Elmer Davis, longtime Booker T. Washington band director, remembered for generations of influence
TULSA, Okla. – For three decades, the sound and precision of the Booker T. Washington High Stepping T Connection Band were closely tied to one man: Elmer Lee Davis Jr. Davis led the Booker T. Washington High School band from 1973 to 2003, helping establish a musical tradition that became known well beyond Tulsa.
But former students and colleagues say his greatest impact was not simply the music he created. They remember Davis as a demanding teacher, mentor, father figure and community leader who pushed generations of students to work hard, understand their history and believe in themselves.
A band director who demanded excellence
Former Booker T. Washington vocal music teacher and assistant principal Janice Bayouth was friends with Davis for 51 years…