Acoustic Spotlight Archives

Marcia was raised in the small town of Sonora in the Gold Country of Northern California, not too far from Yosemite National Park. Her father worked for the utility company and her mother was a school bus driver. Many family members were musical. Marcia had an aunt who sang, her grandmother played flute and piccolo and her mother played cello.

However, in this tiny town of only 2,000 people, there were no music teachers. Therefore, in fifth grade, Marcia and her brother were sent to their grandmother in San Francisco for a summer of music lessons. Marcia was to learn flute and her brother was to continue practicing the trumpet he had taken up in school.

Her grandmother, who had begun playing piccolo at the age of four, was quite the taskmaster. Marcia recalls , “We had to practice an hour a day or we wouldn’t get our dinner. I remember thinking she was just so mean.” But Marcia quickly learned to love the flute and practiced diligently on her own, phoning her grandmother from time to time for help. Her first real performance came in fifth grade when Sonora hosted the largest parade in the county and bands came from all around. Marcia had “the cheapest flute in the world.” Her family simply had no money for instruments. She remembers her embarrassment when the flute constantly fell apart and she had to stick toilet paper in the joints to make them hold. Saving money for a new flute became a high priority.

Marcia Hall

Marcia got an unexpected big boost to her savings account when she was 15 years old in the form of an unusual job. Her mother, who loved to travel and was continuously thinking of creative ways to afford the trips, hired on for the summer as a bus driver at Mt. McKinley National Park in Alaska. Marcia and her thirteen -year-old sister went along. The three of them lived in “the world’s smallest pop-up camper,” a 5’ by 7’ trailer. Shortly after arrival in Alaska, the college kids hired to wash the tour buses were fired for imbibitionary indiscretion. Marcia and her sister were offered the job of washing the buses. Throughout high school, Marcia continued saving for her flute and later became the Sonora flute teacher while still in Junior College.

Marcia earned a degree in Music Education from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. It was then she realized she preferred to spend more time actually playing the flute herself. That opportunity came when she signed on to play in the Sixth Army Band stationed at The Presidio of San Francisco. In basic training Marcia was an expert marksman, outshooting the entire company of both men and women. She was named Soldier of the Cycle and was platoon leader. In the Sixth Army she was named Soldier of the Year for the Sixth U.S. Army and Soldier of the Month for The Presidio of San Francisco.

Marcia’s expert marksmanship undoubtedly came into play when she directed cupid’s arrow right on target to the heart of one Charlie Hall, French horn player in the Sixth Army Band. They were married during their Sixth Army days and lived on the Presidio overlooking the beautiful Golden Gate. Marcia fondly recalls watching the sun from the huge windows in their living room as it set over the water. Their love of beautiful places eventually brought Marcia and Charlie to Colorado Springs. After starting their family, the Halls realized they wanted to get away from San Francisco to a place more suitable for raising children. Colorado Springs won out after a search in many scenic locations in the country.

As platoon leader, Marcia surely could not have known how handy her training would be as she now efficiently manages varied and numerous activities with her family, her students, her church and her community. Marcia is mother to two exuberant teen-agers and one active ten-year-old. All are musical. Brandon, 15, plays the tuba. Katie, recently 13, plays flute and saxophone. She was elected to the Pikes Peak Honor Band and plays the school jazz band. Maria, 10, is learning to play the flute. The entire family loves to sing. Singing is a favorite pastime in the car as well. The kids often come to Marcia from an errand or short trip with Charlie wanting to perform their latest song complete with newly learned harmonies. The entire family also plays together, as we witnessed at a BRAS open stage last fall.

Marcia has recently “found her niche in life” and is extremely happy with her full schedule which is busy but not hectic. Five years ago when she felt the children were old enough to leave alone for brief periods, Marcia began teaching flute again. She has many students now and was thrilled when one earned first chair in the All-State Honor Band. Also, for the past two years, Marcia has been a much sought-after substitute teacher in Districts 38 and 20. Marcia loves the substitute rather than full-time teaching because it leaves enough time for her family, her hobby of sewing and her music. She and Charlie have been choir members at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church for eleven years where they play flute and guitar with the choir. She loves to play classical music and likes listening to Christian music, Bluegrass, gospel Bluegrass and most “reasonable” styles.

While Marcia is a serious musician, she does not take herself too seriously for there have been a few gaffes in performances at church. She attributes these musically-challenged moments mainly to Charlie’s “brilliance” as a musician. He sometimes forgets to take off his capo and since he plays easily in all keys he “is clueless” about the correct key, sometimes forgetting which key they practiced in. Marcia says such miscues are now a joke in the choir and no one is really surprised any more. But she would still like to have a sign that reads: “It’s the guitar!”

As a charter member of the Black Rose Acoustic Society, Marcia makes a valuable contribution each open stage by keeping the kitchen up and running with the help of Madonna Testerman, Tina Thomas and Jeri Vervalin. Some folks have suggested that the cookies, brownies and drinks could bring a higher price, but Marcia is adamant that the open stages remain affordable for families. Even so, the kitchen take has often been the difference between a profitable evening and not covering the costs of the event.

We BRAS members have a lot to thank Marcia for, for her consistent commitment and devotion to making BRAS the wonderful family-oriented place that it is. Thanks, Marcia. And thanks for the brownies!