History of Green Country's "Big Red Pride"
The first Dewey High School Band was organized in September of 1928 under the direction of Mr. Frank Murrah and consisted of twelve members. This was during the depression, and few students could purchase instruments, so the band borrowed them wherever and whenever possible. Mr. Murrah was an engineering graduate of Texas A&M, but after leaving the business world he began teaching music. At the time that he started the Dewey band in 1928, Murrah was an instructor at the Bartlesville School of Music and taught two days each week at Dewey, rehearsing the band and giving private lessons.
The band has achieved national recognition over the decades, from the 1941 “Dewey Cowboy Band” featured in National Geographic, to appearances in the Cotton Bowl parade and the Royal Gorge in London.
The Dewey band program has grown and flourished through numerous trips, shows, awards, and prestigious shows through its various talented directors over the course of decades. We are constantly indebted to the previous generations of band students, parents, and teachers who have contributed to the nearly 90-year legacy of the Dewey band program. More information on the history of the Dewey band program can be found in the band building, written in an extensive historical article celebrating the "Golden Anniversary" of the Dewey band in the 1978-1979 school year.
Be sure to visit the band room and see our "Big Red wall of History" fall 2019!
The band has achieved national recognition over the decades, from the 1941 “Dewey Cowboy Band” featured in National Geographic, to appearances in the Cotton Bowl parade and the Royal Gorge in London.
The Dewey band program has grown and flourished through numerous trips, shows, awards, and prestigious shows through its various talented directors over the course of decades. We are constantly indebted to the previous generations of band students, parents, and teachers who have contributed to the nearly 90-year legacy of the Dewey band program. More information on the history of the Dewey band program can be found in the band building, written in an extensive historical article celebrating the "Golden Anniversary" of the Dewey band in the 1978-1979 school year.
Be sure to visit the band room and see our "Big Red wall of History" fall 2019!