Melodianne Mallow

Class of 2025

Digital Scrapbook Melodianne Mallow was born in Abilene, TX, to parents James and Maurice Mallow.
James was a band director (HOF 1997, TBA President 1977-78), and Maurice was a second grade school teacher. The summer she was born, her father was hired as the band director in Brady ISD and the family relocated from Santa Anna, TX. Three years later, brother Morgan, an eventual trumpet player, was born. From ages three to five, Melodianne was the mascot for the Brady Junior High marching band. She had her little baton and matching twirling uniform just like the junior high majorettes. The crowd loved it when the band would countermarch and she’d disappear, then appear again! Sadly, her parents made her “age out” of mascot status when she started first grade.

A Brady High School graduate, Melodianne received a BME from Howard Payne University and a Master of Music from Texas A & M Commerce. She served Region 5 as Middle School Band Chairman and served two separate stints on the UIL Sightreading Selection committee. She received the National Band Association Citation of Excellence and was honored to be a 2015 recipient of the Texas Bandmasters Association Meritorious
Achievement award.

From a young age Melodianne spent a lot of time in the band hall and watched her father
teach before and after school. When it came time for instrument selection going into 6th
grade, she chose the flute, against her father’s better judgement (he was pushing French
Horn), because that’s what her babysitters played! She was adjudicated in high school
several times at UIL Solo and Ensemble contest by Hall of Fame member Barabara
Lambrecht (Sperburg at the time) whom she was told was the Flute Queen, so, she’d better dot her I’s and cross her T’s if she wanted to make a first division!

Melodianne was fortunate to student teach with Hall of Fame member George “Buddy”
Strickland in Comanche. Ironically, George student taught with her father when she was in eighth grade! She accompanied the beginner students in her band programs on their
solos, free gratis, and is grateful for the piano lessons (but not Chopin!) her parents forced on her even if she played the likes of Fandango, The Hunt, Chrysalis and Ruby more times than she can count!

Melodianne’s entire teaching career was in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, in “original” Region 5, for all but one year when she was in Region 3. Both regions were Who’s Who in
the North Texas band world, with many honor band directors and those who have been inducted into the Hall of Fame the last 10 to 15 years. It was exciting and daunting at the
same time to be around such giants in the profession! Her time at Wayside Middle School, McDonald Middle School, and 23 years in Birdville ISD, in the Richland High School cluster, proved to be absolute next level with every new chapter!

Birdville will always be “home” as this is where she honed her teaching skills. She was
surrounded with incredible teachers and the most the most amazing Fine Arts Director,
Hall of Fame member, Henry Schraub. Her first year in the district, at Richland Middle
School, she quickly found out Mr. Schraub did NOT stay in his office and not to panic when he walked in the band hall – because this was the norm! Melodianne grew to anticipate those drop in visits and thrive on the feedback. Her mantra quickly became, “tell me once, you’ll never have to tell me again!” Also, during this first year at Richland Middle School, she met Hall of Fame member Eddie Green and life changed again! Thus began a 23-year mentorship and beyond that she will be forever grateful for. It was also a treat to have had Hall of Fame member Jim Van Zandt and Hall of Fame member Bill Watson at the helm of the cluster, respectively, as well as Richland High School associate directors over the years, John Donner, Scott Reddoch, Hall of Fame member Scott McAdow, Bryan Christian, Lou Boldrighini, Mikel Burris, Jed Weeks, Kevin McNulty, Jason Bird, Brian Lowe and Evan Blackard. They are all cherished friends who also gave of their time and talents at Richland Middle School and North Richland Middle School. The cherry on top was having her good friend, Hall of Fame member Cindy Lansford, down the road at the cluster sister school, North Ridge Middle School. Bill Watson kept them on their toes, as they did him!!

Her seventeen years at North Richland Middle School were more than she ever anticipated! She worked relentlessly, along with her respective coworkers over the years,
Allene Winslow and Jessica Maus, to send students to Richland High School with as many
skills as possible. She was in a short line of North Richland directors which included her
longtime friend, Hall of Fame member Fred Allen. The North Richland Middle School Band was a three-time, Class 2C state finalist, being named Class 2C Honor Band in
1998. Highlights of the TMEA concert included her father and Henry Schraub guest
conducting, friend, Karen Houghton, the Birdville ISD Horn teacher, soloist, on a piece commissioned by Fred Allen, and Mr. Green backstage.

In 2009, the North Richland Middle School band was named the Texas Bandmasters
Association Exemplary Middle School Band Program. It is not lost on Melodianne this
award was a culmination of everyone who ever set foot in the North Richland band hall or
gave her advice.

One infamous incident at North Richland involved a band shirt...well, a saying on a band
shirt. Both feeder middle schools agreed on “NRMS BAND, 1-800-2LOUD4U” to be on the
band t-shirts (modified from a track t-shirt: 1-800-2FAST4U), so they were
ordered; however, when they arrived, the Richland High School band directors thought it
would be funny to call the number only to find out IT WAS A PORN SITE!! Chaos ensued
(you had to be there!), but when all was said and done, the shirts were returned to Gandy
Ink and plan B was quickly executed!

In 2010, Melodianne made the move to Richland High School as associate director when Jason Bird moved into the head position. It was a treat to continue to teach the North Richland students plus those from North Ridge, as she wouldn’t have made the
move otherwise at age 50! At 10:30pm one night in the band office, after one of many, many musical rehearsals, she realized she was more conditioned to the middle school day which started and didn’t stop until it was over than the high school day with gaps, but evening marathons! She turned her three-year plan into two. After 29 years in the classroom, with 27 of those as a middle school band teacher, she retired at the end of the 2012 school year.

The last 14 years of “band-phase two” have been more rewarding than she ever imagined.
Melodianne is indebted to Christ and every director who invites her into their school day
each month to collaborate, all the while she’s channeling her father, Henry Schraub, Eddie Green, Bill Watson and Greg Hull, just to name a few! As she heads into year 44, she does so with much gratefulness and awe for our profession, and the energetic teaching she witnesses day to day in middle school band classes. Band family is simply the best!

Her inner circle of Fred Allen, David Brandon, and Jolette Wine are some of the best in the profession. Birdville ISD colleagues past and present, Priscilla Bell,
David Bertman, Susan Boldrighini, David Burks, Scott Dupre, Laurie Engelby, Donnie
Hull, Amanda McNeelege, Mike Pickrell, Anthony Rivera, Tony Smith, and Ramsey
McDonald are dear friends and master teachers! Melodianne is thankful to John Benzer,
Cindy Bulloch, Greg Dick, Dianne Gorzycki, Sharon Kalisek, Betty Pierce, Wade McDonald, Susan Scarborough, Gloria Ramirez, and Charlotte Royall for their friendship and contributions to her professional development! The best advice she ever received was from her father, who stated, “Don’t skip any instructional or procedural steps with beginners and the years to follow will be extremely enjoyable!”

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