Growing at the Speed of Failure
4 Teachers That Shaped My Life: Tony Dvorak
I often wonder if teachers understand the impact they have on a child’s life and how their words of affirmation or ridicule shape the very person that child will grow to be. In my experience, there are good teachers, poor teachers, tired teachers, and teachers that love what they are doing and teach others to love it as well.
Though I’ve had dozens of teachers in my 17 years of traditional schooling, only three stand far above all the others that I have had. I’m not saying that all of the others were poor teachers – nor am I saying that they were the tired type; I am merely saying that excellence shines far above average.
I grew up in a small southern Wisconsin town of Belleville – population 1,300 at the time I was in school. There were not a lot of frills, clubs, extra curricular activities. Sure they had the standard sports – football, baseball, basketball and volleyball. They had an assortment or choirs and a few clubs, but it was a small school.
I was a quiet and reserved kid that liked staying out of trouble and spending time with a friend or two. In the summer before 9th grade, one of those friends told me how band class was an easy “A.” Tim Meland suggested that I play percussion as he did; because if you sit in the back you can screw around and you didn’t have to even try very hard. I needed an “A” to get my GPA up so I joined band.
Tony Dvorak was the band teacher for the four years I attended Belleville high. I liked him from the very beginning. He would play us music that I had never knew existed. As many of the kids would be screwing around, I listened intently. I realized that he was sharing his passion, not just merely showing up for work.
In the years following my freshman year, Mr. Dvorak allowed me to go into the band room during lunch and listen to records on the big component stereo. He also allowed me to practice drums, use the drum machine and the Moog. It was an incredible experience. I was the kind of student that he could say, just close the door when you leave.
As I would come in for private lessons, I had the hardest time understanding what the notes on the page meant. I didn’t get it – the explanations were going over my head so I just started recording what he played in my head and I would parrot it back. It took me years before I understood that they were divisions of time (can you believe that?).
I soon went from playing the bass drum, triangle and cymbals to tympani, quad drums in marching band and drum set in pep band. I practiced a lot at school, and after school at home. Why? Because he believed in me.
That second year, started private drum lessons with an excellent jazz & fusion drummer Rand Moore. At the end of the year I received the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award. I didn’t understand why I received it, since I couldn’t read music.
The next year I joined jazz ensemble and found a home in being able to play freestyle – with the sheet music as mere cues and suggestions. That third year I again received the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award.
My senior year I was in all the bands; jazz, marching, orchestra, pep-band and then was given the opportunity to play in state ensemble. I was playing bass drum in state ensemble and I still had a lot of difficulty reading music! (Dyslexia makes it extremely difficult to keep place on the sheet music.) So, I practiced all the more and Mr. Dvorak helped me along by giving me more private lessons.
That year, Mr. Dvorak awarded me the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award and the John Philip Sousa Award for band. At first I thought it must be a mistake, and that I shouldn’t have received the award. Mr. Dvorak saw something in me that I hadn’t. There were several great musicians in our school and I was honored to receive the award for the third time as well as the Sousa Award. The most humbling aspect of both awards is that a school is limited to awarding out one of each for the academic year.
So I say thank you to Mr. Tony Dvorak for believing in me, fostering growth, exposing me to great musicians and equipping me to become my best.
Teachers have a grand power, influence and responsibility. What a passionate teacher encourages and admonishes in a student can lead that student in becoming that very thing. A teacher’s praise carries the power to shape lives.
