Two years shy of a century, veteran trumpet player Bill Parker practices in his Arden Arcade Garden with son, music educator Grant Parker.

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - At 98 years old, Bill Parker is still blowing strong.

When temperatures neared 100 degrees in June, Parker was among the scores of volunteer musicians who took to the stage during the Community Band Festival in Carmichael. 

“The event gives me an opportunity to hear other bands,” said its oldest participant. “Even with the heat, I wouldn’t want to miss it.”

Once weekly, Parker joins the Sacramento Concert Band, under the baton of his son, Grant Parker. The nonagenarian sits with bandmates in their 20s.

“They’re pretty good to me,” Parker said. “In a volunteer band, you don’t have to be perfect. We’re all doing our best, working to improve.”

Music, he noted, has been good to him. Raised in Follansbee, West Virginia, Parker picked up a trumpet at the age of nine. Years of study followed. The Great Depression was tough but Parker’s parents always found $3 for his weekly lesson.

“That was a lot of money in those days,” Parker said. “I must have shown some aptitude. I enjoyed playing and I liked the extra activity being in the school band gave me.”  

At 98 years old, Bill Parker (front row, center) boosts the brass section of the Sacramento Concert Band at a San Juan School District graduation ceremony. Son Grant Parker (back, right) directs the ensemble.

With dad at war and money scarce, 16-year-old Parker started playing night clubs in nearby Wheeling. The youngest bandsman was billed as ‘Wheeling’s Harry James.’

“We played three shows a night,” recalled the prodigy. “The last was at 1 a.m. One place I played was a strip club. I grew up quickly. The dancers were nice girls; they made a fuss of me. Then I moved to a premier supper club, doing floor shows. I’m sure my schoolwork suffered. I often fell asleep at my desk. I wasn’t punished. The teachers understood how things were at home.”

After graduation, Parker joined the U.S. Army in post-war Germany. The infantryman traveled with trumpet.

“When my superiors saw my horn, they put me in the Army band,” Parker said. “When they learned I had club experience, they wanted me for USO shows.” 

To lead his uniformed combo, 19-year-old Private Parker needed a rapid promotion.

“I became a staff sergeant in six weeks,” Parker laughed.  “Every Monday, we got new charts to rehearse. We did each show for six nights. It was like vaudeville.”

Parker later led a training facility marching band.

“There always were lots of ceremonies to play,” Parker reminisced. “We got up in the morning and played for flag-raising. Then we paraded around, playing marches. It was like high school.”

Returning to civilian life in West Virginia, Parker married his childhood sweetheart, Midge. Their children, Barbara, Brenda and Grant, soon bolstered the Baby Boom. Their dad worked in an auto-shop and gigged by night. 

A career with Western and Southern Life Insurance ended this sideline.

Shown is middle school bandsman Bill Parker at age 12. In high school during World War II, Parker helped support his family by playing nightclub gigs. Picture courtesy of Bill Parker

“The company didn’t want me in other work,” Parker explained. “Money was tight, so I didn’t complain. I was glad to have a well-paid job.”

The company moved the Parkers to California in 1962 and they later settled in Sacramento. Secure in his white-collar job, Parker didn’t touch a horn for 42 years.

His son, Grant Parker, played trumpet instead.  During his long educator career, Grant Parker (68) has tutored musicians from grade school to adult level. Semi-retired now, Grant Parker teaches at Cosumnes River College. He also runs the annual Community Band Festival in Carmichael Park and leads the Sacramento Concert Band. This ensemble is part of San Juan School District’s adult education program. 

His father’s horn was enticed from mothballs by Bill Parker's opportunity to join the band. Seven decades older than the Sacramento Concert Band's youngest member, the veteran fits in harmoniously. 

“In the group, dad’s just another musician,” said conductor Grant Parker. “I correct and encourage him, as I do for all the others. We go to dinner before rehearsals. Being in a band together is part of our special relationship.”

Widowed nearly 20 years, the elder Parker has rediscovered his first love and life has gained fresh direction.

“I enjoy the music and the rehearsals,” Parker said. “I like the extra bond with my son.”

Picking up his trumpet these days, said the near centenarian, is like reaching for an old friend’s hand.

“I’ll keep playing as long as I’m able,” Parker said. “Music has brought so much to my life.”

To learn about the San Juan Unified School District’s concert band program, go online to  www.sacramentoconcertband.net.