Advocate Brass Band Dads

Members of the Advocate Brass Band are loving fathers

Story and photos by EMILY TOADVINE
emily@amnews.com

Music forms a lot of bonds for people. They lock a memory in their heads where they first heard a certain melody. For the children of the fathers in the Advocate Brass Band, those melodies might have been heard at the knees of their fathers.

This is certainly true for Chris Woolums. As the son of a high school band director, he grew up with the band. ``He would go to band camp and do all the mean things kids like to do like put Icy Hot in their shoes,'' recalls his father, Larry Woolums.

Now, at age 26, Chris Woolums is still hanging out with the band, only this time as a member. He joined his father, age 50, as a charter member in the Advocate Brass Band when it formed in 1987.

Chris Woolums credits his father with instilling him with a love of music. ``Growing up we listened to a variety of music, everything from jazz to classical to you name it. I can attribute all that to him. He's diverse in his listening also.''

Internationally-known trumpet player Vince DiMartino, who is a cornet soloist in the Advocate band, already has shared the stage with his 11-year-old son, Gabriel, not once but three times during the Great American Brass Band Festival. Gabriel says it made him ``nervous.''

The duet proved equally unnerving for his accomplished father. ``You think more about what he's doing. It's easy to lose track of what you're doing.''

DiMartino, whose wife, Lydia, is a piccolo soloist in the band, also has two daughters who are beginning to show their musical talents.

As the father of two very young children, Dudley Spoonamore, another charter member of the Advocate band, can't tell what their future holds, but he can tell they love music.

``We have songs before bed every night. That's a must. We will not go to bed without songs,'' says Spoonamore, who plays trombone.

What songs?

```Oh, Michael Row Your Boat Ashore,' the old standards. The good ones. `Twinkle. Twinkle.'''

Besides being a member of the Advocate band, Chris Woolums, who plays bass trombone, has followed his father's footsteps by teaching music. He is the music teacher for Waynesburg and Kings Mountain elementary schools in Lincoln County.

His father, on the other hand, retired this June from the Mercer County school system. He was director of the Mercer County Band for 20 years but spent the last eight years of his education career as teacher for the alternative classroom. He already has started a second career working at Gateway, a grocery in Harrodsburg.

The love of music, not his father's urging, was the deciding factor in Chris Woolums' career choice. ``In high school, I decided I wanted to lean toward that field. Dad didn't push me toward it. He knew what I had ahead of me as far as jobs and so on.''

Chris Woolums says that the life of a musician isn't always filled with the glamour of the spotlight. ``There's a lot of long hours and staying after school and doing extra things with music that you don't have with other careers.''

Both of Larry Woolums' children are musically inclined. His daugther, Rebecca, plays saxophone and is a music minor at Georgetown College.

When rehearsing, Larry Woolums, who plays cornet, and his son don't get to talk much. They sit at opposite sides on the back row, but Larry Woolums does get to chat with his daughter-in-law, Kim, who has played clarinet in the band since 1991 and sits in front of him.

She says they like to tease each other. ``We pick back and forth at each other, such as if I squeak or he misses a note or something.'' Like her husband, Mrs. Woolums, 24, teaches music. She teaches grades K-5 at Brodhead Elementary School in Rockcastle County.

One of the best things about playing in the band together is that it brings them closer together as a family. During concert season, they see each other at rehearsal two nights a week and at the concert on Sundays.

When the Chris and Kim Woolums drive from Paint Lick for family gatherings, comparing music collections is a favorite pastime. Mrs. Woolums says, ``If one of them gets a new Canadian Brass CD or Empire, the other one has to go out and get it.''

Away from the subject of music, Larry Woolums was asked what he enjoys most about being a father. ``I've enjoyed watching both my children grow and mature and being part of their lives,'' he replied.

He thinks he and his wife, Sue, have been very lucky as parents. ``We've been very fortunate as parents because neither of our children have caused us a minute's trouble.''

The Spoonamores

Spoonamore, 34, who lives at 470 Hughes Lane, also is a charter member of the band. A technology teacher at Boyle County Middle School, he has a son, Lee, 4, and a daughter, Kellie, 2. Although they are young, he already can tell his daugther has musical talent. ``She can sing anything she hears.''

In addition to the abilities of Spoonamore, who was a music minor in college, his wife, Mary, sings in the choir at the Presbyterian Church of Danville. Her family also has a solid foundation in music as her mother is a concert pianist.

A Boyle County product, Spoonamore played in the band at Boyle County High School. At Eastern Kentucky University, he played in every ensemble there. ```It's something that I'm very proud of.''

As a father, he enjoys sharing his interests with his children. ``I like being able to share what I enjoy with my children. Even at a young age when you can't identify what they like, listening to music is something we can all enjoy as a family together.''

The DiMartinos

For the 47-year-old DiMartino, who spends at least two weekends a month traveling, the highlight of fatherhood is ``when I get to see them. I travel so much.'' He recently returned to their home at 107 Old Bridge Road from Los Angeles where he had attended the annual board of directors meeting of the International Trumpet Guild.

Sometimes the whole family packs up and hits the road with dad, but as the oldest, Gabriel has been the most frequent campanion. For example, he has visited all the Disneylands available. In addition to the main one in Florida and the other one in California, he's been to the one in Japan and France. He plans to accompany dad to Skidmore College in New York when he goes to teach a two-week jazz institute.

When DiMartino does get to enjoy time with his family, he might be found listening to 6-year-old daughter Kathryn read him a story. The DiMartinos say Kathryn is an excellent reader and a talented artist.

Sometimes, DiMartino's performances have been foundation for his children's favorite memories. Kathryn says her favorite memory of being with her father is when he took her to the Scott Rose games, where he had agreed to play the national anthem. This event is a day of kids games to raise money for children with medical needs. Some of the children who participate are the ones with medical needs.

With 4-year-old daughter, Erica, he might be performing her favorite daddy duty of making ``pan-a-cakes.'' ``He has a special recipe from Norway,'' Mrs. DiMartino explains.

Both girls can sing but Mrs. DiMartino was surprised at the early age that Erica displayed her abilities. They were in a music store when she was 3 months old and was tinkering around with a keyboard. The baby was matching pitch with the keys she would hit.

In his travels with dad, Gabriel has met some of the greats of the music world such as Dizzy Gillespie. He has met his god father Doc Severinsen, the former band leader on the ``Tonight Show.'' As typical of a child's pride in a father, Gabriel met Clark Terry and was asked if he knew who he was. He was told that Clark was a famous jazz musician. Gabriel piped up, ``He had to be to play with my dad.''

Copyright  The Advocate-Messenger 2006
This article was published in the June 16, 2006 Advocate-Messenger. 

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