National FFA Band: Beyond the Music
Members of this year’s National FFA Band make memories on and off stage.
Making Melodies and Memories
The National FFA Band celebrates its 75th anniversary of performing at convention.
National FFA Band and Chorus Practice Discipline, Leadership
Members find a close connection between agriculture and music.
Women in FFA: The Woman Who Started It All
Gay Erickson, an FFA member from New York, was one of many women who paved the way for women in FFA.
Q&A with Original FFA Band Member Neil Overly
Concert bands have been a fixture at the National FFA Convention since 1947, when the first official band was selected from FFA member tryouts. But that wasn’t the first band to play at the convention. An FFA band from Fredericktown, Ohio, performed in Kansas City at the fifth convention in 1933. Remarkably, two members of that band are still living – Linden Scheff (pictured above, left) and Neil Overly – and they attended a recent ceremony that recognized Fredericktown as the home of the FFA jacket. Overly, a retired farmer, turned 100 on Nov. 8. Here, he discusses his FFA experience and the years since. New Horizons: What is the background of that 1933 FFA convention band? Neil Overly: I grew up on the family farm and was a pretty good trumpet player, too. When I was 14 and a freshman in high school, the school FFA leader asked me to join FFA and go with them to Kansas City to play in a band he was taking. We rode the Buckeye Stages bus line and stayed overnight in Indianapolis. [...]
Band Drum Major Attends Convention, Despite Loss
FFA band drum major Clayton Thomas performs at convention, even after tragedy.
FFA Band Director Joe LaJoye Retires His Baton
Joe LaJoye retires after 25 years as the National FFA band Director.
National FFA Band Rocks Debut Performance at Indianapolis Artsgarden
The 2017 National FFA Band gathered this week to share their tunes and talent at the 90th National FFA Convention & Expo.
