Bill Fuller

Always in our thoughts and prayers

Had the great pleasure of accompanying Bill on Mozart and Weber concertos this past years with TCCO. His musicianship and beautiful tones highlighted his performances to the delight of the audiences. He paid me the best of complements by asking to join TCCO this upcoming season… Thank you, my friend! Rest!

I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Bill. He has always been such an encouragement to me as I navigated the music scene after moving to Madison. He will be greatly missed in the groups where we have played together and particularly in the clarinet section.

I will miss seeing Bill at the Capitol City Band and VFW Band. I was in awe of him every time he played solos. The world will miss a great guy.

I was a typical shy and scared middle-schooler who found a refuge, a community, and a purpose in Bill Fuller’s band room. Hanging out in the band room, Bill taught me more about how music was fun. He introduced me to the records of Allen Sherman, and as an adolescent I thought that was the height of comedy (I still may have one or two Allen Sherman LP’s and they invariably remind me of Bill). I also remember him telling stories of me attacking the maple saplings in his back yard (he used to live behind my Grandparents) when I was a little child. The story always involved the word, “waddling,” to describe my movements. I will always smile when I remember him. A band room is an alternate universe where students are often unrecognizable from who they are outside of it. The shy become confident. The agitated become calm. The lonely become included and find a home. I don’t know what I would have done during those difficult middle-school years without band and Bill Fuller.