DIY History | Transcribe | Campus Culture | Cecile Cooper newspaper clippings, 1966-1987 | 1982-10-10 ""Simon Estes comes home"" Page 2

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Cecile Cooper newspaper clippings, 1966-1987

1982-10-10 ""Simon Estes comes home"" Page 2

DMSR 10/10/82

Listeners cry when Estes sings at pep rally

IOWA BOY
[[italics]]Continued from Page One[[end italics]]

Beaumont Glass, a U of I professor who will accompany him today.
He drove to Centerville late Thursday night and, before checking into a motel, went by his birthplace, a small frame house in the east end.
"It was a very emotional experience for me" he said. "All the old memories -- some good and some bad -- came flooding back on me. It hit me pretty hard."
He thinks the emotion of the moment contributed to "a tickle" in his throat Friday morning. He altered his schedule some to allow more time for rest. He consulted a throat doctor in New York by phone and began sipping hot lemonade and honey.
"When I'm singing opera somewhere, I don't get so worried about getting sick," he said. "If it happens, I'll just call up and they put a replacement in for me. But this is one performance where I think I can't be replaced. Who is going to take over for me if I can't make it, Bob Beck?"
He met some business and community leaders for coffee in Beck's office Friday morning. It was there he first saw a special edition of the Iowegian commemorating his visit. "I've been written up in papers all over the world," Estes said, "but I've never had the front page turned over to me. I think I'm going to have to make Bob my P.R. man."
Friday afternoon, he took part in a 90-minute pep rally in the high school auditorium. The hall was packed with students and alumni. Many others listened in over radio station KCOG, which aired the event live. As soon as the football team marched in, Estes was introduced and received a standing ovation.
He called for a victory by the Big Reds over the Albia Blue Demons and then sang "Old Man River." If there was anyone in that auditorium who had not been in awe of Simon Estes already, that song did it. People cried, it was so beautifully done.
The accompanist was Becky Den Hartog, 38, an accomplished pianist, certainly, but one not accustomed to playing for one of the world's great opera singers. How'd she feel? "Goose bumps," she said.
There were two disappointments Friday night.
Estes was to have sung the national anthem before the football game. But it was pouring rain and, to protect his throat for today, he stayed in his room, where he listened to the game on the radio. The game's outcome was the other disappointment, Albia winning, 14-6.
Everywhere Estes went, he encountered another old friend. And another round of "I remember when ..." would be launched. His pals remembered him as a great singer, a good student and a fair athlete here.
"He beat me out of the Bill Riley talent contest," said Judi Brees, 45, who still lives here. "The reason he beat me was because I just stood there and sang, but when he did 'Mammy,' he finished up by real dramatically dropping down on one knee.
"Everybody back then knew Simon was going to be something special when he grew up. You'd have had to be pretty dumb not to see it."
Roger Griffling, 45, a local lawyer, recalled singing with Estes in a winning quartet in the all-state music competition. "I've spent the rest of my life telling people I sang with Simon Estes," said Griffing, "but, believe me, I know it wasn't [[italics]]my[[end italics]] voice that got us to Des Moines for the festival.
Don Gunderson, 58, now of Austin Minn., was Estes' vocal music teacher in high school.
"It amazes me now when I hear his great big baritone voice," Gunderson said. "Back then, he was real late in having his voice change. He was a soprano until about the middle of his junior year, and then his voice went down to tenor. It was in his senior year that we really started seeing his potential."
The development became speedier at the U of I and the Juilliard School of Music in New York. He made his professional debut in West Berlin in 1965, and since then it's been a steady rise to stardom.
His planned program today includes several operatic pieces, as well as folk songs and spirituals. A few $10 tickets remained available Saturday. Estes is donating $700 of the proceeds to endow a scholarship in his name for Centerville High graduates.
The anticipation around town was probably best expressed by Alex Paul, Iowegian managing editor.
"I'm not really into opera," he said, "and at first, I wasn't as excited about the concert as I would be if he was, say, Kenny Rogers. But once you meet the guy and start to understand how good he really is, well, now I'm really looking forward to it.
[[italics]]-- Churck Offenburger[[end italics]]

p. 2 (of 2)

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DMSR 10/10/82 Listeners cry when Estes sings at pep rally IOWA BOY [[italics]]Continued from Page One[[end italics]] Beaumont Glass, a U of I professor who will accompany him today. He drove to Centerville late Thursday night and, before checking into a motel, went by his birthplace, a small frame house in the east end. "It was a very emotional experience for me" he said. "All the old memories -- some good and some bad -- came flooding back on me. It hit me pretty hard." He thinks the emotion of the moment contributed to "a tickle" in his throat Friday morning. He altered his schedule some to allow more time for rest. He consulted a throat doctor in New York by phone and began sipping hot lemonade and honey. "When I'm singing opera somewhere, I don't get so worried about getting sick," he said. "If it happens, I'll just call up and they put a replacement in for me. But this is one performance where I think I can't be replaced. Who is going to take over for me if I can't make it, Bob Beck?" He met some business and community leaders for coffee in Beck's office Friday morning. It was there he first saw a special edition of the Iowegian commemorating his visit. "I've been written up in papers all over the world," Estes said, "but I've never had the front page turned over to me. I think I'm going to have to make Bob my P.R. man." Friday afternoon, he took part in a 90-minute pep rally in the high school auditorium. The hall was packed with students and alumni. Many others listened in over radio station KCOG, which aired the event live. As soon as the football team marched in, Estes was introduced and received a standing ovation. He called for a victory by the Big Reds over the Albia Blue Demons and then sang "Old Man River." If there was anyone in that auditorium who had not been in awe of Simon Estes already, that song did it. People cried, it was so beautifully done. The accompanist was Becky Den Hartog, 38, an accomplished pianist, certainly, but one not accustomed to playing for one of the world's great opera singers. How'd she feel? "Goose bumps," she said. There were two disappointments Friday night. Estes was to have sung the national anthem before the football game. But it was pouring rain and, to protect his throat for today, he stayed in his room, where he listened to the game on the radio. The game's outcome was the other disappointment, Albia winning, 14-6. Everywhere Estes went, he encountered another old friend. And another round of "I remember when ..." would be launched. His pals remembered him as a great singer, a good student and a fair athlete here. "He beat me out of the Bill Riley talent contest," said Judi Brees, 45, who still lives here. "The reason he beat me was because I just stood there and sang, but when he did 'Mammy,' he finished up by real dramatically dropping down on one knee. "Everybody back then knew Simon was going to be something special when he grew up. You'd have had to be pretty dumb not to see it." Roger Griffling, 45, a local lawyer, recalled singing with Estes in a winning quartet in the all-state music competition. "I've spent the rest of my life telling people I sang with Simon Estes," said Griffing, "but, believe me, I know it wasn't [[italics]]my[[end italics]] voice that got us to Des Moines for the festival. Don Gunderson, 58, now of Austin Minn., was Estes' vocal music teacher in high school. "It amazes me now when I hear his great big baritone voice," Gunderson said. "Back then, he was real late in having his voice change. He was a soprano until about the middle of his junior year, and then his voice went down to tenor. It was in his senior year that we really started seeing his potential." The development became speedier at the U of I and the Juilliard School of Music in New York. He made his professional debut in West Berlin in 1965, and since then it's been a steady rise to stardom. His planned program today includes several operatic pieces, as well as folk songs and spirituals. A few $10 tickets remained available Saturday. Estes is donating $700 of the proceeds to endow a scholarship in his name for Centerville High graduates. The anticipation around town was probably best expressed by Alex Paul, Iowegian managing editor. "I'm not really into opera," he said, "and at first, I wasn't as excited about the concert as I would be if he was, say, Kenny Rogers. But once you meet the guy and start to understand how good he really is, well, now I'm really looking forward to it. [[italics]]-- Churck Offenburger[[end italics]] p. 2 (of 2)