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Donald I. Moore was born in Farnhamville, Iowa, on April 11, 1910. Of his elementary school days, he remembers having to line up every day going into the building to the tunes of marches played on the Victrola. His mother said she nearly went crazy with his everlasting “drumming” with sticks on anything flat in the house. So when he went to high school, she told the band director that he had to use him in his band. He graduated from North Des Moines (Iowa) High School; attended Drake University for one year; received his B. A. degree from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, in 1932, and his M. A. degree from Colorado State College of Education in 1940. After directing high school bands in Iowa at Charles City and Britt, he moved to Dallas, Texas, where he directed school bands and the all-city orchestra until he was named Director of Bands at Colorado State College of Education in January 1941. After service in the U. S. Navy from 1942 to 1945, he completed all of his residence work on an Ed. D. degree at the University of Michigan, and then went to New York City for a year as director of bands at both the Julliard School of Music and Columbia University. In September 1948, he became Director of Bands at Baylor University in Waco.

Dr. Moore was Professor of Music and is Director Emeritus of Bands at Baylor where he directed the bands from 1948 to 1969, during which time he became nationally recognized as a composer, conductor, clinician and adjudicator of bands throughout the United States. From 1969 to 1979 he taught orchestration, composition and conducting at Baylor while continuing to be active in band work as guest conductor and adjudicator.

During Dr. Moore’s direction, the Baylor Golden Wave Band became nationally famous, particularly in introducing new band music, some of which he wrote. Over thirty of his compositions have been published, and some of his concert marches are played by bands all over the world. Best known of these are Marcho Poco, Ides of March, Dawn of Peace, March Forth and Rise and Shine. In recent years, he has had several commissions to write or arrange instrumental music for church or religious programs and has written several anthems for choir.

He is a member of the American Bandmasters Association, former member of the College Band Directors National Association (which he served twice as President of the Southwest Division); Texas Bandmasters Association; Phi Mu Alpha; Phi Delta Kappa and Kappa Kappa Psi, National Honorary Band Fraternity. He was Grand President of Kappa Kappa Psi from 1955 to 1957. In 1969 he was given Kappa Kappa Psi’s highest honor, the Distinguished Service to Music Award. Since the early 50’s, Dr. Moore has been a strong advocate and instigator of the use of instruments in church worship and was the recipient of the first Christian Instrumental Directors Association “Director of the Year” award in March 1986.

During his tenure at Baylor and since, Dr. Moore has directed and judged bands in 23 states and Mexico. He conducted clinic rehearsals with many high school bands before contests, including an annual session with Durward Howard’s Temple High School Band, an association he will always cherish, especially the honor this fine band accorded him by playing an entire concert of his music upon his retirement from Baylor.

Don married Norma Greenwood December 24, 1939, in Dallas. Their daughter, Delia Dulce, was born in 1946, and a second daughter, Vicki Carol, was born 1953. The Moores have four grandchildren.