Jerold A. Sundet

Jerold A. Sundet Jerry, 82, died June 1 at Rosewood Nursing Home, Fargo. Jerry was born September. 5, 1922, to John and Marie Sundet, Crookston, Minn., where he grew up. He graduated from high school there in 1940.Jerry studied music at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., for one year before entering the U.S. Navy, where he served for nearly four years during W.W. II. Soon after he enlisted, he played baritone and alto saxophone with Gobs of Rhythm, a swing band stationed in Miami. Later, Jerry served in the Pacific Theater on a patrol craft. After the war, Jerry continued his education and graduated from the University of Minnesota at Moorhead then Moorhead State Teachers College with a Bachelor of Science in music education. He earned a Master of Arts in music from Pacific University, Forest Grove, Ore.; a Doctorate in music education from Northern Colorado University, Greeley, Colo.; and attended the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa. Jerry married Dolores L. "Dee" Strock on her family's farm near Ada, Minn., in 1953. He began his music teaching career at Blackduck, Minn. He also taught at Hawley, Minn., and Coral Gables, Fla. He was a woodwind specialist who played and taught clarinet, oboe, saxophone and flute. In 1956, they moved to Moorhead, where he began a 10-year career at the Campus School, an experimental elementary and high school affiliated with MSTC. As a dedicated band director at the Campus School, Jerry improved the quality of performance to such a degree that the senior band always won first place and top awards at regional competitions.In 1966, Jerry accepted a full professorship at Minot State University then Minot State College, Minot, N. Dak., where he taught music theory, music appreciation, music history and woodwind classes. During his tenure at Minot State he published numerous articles on woodwind techniques in national music journals. For 20 years, he was the conductor of the Minot Symphony Orchestra, which in 1966 had fewer than 30 musicians and 50-100 people in concert audiences. By 1971, the symphony had a full roster of musicians, concerts were drawing capacity crowds, and international guest artists were often featured. Jerry was always interested in developing his conducting and performance skills. He attended conducting symposiums across the country, studying with renowned conductors such as Hans Swarowsky, a former conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic and head of conducting classes at the Vienna Academy of Music. During his sabbatical leave between 1971 and 1972, Jerry and his family lived for nine months in a small English town outside London, where he did musical research and studied oboe with Leon Goosens and Lady Evelyn Barbirolli. In 1989, Jerry retired from MSU after nearly 40 years as a music educator. He and Dee deconstructed a 100-year-old log cabin near Gary, Minn., and reconstructed it on land they purchased near Velva, N.Dak. They spent free time there before Dee retired and the cabin was sold. They then built their dream home in the woods on Bad Medicine Lake in Minnesota, later moving to Crow Wing Lake, Minn., and then Deadshot Bay on Detroit Lakes, Minn., before moving to Fargo in 2003. Jerry and his wife enjoyed trips to Portugal, Mexico, Spain and France and around the U.S. and Canada. He was an avid reader of political history and biography. Until his health deteriorated, Jerry especially loved cigars, good bourbon and lively conversation. He will be remembered by family, friends and students as a man with a great sense of humor. Jerry is survived by his wife Dee, Fargo; daughter Rebecca Bruce Schoenwald, Fargo; son Mitchell Rosemary Reynolds, Austin, Texas; and grandchildren Sam Schoenwald and Isolde and Harry Sundet.The family prefers that memorials be sent to Rosewood on Broadway, 1351 Broadway, Fargo, ND, 58102.