Every Day in Every Way

Every Day in Every Way is a memoir of and by David Willson, Professor of Music, and Director of University Bands Emeritus at the University of Mississippi whose life and work has inspired thousands. Over David's career, he has made it his mission to not only serve his students but also to teach them to live their lives in a way that matters, a philosophy that he has stood by through the many ups and downs of his life's journey. David began his career as a public-school band director. His bands consistently received many prestigious awards at local and national competitions and received Mississippi's Outstanding Band Master award in 1989 and he is Past President of the Mississippi Band Masters Association, and Past President of Phi Beta Mu International. His success continued at the University of Mississippi. Under David's direction, his students have joined in various competitions and performances and have been featured on radio and received numerous awards. At the University he was named the Elise M. Hood Professor of the Year in 2007 and was awarded the Frist Award "for his service to students" in 2005. His most notable success is the Pride of the South Marching Band. Under his direction, the band has doubled in size and made the "Grove Routine" part of the Ole Miss tradition. The Wind Ensemble that he conducted performed at six state conventions.

I never stopped to enjoy the "moment" in my career. I had too much anxiety. Going through these memories I realize how lucky I am to have come from poverty. In some ways I am a walking miracle. I am not some rock star that made millions of dollars. I am not someone that was able to go home and giggle about their job and the people they worked for. I had some good bosses and some not so good bosses. Nobody kept me from my mission to serve other people and my profession. Though I didn't stop to enjoy the moment along the way, I now have a lot of contentment and self-satisfaction. As I live out the last part of my life, I don't know that I ever will be able to appreciate anything I have done. But, I am very grateful to the students who allowed me to work with them and those that bought the goods I was trying to sell and used them and improved from it. That's when I said, "At a boy Willson!" I am grateful to every single one of them and wish that I had done more. You are not good compared to other people; you are good compared to what you could have done. Had I sought help and really worked hard to get through depression and the trauma I grew up with I might could have done more. On the other hand, compared to what I started with having almost no money, no tutoring or private lessons, or someone to read to me and that kind of support, I am a walking miracle. I owe almost all of it to the medium of band. It got me involved with people whom I never would have been involved with otherwise, and it gave me a tool to go to college. I was motivated to go to college and succeed so I would not be drafted to go fight in Vietnam or have to return home to live in the negative environment I grew up in. I was lucky to have three phenomenal mentors in my life. In my 46 years, I had some great students who taught me more than I could ever teach them. Every Friday afternoon when I spoke to the band I said, "I want you to look at each other, I want you to smell the aroma in the air, look at these beautiful buildings behind you and the sun setting. Tomorrow, I want to you look at the people you are with and impregnate your brain and remember and enjoy the moment. College is fleeting. The adult world is waiting and puff, this part of your life goes by in a flash. I remember sitting at the table in the lunchroom in Greenwood after teaching for several years and thinking I would never continue in the profession. Now I am turning around and not going back to work, and I just can't believe that it is over, and my life is so close to the end. I hope that when I am gone, I will at least be content and know I made a difference in a few people's lives. Nobody kept me from enjoying the moment of helping other people. I gave my students all I had – Every day in Every Way!

Every Day in Every Way is a memoir of and by David Willson, Professor of Music, and Director of University Bands Emeritus at the University of Mississippi whose life and work has inspired thousands. Over David's career, he has made it his mission to not only serve his students but also to teach them to live their lives in a way that matters, a philosophy that he has stood by through the many ups and downs of his life's journey. David began his career as a public-school band director. His bands consistently received many prestigious awards at local and national competitions and received Mississippi's Outstanding Band Master award in 1989 and he is Past President of the Mississippi Band Masters Association, and Past President of Phi Beta Mu International. His success continued at the University of Mississippi. Under David's direction, his students have joined in various competitions and performances and have been featured on radio and received numerous awards. At the University he was named the Elise M. Hood Professor of the Year in 2007 and was awarded the Frist Award "for his service to students" in 2005. His most notable success is the Pride of the South Marching Band. Under his direction, the band has doubled in size and made the "Grove Routine" part of the Ole Miss tradition. The Wind Ensemble that he conducted performed at six state conventions. As told to Stephen and Dawn Beam - Every Day in Every Way is David Willson's autobiography as told to Stephen and Dawn Beam. Dawn was a student of Mr. Willson's from the Fall of 1978 to May of 1982. During that time, Dawn excelled in band but also came to love and appreciate the self-discipline instilled in her daily by Willson. In the Fall of 2022 following Willson's lengthy hospitalization and recovery, Dawn and her husband, Stephen, had dinner with Mr. Willson and his wife, Joan. As the two couples discussed many memories, Dawn suggested Mr. Willson write a book and volunteered to help memorialize the extraordinary impact Willson has had on many lives throughout his teaching career. Dawn and Stephen usually come as a team. Stephen has written several books and edited the book so that it would flow smoothly. Stephen and Dawn live in Sumrall, Mississippi and have 5 kids and 1 granddaughter. Stephen has been a teacher, physician, and author. Dawn currently serves as a Justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court.