Hanging up his baton

Dave Gaines to conduct final, farewell concert at Crossley

In October 1995, the front page of the Pelham Herald sported a photo of Dave Gaines surrounded by marching band uniforms, a month into his new position as the Head of the Music Department at E.L. Crossley Secondary School. At the time, he was excited by the potential he saw in the students and was eager to lead the young musicians in concerts and parades.

Nearly 24 years later, Gaines is on the brink of his retirement, preparing current Crossley students for their May 1 spring music concert — the last he will conduct for the school.

Gaines has been a musician for nearly all of his life. Like many students in the Niagara region who learn music as part of the NIEMS program (including many at Crossley), he first learned how to play an instrument—in his case drums and percussion—thanks to the teaching of a “Mr. Ingles.” Ingles was hired as an itinerant music teacher by the Lincoln County Board of Education to travel to various schools and lead students in music lessons each week. Today, this program (now NIEMS) is not required and is led by Craig Ingles, the son of the man who taught Gaines.

From this start, in Grade 7, Gaines stuck with music, going to Laura Secord Secondary School, in St. Catharines, well-known for its music program, before studying orchestral percussion performance and conducting at Western University. Although he followed this with a Bachelor of Education at Western, his initial thought was not to go into teaching.

“I was in performance with no intentions of teaching. Then I took a couple of conducting classes and music ed classes and I thought I was probably better at that than I was in performance,” said Gaines. “I thought, I’d [teach] for a couple of years, save some money. And then that was 32 years ago.”

Gaines said that teaching has been turned out to be “a great gig for a musician” because it has allowed him to continue to play with his band and with the Niagara Symphony in his free time, while still earning a regular income.

“It's a steady job for a musician to have. I'm not working on weekends and I have my evenings if I want to play gigs. I have played hundreds and hundreds of shows over the years, so it's cool, cool way to make a living.”

Gaines began his teaching career straight out of teachers’ college. He bounced around three different schools in his first year before landing a more permanent position at A.N. Myer Secondary School, in Niagara Falls, where he stayed until Dave Colonico, former Crossley Music Head recruited him, six years later.

Gaines started at Crossley in September 1995 as the new Head of the Music Department and has been there ever since.

He has been integral to the music program’s many extra-curricular activities. Though not all groups run every year, Crossley offers a marching band, drum line, concert band, junior band, senior wind ensemble, guitar ensemble, jazz band, choir, and at times a vocal ensemble. Gaines has devoted many hours to preparing his performers for concerts, performances, and parades, taking students as far afield as Vancouver, Ottawa, Florida, and Cleveland. These trips, he said, stand out in his memory and will be an aspect of the teaching that he will miss.

Crossley’s principal, Janice Sargeant, said that Gaines has shown a “tireless dedication” to the music department. “Mr. Gaines’ leadership and commitment to these kids is outstanding. He has generously given his time and shared the love of music with so many students through the years.”

Gaines also said he will miss the teaching itself, and the opportunity it provides to impart music, and the importance of its study to students and their parents.

“There's so much scientific research that says that the single best subject you can teach kids so that they're smarter is music. Your brain gets rewired and through discipline, daily structured practice, you can become smarter. But people often don't see a value in that because they don’t see jobs at the end of it.”

Fellow Crossley music teacher, Janine Barber, who has taught with Gaines for close to 19 years, says the school has benefitted from having him there.

“He has brought passion for music and the arts. He was always a very strong proponent and tried to bring that out in the kids but also in the community by trying to get the marching band out to as many local events as possible, and making sure that people had a chance to appreciate music and recognize the good that can come of it,” said Barber. “He showed that music is an awesome tool to bring people together.”

Gaines’ past students also recognize and remember that enthusiasm.

“I was always impressed by the passion he showed and shared with us about music,” said former student Bryan Southwell. “I remember once he joked to the concert band that a certain song—I’ve since forgotten the name— would bring him to tears if played correctly, which struck me as funny because as a student you don’t normally expect that from a teacher. But during the concert, we played the song quite well and I could see that he was visibly moved and quite proud of us. And that made us all proud too.”

Barber said that Gaines stressed personal development, about individual improvement.

“He taught kids to really try and realize that it's about effort and it's not about being the best player, but it's about being better than you were when you walked in the door. He has the skills to make everybody better at what they brought to the table, so that they always improved. He would be like, ‘Let's make the song better. Here's how to do it.’”

Another former student, Nina Penner, now a postdoctoral researcher and musicologist at Duke University, said that Gaines was one of her “favourite teachers at Crossley and an important mentor.”

“In my experience, it is rare for someone to be as gifted at performing as they are in passing on that knowledge and passion to others. Mr Gaines had this ability to reach all sorts of students—students who thought that they didn't have much to learn from high school music classes, students who were eager to participate but lacked innate ability, and those who took music because they didn't know what else to do with themselves. For students like me, for whom music was already an integral part of our lives, he commanded our respect with his knowledge and skill. Mr Gaines shaped not only our intellectual and artistic development but also our development as persons.”

Crossley music alumnus Clayton Peters also recognizes Gaines as a teacher who inspired him to consider music as a career. Peters is now a high school music teacher and freelance percussionist, and said, “Mr. Gaines was one of the music teachers that inspired me to pursue percussion, and music education—participating in the extra-curricular bands and music courses became a highlight of my time at E.L. Crossley.”

Peters added that he knew “many others who similarly took up the dream of music as a direct impact of the music program at Crossley.”

Gaines also captured students’ interest with his dry wit and humour, a characteristic that Barber said had everyone anticipating what he would say next.

“I think his experience as a standup comedian on the side in university really did well for his teaching career, because he is always really funny, and that's been the enjoyable part of watching him teach and working with him,” said Barber. “He always would turn band practice or class into a fun moment with the kids and come up with a funny story to say to them.”

Peters agreed that the humour was key.

“Not only did Mr. Gaines make school a place that I looked forward to going because of the rigor and high standards he set for his performers, he was also sure to toss in a sarcastic quip that would set off the room with laughter and make sure we didn't take ourselves too seriously,” said Peters, adding that, “Mr. Gaines has earned a restful retirement after teaching so many noisy students, enduring the long bus rides with the marching band to the Disney Magic Parades, and of course, graciously accepting the endless compliments about his hair.”

While those at Crossley will miss Gaines, he said that although he is looking forward to retiring and having more time to focus on his music, he will miss teaching, particularly conducting the big concerts. He has conducted dozens over the years, at Crossley and across North America. His final, farewell concert brings him back to the halls of E.L. Crossley, where he will lead the young Crossley musicians through pieces such as “The Great Locomotive Chase,” while the jazz band will take on “Green Dolphin Street,” and “Pick up the Pieces.” It will take place in Crossley’s big gym next Wednesday, May 1, beginning at 7 PM. There is a $5 entry fee, and Gaines and Barber are hoping that it will bring in alumni and community alike to witness Gaines’ farewell.

It is expected, said Principal Sargeant, that the “concert will surely be emotional, as we say goodbye to such an amazing teacher.”