Sigma Alpha Iota

Fall 2019 12 PAN PIPES MUSIC NOTES G ail Nelson Mickelson, a founding member of the Philadelphia Alumnae Chapter, passed away in March, one day shy of her 97 th birthday. Gail was initiated by the Alpha Omicron chapter at Occidental College in 1942. Her father, Myron F. Nelson, was the head of background animation for the Disney Studios in California, and after college, Gail worked as a music editor at Disney Studios, She was immortalized as Mr. Bluebird's whistle in Zip-a-dee-doo- dah in "The Song of the South," in 1946. Gail was a brilliant musician, sharing her talents generously. She married John Mickelson and they moved east, where she enjoyed teaching music at the Miquon School just outside Philadelphia. She served as president of the Philadelphia Alumnae Chapter three times and regularly participated in the service projects and other activities of the chapter. Over the years, Gail held every office except Treasurer. She was awarded the Sword of Honor, Rose of Honor, Rose of Dedication, Rose of Constancy, and 50-, 60-, and 70-year membership certificates. Gail Mickelson's smile beams at us from the pages of the Philadelphia Alumnae chapter's scrapbooks. And for all of us, her whistle warbles in Zip-a- dee-doo-dah. Member Noted for Disney Contribution Passes The University of Wisconsin-Parkside honored emerita music professor Frances E. Bedford at her 95th birthday celebration on campus on Saturday, September 14, at Bedford Concert Hall, which is named in her honor. Several of Professor Bedford's favorite musicians were invited to play a concert, which was free and open to the public. e audience was regaled by harp, violin, cello, accordion, and much more. Professor Bedford taught piano and harpsichord at UW-Parkside for 25 years, beginning in 1970. During those years, she also performed with the "Parkside Baroque Players" and with her son Monte, an oboist, in the "Bedford Duo." As a performer, she toured the Midwest and Europe extensively. She served as harpsichordist for symphonies in Racine, Kenosha, and Waukesha, as well as several others. To add to her impressive list of accomplishments, she also penned the definitive bibliography — some 600 pages — on harpsichord music and composers, entitled: Harpsichord and Clavichord Music of the 20th Century, spanning the period from 1902 to 1993. One reviewer referred to her book as "magisterial;" another wrote that it was invaluable to all students and lovers of harpsichord. It remains today an essential reference tool for those interested in this repertoire. roughout her career at UW-Parkside, Professor Bedford witnessed tremendous growth at the university that included the construction of the Rita Tallent Picken Regional Center for Arts and Humanities. anks to her generous and significant gi, the Music Department was finally to get its own acoustically designed performance space: the Frances Bedford Concert Hall, which opened in 2012. rough her example and generosity, she enacts the spirit of one of her favorite Latin phrase — Life is short; Art lasts forever. Professor Bedford has created an extraordinary legacy that both supports music students' education and offers the community an extraordinary venue in which to make music. Frances E. Bedford is an initiate of the Iota Lambda Chapter at the University of Missouri/Columbia and was affiliated with the Washington, DC Alumnae Chapter. —e University of Wisconsin-Parkside (www.uwp.edu) Frances Bedford's 95th Birthday Celebration Washington, DC Alumnae Chapter member Frances Bedford Philadelphia Alumnae Chapter founder Gail Nelson Mickelson

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