Appleton City Band to honor long-time director on July 15
'Ike' Spangenberg directed ACB for 45 seasons.
Throughout the summer, Tuesday evenings at Pierce Park in Appleton are packed with enthusiastic concertgoers. As the fifty members of the Appleton City Band begin arriving, the audience of young and old come with their blankets, lawn chairs, and snacks.
Promptly at 7 p.m., Jim Thaldorf, Director of the Appleton City Band, steps onto the podium and gives the downbeat. Opening with a flourish, the ACB performs either “Look Sharp March” by Mahlon Merrick or Gershwin’s “Strike Up the Band.” What follows is an evening filled with a wide variety of musical surprises, from Broadway musicals to popular hits to traditional band selections.
The concert on July 15 will be a salute to Ivan (Ike) Spangenberg, who directed the Appleton City Band for 45 seasons from 1967 to 2011. The ACB will honor Spangenberg with performances of several of his favorite pieces, including “Valdres,” a distinct Norwegian march by Johannes Hanssen, and “The Sinfonians,” a symphonic march by Clifton Williams, which ranks at the top of Spangenberg’s favorites. With Ike hopefully sitting in the front row, the audience will be treated to a medley of Henry Mancini tunes and Leroy Anderson’s “Bugler’s Holiday.”
“Ike is one of the kindest, most gentle individuals I have ever known,” Thaldord says. “He has many qualities I wish I had. On top of that, he is a fine musician and as director of the ACB was always dedicated to fine music but also reveling in the joy music brings to the audience, the musicians, and the director.”
Clockwise from top left: A full house in Pierce Park to see the Appleton City Band; Ivan (Ike) Spangenberg directs the Sinfonians March; Jim Thaldorf and a young fan conducts; The ACB performs inside the pavillion; Mayor Tim Hannah dedicates the new band shell to Spangenburg in 2016
Spangenberg graduated from Appleton High School in 1950 and obtained a Bachelor of Music from Lawrence University and a Master in Music from Northwestern. Ike shared his love of music with students for 36 years, 28 of which were spent at Appleton West High School, where he retired in 1995. The renovated bandstand at Pierce Park was dedicated to him in 2015. Before Spangenberg, the ACB was directed by Peter Heid, Buck Jensen, and Frank Comella. Ike is currently living in the Milwaukee area near family.
Jim Thaldorf took over as director of the Appleton City Band after Spangenberg retired in 2011.
“The Appleton City Band is loaded with fine musicians, over half of which either have music degrees or studied at the college level,” Thaldorf says. “I am blessed to stand in front of these gifted people each summer. My job is simple as conductor, get them started, guide them through musical changes, and stay out of their way.”
Thaldorf graduated from UW-Oshkosh with a music business degree and a Bachelor of Music Education. He taught in the Appleton Area School District for 32 years, retiring in 2021 as Director of Bands at Appleton North High School. In addition to directing the ACB, Thaldorf is working part-time and enjoys playing Santa during the holiday season. He says he especially enjoys spending time with his five grandchildren, all of whom are under the age of five.
As the sunlight fades, the Appleton City Band ends the concert with the National Anthem. Audience members all rise and sing together, demonstrating a real sense of community in the Fox Valley. Musicians pack up and clear the stage while the audience folds up their lawn chairs and collects their belongings. The following week, they will all come together again to share the power of music.
The themes for the remainder of the summer concerts are Let’s Go to Europe (July 2), Guest Conductor Week (July 29), Music Beginning with H or I (August 5), and The Lights of Broadway (August 12). The band will perform inside the pavilion if it rains. Severe weather will require cancellation.
