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October 2006 InCider Press Page 9 |
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I was raised on a farm about a mile from Green, Kansas., and to this day, I believe my mother knew my destiny before my third birthday. She tells the story of finding me behind the kitchen door, moving to the music that was playing on the radio when I was a toddler. From then on, I was the musician. My first recollection of public performance came when I was the soloist in a ‘Tom Thumb Wedding’ my first grade teacher staged while at Green Elementary. The reviews made my mother’s buttons pop, and soon after that the music lessons began. My sister Carolyn, who is two years older and I spent every Saturday morning with a local teacher learning to sing every gospel duet under the sun. It seems we performed at all the churches in a 50 mile radius of Clay Center at least two or three times. My younger brother Ron was thrown into the mix when he was still too young to pronounce the words, and we were a trio. So, we made the church circuit again. My mother got involved in starting a 4-H group near our farm, and of course we all joined at the first opportunity. I think it was her idea of another venue to show off our talents. County and State 4-H days were huge events at our house, and showing the relatives the blue ribbons made more buttons pop. I started piano lessons before my hands could reach an octave, which meant more time was devoted to Saturday morning lessons. It also meant that one hour of every day was devoted to practice. This really didn’t please my dad too much because I was now of the age where the chores were also in my schedule. I was also driving a tractor and helping with the farming at the age of nine, so you can imagine his delight when I had to leave the field to serve my time at the piano. At that tender age, I can still remember some of the family ‘discussions’. My dad was a patient man. Our lives were changed forever when my dad passed away. I was about to enter high school and my hero was gone. Jim Martyn, the high school music teacher, called during that summer and wanted to start a boy’s barbershop quartet. The timing could not have been better. What an experience to hear the chords ring when everybody is in tune. This was a ‘kick in the pants’. During our four years in high school, we sang on several barbershop shows with some of the greats at that time. The ‘Kippers’ were awesome. After graduation I enrolled at Kansas Technical Institute in Salina. Computers were just coming on the scene and they told me I could make a lot of money learning to repair them. After a year, I missed the involvement in music and transferred to Cloud County Junior College. From there I attended Kansas State University and graduated with a teaching degree in 1972. My first teaching job was at Phillipsburg High School and three years later I was at Manhattan High School. While at Manhattan, Dave Brown called to see if I was interested in singing barbershop music again. Dave was the Bari in our high school quartet. I jumped in with both feet and shortly after that our local chapter was chartered. About a year later, I was asked to be the director. I took over the music department at Clay Center when Jim Martyn retired in 1979. During the next 25 years I had the privilege of teaching all three of my daughters the joys of singing. Angie, Amy, and Kimberly were active in music all four years. Angie and Kimberly both were in quartets. By the way, I think my mother is a pretty smart woman. My wife, Cindy and I have been married nearly twelve years, and I am enjoying my early retirement from teaching. You know, the grand kids are getting about the age to start singing. I think I’ll try to work that in between tee times. Ken Lang Director ♪ |
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Meet your director, Ken Lang |
