John Henle
(1926-2020)
Inducted 2007
John Henle’s biggest contribution to the Minnesota music scene was his 33-year career as a music educator. John’s music education began as a fourth grader in New Ulm when he started trumpet lessons. In 6th grade he was placed in the high school band and had a solo at The DeSmet Conference Music Festival. In eighth grade he placed first in the WCCO radio Stairway to Stardom competition. While teaching music, Henle’s bands received 4-star ratings every year for more than three decades. John led the New Prague High School Band to the International Music Festival in 1988 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and won First Place honors. Former student musicians, now adults, fondly recall their instructor’s motivational and technical skills, along with his exacting “perfectionist” demeanor.
