Little Hoover's Big Band

Little Hoover's Big Band is back!
Thank you Drury University!

Little Hoover's Big Band is a reading band for high school students, college students, amateurs and professionals. The band meets every Tuesday night from 7-9pm at Drury University in Springfield, MO.

Little Hoover's Big Band is directed by Robert Holden.

On Friday, September 5th 2008 from 6 to 9 pm, we celebrated the grand opening of Hoover Music Academy. Little Hoover's Big Band was the featured performance group, and they were stacked with some of the best players in the area. Click here (Quicktime format, large file) to see video of Little Hoover's Big Band playing the tune "Night in Tunesia" at the Grand Opening.


History of the Little Hoover's Big Band as portrayed by the "Springfield News and Leader" in an article from the February 17th edition found in section 1D.

An echo of Springfield’s rich musical heritage has been inspired by the efforts of Paul Hoover, 1641 East Madison, to assemble a collection of photographs of early-day bands whose concerts provided cultural outlets in the city’s knee-pants era.

Already Hoover has about a dozen of these historical photos hanging on a wall of his downtown music store, but he hasn’t given up his search for he feels that this is a bit of Springfield’s tradition that deserves preservation.

Hoover has a personal interest, of course, for his father, the late Herbert Lee Hoover, was Springfield’s best known bandsman over a period of about 40 years. To the oldtimers of this area, “Little Hoover and his Big Band,” used to be the chief Saturday night attraction in Springfield, with their concerts on Commercial Street and on the Public Square.

Original bandmaster in Springfield is believed to be Charles R. Dumars, who started the public square concerts in 1884. However, a year prior to that, during a Wilson’s Creek reunion, Springfield and Carthage bands held a contest on the square, and the newspaper of that day reports “a great crowd filled the Square completely.”

First bandstand was a wooden affair erected over an old cistern, which was not exactly in the middle of the square. Later an iron light tower was built in the center of the Square and it provided another bandstand.

On Saturday nights, music lovers would jam the square--seated in their buggies or carriages--to hear the local music men perform. At that time, of course, the square wasn’t paved, and there were saloons in the arcade which did splendid business on concert nights.

Other bandmasters came along after Dumars moved to Carthage. There was the Little Guard band, Berry’s band, Cox’s band and Prof. J.R. Gehrs’ band. It was with the Hobart band (directed by Prof. Gehrs) in 1899, that the late Mr. Hoover first appeared as a boy trumpet player.

Band tournaments were a feature of that generation. They would come from as far away as Kansas City to give concerts. One of the tournaments included a paid concert on the Drury College campus. A large topless tent was set up and 25 cents admission was charged, but the listeners found they could sit in their wagons or buggies and hear just as well without paying the admission price.

The newspaper of that day says the “band boys went out to the buggies and offered to loan some of the more wealthy citizens a quarter, and otherwise registered a protest.” It added, “the concert was a financial failure and was never repeated.” The old iron bandstand was torn down after lynchings on the square in 1906 but the concerts continued there until 1914. Mr. Hoover became the bandmaster in 1906, at about the same time he was named instructor of band instruments at Drury College. He had graduated from Drury’s Conservatory of Music, where he studied the piano, harmony, theory and sight reading under Prof. W. A. Chalfant. He also was leader of the College Cadet Corps band, under the instruction of Col. James Mayes. With World War I beginning in 1914, Mr. Hoover moved the Saturday night concerts to Commercial Street, and it was not until 1934 that they were again returned to the “pie” on the Square, under his leadership. But it was a new era and the sound of Saturday night traffic soon drowned out the concerts forever.

Photo Gallery

Click here to listen to more information on the grand opening.






In later years they group also included Will Welhener, John Leckie, Charles Marting, Paul Foster, Carl Carter, Roy Dye, Earl Foust, G. B. (Red) Reed, Lee Hoover (a son of the director) and Ira Jaquith. Among his vocalists were Mrs. Agnes Dade Cowan, A. B. Lambdin, Mrs. H. H. Webb, Prof. Charles Schofield, Fitzhugh Crain and Ted Trapp. Mr. Hoover also formed an orchestra, which at the time of the dedication of Dolling Park included Mrs. E. W. Kirks, Miles Marcell, H. Reese, Charles Kittle, Winston Lynes, Ralph Reed, Roy Martin, Raymond Welhener, Lee Hoover and J. Fred Kessler or Mr. Hoover at the piano.

Fifty-one years ago, Mr. Hoover also opened a retail music business, first in association with Martin Bros. Piano Company, later in the McDaniel building on St. Louis and after that to the South Avenue location. He was 63 when he passed away in December, 1941. “I feel strongly that these early-day band concerts are much a part of Springfield’s tradition and all records and photographs that can be preserved should be properly cared for,” Paul Hoover points out.

“Just to see what those turn of the century band instruments looked like is a revelation to most modern musicians.” Hoover declared. “My dad’s first band members had upright altos, valve trombones, a helicone bass, and 13-key clarinets. Much of the music they played, too, is of historic significance. When he was with Prof. Gehrs’ organization, they played many ‘German print tunes’, which the bandmaster had obtained in Germany. They were handwritten, and very lively airs.”

Among the photographs in Hoover’s gallery are some of the vintage Shrine bands, which senior Hoover also directed.