Former Music Teacher William Schneider Dies

Beloved teacher taught for more than 30 years at Andover

January 26, 2009 -- When mid-20th century Phillips Academy alumni think about their music training, many foremost remember William L. Schneider. One of his former students, trombonist Lloyd Farrar ’52, remarked upon hearing of his death, “We should remember him as the one person who really got music going during our schoolboy years.”

A few days short of his 84th birthday, William “Bill” Schneider passed away on January 3 at Granite Ledges in Concord, N.H., his home for the past two-and-a-half years. According to his daughter, Beth Ditkoff, he was still leading his older friends in daily sing-alongs right up until his death. A native of Chicago, Mr. Schneider was a longtime resident of Mont Vernon, N.H., where he and his family spent summers, and the town to which he and his wife retired in 1981.

After graduating from high school, he served in the Army Air Forces, conducting bombing missions in Europe during World War II. Returning to Chicago, he entered Northwestern University, where he majored in music and art, and, in 1949, he came to Andover to teach music. There, he met and married Helen “Sedgie” Sedgwick Barss ’43, daughter of fellow Andover instructor John Barss, and the couple raised two children, Beth and John.

During his tenure at Phillips Academy, Mr. Schneider, a violinist, conducted the chorus, string orchestra, small ensembles, and the choir that sang every Sunday in Cochran Chapel. He also taught violin to countless students and was the codirector of many musical stage productions.

Dan Kimball ’56, who played baritone sax, reminisced about the Aces, a big-band dance band formed in the 1950s under Mr. Schneider’s guidance: “Mr. Schneider was my first bandmaster…. I was thrilled by the way he handled us greenhorn musicians and brought out the best in all of us.” On Reunion Weekend 2008, the Aces reunited, giving concerts in Tang Theatre and in front of Samuel Phillips Hall. Members of the Brass, another band guided by Mr. Schneider, began their reunions a year earlier, which were organized by Lloyd Farrar.

After retirement, Mr. Schneider stayed busy teaching woodcarving in his home. He was a volunteer at the Hillsboro County 4-H, working with whittling groups, and in 1985, he represented New Hampshire at the Salute to Excellence ceremony in Chevy Chase, Md., that honored 4-H volunteers from around the country.

A member of the Mont Vernon School Board, he also directed the choir at the town’s Congregational Church and, with his wife, organized the annual Community Messiah Sing. “Whenever possible,” his son John said, “he enjoyed quiet time with his fishing rod.”

Besides his son and daughter, he is survived by two grandchildren. His wife died in 2006.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 4, at the Mount Vernon Congregational Church, 4 South Main St., Mont Vernon, N.H. (603-673-3500). Memorial donations can be sent to the New Hampshire Audubon Society