Richard Hyatt: Barr fostered city's musical heritage

Bob Barr taught sons and daughters of mill workers more than the notes on a scale. He transformed them into Jordan High School's Million Dollar Band, and when they lifted their instruments and clicked their heels, they were the best band in the land.

Take that, Columbus High.

That's why so many white-haired Red Jackets were in the school auditorium Thursday night.

They came to celebrate $1.2 million in renovations. They came for a holiday concert and, most of all, they came to honor a band leader who made them believe they were somebody.

Before there was a Three Arts Theater, a City Auditorium, a Columbus Symphony, a Schwob School of Music or a RiverCenter for the Performing Arts, there was Bob Barr and the harmony he shared with a student body and a part of town that needed his musical nourishment so much.

Barr's musicians learned to play and learned to strut. When locals heard the opening bars of "St. Louis Blues," they knew the Red Jackets were coming. The band earned the respect of a community, and the teenagers never forgot the pride they felt making music.

Barr left the school in 1963 and he died in 1988, but his contributions are found on bandstands all over town. Audiences still tap their feet when his aging alumni perform as the Bob Barr Community Band.

In the years between World War II and the Korean War, people came to that auditorium to hear good music. Symphonies played classical music and big bands played Gershwin. So it is appropriate for it to be known as the Robert M. Barr Auditorium.

Jordan has also named its library for Roland Daniel, a longtime superintendent of schools who provided the foundation for vocational education in this community. A former middle school bore his name, and his work should not be forgotten.

Too many times, the Muscogee County School District has ignored its history, and this is a good time to rectify that oversight. Name the main library for Carson McCullers. Name the administration building for Braxton Nail, who brought the system into the modern world. Name an athletic facility for Frank Thomas, a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Others deserve recognition, and officials should come up with a process to honor them and their contributions.

Don't let our past slip away.

Richard Hyatt is an independent correspondent. Reach him at hyatt31906@knology.net

This story was originally published December 12, 2015 at 8:36 PM with the headline "Richard Hyatt: Barr fostered city's musical heritage."