Nathan Davidson continues a ‘musical adventure’

Nathan Davidson has made the half hour trip to Kasson from Grand Meadow area hundreds of times in all types of weather conditions in the last 30 years driving a yellow VW.   
He started kindergarten in Lanesboro and the next 12 years at Rushford but still considers Lanesboro as his “heart and soul.” He started his musical adventure with a $145 tenor saxophone his mother purchased when he was in the 6th grade and thanks his mother and grandmother for inspiring him with music as they played chords on the piano while accompanying him.   
He was involved with band and music during his school career and even started in the marching band in 7th grade. He said he liked to practice and started playing with the stage bands and a rock n roll group while in school.   
Nathan said he had no plans to ever be a music teacher as he lacked the confidence he could ever do something like this even though he liked music. He had thought about being a barber or photographer, he said, but didn’t consider going on to college since he felt he didn’t want to fail because of poor grades.  
Things changed when the Rushford school hired a new band teacher, Mike Tentis, for the 1969 summer program after he had graduated, and Mike encouraged him to take part in a dance band in Winona as they needed a sax player.
 Nathan spent a year at Winona Vocational School getting a degree in business and marketing, with the hopes of maybe getting a job in a music store.  He worked at various jobs for a couple of years and then was encouraged by Tentis to attend college.   
A counselor encouraged him to apply to Rochester Junior College and he did this, earning his AA. While attending RJC he also met his wife, Denise, who was also attending the school and they both enrolled at Winona State. Nathan continued to gain confidence and being in the music program he needed to learn all the types of musical instruments so took lessons for woodwind, brass, and percussion. His major instrument was saxophone.  
Nathan grew up with two older brothers and one younger sister and said he was the first of his family members to earn a college degree.
After graduating from college he found a position as band instructor at Independence, Wisconsin, starting with the summer music program and the marching band taking part in area parades. Being a Norwegian Lutheran in a predominately Polish Catholic community he said he really felt out of place so he was ready to leave after two years.  
Denise secured an elementary music position at Ft Dodge, Iowa, so after they were married, he was able to find a band position at a nearby Iowa community. In a couple of years they were both ready to return to Minnesota so they found music positions at Grand Meadow with Denise as choir director and Nathan as band instructor.  
Following a school strike, Denise decided to leave the teaching profession and earned a medical secretary degree and went to work for Mayo while Nathan was at Grand Meadow for 12 years.  Denise retired from Mayo but has been the choir director and piano player at the United Methodist church in Dexter for many years, and Nathan also sings in the choir.  
In 1990 an opening for the Kasson-Mantorville High School band was available and he said he really was thankful for Supt. Sig Anderson and Principal Colin Harris for giving him this opportunity where he taught for 19 years, leaving in 2009.  
After leaving K-M he wasn’t sure what he might do and even thought about being a doorman at Mayo but really wasn’t ready to leave music. He was offered a part time position at RCTC with the woodwind lesson program and also teaching guitar lessons through the K-M Community Ed program which has continued on at this time.
People who know Nathan are well aware of his passion for the Beatles.   He said that really started when he was in the fourth grade when his teacher said the class project was to have a pen pal and he chose England since they knew English. His pen pal lived in Liverpool, England, the home of the Beatles, who few people had yet heard about at that time.   When they started writing letters to each other he felt that was really a cool thing since the Beatles were now becoming world famous especially when he received some gifts from his pen pal. He said he lost contact with this person for several years.  
During his tenure in Wisconsin, Nathan applied at various schools in Europe and eventually was offered a position at the American School in London.  The Davidsons considered it but turned it down as they would need to live there for two years and also would need to make a lot of living arrangements that they were not ready to make.  
They decided to save their money and visit Europe plus also visit the pen pal with whom he had now been reunited. They have been to England three times and so have seen the sites of the Beatles including their homes and, of course, have walked across the iconic Abbey Road crossing that appeared on their last album cover. He has attended Paul McCartney concerts several times and during the last one had a VIP ticket that put him in row 1. He has also been at Ringo Starr’s performances.
Another group he became interested in was the Woody Herman band who really influenced his musical interests in jazz. Nathan began following the band when he was only 17 years old, attending many concerts over the years, and he got to know Woody and members of the band. 
After attending Woody’s 50th anniversary concert with his mother at the Hollywood Bowl in California in 1986, he dreamed of having Woody at his school in Grand Meadow. He contacted Woody’s agent to invite Woody to come to Grand Meadow and on March 23, 1987, even though in failing health, Woody came. This was the last gig he was able to perform before his passing a few months later in November, and Nathan attended his funeral service in California.  
Woody’s daughter, Ingrid, was kind enough to send Nathan the jacket Woody wore at his last gig. Nathan wears it at special jazz concerts and Woody tribute festivals.
In March 1981, Nathan was invited to play with the Ray Sands Polka Dots band, but he turned them down initially as he said he really didn’t want to play polka music. He had such a good time, though, that he continues to play with them after 39 years!  
It has turned into some great experiences including playing for the Garrison Keillor radio show and representing Minnesota in Washington DC for a celebration at the Kennedy Center. The band was also a part of a film called, “His Neighbor Phil,” filmed in Zumbrota about how music is positive force for Alzheimer’s patients.
The Lost Faculties rock’n roll group got started for the 1997 K-M Homecoming program with some other K-M teachers playing. They thought it would only be a one-time gathering but then were asked to play for the faculty Christmas party and it has continued on through the years.  
Two big highlights were being the opening act for Janis Joplin’s band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, in Zumbrota and being the opening act in 2001 at the Down By the Riverside concert with Peter Noone and Herman’s Hermits in front of 14,000.  This past year, the Lost Faculties performed with Ringo Starr tribute artist, Ringer Star, also at the Down By the Riverside concert series with approximately 8,000 people in attendance.  
Nathan has lined up a concert program for the K-M students and the community in the K-M auditorium Sept.18 and 19 with Ringer Star and his All-Star Tribute Band, the Lost Faculties.  Hopefully that will be possible this fall.     
 
He has played with the Chatfield Brass Band since 1978 participating in many parades, and a special highlight was playing in Washington DC for the 50th anniversary of the death of John Phillips Sousa alongside the U.S. Marine Band! Other bands include the Austin Big Band, the Rutabaga Brothers blues group from Lanesboro, the CBB Jazz Combo, plus freelancing with other dance bands.
Since he missed Woodstock in 1969, they visited the site 40 years later and laid on the hillside grass to just reminisce! He owns several musical instruments including 10 guitars, and other woodwind and brass instruments. 
Thinking back Nathan said he really never felt he had a bad day teaching at K-M and the great band program has continued on with Liz Harwood and now Tony Boldt. Some highlights during his time at K-M include having the Ed Shaughnessy Quintet, members of the Johnny Carson Tonight Show band, come to Kasson. Johnny even mentioned Kasson on the Tonight Show, listing the tour locations the band was taking part in. This was two weeks before Johnny’s retirement, May 1992.  
Nathan had four Miss Minnesota’s do a workshop with his students plus play with the K-M band at their concert since their pageant platform was the importance of music. Nathan continues to enjoy teaching part-time and performing the variety of music in the bands he’s with.