By Dr. Cynthia Carrell, retired associate professor of music
Years ago, when interviewing my collegiate mentor for an article, I asked what was the most important thing he strove to accomplish in his teaching, and he answered with a profound statement that changed my outlook on teaching. He said: “My job is to help students to become better people. Music is simply what brought us together.”
While earning a degree and beginning a career is what motivates most people to attend college, students sometimes find an academic or career mentor during their studies, but few find mentors who fully embody the ideal of the above statement. It is even more rare to find the type of life and faith mentor, friend and “family” that is possible at Harding. This sort of relationship is exemplified by Dr. Mike Chance and his students who developed life-long relationships based upon their faith and brought together by their love of music.
Dr. Mike Chance served as director of bands and orchestra from 1996-2019. Earning music degrees from Lubbock Christian University, Midwestern State University and the University of Memphis, he has had a long career as a band director in Texas high schools and as trombonist and conductor for several regional and professional groups. Chance recently stepped down as associate conductor of the Little Rock Wind Symphony, but he continues teaching, conducting and adjudicating in the region. He and his wife, Carla, also a life-long musician, live in Searcy.
Dr. Tony Garcia, a lieutenant in the United States Navy, currently serves as director of Navy Band Northeast in Newport, Rhode Island. Born and raised in Austin, Texas, he graduated from Harding in 2004 and earned graduate music degrees at the University of Memphis and Rutgers University. In 2004, Garcia was a finalist in the Marstellar Competition of the International Trombone Festival in Ithaca, New York. In his naval career, he has served with six different Navy bands in 23 countries, “helping to bring music and connection to people on five different continents.” He has also performed with other fine organizations, including the Jacksonville Symphony, the Hawai’i Symphony, the “pit” orchestra of the second National Tour of “Little Women,” and as a showband musician on Carnival Cruise Lines one summer. In addition, Garcia has been a freelance musician and teacher and is proud of his work at the well-known Dillon Music store in Woodbridge, New Jersey. He currently lives in Bristol, Rhode Island with his wife, Ashley (‘05) and daughter, Evie.
Austin Westjohn grew up in Conway, Arkansas, and plays trombone with The United States Army Band, “Pershing’s Own,” in Washington, D.C., while also serving as principal trombonist with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra. After graduating from Harding in 2016, he earned a Master of Music from Baylor University. Among his accomplishments, he was a two-time finalist for the International Trombone Association’s Marsteller Solo Competition in 2016 and 2017. As a member of “Pershing’s Own,” he has had a number of high-profile performance opportunities, notably the state funeral services for former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter, the National Christmas Tree Lighting, PBS Broadcasts of “A Capitol Fourth,” Army Band Herald Trumpets performance at the White House Truman Balcony, the 2023 Veteran’s Day Parade in New York, as well as concerts and ceremonies at the U.S. Capitol, the White House, the National Harbor, the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery. As a civilian, he has performed with numerous regional and professional orchestras, including the National Symphony, Kennedy Center Opera Orchestra, American Pops, National Philharmonic, Harrisburg Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Maryland Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Waco Symphony, and the Arkansas Symphony. Westjohn is also proud of having performed the National Anthem for both Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia Phillies games and continues to present solo recitals and masterclasses across the country. He lives in Fairfax, Virginia, with his wife, Savanna Jackson ('16), and daughter, Vivian.
WHAT BROUGHT YOU to HARDING?
TONY: I knew I wanted to go to a Christian school for my undergraduate degree, so I looked at various music programs and decided on Harding. My family moved to Arkansas so I could work toward a state-sponsored scholarship. I then spent my senior year of high school performing with various Harding bands.
AUSTIN: My parents and grandparents are Harding alumni, but I didn’t choose HU just because of my family history. Although it was certainly on my radar as I grew up, going to basketball and football games on campus and attending Honors Symposium as a junior in high school, as a senior in high school, I was torn about what to do for college. I knew that I wanted to pursue the trombone and study music, and for that reason, I was also strongly considering and auditioning at another university in the state with a well-known music program. When I first met Dr. Chance during a visit he made to my high school, I forwardly asked him, “Have you had any students who have gone on to play the trombone professionally?” He then pointed out one who he had taught several years prior named Tony Garcia, and he encouraged me to reach out to him. Tony and I have been good friends ever since. He was a huge encouragement, and he gave me a lot of great advice as someone that had gone before me. After a lot of prayer and reflection, I made the decision to attend Harding.
MIKE: My job as band director at Harding was the catalyst that brought us to Harding. I can look back over my career and truthfully say it has been a wonderful life. God led me down paths I could never have created on my own, and it is increasingly clear in my mind the people in my family, the church and the professional world who guided, helped, sometimes opposed, intervened at critical moments and facilitated my success. Life is holistic — all things connect in some way, and home is where it all begins. All things connect in some way, and I have tried to communicate this perspective to my students: “No one succeeds alone.”
Describe the impact of Harding and Dr. Chance upon your musicianship, your career and your life.
TONY: Dr. Chance took a chance on me (pun intended!) and took me under his wing as soon as I got to Searcy. He always emphasized making music with whatever I was studying. One of the best things was that he let me in on the secret that the whole person is what is important in everything: your character and how you treat others. He held me to high standards and pushed me but then got out of my way when I needed more help than what he could offer. Chance was there for me, almost as a father figure, when I was struggling with the curveballs of life. There are too many other faculty to name, but great people create great people through example, and I was surrounded by them at Harding. While liberal arts universities are designed to teach a well-rounded array of subjects, Harding takes it to another level by teaching that compassion for your fellow human and a moral compass matter as well, and that can lead to the development of great people.
AUSTIN: Dr. Chance was a huge mentor for me. He encouraged me to become my own musician, to cultivate my own voice on the instrument and to put thought into how I wanted to make music. He was a huge proponent of playing with a purpose and a musical goal in mind. Something that I really appreciated about Dr. Chance was his humility. He showed us that there was always more to learn, and he modeled that by taking students to various educational experiences that would help us grow as musicians. He was supportive of every opportunity I pursued and always made himself available. One of the things that makes the Harding experience special is the faculty invest in students, not just academically or musically, but spiritually as well. I remember many times sitting in Dr. Chance’s office, talking with him for hours about life. He always had a listening ear, and I try to do the same for others. Harding was where I really learned that we can live out our mission through any vocation — whether in ministry, health care, teaching, business or even playing music for a living. We can bring the kingdom of God into our workplace when we look to the needs of others and seek to love and serve them as Jesus would.
MIKE: The success of these two men is not surprising to me. It is a thrill to see and hear them now as professionals with impressive, ongoing careers. It is equally gratifying to see them as family men, influencing the world around them in a wholesome way. One of the joys, and a standout characteristic, of a place like Harding is the opportunity to work with highly motivated students in our programs, and that motivation often trumps all other factors in achieving success. I am very proud of so many former students, but these guys stood out with their laser focus on professional performance careers, a field that is highly demanding. I recall long, probing conversations after hours in the office or riding in the car, about life, career paths, God’s plan for their lives and more. The intense lessons, working together and the long discussions remain especially meaningful to me. At the same time, Tony and Austin were regular guys who laughed, rough-housed and were no strangers to the center of the party! In their years after Harding, each has made themselves available to talk to serious recruits, assuring them of what they will find her and how to navigate the very big world beyond.
How have your music studies shaped you as a better person, a Christian and a light to the world?
TONY: Music is a collaborative art form, and the skills required for development as a musician translate well to connecting with other people. You can extend that idea and learn to put yourself in other people’s shoes. It is this connection, this empathy, that can have a great impact on those around you. You build rapport and trust, opening pathways of communication that allow people to see who you really are and to be an example of what is good.
AUSTIN: One of my favorite aspects of living near the [U.S.] capital is the diversity of people and cultures to be found. The varied perspectives have provided me with a real opportunity to expand my horizons, to develop deep relationships with others from different walks of life, and to witness to people that I might not have otherwise come across. It has challenged me, and I’m certainly a better listener and a more compassionate person for it. As far as studying music, the amount of practicing required to reach the professional level is quite immense; it requires a lot of discipline and resilience. As a result, many musicians put their whole identity into their craft, with one bad performance feeling like the end of their world. Having an identity not rooted in career success but in faith in God is rare. I believe this provides an opportunity to have meaningful conversations as we all share the love of the gift of music, but there is danger there if we love the gift more than the giver himself.
MIKE: The great composer and music critic Hector Berlioz, in his Treatise on Instrumentation (1844), described the trombone as the instrument that can “chant like a priest or roar like thunder,” and as a trombonist, I have felt the profound emotions generated by those kinds of sounds. I believe the capacity to connect with our intellectual and emotional self is a universal and healthy God-given mark of our humanity. Music is a natural and powerful conduit for that connection. The opportunity to help people connect with themselves and others, whether through their own acquired performance ability or the developed capacity to be moved by hearing music, is a noble cause. I have a sense of peace and satisfaction after a lifetime of sharing with our community and state in this way. I hope my students grasp those opportunities and find their own sense of fulfillment as well. On another level, teaching music has allowed me the wonderful opportunity to interact with students one at a time, face to face, in the development of a highly individual set of skills. In that intimate setting, personality, authenticity, trust, morality and even frailty cannot be hidden.
What would you like to tell current and future Harding students about their studies and life to follow?
TONY:
AUSTIN:
MIKE: “Not all that glitters is gold,” wrote Shakespeare in his Merchant of Venice, and the sage spoke truthfully. So, let’s skip the glitter. The best education exposes the student to a worldview that is truthful. The best education occurs between a real learner and a real mentor. The best education requires and motivates the student to practice self-discipline and to continue to learn on his own. At Harding, your teacher knows your name, cares what happens to you, and feels his role in your life. Can Harding University help you? Just ask Tony or Austin!
What about military music careers?
AUSTIN: Music is a universal language; it can transcend cultural barriers, and it’s powerful. As a musician in the military, I’ve experienced just how powerful music really can be. I can think of ceremonies where we have played our national anthem followed by that of another country and have observed leaders of both countries showing honor and respect for the other. I watched the casket of former presidents being carried up the U.S. Capitol steps while playing a hymn for musical support. Such experiences as these are meaningful and formational. And while being able to do something I enjoy for a living is a privilege, being able to serve my country while doing so is a great honor. So don’t discount a career in military music or let anyone tell you that playing an instrument can’t take you places!
TONY: Art for art’s sake is wonderful. But I have personally found a purpose putting my music to work for the country, and I like that even better. My job is to connect with people using the power of music. There are performing jobs available! Look into them! Most service branches have multiple performing bands, and for the most part, they are hiring. I won’t lie to you. I did NOT care for bootcamp. But I now have a full-time job with health benefits, college loan repayment, education benefits for my daughter and a pension plan that makes it difficult for any civilian job to compete with it. I’ve lived in Italy and in Hawaii, and while not everyone [in the military] can say that, it has certainly worked out well for me. If you want to know anything about serving in the regional or fleet bands, reach out to me and I’ll give you the truth. To non-musicians: There is just about any job you could want available in the armed services, and the benefits are tremendous.
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