria. He previously held director positions with the Idaho State-Civic Symphony (where he earned a 20 Under 40 award from the Southeast Idaho Business Journal), Bozeman Symphony, and Ripon College; and was Assistant Director with the Georgia Symphony. His guest conducting appearances include the Bozeman Symphony, Boise Philharmonic, Southwest Michigan Symphony, St. Cloud Symphony, Georgia Symphony, Oistrach Symphony, and Philharmonia of Greater Kansas City. |
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| Russell Kellogg | Russell Kellogg has been a music instructor for Great Falls Public Schools for 21 years, with a total tenure of 41 years. Russell position upon retirement was at North Middle School, but had previously worked at CMR High School, in Highwood, as well as some stints in Kansas and Idaho. |
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| Chris Kloker | Christopher Kloker is the Director of Bands at Charles M. Russell High School. Prior to his time at CMR, he taught band at Beaverhead County High School in Dillon and K-12 Music in Hashua. Mr. Kloker is an Anaconda native and proud graduate of the University of Montana. Chris enjoys playing clarinet with the Great Falls Municipal Band and Community Band when he can. He has played in the musical pits for several productions both CMR and GFH. Mr. Kloker is the current State Manager for the Montana Music Educators Association. |
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| Terry (T.K.) Knowles | Terry Knowles is the director of the 11 member Clarinet Consortium. He has returned to Montana after teaching music to military members' children in Japan for 25 years. |
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| James Mepham | James lives in Great Falls and is director of bands at Great Falls High School. His studies have been at the University of Montana and most recently at Colorado State University. He previously has served as band director and music teacher at West Valley School in Kalispell and Havre High School. |
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| Dusty Molyneaux | Billings native Dusty Molyneaux first played with the Great Falls Symphony in 1993 when he was student teaching. He joined the Great Falls Public Schools (GFPS) in 1997 as Great Falls High’s band director. Since 2012, he’s been the GFPS Music and Art Supervisor, a position unique in Montana to Great Falls. |
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| Bud Nicholls | Nicholls started as a teenager in the public schools and has been the lead music director and organizer of the Great Falls Municipal Band since the middle 1980s. He performed trumpet with the band before taking over as director. Nicholls has organize and performed with the Harold Nicholls Big Band, a jazz band dedicated to his late father. The band has performed at the Ozark Club in the History Museum and other venues in and around Great Falls. |
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| Jeff Skogley | Jeff has taught in Cascade Schools since the fall of 1992, mostly band, but also general and choral music. He is active in several professional organizations, MGMTA, MBA and MMEA and served as State Manager/ Treasurer for MMEA and President of MBA. In 2013, he was chosen as Montana's selection for "50 Directors Who Make A Difference" by School Band & Orchestra magazine. |
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| Lisa Sundguist | Lisa currently serves as director of bands at East Middle School in Great Falls, Montana |
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Solo Performing Members |
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Guest Performers |
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Board of Directors |
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Alumnae |
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Emeritus |
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In Memory |
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| Thomas Clyde
Railsback 1947-2025 |
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| Harold "Bud"
Nicholls 1940-2025 |
Biography and Tributes |
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The Great Falls Municipal Band, originally known as the Black Eagle Band, embarks on its 132nd consecutive season in 2025. Although sponsored in its infancy by the Boston and Montana Smelter Company, the band reorganized in 1905 and acquired its current name.
Over the years, the Municipal Band has been in demand to play for assorted dignataries, special events, and dedication ceremonies. In the late 1930;s the band played at the dedication of Fort Peck Dam which was attended by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Dedication ceremonies in Great Falls have included the dams on the Missouri River, the Warden Bridge, and both the old and new airports. The band also performed for the visits of John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan.