CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - Yet another Sacramento Big Band leader has gone to the heavenly ensemble. Former Carmichael resident Hal Geist died of natural causes on May 29. The trumpet player was 81.

A celebration of his life will be held at La Sierra Community Center on Saturday, July 28. All are welcome to share memories and enjoy a performance by the Hal Geist Little Big Band. Downbeat is 1 pm.

A long-time booster of local music and a 26-year Carmichael Kiwanis Club member, Hal relocated to Santa Rosa in recent years to be near his wife’s family. “He always looked forward to his weekly Kiwanis Newsletter,” says Lynne Geist. “We often drove back to Carmichael for lunch with friends. He loved going to Noah’s Bagels for a chocolate chip muffin.”

Geist grew up on a Pennsylvania farm. At nine, he ditched piano for trumpet and was sent to practice in the barn. “His five brothers hated his practicing,” says his wife. “I guess the cows and horses were more tolerant.” During Korean War years, teenage Hal was often called on to play TAPS for fallen schoolmates. After graduation, he joined the US Marine Corps as a bandsman and served four years at Parris Island (SC). Corporal Geist played hundreds of parades, concerts and ceremonies. He first married at 19 years old and fathered two sons.

The ever-practical farm boy had a flair for math and engineering. After the military, he found heavy construction jobs in Long Island, NY. He later brought his skills to Northern California. As superintendent for several construction companies, Geist managed highway projects that included sections of I-5, US 101, US 207 and bridges in the Sierra and Cascade ranges.

He established Carmichael residency more than 40 years ago. He and his third wife met at the bank where she worked. “He was starting the River City Concert Band,” recalls Lynne Geist. “I’d studied flute in high school; Hal convinced me to get back into music.”

While active in local entertainment, Geist ran two air filtration businesses. He also restored classic cars and motorcycles. “My husband was always a farm boy at heart,” attests his wife. “He took country drives to see the livestock. He just loved animals and naturally, anything related to music put him in a good mood.”  

Beyond his own professional ensemble, Geist’s trumpet was a mainstay for Carmichael Kiwanis Big Band volunteers. He also led the Sacramento Valley Symphonic Band on Chinese and Australian tours. Travelling had its challenges: “Hal wouldn’t eat anything that looked strange to him,” recalls Lynne Geist. “He was a Pennsylvania boy who wanted meat, potatoes and corn. He adored any sort of pie. He was a patriot: he teared up for any good rendition of ‘Star Spangled Banner.’”

Geist once boasted a horn collection that included more than 200 trumpets. “Everywhere I travelled, I had to buy one,” he laughed. “I never had to hock a horn and I never had my horn taken from me. Of course,” he added modestly, “some people might have wanted to take my horn from me…”  

During his life, rock began an unstoppable conquest. As Elvis and the Beatles transformed dancing and musical culture, brassy dance ensembles gradually faded to nostalgic Americana. Though Geist and most of his bandleader contemporaries are now at rest, their names and commitment to musical excellence are legend.

Anyone may attend the Hal Geist memorial event on July 28. La Sierra Center is located at 5325 Engle Rd. Bequests in his name may be sent to Carmichael Kiwanis or the Sacramento SPCA.