Mary Jo Leahey Symphonic Band Camp Plays On

Conductor Debra-Nicole Huber, left,  Mary Jo Leahey and Chancellor Marty Meehan stand with middle-schoolers from the area before the Grand Finale Concert.

The young musicians’ spirits were anything but flat during the Mary Jo Leahey Symphonic Band Camp in July. More than 100 high school students spent their time sharpening their instrumental skills through a concert band, jazz band and a number of individual ensembles. On top of being introduced to new pieces of music, the students learned key lessons on improvisation, musicianship and the combination of music and computers.

After one week of learning, practicing and perfecting pieces, the students performed a free Grand Finale Concert for their family, friends and members of the community. Chancellor Marty Meehan volunteered his best narrative voice to the concert during a musical selection titled, “J.F.K. in Memoriam.” The piece, composed by James Curnow, took several of Kennedy’s most touching quotes and wove them into a work performed by the entire concert band.

Now in its 11th year, the summer band camp has proven to be a shining success at the university and around the area. Associate director of UML bands, Debra-Nicole Huber, acts as the executive director of the camp and conductor while a number of music majors take time to assist in any way possible. Mary Jo Leahey herself is commonly a familiar face at the camp, particularly at the Grand Finale Concert.

Throughout her lifetime, Leahey has had a love for music. She graduated in 1937 from the State Teachers College at Lowell with a degree in education and a certificate in music education. After her college years, she turned down acting contracts from both 20th Century Fox and MGM to act as a music supervisor to public schools in Martha’s Vineyard. Leahey eventually returned to Lowell however, where she married and raised her children. In 1998, she took her passion and passed it on to countless young instrumentalists around New England by becoming the main benefactor for the annual occurrence of the camp.