New Ulm woman, 82, loving her job as executive director of Minnesota Music Hall of Fame
By Patricia Buchette
Bonnie Ubl of New Ulm wasn’t always a music aficionado with an appreciation for a large genre of music.
“It is the same old story, she said, “Mom scrapes the money together and do I practice? No, I can pick a little on the piano now, but now I love music of every type.”
However, Bonnie, who is 82 years old, and is current Executive Director of the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame in New Ulm, has come to appreciate a wide range of music. “I cut my teeth on traditional country music, such as Hank Williams.”
Her love of country western has branched out to many genres, evident as she tells the story of her involvement with the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame.
“I was born and raised here in New Ulm. My husband had a construction business here. He was given the opportunity in 1981 to go to work as a project manager for an architectural firm.”
They left for Colorado and then California, and then traveled to the East Coast where there were projects on churches.
“So back and forth we went,” she said. “We got back to California and decided, “Let’s retire and go back home.”
They returned to New Ulm in 2009. She worked as a tour person with the Music Hall of Fame for 10 years, from 2010 to 2020. “When the executive director resigned, the board asked if I would like to step in and take her place,” she said.
“I said I don’t know if I’m capable of doing that and they said, ‘You know, you have been assisting her all this time doing the same things and you would be a good fit.’ That happened in 2020. I had been assistant director as well as a tour person and so I moved seamlessly into the new position.”
The formation of the Hall of Fame kind of started in the 1980s.
“Our president, Dayle Besmer, was on the road and I think he saw a sign and had a revelation,” she said. “It occurred to him, ‘Why can’t New Ulm do a Polka Hall of Fame?’ He talked to people who were in the music business and they said, ‘Yes, but does it have to be New Ulm because we will run out of names’.”
They decided to form a group and when they had sufficient funds and ideas, they would go ahead. “It was in 1988 and in 1989 when they had enough money, they had initial contacts needed, and they set up a board,” Bonnie said.
After a first meeting was held, the supermarket opened up their lunch corner for the first location. “For ten years everything was in that corner. In 1999 we were able to move into the present location, the former site of the Minnesota Historical Society and Brown County Museum. They moved across the street on the corner to the old New Ulm Post Office,” Bonnie said.
Bonnie is quick to share praise for the Hall of Fame’s success. “John Kass, my front end man is just wonderful. He knows the music and he is so good with people,” she said. “I do more of the business end such as the induction ceremony when new inductees are honored” she said. “I put all that together, but not without a good front end person . . . that is a very important spot up there. John knows so much about the business, he can answer any questions.”
Connie also praises the many volunteers who help out at the Hall of Fame.
“We could not function without our volunteers,” she said.
Bonnie’s special volunteer is her husband, Jerry Ubl, a board member and arranger of the displays.
“We received a grant from the Carl and Verna Schmidt Foundation out of Rochester. We were able to purchase very nice showcases and so now everything matches.”
The Ubls have three adult children, Julie of Clayton, North Carolina; Dan of Raleigh, North Carolina, and James in Las Vegas, Nevada. James, a music compilator, seems to be the only one with a connection to music.
Bonnie has had many fun days at the museum. She recalled one memorable one that happened when she was doing the tours.
“There was a gentleman from Germany who visited,” Bonnie said “He ran a museum and each day when I came to work he would be outside waiting. He spent four hours in the museum just looking, He said he was going to take ideas back to Germany. I can’t believe the places some of our visitors come from. I look at the book, and think “Oh my gosh... I wonder, how they knew about us... probably on the Internet.”
An important part of the yearly tasks by the Hall of Fame is the choice of inductees. Bonnie helps in that process.
“There are 13 people on the board and each puts in about 10 names,” she said. “In September that is 130 to consider. Every month we narrow down, narrow down until the last month we narrow it down to 10, and then we choose five.”
When a nomination comes in, and they are not inducted, the nomination is not thrown away. It is in their database and every year it is considered again. It may be awarded the next year.”
“We like it when a nominee is awarded when they are alive,” Bonnie said. “However, this past year we inducted Friedrich ‘Fritz’ Reuter, professor, composer, organist, and conductor at Martin Luther College (MLC) in New Ulm, who died in 1926.”
Bonnie remembered the impressive octet of MLC students who sang one of Dr. Reuter’s compositions at his induction. His granddaughter accepted his award.
One memorable ceremony involved the induction of the group The Replacements, an alternative rock band that was popular in the 1980s. “I can remember my kids listening to it and thinking, ‘Oh my God, turn that off.’”
“The group was nominated and chosen. I got a letter with a check from Maryland and they wanted to see The Replacements. I thought . . . You are coming all the way from Maryland? Half of the members of the band were dead. There was another letter from Detroit; a couple also planning to come. They did not know each other.”
When they arrived at the induction event, the two couples were directed to The Replacements table. None of The Replacements that were alive stepped up to accept the award.
“We put these people, strangers to one another – at the same table and we let them go up and accept the award. They were just so humbled to accept the award and said, ‘I cannot believe you are doing this for us.’ I thought of them coming all this way. We try to accommodate.”
Bonnie has added an element of efficiency she brings to the Hall of Fame. Now when attendees order tickets, they are asked if there is an artist important to them, and they are escorted to the appropriate table.
“A well-known inductee is Harold Loeffelmacher of “The Six Fat Dutchman” fame. Harold was on the Lawrence Welk show and Lawrence said to him, ‘Where do you get all your concertina players from, and he said, ‘Oh, in New Ulm, they are a dime a dozen!’ That was on national television!” Bonnie exclaimed!
Bonnie, and rest of the crew, do their best to make the ceremonies special.
“I arranged for a special carpet, so when they walk up, they are walking on a red carpet. I always say it is New Ulm’s Academy Award,” she said.
After 14 years with the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame, Bonnie reported that while she still likes traditional country best, she listens to all music. “You have to get an idea of what is out in the world,” she said. “If you limit your genre you will be in a little shell and you won’t appreciate anything. Music to me is a world-wide language.”
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