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A Columbia County Boy's Recollections and Memories of Columbia County Florida (2012) Lenvil H. Dicks

ALPHONSO LEVY

One of the most influential and most admired men in my life was a black man who most of the readers
will remember, because Alphonso Levy was an unbelievably talented musician, and taught in the Public
Schools for probably over 30 years.

He was a tremendous piano player and organist, as well as an outstanding vocal teacher.

Not only did Alphonso make his living by various positions in the music field in the Public Schools of
Columbia County, but for a few years he was also Principal at Niblack School, and he was also in great
demand for various social functions, banquets, and restaurants where live music was provided, and there
is probably not one person in Columbia County who was living in Lake City in the early 2000’s who did
not know who Alphonso Levy was.

He had a little band that played for a long lime at the Red Barn Restaurant south of Lake City, and he
welcomed me to just come in some time and join the group and play my trumpet, although I was not
paid to do it, but those were some of the most enjoyable times in my life, playing with Alphonso and his
group for people to listen and to dance to. I don’t recall in my musical life that I ever met a more
talented person than Alphonso Levy with a possible exception of Carl Roberts, my High School Band
Director, and Dr. Daniel Sternberg, Dean of the School of Music at Baylor University.

Alphonso, as I said was a black man, and he and 1 both grew up in the same time period where whites
and blacks had separate bathrooms they had to use, (and frequently there was no public bathroom
provided for the blacks,) segregated water fountains with a sign over the water fountain that had ice
water in it saying Whiles Only and another water fountain which was simply tap water with a sign
saying Blacks, or Negros. In addition to that, if you rode a Greyhound Bus they seated the whites from
the front of the bus and the blacks starting from the back, and this is the environment that Alphonso
grew up in. Incidentally he was only 2 !6 months older than I was having been born in 1928,1 believe in
the month of June or July, and 1 was born in September of that same year.

I have always been greatly impressed that a black boy growing up in those circumstances could have
had what it takes to become not only a good musician, but a fine musician and an exceptionally good
person. I never met a person who did not think highly of Alphonso Levy and who would not have liked
to be called his friend. I was honored in being his friend and he was many times an inspiration to me in
my study of music.

A lot of my readers will recall attending Christmas Performances of the Messiah at the Junior College,
which Alphonso Levy conducted and rehearsed, and I must say that Alphonso, by using amateur talent,
presented a performance of the Messiah which was at least equal to, or perhaps superior to the
performances of the Messiah that were performed when I was at Stetson University, performed by
University students. Alphonso had a knack of taking somebody with just ordinary talent, and in just a
short time change him to a professional type talent. He was just that kind of teacher, and as great as
person as I consider Alphonso to be, his wife, who also taught in the school system, was equally
outstanding to Alphonso.

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