A legendary figure among Mississippi band
directors, George Henry Schultz, touched and enriched
the lives of thousands of young people in the fifty one
years since his graduation from Millsaps College.
Schultz was born on a farm in Rankin County,
Mississippi, in 1912. he attended Pisgah High School and
graduated from Madison County A.H.S. He completed
premedical training along with preparation in violin,
chorus, and band, and received his B.S. in Chemistry and
Geology from Millsaps College in 1937.
After a year in marketing Schultz started
the band in Taylorsville, where he spent two productive
years. He married Hazel Johnson and moved to
Philadelphia for two years. The band there grew and did
very well under his direction, receiving their superior
at the State Festival. After three years as band
director at Brandon High School, Schultz moved to Tupelo
and turned the band there into an effective musical
organization which was held in high esteem by the
adjudicators who came to judge the State Band Festival
each spring.
His twelve years as band director at
Tupelo High were followed by fifteen years as founder
and owner of the Schultz Band Wagon Music Store. Perhaps
his greatest contributions to the band movement were
during this time, as he provided many clinics and other
help for the bands of Northeast Mississippi. Schultz
even directed the band at Amory for a year when they
lost their director, and it looked like the band might
fold. He also helped many get started during this time.
The “Outstanding Band Director’s Award for Northeast
Mississippi” is named in his honor, as testimony to his
impact on the bands of this area.
